are american cars reliable?

[Ladies Man]

93 stang

only trouble is the transmission that finally decided to go after 110k miles.


-Note to self: brakestands and reving the engine to 6k rpms and slamming it into drive will shorten lifespan on transmission.... whoops

 

[DielsAlder]

Acura Integra-- 170K miles. No major repairs ever.


Although the American cars have gotten much better in the recent years. My next car will still be a Honda though.

 

[OS]

Originally posted by: DielsAlder
Acura Integra-- 170K miles. No major repairs ever.


Although the American cars have gotten much better in the recent years. My next car will still be a Honda though.

I think you had this thread in mind.

 

[BatmanNate]

Wow, where I live, there are an over abundence of old imports. I drive an '82 Toyota myself, but I see camries, tercels, and corollas from the early 80's all over the place. A guy at work has an 85 Cressida, another guy has a 76 Celica. This is pretty common in the South Seattleish area.

 

[Bluga]

Originally posted by: virtuamike
That's like asking me if my MP3s are legit

 

[StattlichPassat]

Domestic maintainence- cheap and lesser quality parts, easy to find (Auto Zone, or your local favorite auto parts store!), frequent repairs and recalls
Foriegn maintainence- expensive and higher quality parts, harder to find (usually have to be ordered from Europe or Asia), fewer repairs and recalls

American cars are admittedly coming along, but no car the U.S. makes under a U.S. brand can hold a candle in quality to anything abroad. A base, stripper, Volkswagen Golf's interior is 3x better put together (and of much higher quality) than a top of the line Lincoln or Cadillac interior is. Quality control is piss poor here in the U.S. and shows in every 2002 Pontiac dashboard (hello? panel gap city!), Chevy Cavalier seat (hello? bolsters?), or design (Aztek? You've gotta be kidding me). Europeans mock us and the machines we call 'cars'- companies here are completely ignorant to how to build a real car correctly. The only thing that we do right are trucks, but then again, the new amazingly-capable-and-smooth Toyota Tundra has reclaimed the win for Asia recently. Lay's potato chips, anyone?

Volkswagen has really gotten it right lately (just check out the new Volkswagen Phaeton for proof at www.vwvortex.com)- what would you rather have for $15k, a Jetta or an Impala? On that note, it's just a sin and abomination to put the Impala name on that crapbox... and have you seen the latest ad for this one? The cops in the Impala chasing an Alfa Romeo 164 until it runs out of gas or something? The Impala cops say "It's too bad they don't have a real (or nice, can't remember) car!" WHAT!?! Compare a Chevy to an Alfa Romeo, then call the Alfa a bad car?!? I would love to tear into the Chevrolet marketing department for being a group of idiots! Sorry, had to vent... The only U.S. marque I'm happy to raise my glass to is Ford, who produces *a couple* great cars for the money, like the Focus worldwide, and especially the Mondeo in Europe (their Taurus, except it's on the same level as the BMW 5-Series, believe it or not. Designed by Ghia- very cool sedan).

Ford Mondeo

The only new U.S. car I would buy is probably a Focus. I love the new GMC Yukon Denali XLs, but again, interior quality and design is lacking (while still *quite* nice though- when it comes down to value, I WOULD take one of these over a Lexus SUV. The GMC is much bigger, beefier, and cooler looking, IMO). I also have a special place in my heart for the previous generation (1993-1998) Jeep Grand Cherokees and 1980s Jeep CJ-7s. That's it though.

It's a constant bewilderment to me how the most prosperous, powerful country on the planet produces cars the way we do. We should be making cars that battle Germany's best, but instead we compete overall on the same scale with the likes of... oh wait, Yugoslavia is no more.

 

[StattlichPassat]

Tom had an excellent point: How many old Toyotas do you see? Let's say 1985-1990. How many of those superior Toyotas or Hondas do you see driving around? Then tell me how many old Fords and Chevrolets you see of the same vintage.

Just because you can keep something running with cheap parts doesn't make it better- look at the interior, look at the list of repairs, look at the paint job. How many HUBCAPS and other exterior snap-on parts are left?

 

[BatmanNate]

The only new U.S. car I would buy is probably a Focus.

Ford Focus unsafe at any speed.

 

[ElFenix]

In the same survey, Focus had a reported 136 problems per 100 cars. The industry average is 134 problems per 100.

i guess thats not so bad. 134 in every 100 is pretty damned awful though. i wonder if the AP writer left off a 0, i swear those are x of 1000 figures.

The investigation into engine stall involves 574,700 cars from the 2000 and 2001 model years, the first two years of production.

damn, ford has sold a lot of those things.

 

[BatmanNate]

According to the article, the focus has been recalled 6 times since its release in '99. POS if you ask me, not to mention it's ugly as sin.

 

[Turkey]

Any car can be reliable with regular maintenance. And the reason you don't see many old imports in the US is because...

drum roll



they didn't sell many!

 

[Zebo]

American cars are by far the best bang for the buck right now. Two great example are the Chevy camero with the V8 for outright speed and performance no import can touch it with it's 25K price tag. For luxury/family the grand marquis/crown vic from ford. Safest crash test rating because it actaully has a frame, get good milage and has great performance and comfort. Also can be had around 25K and I never sat in a more comfortable modern car.

