Is reliability more about maintenance than engineering?

[ohio_peasant]

Originally Posted by TheGrandK-Man

On that last point: It's because it's so damn expensive to live here! We may be the "land of the free", but are we really free? $Thousands per year in vehicle and real estate taxes. Landlords jacking up rents for people who don't own their homes, etc. So owning a 10-15year old Lexus or BMW beater is the only way for lots of us to own a high-end car.

I doubt that the average person's purchasing-power in places like Brazil or Bulgaria is higher than it is, in the US. The difference is, that a Brazilian or Bulgarian of comparable material wherewithal would not indulge in a high-end car purchase.

Not to swerve too far off-topic, but in America, it may be expensive to get higher-education, or healthcare; but overall cost of living is quite low.

[BellaLind]

Thanks for the answers! I think that this further cements the Chevy Cruze as my car of choice when and if my old car ever dies. The Cruze gets high reliability ratings and has everything that I want to car. Mazda 3 is choice #2. I like the BMW a lot, but at the end of the day, I mainly want reliability and both the Cruze and the Mazda do well on safety too. For me, reliable is part of safety.

[silverkris]

Originally Posted by TheGrandK-Man

On that last point: It's because it's so damn expensive to live here! We may be the "land of the free", but are we really free? $Thousands per year in vehicle and real estate taxes. Landlords jacking up rents for people who don't own their homes, etc. So owning a 10-15year old Lexus or BMW beater is the only way for lots of us to own a high-end car.

Well, in the US, private cars, relatively speaking, are less costly to purchase, run and maintain than most other countries around the world. Our taxes and licensing fees are much less than in many countries.

Case in point: In Singapore, they levy a high import tax, and make you bid for a license (Certificate of Entitlement) when you buy a car. Annual license fees, and a road toll on top of that makes for car ownership to be about 3x what it costs in the US.