How reliable or unreliable are your vehicles?

[Nick1994]

Originally Posted By: dareo


7 Windshields? Why?!

6 CV Boots? How?! Even on my old 99.5 TDI it had perfectly good stock axles at 320k miles.

I'm not surprised that the DSG trans had problems, that is very expected on that era.

Batteries in hot states like AZ often die in 2 years, diesels draw more power and if you short trip them they will eat batteries. Can't blame VW there.

Camshaft = Very documented and known issue with BEW and BRM TDI (2004+ 2003 and lower are awesome)

It sounds like you got stuck with an unbelievable lemon and i hope some of that is exaggerated.

I can honestly say there are no exaggerations in that post.

Phoenix is already the windshield replacement capital of the U.S., and I believe the shape of that windshield helped to contribute to it being more prone to breaking from rock chips. Sometimes there would be 3 cracks in the windshield by the time my aunt got around to having it replaced when she owned it. Our freeways are lined with gravel on both sides of the road.

 

[dmiko]

2000 Mitsubishi Galant from new to 76K. Absolutely nothing aside from brake pedal that was squeaky once and needed lubricating. Stck battery lasted 2.5 years, but totally my fault.

2006 Honda Accord 4 cyl new to 53K so far. No issues whatsoever.
2
Another 2006 Honda Accord 4 cyl auto from new to 74K. No issues until totaled.
2014 Honda Accord 4 cyl auto. Door actuator replaced under warranty. 39K so far.
2004 Infiniti G35 from new to 76K so far. Windshield replaced under warranty for stress crack. Stereo replaced under warranty twice. Rear wheel bearing replaced under warranty. Tie rods replaced under warranty. No issues since about 56K.

 

[Jetronic]

at 25k miles/2years I had a nail in the rear right tyre...

on 40k now, still has original diesel and air filter, is on it's second oil filter and third interior filter.

Original brake pads still on it. I probably could've gotten one more summer out of the factory fit pirellis but got a free set of Hankooks so used these after removing the winters. Never had a tyre last 35k on my cars before.

 

[rustypigeon]

Originally Posted By: gman2304

I would say your experiences with Japanese vehicles is more the norm than the exception. My experiences are similar to yours with my Nissan and Toyota vehicles I have owned over the last 40 years.


Yep. There is 578,000 miles worth of driving in the cars I listed. In all those miles the majority of repairs have been o2 sensors and power door lock actuators. One could argue that an o2 sensor is a regular maintenance item anyway.

 

[supton]

I *think* I traded out of my vehicles before they got unreliable--that was the point.

Won't go into the vehicles I had in high school or college. Rust buckets but did their job without much fuss.

After college... a 2001 Civic stranded the wife and baby when a CV blew. It had a number of repairs but those could be planned. My 2004 VW stranded me twice; but the first one was at 255k and the second not long after. So it qualified as "unreliable" but not too many would say it was that bad.

 

[Popsy]

I'll only talk about cars I know/have for a long time, and excluding normal maintenance and periodic replacement items (timing belt for example)

98 Fiat Marea TD

40K : injection pump gaskets (under warranty, a known defect of these pumps)
120K : new suspension triangles
180K : new clutch
193K : recharge ac circuit
200K : new body! Car was totaled so bought an identical body to put my engine in! Also replaced triangles and shaft drives
210K : ac compressor went away. Not replaced since the car is a beater
215K : new thermostat, cooland temp sensors and calculator (had a spare that came with my totaled car, cost me nothing), new advance and stop solenoids...cost me an arm and a leg in exotic Italian parts
220K : replaced damper pulley and rear brakes drum assembly pistons (still original drums)
225K : new starter motor and camshaft cover gasket (still leaking though), first time valve adjustment (my bad)
235K : replaced turbo oil return line and intake air temp sensor
250K : replaced expansion tank cap (was leaking)

Next thing will be replacing rear suspension parts...it sits a bit low when loaded. Car also had like 2-3 batteries in its life, don't remember exactly. Replaced glow plugs 5 time over the life of the car.
This car never really let me down but now I do realise I replaced many parts over the years...

05 Smart Fourfour

85K : clutch and clutch hydraulic system
90K : rear wheel bearings
104K : new battery
106K : one coil silicone end is falling apart, so soon I'll replace all coils I think


10 Mitsubishi Colt Ralliart

60K : a gasket on the gearbox (where?), under warranty. They also changed the oil for free haha
110K : new battery
130K : gearbox selector definitely seized (common problem). Was asked 220€ for parts, so I just dipped the seized parts in oil overnight. Selector now unseized, for free (excluding price of oil)

 

[MCompact]

1995 BMW 318ti Club(///M) Sport

62k: Replace main and A/C serpentine belt
89k: A/C idler pulley
94k: Timing chain tensioner(replaced as a precaution); a 15 minute job
101k: Battery
112k: Thermostat
124k: Heater hose flange
133k: LCA bushings
135k: Battery

Ordered in August 1995 and delivered in November 1995, this ti served as my HPDE instructor car from 1996 to 2012. I retired it due to it being a bit too slow compared to newer cars(0-60 in 7.7 sec. and a top speed of only 130). At 144k it still has the original clutch, struts, and springs.
I have no plans to sell it, after over 20 years of ownership it's a part of the family.

