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Who makes the most reliable new cars?

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Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#601

Post by TrueSlacker0 »

SkyPuncher wrote: post #346
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…

FWIW, the computers don’t tend to break. The things that do break are essentially the same as they were 20 years ago. The bells and whistles are mostly for creatures comfort. The mechanical components haven’t changed much. The only thing that I couldn’t fix on my own in my 2020 vs my 2006 was re-alignment of lane keep system after replacing the windshield.

"The only thing that I couldn’t fix on my own in my 2020 vs my 2006 was re-alignment of lane keep system after replacing the windshield. "

That car isn't old enough for anything to be breaking yet. It's barely 4 years old. In a 2006 so many basic simple things break like the clip to hold down the center console, the knob on the AC control. Not to mention the suspension, fan on the blower, belts, power window on at least 1 window. And you expect that touchscreen and software to make it?

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#602

Post by crazyjncsu »

bastawhiz wrote: post #548
riku_iki wrote: post #475

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought hybrid powertrains are simpler and more reliable in long run, so prius should be #1.

I'm genuinely curious how that would be true. Doesn't a hybrid have ~all of the parts of an ICE vehicle and ~all of the parts of an EV? Wouldn't that mean it can fail in far more ways?

That’s what I thought too, but it’s not the case.

The transmission of a traditional ICE vehicle is a component commonly prone to failure due to reliance on clutches, friction couplings, gear engagements, etc.

Hybrids replace this transmission with one composed of two electric motors and planetary gear sets. One or both of the motors also act as generators. It’s complex, but the highly variable speed of the output shaft is managed almost purely by torque splitting of the planetary gear sets along with routing of electrical energy within the system— no clutches or gear disengaging/reengaging.

And the ICE engine itself has an easier time (often Atkinson cycle) because the electric motors can provide much of the responsiveness to immediate power demands, allowing the ICE to operate in a much less stressful power band.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#603

Post by calamari4065 »

Zuiii wrote: post #551
calamari4065 wrote: post #416

I've had a regrettably excellent experience with my 2015 Mazda. Easily the most reliable machine I've owned. Which is unfortunate because it's a soulless, joyless shitbox and I hate it. It just starts every single time, but it's not fun to drive. I see dozens of the exact same model on the road every day and they're all boring. The interior is fine, the handling is pretty good, the power is fine, fuel economy is fine…

Isn't mazda that shitty company that thinks it can take legal action against you for doing things with your own car? Edit: Yep, it is[1]. No thanks. 1: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37921584

I don't know if you know this, but buying a ten year old used car from a third party does not, in fact, support the manufacturer in any way.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#604

Post by fomine3 »

digdugdirk wrote: post #555
orwin wrote: post #546

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a US thing, pedestrian safety continued to improve in France (mainly caused by infrastructure improvements), but we are starting to have the same sized cars, with the same issues)

I've always understood the US's giant car problem was an unintended consequence of the CAFE fuel efficiency legislation, why is Europe getting caught up in the giant car fad? I'd imagine that'd be much more obvious of a terrible idea when the streets are half the size.

Even if local roads aren't getting bigger, cars getting bigger due to it's international product. Here in Japan, thankfully there are narrower JDMs available on some category, but for who want a modern expensive SUV, there are only international big SUVs.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#605

Post by BeetleB »

solardev wrote: post #281
jerlam wrote: post #77

This article seems quite similar to the one posted two days ago on HN about Brother printers - they're great because they have very low innovation. The top car brands - Lexus/Toyota, Acura/Honda, Subaru, and Mazda - have been widely scolded for not trying very hard to build EVs and would rather refine the same exact ICE cars for decades.

Subaru finally made an EV (the Solterra). I love the way it drives, but it's more expensive (at least at my dealer) than an entry level Tesla. I'd trust Subaru way more than Tesla though.