As for reliablity I don't think there's any question that Japanese owns but you have to compare overall value which includes intial purchase price, matiance costs, parts costs, insurance rates and fuel economy. I think when you look at all the evidence American cars (especially these two) will be much cheaper than thier foriegn compitition.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: NightFlyerGTI
Domestic maintainence- cheap and lesser quality parts, easy to find (Auto Zone, or your local favorite auto parts store!), frequent repairs and recalls
Foriegn maintainence- expensive and higher quality parts, harder to find (usually have to be ordered from Europe or Asia), fewer repairs and recalls

American cars are admittedly coming along, but no car the U.S. makes under a U.S. brand can hold a candle in quality to anything abroad. A base, stripper, Volkswagen Golf's interior is 3x better put together (and of much higher quality) than a top of the line Lincoln or Cadillac interior is. Quality control is piss poor here in the U.S. and shows in every 2002 Pontiac dashboard (hello? panel gap city!), Chevy Cavalier seat (hello? bolsters?), or design (Aztek? You've gotta be kidding me). Europeans mock us and the machines we call 'cars'- companies here are completely ignorant to how to build a real car correctly. The only thing that we do right are trucks, but then again, the new amazingly-capable-and-smooth Toyota Tundra has reclaimed the win for Asia recently. Lay's potato chips, anyone?

Volkswagen has really gotten it right lately (just check out the new Volkswagen Phaeton for proof at www.vwvortex.com)- what would you rather have for $15k, a Jetta or an Impala? On that note, it's just a sin and abomination to put the Impala name on that crapbox... and have you seen the latest ad for this one? The cops in the Impala chasing an Alfa Romeo 164 until it runs out of gas or something? The Impala cops say "It's too bad they don't have a real (or nice, can't remember) car!" WHAT!?! Compare a Chevy to an Alfa Romeo, then call the Alfa a bad car?!? I would love to tear into the Chevrolet marketing department for being a group of idiots! Sorry, had to vent... The only U.S. marque I'm happy to raise my glass to is Ford, who produces *a couple* great cars for the money, like the Focus worldwide, and especially the Mondeo in Europe (their Taurus, except it's on the same level as the BMW 5-Series, believe it or not. Designed by Ghia- very cool sedan).

Ford Mondeo

The only new U.S. car I would buy is probably a Focus. I love the new GMC Yukon Denali XLs, but again, interior quality and design is lacking (while still *quite* nice though- when it comes down to value, I WOULD take one of these over a Lexus SUV. The GMC is much bigger, beefier, and cooler looking, IMO). I also have a special place in my heart for the previous generation (1993-1998) Jeep Grand Cherokees and 1980s Jeep CJ-7s. That's it though.

It's a constant bewilderment to me how the most prosperous, powerful country on the planet produces cars the way we do. We should be making cars that battle Germany's best, but instead we compete overall on the same scale with the likes of... oh wait, Yugoslavia is no more.

GM cars do not have any more problems on average than a Jap model. Heck JD Power just came out with their data showing GM third overall, just slightly behind Honda, and Toyota. VW was not 4th and Nissian was even lowwer than Ford in quality.
ALL cars have got to the point where they are as good as you take care of them.
I am am mechanic and have worked on everything. American and Jap cars are about the same now but Europe still has someing catching up to do. But with Jap cars parts cost more and my labor gos up a little more as mpst are harder to work on, American cars parts can be found anywhere and they are cheaper and for the most part easier to work on. And GM has such good quality that Honda gets relays and even engines from GM, and Toyota and GM share a auto plant and toyota also gets some relays and is even trying to get onstar fro the Lexus brand.

So people need to stop acting dumd and read all the industry reports. GM is just as reliable as Jap cars, sometimes even more so.

 

[IGBT]

I've had great luck with Dodge trucks but bad luck with Fords. The Ford seem to trash out faster then the Dodge and are difficult to work on. The interior components on Fords seem to be more UV sensitive. The friggin dash on the Ford rotted away from the sun shortly after warranty. The Dodge shows no UV damage at all..71 w100 powerwagon and 92 dakota both 4 wd. Both have seen heavy ranch work and typically stay in 4wd for weeks at a time. The Ford 94 f250 has had 2 trans.failures and 1 x-fer case failure in similar work load conditions..........

 

[Magicthyse]

Originally posted by: NightFlyerGTI
... Ford, who produces *a couple* great cars for the money, like the Focus worldwide, and especially the Mondeo in Europe (their Taurus, except it's on the same level as the BMW 5-Series, believe it or not. Designed by Ghia- very cool sedan).

WHAT? I live in Europe, and at best the Mondeo is a superior competitor to the Peugeot 406, Nissan Primera, Renault Laguna, etc.
BMW 5-series? If Ford really believe that, dream on...

<----- leases a 530. Has owned Mondeo turbodiesel station wagon.

 

[alphatarget1]

OK, my parents own a 96 honda accord V6 and a 97 nissan altima and so far they dont have major problem.