 

[Tomioka]

Originally Posted By: 2015_PSD

2003 Chevy Tahoe
45K...steering column replaced
67K...steering column replaced
96K...steering column replaced
125K...steering column replaced


Clunking intermediate shaft? One of the free fixes for that was to "work the shaft" to respread the grease in the shaft splines.

 

[Silk]

This thread is not appropriate for me - I'm a mechanic and a bottom feeder, I seldom buy a car that's running. Cars with problems are my feeding ground.

 

[dlundblad]

On the Jeep, when the front drive shaft was failing, the noise was so horrid I turned around and went back home. At the time I had no idea what it i and I didn't want to damage anything.

The Volvo has just left her stranded in deep snow. She's had it for 6 years and it's been very reliable.

 

[Ihatetochangeoil]

I consider my vehicles reliable; in 15 years I've needed a tow truck twice, and once was due to a car accident. I'm not going to post my lists; they are exhaustive, and I might be blowing my own horn so to speak...I have a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet which has a 16 year span of everything done to 4 cars right down to replacing a radiator cap twice...

I will say that I do all of my own work that I can; but of course I do not own tire mounting or alignment equipment...I do brakes, oil changes, tire rotations, fluid flushes, radiators, timing chains & various gaskets, sensors and the occasional bulb, fabricated brackets for bypass oil filters, etc...I agree with the consensus of what I have seen among BITOGERS, that my car runs best when I'm the only one who works on it.

What I have learned (with pleasure) reading this thread is that there are plenty of other guys who are probably way more OCD than I am when it comes to taking care of my vehicles and record keeping as to what is done when. You can call me anything you wish, but I feel like a kindred spirit here.

 

[CBR.worm]

My current cars:

'00 Toyota Tundra 220k
20k exhaust manifold leak - installed headers
90k MAF failed
100k spider gears - added LSD
110k timing belt
140k fan clutch
200k timing belt

'06 Infinti G35 ~160k miles currently
30k drivers window motor/controller had to be replaced - window would close and then open one inch unless I held the up button up. (Warranty)
36k AC belt shredded and had to be replaced
50k AC belt shredded again, replaced with blue 'racing' belt, never failed again
99k Radiator can replaced due to intermittent issues (warranty)
105k Evap purge valve
160k charcoal canister replaced due to fuel smell
I need to replace a rear diff bushing which is leaking.
Frequent brake pads and rotors.

'06 Infiniti FX45 currently at 140k bought used in 2010.
45k B pillar needed to be rewelded due to creaking during hard cornering
60k dashboard replaced due to sun damage (warranty)
90k Evap purge valve
120k rear diff bushing
125k starter
127k shocks and struts
Currently may need front driveshaft U-joints - something is clicking at low speeds.
Frequent pads and rotors

'08 BMW 528i currently at 90k
40k alternator (warranty)
45k battery (warranty)
60k throttle motor gasket oil leak (warranty)
60k mechatronic seal leaking - I noticed it while changing ATF, DIY fix.
65k valve cover gasket, oil filter housing gaskets (warranty)
66k one coil pack failed - replaced all 6 and plugs - DIY
80k alternator (warranty)
80k dealer reported valve cover was leaking and replaced under warranty (I saw no evidence of a leak)
Original brakes still have lots of meat left.

All of these have had regular maintenance including batteries, tires, etc.

I'll create a different post for previous vehicles.

 

[clinebarger]

Originally Posted By: Silk
This thread is not appropriate for me - I'm a mechanic and a bottom feeder, I seldom buy a car that's running. Cars with problems are my feeding ground.


I'm also a mechanic, But for the most part buy new vehicles besides my Camaro which I built from the ground up mechanically. I just CANNOT pay the price wanted for ABUSED used cars.

 

[Silk]

You are paying too much - I ran my NX Coupe for 9 years, and it was free!

 

[dlundblad]

Originally Posted By: Nick1994
Well, here it goes.

1997 Toyota Camry 2.2L - Owned for 8 months from 185k to 197k miles

Needed 0 repairs. Only oil changes.