The Solterra is actually manufactured by Toyota

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_bZ4X

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#606

Post by dahart »

cuu508 wrote: post #460
dahart wrote: post #414

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The chips themselves don’t tend break, but wires and connectors and sensors all do tend to break, and they are effectively part of the computer system. Today, it’s practically moot where you draw the line. Something mechanical on my CRV broke somewhere, and the computer didn’t know what it was, and so the dealer didn’t know what it was, and the computer tended to shut down over unknown problems, and it eventually cau…

Did the computer shutdown(s) cause (or fail to prevent) the timing chain failure?

Yes - it was probably more in the failure to prevent category, but I’m not sure because we never got to the bottom of it, the computer would just freak out and refuse to recognize any systems. We were playing a game of pay the dealer to replace something random to see if it worked, and then repeat when it didn’t. Once it asploded, we paid over $5k in repairs, only to have the computer start convulsing again, so we sold it back to Honda. Something was seriously wrong with Honda’s overall computer design here. I don’t know if they’ve fixed it, but I’m not alone, this is a relatively common issue for ~5 year old CRVs, based on what I’ve found online.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#607

Post by BeetleB »

lotsofpulp wrote: post #82
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #72

Would love to see this scattered against maintenance cost. Having to take my Subaru in for an oil change every six months is annoying, even if it means I’ve only ever had one serious issue. (Computer flipped out because someone didn’t close the gas cap tightly enough, leading to a service visit requirement, which is absurd.)

I do my own oil change, but how much can it cost? Surely not more than $50 and 20min I hope.

Modern Subarus require premium grade oil. Mechanics typically charge over $80. I haven't checked how much the actual oil costs.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#608

Post by calamari4065 »

nathanfig wrote: post #483
calamari4065 wrote: post #416

I've had a regrettably excellent experience with my 2015 Mazda. Easily the most reliable machine I've owned. Which is unfortunate because it's a soulless, joyless shitbox and I hate it. It just starts every single time, but it's not fun to drive. I see dozens of the exact same model on the road every day and they're all boring. The interior is fine, the handling is pretty good, the power is fine, fuel economy is fine…

Mazda also makes the Miata, arguably one of the most fun cars to drive.

I've never been in one, but I'm sure that some of Mazda's other models are more fun.

It's just that the 6 was designed to be a mass produced commodity with no frills and no personality. It's designed for someone who only cares about getting from A to B every single time. That's not me, I don't find that satisfying, I have other priorities.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#609

Post by emodendroket »

Syonyk wrote: post #196
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.

A standard hybrid (of the sort that a range of companies make, handwavingly a parallel hybrid with creep capability, which a PHEV is just a supersized version of) eliminates a huge swath of things that go wrong with ICEs. First and foremost, the transmission replaces the rather staggering pile of complexity of a modern automatic transmission, typically, with "a few motor/generators, some planetary gears, maybe a band…

> I know there's this popular "Hybrids/PHEVs are the most complicated of both worlds, so they must be the most unreliable of all worlds!" thing going around, but the data is quite clear that they're exceedingly reliable in actual use, and the "most complicated of all worlds" things tends to zoom out far enough to avoid looking at the transmission or engine design at any level of detail.

The article suggests plug-in hybrids are nearly 150% more prone to issues than regular cars though? I mean, I have one, and it seems good so far, but it contradicts your assertions.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#610

Post by samtho »

_yb2s wrote: post #394
SkyPuncher wrote: post #346

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW, the computers don’t tend to break. The things that do break are essentially the same as they were 20 years ago. The bells and whistles are mostly for creatures comfort. The mechanical components haven’t changed much. The only thing that I couldn’t fix on my own in my 2020 vs my 2006 was re-alignment of lane keep system after replacing the windshield.

As a car nerd, a popular opinion is to avoid cars with computers because they could fail anytime, and can't be macgyvered into a repair roadside.... but after ~50 years of computerized cars, it seems that simple solid state computers, ruggedized and often potted in epoxy essentially never fail. And moreover, they can both give early warnings before you're stranded, and diagnostic data that can be used to pinpoint and…

Having a newer VW with VCDS is a superpower. If you are getting vague codes (e.g. Air Intake Leak), you get really good at analyzing sensor data to determine exactly what an issue might be and can either fix it or swap the sensor, most of which can be had for reasonably cheap (notable exceptions include MAF and emissions related sensors).
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