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The Car Thread ... !
- Thread starter D.T.
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2010. Bought new with the extended warranty, which ran out this past summer, I think. I can't think of a single issue with our CLS either. Apart from it eating through rear tires. Especially when I drive the car. Our previous E did have a minor issue caused by me. Years ago I bought an E. It was well into the Chrysler marriage and surprisingly, apart from the crappy AC system compared to a domestic, it was relatively problem free. One of the headlights did develop a weird issue with it momentarily going out after big dips in the road. I now chalk it down to mice eating or nibbling at wires. Honestly, I don't think AC systems in imports are as good as some of the domestic offerings. Nothing will beat the AC in say a Tahoe.
In warranty the most expensive to repair cars I've had were probably an Accord V6 I had, that MS6 which developed problems near the end of the lease (then again I abused the car on roads), and probably our Lexus. Which had some suspension issues that set me back around $600, otherwise outside of warranty it would have been a few thousand. I can't remember if I ever had the engine recall on it checked out if it was even affected. Probably did their due diligence on a major service. I've lucked out with the digitizer which seems to fail or the console just dying. I think these were early 2IS problems, though.
Worst out of warranty expenses? Easily an RX7 I picked up a very long time ago. Generally not a wise idea then and especially not now. Looking back I have to ask myself what the hell I was thinking of. I easily spent more in repairs than I paid for the thing over the time I had. RX7s are reliable so as long as you're willing to realize that their parts operable life needs to be reduced by about 30%, you do a lot of oil changes and pushing the cars (because why not?) makes their life expectancy go down. At the time, I wasn't a stranger to major engine work, whereas I am now because it's become very complex with computers and sensors.
If I had a time machine, I'd go back to then, slap myself and then go buy a third gen Celica liftback or a sweet fourth gen coupe or liftback, possibly the coupe because liftbacks were rare. They were barely 'old' then. I think either of these cars go for a premium now with the tuners and those people who do drifting. I had a thing for cars with popups then. I could pretend I was aiming canons at bad drivers.
Never got to own or drive a Z31. And by the time I saw enough good Z32s, the 2nd hand market shot up. I guess video games at the time had influenced a lot of people to get into Japanese imports. Before then, they were good value for your money, new or used. Well, except the RX7s.
I'm just not into used anything anymore. Unless it's something unique. Like a mint IS F and not the gutter trash they've been turned into. Or a mint 190. I like 190s. They're one of the hardtacks of European imports. Hardtack is a rock hard bread invented in New England when the Vikings were still alive (not) and it'll last for decades until you need it.
Mod @840quadra owns a sweet 190.
Edit: Crap, sorry. I have a habit of going on tangents.
Right right. Did you ever own either a VW, Volvo or Ford estate?
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My deepest condolences
. I lost my older brother when he was 26. I’m sure it’s not the same as losing your child but close so I can definitely relate, especially having watched my parents go through all of it. It’s not something I’d wish upon anyone. I hope you’ve found some level of peace, as difficult as it can be. My parents always instilled the concept of buying cars outright. No sense in paying extra on interest, owing people money looming over your head, and risking some upside down loan situation (though that’s usually caused by an insufficient down payment). I suppose the only exception is if you can get 0% financing or near 0% and would to prefer to optimize your money flow for other things. I suppose a lot of people can’t afford outright purchases though.
I typically don’t think leasing makes sense unless you can get a very good deal, don’t drive a lot of miles, and expect to buy a new car frequently.
The advice given to me was to self finance my next car purchase. Borrow my own savings and pay it back over time.
Reminds me of infamous quote (in references to schools and organizations giving out condoms): “Should you really trust a free condom”
Generally, a true 0% rate is pretty rare. You really have to tick quite a few boxes. There's other ways to easily attain a 0% rate or practically 0% on a variety of purchases but they don't apply to most people. But, yeah, I agree with you on the leasing. It would make sense on a cheap car or questionable quality car. Or if you're wanting to get the first year of a model. As I said, there's a few more exceptions to that rule, but generally speaking, buying a car makes more sense.
Rarely would I advise anyone do an outright purchase unless they know they're going to drive it until the car literally dies.
In terms of Tesla, yes, the used market was pricey. But as more Teslas have rolled out onto US roads, newer listings have sold at lower rates compared to historical rates. I don't know the total number for global sales, but they've sold less than 200K Teslas (all models) in the states. That's a small figure when you consider how long they've been making road cars past their failed roadster. It's a small number when you factor in what Japanese marques sell in two or three models combined alone for a single year.