2004 VW Beetle TDI w/DSG transmission - Owned for 16 months from 158k-176k (sat in garage for 4 months in the end) - I'll also post the previous repairs that my aunt had, she bought it new and had it meticulously maintained at the dealer. (A good dealer).

-Multiple seat belt sensors, caused airbag light to come on periodically
-Engine coolant temp sensor
-Glow plugs replaced under recall
-High pressure fuel pump replaced under recall (and leaked afterwards)
-Thermostat
~6 CV boots torn
~7 windshields
~6 headlight bulbs
-Windshield washer bottle broke at about 80k miles
-Was on it's 3rd alternator
-Starter replaced
-Lower control arm bushings and upper strut mounts replaced
-Large engine cooling fan died & replaced
-High pressure A/C hose broke off
-Ate a battery every 2 years religiously, last battery made it 8 months though.
-Was on it's 3rd dual mass flywheel (still chattered!)
-Transmission was failing, specifically the mechatronics unit. It CRUNCHED like crazy, and when I say crunch, I mean CRUNCH. It also slipped pretty bad when taking off from a light
-Motor mount replaced
-Camshaft was worn out
-Turbo actuator set check engine light, was able to be cleared. If it stayed on, entire turbo would have had to be replaced
-Airbag light came on, was also able to be cleared. If it stayed on, the leather on the passenger seat would have had to be removed to replace the sensor in the seat.
-Fuse box melted on top of battery
-Door panels completely broke apart. Had to glue and rivet them together ($1000 a piece new)
-Volume knob on stereo failing, left alone ($1,000 for a new one)
-Door speakers quit working. Cost me over $300 for new ones and I rivetted them in myself.
-Tie rods had some play in them, replaced myself with Moogs
-A/C compressor was very very loud in the end and needed replacement
-Blower motor was also very loud
-Seats didn't fold forward 50% of the time
-Sunroof was getting stuck so I quit using it
-I'm sure I'm forgetting lots of stuff. It also rattled like you wouldn't believe

2000 Toyota Camry 2.2L - Owned for 8 months (so far) from 194k to the current 210k.
-Maintenance history from the dealer shows it got valve stem seals and lower control arm bushings with a previous owner
-Air tube from air filter box to throttle body rotted from the heat.

That's it. You can see why I went back to Toyota...


I remember the good ol days when you'd actually back up the poor Bug saying something like "Yeah its a chick car, but it gets 55 mpg" in your signature.

 

[demarpaint]

I have to say I'm pretty fortunate. The most costly repair I incurred in the last 20 years was an AC compressor, and at the time the vehicle was about 20 years old.

 

[IveBeenRued]

The most unreliable vehicle I've owned was a 2001 Pontiac Bonneville. Bought it used at 30K on the odometer and it was totaled at 169K after 7 years of ownership. During that span, it went through 8 sets of front rotors (undersized for the weight of the car), a new ABS controller, 3 HVAC fans, four new engine mounts (same one kept going), 2 alternators, 5 exhaust systems (solid piece from the exhaust manifold and back, cost $1100 for the part alone), and bulbs would go every couple of weeks (OEM replacements, not high performance).

My most reliable has been my Subaru. 110K with just following the maintenance schedule.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

The only vehicle that I've had in the last 50 years that I would not consider reliable was a 1976 Chevrolet pickup that I had purchased new. Other than that all of the vehicles I've owned have been reliable, up to and including the time when they were sold, with none of them needing anything other than routine maintenance.

 

[Silverado12]

I have a CEL on in my 2012 Silverado now (PO451, which is fuel tank pressure). It's a common problem with these trucks, but the truck only has 20,000 miles on it. Kind of disappointed, but at least it's an easy fix.

 

[Hollow]

Let's see...not including routine maintenance items like plugs, filters, brakes, shocks, etc.

1986 Ford Thunderbird 3.8
-Headgaskets twice.
-Multiple minor electrical problems.
- When donated at 145K, had multiple oil leaks but was still running.
-Ran up plenty of repair bills, but never left me stranded.

1997 Ford Thunderbird 4.6
-Assorted sensors.
-Plastic intake manifold cracked.
-Totaled by a drunk driver at 102K.
-Few repairs, but spendy ones, frequently requiring a tow as the issue often disabled the car.

2003 Subaru Outback 2.5
-Oxygen sensor at 101K.
-CV axle twice (known common failure).
-Valve cover gaskets at 105K.
-Currently at 157K, has a small weep at the rear main seal and a few electrical gremlins.
-Lowest repair cost thus far.

1992 Oldsmobile Eighty-Eight
-Valve cover gaskets.
-Cracked radiator.
-Oxygen sensor.
-Dead AC.
-ABS failure.
-Cam sensor.
-Starter.
-Gave up on it and sent it to the junkyard with 80K.