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Who makes the most reliable new cars?

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Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#261

Post by tzs »

toastercat wrote: post #76
nonethewiser wrote: post #12

Lexus is toyota. Accura is honda. So it’s really like: 1. Toyota 2. Mini 3. Honda 4. Subaru 5. Mazda Congratulations Japan.

Been driving the same car for almost 17 years now (2005 Honda Civic LX) and still going strong. Fine piece of engineering. Thanks Honda! My family has sworn by Japanese cars since I was a kid, with most of us buying exclusively Honda or Toyota (incl their luxury lines, Acura/Lexus).

As a person who is both tall and fat, I've been astounded by Japanese cars. By "tall" I don't mean basketball player tall. I just mean around maybe 85 or 90th percentile tall for US men, about 6'1" (73 inches or 185 cm).

When my Nissan Sentra got totaled by a drunk driver I looked at all the similar cars from both American and Japanese companies. The first thing I noticed was that the Japanese cars were comfortable--I had plenty of leg room, by head didn't hit the roof, the seats weren't too narrow, and the steering wheel wasn't too close.

The American cars were all more cramped. And I don't mean cramped just in ways that I could fix if I would have just got my act together and lost weight. No, they were also cramped because I was too tall for them.

I even took a look at American mid-sized cars and they too were apparently not meant for people over 6 ft.

It was kind of funny. The Japanese are a relatively small people. I'd be around 97th percentile on height there. So how come they are so much better at making cars that accommodate tall people?

Anyway, I ended up with a Honda Civic. 11 years later it developed a problem that my local dealer (Seattle Honda) just could not reproduce or diagnose from my description and it was again time for a new car. (From later discussion on a car forum on the net, it seems like the problem was a bad ECU).

That was around when SUVs were getting really popular, and I decided to have a look. Again, Japan for the win. Even though the American SUVs I looked at were overall much bigger cars than the Honda CR-V, only the CR-V had the head and leg room I needed.

I ended up with a CR-V. That worked so well that when that lease was up I leased another, and then another when that lease was up. Then I remembered that I had only leased that first one so that if I didn't like the form factor it would be easy to switch back to a sedan, and so when that third lease was up bought a new 2006 CR-V and still drive that now.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#262

Post by laurencerowe »

jmyeet wrote: post #217

You should be asking "What do terrorists and militants use?". Seriously. Look anywhere at any established militant or terrorist group and you'll see common tools. Some examples spring to mind: 1. Toyota Hilux trucks. Interestingly, for a combination of legislative reasons, you can't buy these in the US; But they are incredibly reliable. 2. AK-47 rifles. These are perhaps one of the most influential weapon systems in…

> 3. Casio digital watches. These are used as timers for improvised explosives but again, they're incredibly reliable. And cheap.

While the watches themselves last forever I find that the strap or loop breaks pretty quickly at which point the cheapest option seem to be buying a whole new watch.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#263

Post by jacquesm »

dclowd9901 wrote: post #178
whatever1 wrote: post #171

No way BMW is that high. I literally saw the past 2-3 weeks two X7s and an X5 stranded on the highway, on my way to work. I remember because I was joking yesterday with my partner that we should never buy a Beamer.

Anecdata. But as a long time BMW fan I too feel the cars have really taken a nosedive in just about every metric. Reliability, design, quality, you name it. Very surprised to also see Mini as high as it is.

What I've seen with friends who drive BMW and with the Mini that the business leased for an employee: the engines are reliable, bodywork and interior is ok, electronics gizmos are unreliable and required multiple updates for various problems. One friend's very fancy 5 series was more in the shop than that he drove it to the point that he got attached to the loaner.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#264

Post by chiefalchemist »

omginternets wrote: post #34

Does this account for driving habits? I’ve just purchased a Subaru WRX, and I can’t fight the feeling that the reliability score is in some way influenced by the hoards of idiots that flock to this car for its tuning and hooning potential.

I had a WRX into the late 2000s before it got totaled parked in front of the house. At the time, it had 130,000+ miles (mostly highway miles) and it felt like it had *at least* 2 or 3 more solid years in it. Even the clutch feel fine. What I got from the insurance company didn't come close to the value of that car to me.

I replaced it with a KIA Soul. At the time, the price / value made sense. It was an unplanned expense and I just didn't have time to shop around. It's was buy or die! :) The Soul is still going but it's been it the shop for various issues much more than the WRX ever was.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#265

Post by [deleted] »

jmyeet wrote: post #217

You should be asking "What do terrorists and militants use?". Seriously. Look anywhere at any established militant or terrorist group and you'll see common tools. Some examples spring to mind: 1. Toyota Hilux trucks. Interestingly, for a combination of legislative reasons, you can't buy these in the US; But they are incredibly reliable. 2. AK-47 rifles. These are perhaps one of the most influential weapon systems in…

[deleted]

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#267

Post by nerdponx »

webel0 wrote: post #232
sharkweek wrote: post #213

My 3rd Gen Toyota 4Runner is old enough to drink and outside of routine maintenance requires almost no thought. "It's time to get a new car" given that car safety has drastically improved and I have two younger kids in that thing a few times a week but I'm honestly having a really hard time giving it up, something so reliable and plainly functional. New cars with all their computers and smart technology only look lik…

Yes, I keep on thinking that a premium market will develop for Toyota and Honda cars from roughly ~2006-2010. Those cars were the height of internal combustion technology without all of the electronics.

I think that market has already developed. Look at prices for used cars from that time period.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#269

Post by S201 »

bluemax wrote: post #154
Tactical45 wrote: post #53

I wonder if hybrid being more reliable than gasoline cars is simply a function of most of those being Toyota, versus any effect stemming from the car being Hybrid.

My Toyota hybrid reliably does not start after 4 weeks not driving. The 12 volt (1 year old) battery is drained too much after such a period of inactivity. I was not expecting this from Toyota, pretty disappointing.

Is it the stock battery or after-market? Even if you bought it one year ago, when was it filled with acid? Many auto parts stores sell sealed lead-acid batteries as "new" when they've been sitting on the shelf for a year and the clock starts ticking when the acid goes in. You can get higher quality AGM batteries that will last far longer, but know they are quite expensive. Alternatively, you have a parasitic battery drain going on with your car.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#270

Post by washadjeffmad »

whatever1 wrote: post #171

No way BMW is that high. I literally saw the past 2-3 weeks two X7s and an X5 stranded on the highway, on my way to work. I remember because I was joking yesterday with my partner that we should never buy a Beamer.

There's no IQ test to afford a Beemer. The things I did to my 323i I would never dream of doing to my Toyota (and guess which one has lasted 20 years).
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