They've got a long road ahead of them in terms of refinement and quality improvement, not to mention R&D.
Rarely would I advise anyone do an outright purchase unless they know they're going to drive it until the car literally dies.
In terms of Tesla, yes, the used market was pricey. But as more Teslas have rolled out onto US roads, newer listings have sold at lower rates compared to historical rates. I don't know the total number for global sales, but they've sold less than 200K Teslas (all models) in the states. That's a small figure when you consider how long they've been making road cars past their failed roadster. It's a small number when you factor in what Japanese marques sell in two or three models combined alone for a single year.
They've got a long road ahead of them in terms of refinement and quality improvement, not to mention R&D.
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Ford unveils The Ranger Raptor 2.0 Litre diesel twin turbo/10 Speed Auto for the Asia and Australia market currently. Includes Fox racing shocks, aluminum upper and lower control arms and larger brakes. 210 HP/369 Torque.
I think it will make its way here eventually, being North America is one of the largest truck markets. It Wasn't revealed at the Chicago auto show, so perhaps maybe at the New York Auto in March or later this year.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/2019-ford-ranger-raptor-officially-unveiled-news
Also, hearing more rumors about a possible 7.0 L V8 for the 2019 Ford Raptor. Curious to see how this all plays out and how Ford divides the eco-boost power plant in the truck lineup.
I think it will make its way here eventually, being North America is one of the largest truck markets. It Wasn't revealed at the Chicago auto show, so perhaps maybe at the New York Auto in March or later this year.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/2019-ford-ranger-raptor-officially-unveiled-news
Also, hearing more rumors about a possible 7.0 L V8 for the 2019 Ford Raptor. Curious to see how this all plays out and how Ford divides the eco-boost power plant in the truck lineup.
They certainly have a bad rap, but I’ve had three of their cars, and liked them very much. Two intrepids and a 2009 awd 5.7 charger. At 135,000, it’s been pretty damned reliable. And a lot of fun to drive, in an old-school V8 sedan sort of way. I prefer the 06 - 10 body style, but eventually may have to get a new one. No more awd in the V8, sadly.
By the way, if I ever consider replacing my Honda Fit EX, two vehicles I would consider are the Honda HR-V (when the mid-model change comes out in the fall) and the Toyota RAV4 (when the new model arrives late this year). I wonder could the HR-V accommodate the L15B7 turbocharged engine in a de-rated form at 155-160 bhp, which would be perfect for the HR-V.
Just curious, did you ever have any transmission issues with the Intrepid’s you owned? I’m aware of later on models with the 2002-2004 Intrepids had more prone failures with the solenoid pack and solenoid valves. The Intrepids were highly unreliable as Squad cars during their day before transitioning over to the Charger in 2005.
An 09 FCA vehicle would be mostly Chrysler. I believe some of the vehicles have transitioned to Italian engines. Not sure which is worse, though. That said, I wouldn't touch a Chrysler. A Jeep Wrangler, sure. I've always loved the Wrangler and previous generations where it ran under various names. They're iconic going back nearly a hundred years.
I don't see this happening unless the we're one of those countries that wave high emissions vehicles provided there's enough ULEVs in the range, and that particular truck would qualify. Also, is that engine made here or overseas? If it's overseas, I can't imagine Ford wanting to spend the money to certify it here only for lackluster sales.
I don't see this happening unless the we're one of those countries that wave high emissions vehicles provided there's enough ULEVs in the range, and that particular truck would qualify. Also, is that engine made here or overseas? If it's overseas, I can't imagine Ford wanting to spend the money to certify it here only for lackluster sales.
I owned a 2000 Neon that went 185K before the electrical system went. Changed the computer out and all was well. It did have a transmission swap (because my brother-in-law who owned it previously drove it wildly) and I braked so lightly that my brake pads crumbled from age (didn’t know this was a thing). Although Chrysler transmissions from that decade sucked before the FCA merger anyway.
Haven’t had an issue with our Jeep Liberty or the mid 2000s T&C van my in-laws have.
I now have a 2015 Dodge Journey that I, and my family, absolutely love. Smooth and very quiet ride, better than expected Borg-Warner AWD and a proven solid Pentastar V6. Wish the gas mileage was better but I’d rather have an all electric vehicle anyway over a gas sipping weak power plant. It’s an incredibly comfortable and capable vehicle for it’s price range.
