Posted on 09/12/2010 7:39:28 PM PDT by ThinkingBuddha
These are the cars that cause us to mumble under our breath when they drive by. So smug. So reliable. Sure! Drive right past our shop! How's a mechanic supposed to make a monthly boat payment with so many of these things on the road?
Yes, the cars we hate most, as mechanics, are the cars that provide us with the fewest repair dollars. I mean, you see a '99 Jeep Grand Cherokee roll into the shop and you can practically smell the transmission rebuild. But the cars on this list? You'll be lucky to sell their owners a set of brake pads or a muffler.
If you're looking for a car to buy, however, this list might provide you with some good clues. Oh, sure ... don't worry about us!
P.S. This list reflects our own experience, of course. So when we cite the ready availability of parts, we're talking about the typical repair experience in metropolitan areas in the Northeast. We're not sure the same is true in North Grainbucket, Iowa.....
(Excerpt) Read more at autos.yahoo.com ...
Tell me about it. I have a V6 coupe with 164,000 miles and I still love driving it. I put nice aftermarket rims on it, plus a couple of other upgrades, and it has always been fun to drive. I really want a new car bad, but that damn Honda is still so pleasurable to drive that I can’t justify it. Besides oil changes and timing belt/water pump, I’ve only replaced the alternator and a $17 relay switch.
Plus, I still get 26-27 mpg in mostly city driving.
97 here and I still have it. 150,xxx miles and still going strong and ...I own it. lol That's the best part.
They are a great vehicle and you can replace anything at anytime and get parts from Jeep Essentials.
I have a ‘98 Cherokee 4.0 w/ 211,000 miles on original transmission and engine. Had to do radiator work recently because the old one just gave up at 206,000. But it still is a workhorse. Replaced it with a better than factory one made of all metal. 4WD is excellent.
My experience is not unusual and it may go another 200,000 if I care for it properly. There are some with over a million miles that are still chugging along.
Just
Empty
Every
Pocket
Stands true, but not how you think. I am always buying upgrades.
What impresses me every day about this vehicle is that there are third party parts that are superior to the original design due to research and new technology. I used to have a Ford Escort and there were absolutely no options for any repairs beyond what Ford had for you and you had to pay their prices and use their suppliers. This vehicle is built for future service and not for production. You do not have to remove the engine to replace the radiator or spark plugs. Regular maintenance is a snap.
My 5 speed is awesome and this is just about the best built car I have ever owned and plan on running it until there is nothing left of it and maybe after that.
I have a friend who traded his Cherokee for a brand new Patriot and has nothing but transmission trouble out of it. He is so sorry he traded it. Even a Liberty would have been better.
Absolutely one of the coolest scenes I remember from the fall of communism in Europe is a parade of Trabants in Berlin, smoking like mosquito foggers, puttin' west through the newly opened border.
Snip:
. Costs are high. The government has estimated that a battery with a 100-mile range costs about $33,000, although stimulus money could bring that down to $10,000 by the end of 2015.
. Anderman said by e-mail that if by 2013-14 the factories are profitable and running at full capacity, Obama officials will be able to claim success. “Unfortunately that scenario is pretty unlikely,” he said.
>>So ...they were crappy cars?<<
Yeah — looked great, a lot of fun, but after less than 2 years I started having significant problems: clutch, brakes, electricals, pretty much all systems. And for some reason they were never QUITE covered under the “extended warranty” I paid for.
≤}B^)
“Fiat and Alfa may come back in the next few years”
Complete with long chain and advertised as an improved anchor!
I was driving it on Sunset Blvd when a guy in a red Ferrari 250 GT California LWB pulled and gave me the thumbs up with a big smile.
That was the crazy Romanian?
≤}B^)
Ah. That’s why the Brits drink warm beer.
Well it was that “looked great” thing for me (I was 16) lol. It’s a good thing my dad was a firm no then, sounds like Fiat was crap quality overall. I ended up with a VW Super Beetle which was a great car. Back then (mid-70’s) gas was .50 a gallon and I could put around $3.00 in it and go a week. The good old days.
>>Back then (mid-70’s) gas was .50 a gallon and I could put around $3.00 in it and go a week. The good old days.<<
Even then, did you have one of those “this car runs on gas not friendship” signs?
I don’t know why, but your post reminded me of those — I think they started appearing when gas started getting up to *gasp* 60 cents a gallon!
