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Who makes the most reliable new cars?

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Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#271

Post by solardev »

unfocused wrote: post #223
willis936 wrote: post #208

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The message is clear: steer clear of Subaru if you want a reliable engine.

Would you say this is still true? I’m about to receive the 2023 Subaru Forester. It seems like it has good reliability from all the reviews.

After they fixed the head gasket issues of the 2000s or so, they seem to be fine? My partner, myself, most of my friends, and may of my coworkers, and much of my town drives them. They're insanely popular in outdoorsy and snowy areas. The article scores them decently high in reliability too.

I'd never get a WRX though.

Build quality and ride comfort though, not so much. They're rough and tumble machines, not luxury sedans (well, the Legacy is nice enough, not seems silly to get that over a Toyota).

Speaking of Toyota, they own part of Subaru anyway and have collaborated with them on a few dual-branded vehicles.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#272

Post by intermerda »

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…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_War

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#273

Post by thephyber »

paxys wrote: post #240
andrewxdiamond wrote: post #237

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The parent commenter is calling out a bias inherit to the study.

What is the bias?

The first 3 years of a new car are almost always covered under manufacturer warranty, hence manufacturers have a strong financial incentive to minimize issues in that time interval.

A less biased review would also include years 3-7 at least, but perhaps up to 10.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#274

Post by A_D_E_P_T »

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.

Yeah. I honestly don't know if I'd trade my 2006 Saab 9-3 Aero for a 2023 anything. No trouble, no nonsense, it's fast enough, it doesn't nag at me if I drive around the block without my seatbelt, and minor repairs are rarely more than $100.

A few years back, I had a late model Mercedes GLS, and the damn thing was in the shop almost every other month, and each time it was at least $300-400. Mostly it was electronic components that were at fault; an error in the anti-theft system which cost me $2000 was too much to bear, and I sold the car at a loss...

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#275

Post by nradov »

ajross wrote: post #144
kspacewalk2 wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd hold off on declaring that the EV boat has departed. It remains to be seen at what level EV uptake will plateau, without major advances in battery tech and EV practicality. Coming from a rather nippy Canadian city which bought a bunch of electric buses, fucked up badly[0] and probably made purchasing more electric buses an untenable proposition for (conservatively) 5-7 years, and having heard from multiple EV own…

Not interested in EV flamery. My point was economic: clearly EVs are a very large new market segment, and Japanese brands aren't competing there at all. That's bad, if your business is to sell cars. It's really bad if you have a sub-brand, like "Hybrids", which has been completely decimated by the (again very real, even if you don't think anyone in Edmonton should buy them) move to electric devices in the market. Bas…

Hybrid vehicle sales continue to grow. They have hardly been "decimated".

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#276

Post by sokoloff »

JonathonW wrote: post #182
rwmj wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One thing I never understood is why hybrids have the 12 volt battery at all. Couldn't the entertainment system etc be powered from the 200V EV battery (after stepping it down obviously)?

Everything on the 12V system essentially is powered from the traction battery (the big one that can power the motors), once the car is turned on. In Toyota, at least, the traction battery is completely disconnected (via a relay) when the car is off. The 12V battery is needed to power anything on the 12V system up until the car starts-- that includes the car's computer, which is what (after doing all its self-checks a…

Some EVs will monitor the 12V battery and periodically connect the traction battery to the DC-DC converter to maintain the 12V battery when the car is parked for an extended period of time. (On the older Smart EVs, this doesn’t have a limit, so the traction battery will kill itself trying to maintain a weak 12V battery. There’s a firmware patch for it.)

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#278

Post by gjsman-1000 »

AmVess wrote: post #230
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…

Keep the 4Runner and buy something new for a family hauler. New vehicles are much safer from a structural standpoint than older ones. Modern high strength steels form the safety cage of the vehicle, and greatly reduce the risk of injury in offset frontal impacts, side impacts, and rear impacts. And then you have the multitudes of air bags. Finally, the various electronic gizmos that further reduce risk of injury. The…

> Finally, the various electronic gizmos that further reduce risk of injury.

Combined with the various electronic gizmos and infotainment systems that further increase the risk of injury. :)

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#279

Post by kelipso »

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.

They only measure 3 year reliability, and BMWs are well known to reliably go to shit after 3 years.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#280

Post by pjmorris »

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.

Anecdata to your point:

1. In the world of Honda S2000's, all other things being equal the 2004-05 models command a premium over the 00-03 and 06-09 model years.

2. My wife (2022 Prius) sighs when she sees how attached I am to my 2008 CR-V. It has 220K miles and I'd be happy to drive it another 220K.

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