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Who makes the most reliable new cars?

consumerreports.org

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Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#911

Post by raxxorraxor »

underlipton wrote: post #367
denvaar wrote: post #343

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> extremely mechanical 4Runner Same sentiment for my washer/dryer. Bought an older (used) set for $300, They have lasted 7 years so far, which is in addition to however long they were in use before: I would guess at least 7 more. Seems like lots of people lament how things like cars, refrigerators, washers, etc. are becoming less mechanical and more electronic. Maybe there's a market for "bespoke" mechanical items.

Electronic stuff is still reparable. Probably even more cheaply, in some regards (certainly material cost). We've just been made to become accustomed to viewing electronic devices as disposable/primarily replaceable. And while most people have turned a wrench before, knowing how to use a soldering iron/heat gun/magnifier effectively is not a common skill. Could be, though.

We also know that any electronic stuff is very often designed to not be reparable at all. While there are standard interfaces for standard diagnostic data, you rarely can skip dealing with a very closed stack of software, intellectual property around a thick shield of armor.

This is why you get things like heatable seat DLC.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#912

Post by sulam »

DrThunder wrote: post #886
culi wrote: post #865

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> car safety for pedestrians/cyclists has decreased It's also decreased for anyone NOT willing to buy a "light truck" (e.g. a modern SUV). There's a loophole that makes it so that light trucks don't have to be tested against the same safety standards as other vehicles. Basically they just have to prove they're safe to crash into other light trucks but do not have to be tested against regular passenger vehicles. This…

Most modern SUV's aren't trucks in any sense. They crossovers built on car frames.

Legally they are light trucks. Obviously that's not how they're used or designed.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#913

Post by FinnKuhn »

yurishimo wrote: post #565
FinnKuhn wrote: post #324

Interestingly a similar study from Germany for 2022 has some very different results and I need to say I prefer their way of measuring things, as the ADAC (the equivalent of AAA) has looked at how many cars needed actual help on the road in comparison to registered cars, so minor problems don’t count and you can say things about the longtime reliability of manufacturers. However some differences probably stem from dif…

There are very few Toyotas on that list. Isn’t that a good thing? The ANWB in neighboring NL has a similar report and Toyota scores extremely high on their lists (as in, they very rarely need any sort of roadside assistance).

You need to consider that Toyota sells a lot less models in Germany when compared to the US, but a lot of those listed like the Rav4 or C-HR got some of the worst scores of all cars, so I don't think that is a good sign.

The ADAC list works by listing how often a model needed roadside assistance per 1000 registered vehicles, so if they didn't need any assistant, they would just appear as a 0.5 or something along those lines, but the Rav4 has a values between 16-20 and even the best performing model, the Toyota Yaris, doesn't have the best scores.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#914

Post by defrim »

syndicatedjelly wrote: post #599
defrim wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Something that not a lot of people are mentioning is that north american made VAG (vw, audi, etc) cars are made in factories that have shown much less reliability. Everybody in Europe praises VW for how affordable and reliable they are (since they're made in-house in Germany for the most part) - excluding the 2009-2014 years since they had quite a bad Golf line in terms of reliability

So how come American-made Toyotas and Hondas top the list?

Because they care more about north american consumers, seemingly

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#915

Post by WarOnPrivacy »

dsego wrote: post #827
rectang wrote: post #659

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I flash my headlights at cars whose lights are too blinding, under the assumption that the driver accidentally left their brights on. If I’m wrong and their lights are always like that, my assumption is that they would appreciate someone letting them know anyway. If it happens a lot, maybe they’ll figure it out and correct their embarrassing problem. And if they’ve jerks who know they’re blinding others but just don’…

The way I do it is not flashing, which can be misinterpreted as police ahead or something else. I just turn on my high beams until they lower theirs and it works most of the time.

In my experience this leads to the realization they don't have meaningful low beams at all. Just high beams and higher beams.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#916

Post by germinalphrase »

PaulDavisThe1st wrote: post #628
tylerstorm wrote: post #560

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a 2009 Honda Fit and feel the same way. 181k miles and still working perfectly!

You and me both, Fit Fiend! We had to do something with the spark coils/plugs last year, but other than that, no repairs except routine maintainance (tires, oil, filters etc). Amazing vehicle, very sad that Honda initially talked about an EV version and then pivoted to "no more Fit in North America"

Also a happy Fit owner. Apparently, there exists a hybrid, 4wd Fit in Japan. We don’t get the cool stuff in the US.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#917

Post by _yb2s »

kjkjadksj wrote: post #736
_yb2s wrote: post #394

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

VWs and Audis of that era were notorious for the electrical system getting haunted by ghosts. Forums are littered with threads of perplexing symptoms, engine codes, voltage readings, often no solutions either for most of these threads from userbases that are competent enough to swap engines or transmissions themselves.

As a longtime VW forum guy, those issues are mostly from people not knowing what they are doing and usually involve extensive water damage to the electrical harness- that can be prevented with proper maintenance. For example, there was a design flaw in some of the coolant reservoirs that cause coolant to leak into the wiring harness. If you know about this, you can look for it and catch it early or prevent it.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#918

Post by _yb2s »

smoyer wrote: post #435
_yb2s wrote: post #394

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

I have a couple of '71 VWs and you can fix almost anything on the with toothpicks and Scotch tape. They just run because they're so simple ... You can actually count the wires in the harness and read the color codes! Thing thing that drives me nuts are the mechanical voltage regulator - they are finicky and today's hardened solid state devices near them in every way.

Simplicity is huge for reliability… but Volvos from that same early 70s era were also crazy simple yet used solid state boxes to control everything… and were way more reliable than the VWs.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#919

Post by WarOnPrivacy »

nicbou wrote: post #799
vondur wrote: post #453

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People drive horrible now. Running lights, crazy lane changes, excessive speeding etc. Here in the US is started during the pandemic and hasn’t improved.

I am not American but I read this again and again. The most correlated reason, I have read, is that the police explicitly stopped enforcing laws in many places, in reaction to some larger political event. I forgot which.

Oh yes. I live in one of those places. It was when a new sheriff was elected who wasn't driven by ever-fattening budgets. The first thing he did - stop allowing fine revenue to influence enforcement.

Ticketing dropped. Also the quality of policing in general (and officers specifically) improved dramatically. We had way better cops than under the previous sheriff.

Re: Who makes the most reliable new cars?

#920

Post by rthomas6 »

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…

This is exactly what I want in a car, unironically. I really dislike car culture. I think it is ruining America. This is like wanting a bus to be fun and exciting. Why are daily driver cars supposed to be fun? We are spending all our infrastructure money building and maintaining massive roads at the expense of everything else.
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