My definition of reliable is "major breakdown with every maintanence schedule on time and done right". My friends have been telling me a lot of horrible stuff about american cars but then I live in california and on my trip to the midwest last year i've seen a lot more american cars on american soil than i have ever before.

hell, british builds crappier car than we do in this case, http://www.worst4x4landrover.com/

 

[CtK]

Federal safety officials have opened their fifth and sixth investigations this year into the Ford Focus small car, this time because of complaints that the engine can stall and that the front suspension can collapse.

The previously announced investigations involve air bag malfunctions, rear wheel bearings and engine fires.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

 

[StattlichPassat]

Originally posted by: Carbonyl
American cars are by far the best bang for the buck right now. Two great example are the Chevy camero with the V8 for outright speed and performance no import can touch it with it's 25K price tag. For luxury/family the grand marquis/crown vic from ford. Safest crash test rating because it actaully has a frame, get good milage and has great performance and comfort. Also can be had around 25K and I never sat in a more comfortable modern car.

As for reliablity I don't think there's any question that Japanese owns but you have to compare overall value which includes intial purchase price, matiance costs, parts costs, insurance rates and fuel economy. I think when you look at all the evidence American cars (especially these two) will be much cheaper than thier foriegn compitition.

No one will argue that you can't find 300+ hp anywhere else but here for $25k, but like I said, you get what you pay for. The best indicator that I've found is to just look in those windows. Thin cloth seats (or cheap leather) with no bolsters, a crappy automatic transmission, plastic everywhere- and my favorite- panel gaps everywhere in the dash! Loose shakes and rattles and lots of snap-on parts. Yes sir, you are correct: "I think when you look at all the evidence American cars (especially these two) will be much cheaper than thier foriegn compitition."

Ram Tough? Here's the next recall...

 

[iamwiz82]

I also have a special place in my heart for the previous generation (1993-1998) Jeep Grand Cherokees

why would you hold a POS like the GC in your heart? They have some of the worst reliability of any car Jeep/Eagle/AMC has ever made.

 

[StattlichPassat]

You're comparing a '71 Dodge to a '94 Ford? Well I bet the Ford seems to fare better!

 

[StattlichPassat]

on my trip to the midwest last year i've seen a lot more american cars on american soil than i have ever before.

Duh. You're closer to Detroit, than the California barge ports from Asia.

The British build great cars, but Jaguar anyway has gone downhill since its aquisition by Ford. Everytime I see a pretty new S-type and then look inside and see a Ford double-DIN stereo in the dash, I shudder. I'll let them have Jaguar, but if they give Aston Martin the same kind of touch, I'm boycotting.

 

[Pacfanweb]

<<The British build great cars, but Jaguar anyway has gone downhill since its aquisition by Ford. Everytime I see a pretty new S-type and then look inside and see a Ford double-DIN stereo in the dash, I shudder.>>

What are you thinking? The British build CRAP cars, Rolls Royce included. They aren't even close to being reliable.

And Jaguar's quality used to be total CRAP before Ford took over. They have never been as reliable as they are now.

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: Pacfanweb
<<The British build great cars, but Jaguar anyway has gone downhill since its aquisition by Ford. Everytime I see a pretty new S-type and then look inside and see a Ford double-DIN stereo in the dash, I shudder.>>

What are you thinking? The British build CRAP cars, Rolls Royce included. They aren't even close to being reliable.

And Jaguar's quality used to be total CRAP before Ford took over. They have never been as reliable as they are now.

This i agree with. Rolls Royce is consistently at the bottom of initial customer satisfaction polls. Then again, snobs are more picky
Unfortunately, you are off by saying Jaguar has gotten better since Ford took them over. Go find the Jaguar thread from a few weeks ago. THey refuse to fix problems with the new X-types. Things such as high pitched squeeling coming from the drivetrain :Q

 

[StattlichPassat]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82

I also have a special place in my heart for the previous generation (1993-1998) Jeep Grand Cherokees

why would you hold a POS like the GC in your heart? They have some of the worst reliability of any car Jeep/Eagle/AMC has ever made.

It's not really a POS- it's the perfect sized SUV to me, and I love how it looks. I've actually got a '93 Laredo 4x4 right now as a loaner from the parental units while my GTI is in the shop for electrical work... from my own doing, mind you- my new stereo setup keeps blowing fuses and I can't trace the problem. VW's stock electrical wiring is great. I really like the previous-gen Grand Cherokee and I've even looked up a few pre-owned ones on eBay for myself. Even this 1993 model, turning over 100k miles next week, feels a notch above other American cars I've driven. It's got it's dashboard panel gaps and a couple squeaks here and there, but overall smooth, quiet, and powerful. It's left me stranded more than once though, I'll give you that. The coils have gone on it twice, preventing it from even starting up and appearing to 'play dead', but everything else seemingly runs pretty top-notch. No other mechanical problems that I really know of...

 

[StattlichPassat]

Not only that, did you hear about the Automobile Magazine test of the X-Type? The exhaust/muffler fell off during testing. A car that was supposed to do for Jaguar what the A4 did for Audi (who knows, it still may) didn't get rave reviews at all...