There was no Ford/Nissan relationship, ever, on the Titan (there was a mercury minivan relationship, many years ago, the Mercury Villager). There are no Mopar parts in a Titan pickup from Nissan. There was a relationship between Chrysler and Nissan, that would have seen Chrysler manufacturing Nissan pickups, but the deal fell through when Chrysler went into the hole. Just as well, as Chrysler has terrible gear trains, it would have brought Nissan down to the Chrysler level of reliability. (apologies to the guy who uses his Jeeps offroad, and has had no problems -— my buddy’s stepfather is a transmission rebuilder, and he sees more Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge than any other brand, combined).
I own a 2010 Nissan Titan. It has a 5.6L 32V V8, and while Ford claims that their 5.4L 3V cam phased Triton V8 has more HP, the Nissan will literally run rings around it at the track, or towing a horse trailer. Gas mileage is equivalent between the two, but you get more bang for your fuel buck in the Nissan, if you want something that can get out of its own way :) The Ford and Nissan motors are about as dissimilar as can be made and still result in a V8. Ford uses SOHC heads to drive 3 valves/cylinder. Nissan uses dual overhead cam heads to drive 4 valves per cylinder. Ford uses a cam phaser to adjust valve timing to alter intake behavior. Nissan uses a 2 stage plenum, which supplies only one intake valve until about 3KPRM, when the plenum starts feeding both intake valves. The Nissan and Ford engines are both proven designs, and both will get you decent reliability nowadays (earlier Ford Tritons did have problems with failing cam phasers, but this has been resolved to my knowledge).
Ford was the followup choice on my list, when I went truck shopping. But the Nissan had so much better handling performance, that there was really no contest. I didn’t test a Toyota -— I prefer boxier looks to a organic design Toyota seems to be embracing, and I thought the accelerator pedal issue was too important to overlook (I seriously doubt the pedals are flawed themselves, but I think there could be ergonomic issues at work). However, it should be noted that the Tundra is a full second quicker than the Titan to 60mph, and can tow slightly more weight, still running on 87 octane fuel.
Finally, it was great to buy a pickup that didn’t have the UAW seal of inadequate quality control stamped all over it. Instead it was built proudly in Canton Mississippi by non-union employees, and the motor was built in TN. So I still bought an American made pickup, WITHOUT paying the UAW tax on both quality and price.
Mazda does not sell a full-size truck to my knowledge, but they do sell a Ranger class truck, which is in fact a Ford Ranger. It even comes with the old yet reliable 4.0L SOHC 2V V6. The Ford Ranger and Mazda pickup are both ancient designs from bottom to top, but since there is no money in the compact truck market, don’t expect the compacts to improve anytime soon. Even Nissan & Toyota are holding off on major redesigns of their compact pickups.
Finally, the Nissan Titan fullsize has NOT been discontinued. It was rumored it would be in 2009, due to lagging sales from the recession, and the fact that it was already a niche pickup. However, NIssan has confirmed that they will continue production on the pickup, and there are hints that a major redesign is in the pipe for 2012 (Infiniti dealerships are not getting anymore QX56 fullsize luxury SUVs in, since the line is being updated -— the QX56 and Armada are based on the Titan design).
Me? I love my Titan, but it is a very new truck. But given Nissan’s quality record, I have no concerns. But you know -— you can buy a lemon at anytime if you are buying something mass produced. I just think its statistically highly unlikely for my pickup.
Had a little Alfa Romeo Graduate many years ago. Got more compliments on that car than any other I’ve ever owned. Another favorite was a VW Rabbit diesel that always gave between 40-50 mpg. I wish they still made them like that.
LOL no...I can’t remember being bothered by any increases or that it was even an issue (I’m talking ‘76). Being a teen, increases in prices at that time didn’t resonate. That was the year though that I started becoming more politically aware starting with Carter’s election.
I stopped by a friend’s today, who lives in a very upscale yuppy neighborhood. I had to ask: which Prius is yours? Almost every car on the block was a Prius. She told me when the battery goes it’s a cool $10K to replace.
My son, on the other hand, has a 95 Honda Accord, tapping up around 185K. A pure joy to maintain.
Hilarious. Why do the British drink warm beer? Because Lucas makes refrigerators too.
Why has there been no mention of the Renault Dauphine? You had to drop the whole engine out of the rear to work on it.
A little fender-bender in the right (or wrong) place could leave you with quite a crispy conveyance.
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