It’s hard to say what Ford will do. But my thoughts are, why go to all this trouble to manufacture a truck just for the Asian pacific market and Australia. Especially being North America being one of the largest truck markets and this being a performance truck, it’s very possible it could it make its way here. Ford has the regular Ranger 2.3 Ecoboost motor here in the U.S. already, I think it could happen eventually. When (Or if) is the question. Ford could switch the engine from The diesel variant to the 2.7 Ecoboost.
No idea if that engine is manufactured here or overseas. But I don’t think Ford will attempt to certify the diesel engine in United States, and perhaps just transition over to the gasoline powered eco-boost as mentioned above.
I am the opposite. My dad has instilled cash is king. Better to have a payment and have that cash in the bank.
I could right now pay off the Camaro loan and still have a good chunk of change left, but given my unique situation and lets say I get furloughed, I could support myself for 3-4 years on my savings with only the car payments and insurance being my only big expenses.
Obviously you can't finance everything and have a huge amount of debt, but overall I am glad I only put down half of what I was planning to put down for the Camaro.
Yeah the Wrangler and the Giulia Quadrifoglio are what I would desire from the FCA portfolio. Again quality/reliability is what scares me off. Family had too many bad experiences with Chrysler products.
Holden is no more in Australia. Trucks were Utes down there. The Ute is no more, but people still want a truck. And trucks are pretty popular in various Asian countries. Toyota's got a stranglehold in Australia and Asia with their Hilux, and Ford sells a few mid size and one full size SUV there. There's a bunch of other trucks, too. The Ridgeline (I think it was that) had a really sweet popularity upswing in the 2000s in Thailand.
Wow, I’m shocked your Liberty and Town and Country haven’t had any issues. Chrysler products from that Era were ravaged with issues.
My first car was a 2003 Grand Cherokee Limited, purchased a couple years old with under 35k miles. It was CPO and came with an unlimited powertrain warranty.
It had the 4.7L HO variant V8 which was great. It also had the quadradrive awd which was also fantastic, but front and rear differential had to be replaced twice in the back and once in the front (covered under warranty). I never had any transmission issues surprisingly, unlike a lot of Chrysler products.
I did have some of the common WJ JGC issues. The climate control blend door system broke, which was like a $3,000 repair as they have to take apart the dash. The climate control system in that car was atrocious to start off with. The compressor and condenser also had to replaced which wasn’t cheap. The little sliding plastic bits around the gear shift and transfer case levers got screwed up. Multiple window regulars failed. Window switch pack failed. Door handle failed. The trunk door went out of alignment which took like 3 trips to the dealer to fix. The CD changer failed around 100k and the in-dash CD player became flakey after that. A wheel hub failed. The rear main seal had to be replaced. The heated seats failed pretty early on and the memory mirrors never adjusted to remotely the correct position (though I never used that function). One of the heated mirrors eventually stopped working. Then there were more expected issues- alternator X2, water pump x2. The interior quality was pretty mediocre but held up, aside from the driver seat cushioning (and I only weigh like 150-160lbs).
I kept the car for around 180k miles/~7 years. Overall it wasn’t too bad reliability wise compared to other cars, but I wouldn’t call it particularly good. It served me well and was a functional, comfortable car- powerful for its day too for an SUV.
After that my parents (the rightful owners) donated it to a destitute relative who did not take care of it which is sad (It was recently essentially junked as it was beyond repair). I had recently graduated college in 2013 so my dad gave me his BMW 535i xDrive, which now has about 130k on it and I am planning on replacing.
I’d say the the the Jeep in its earlier years was better than BMW reliability wise and certainly cheaper to fix, but things went down hill after that. The BMW has certainly aged better in its older age and higher mileage.
Yeah but can the M5 go 17,000 MPH+ like Musk's Roadster is doing right now?
Seriously I am glad it seems like BMW has made a come back in the chassis/handling department. That 0-60 time and 1/4 mile is nuts. If it wasn't for the maintenance costs, I would love to own the new M5 and E63 AMG.
Seriously I am glad it seems like BMW has made a come back in the chassis/handling department. That 0-60 time and 1/4 mile is nuts. If it wasn't for the maintenance costs, I would love to own the new M5 and E63 AMG.