I voted for European, my Audi I voted for European, my Audi and my Vespa. You don’t have a category for motorcycles/scooters, but I’m gathering you just want to know which country is the vehicle from, although you did provide “Other,” but I don’t think the motorcycle/scooter category applies there. Maybe my rollerblading.
ibjames
November 14, 2008 @
10:10 AM
if american car companies if american car companies didn’t care about old people being able to push big buttons, and got away from using such cheap plastic in their cars, they would have done a lot better through the years.
Some of their cars had good styling, but the cheap plastic, ugly buttons etc. ugh…
Their cars are getting better, if they get electric cars going, they might have a nice comeback.. who knows
I drive a mazda and my wife a toyota though.. 🙁
Rockemsock
November 14, 2008 @
10:15 AM
Isn’t Mazda a Ford product? I Isn’t Mazda a Ford product? I know Ford is the parent company…but not sure how much impact they have on the final product.
SD Transplant
November 14, 2008 @
10:32 AM
I believe Ford owns a big I believe Ford owns a big stake (about 20%) in Mazda. They shared certain platforms (chassis/engines), but I’m not sure I would call it American. It is still an Asian auto maker (unless I haven’t caught up with the latest news)
(former)FormerSanDiegan
November 14, 2008 @
10:36 AM
Is a Toyota Camry Is a Toyota Camry manufactured in Kentucky considered an Asian car ?
NotCranky
November 14, 2008 @
10:34 AM
I agree with James. I have a I agree with James. I have a truck and I need a truck, F-250. Even though it is supposedly the “eddie bauer” edition the interior just fell apart, including the door handles, seat adjustment controls, Coffee holders,seat gliders,etc.
I didn’t buy it because of the Eddie Bauer thing of course. I bought it because they were cheap used after a huge O% fiancing campaign. I did get much more than money’s worth but it is still a POS in the interior.
Coronita
November 14, 2008 @
11:28 AM
Rockemsock wrote:Isn’t Mazda [quote=Rockemsock]Isn’t Mazda a Ford product? I know Ford is the parent company…but not sure how much impact they have on the final product.[/quote]
Nope, Ford owns part of Mazda (for now), but Mazda doesn’t typically raid the Ford parts bin for it’s main cars (my understanding).
patientlywaiting
November 14, 2008 @
12:00 PM
Asian makes are the best Asian makes are the best quality and reliability for the money.
American cars have horrible fit and finish and their resale values suck. The seats are designed for fat people and the control buttons designed for stumpy fingers. They are simply gluttonous cars.
German cars have more drivability and “character” for those who don’t mind “throwing away” money for the “pleasure” of driving. Kinda like “throwing away” money on a mortgage to get the opportunity to paint the walls purple and make a “home”.
*
I wonder what rural Republicans drive. Do they really believe in free markets? Or are they just social conservatives concerned about abortion and sins?
Eugene
November 14, 2008 @
12:10 PM
Rural Republicans drive Rural Republicans drive trucks. Ford F-150 is the quintessential Republican car.
NotCranky
November 14, 2008 @
12:23 PM
Don’t listen to esmith. Don’t listen to esmith. F-series pick-ups are for un-licensed, undocumented, “contractors” and rural, cheapskate, non-affiliated kooks. Rural republicans drive luxury trucks, especially anything with a Hemi in it.
Eugene
November 14, 2008 @
12:54 PM
Have you heard about a book Have you heard about a book “The Millionaire Next Door”? It has all sorts of statistics about American millionaires.
At the time their numbers were collected (around 1996), 58% of millionaires drove a car by the Big 3. Most popular millionaire cars were:
– Jeep Grand Cherokee (5.8%)
– Cadillac DeVille (5.3%)
– Lexus LS400 (4.2%)
– Lincoln Town & Country (3.9%)
– Ford F-150 (2.8%)
– Toyota Camry (2.8%)
– Ford Explorer (2.4%)
NotCranky
November 14, 2008 @
1:43 PM
esmith,
I think a later esmith,
I think a later similiar survey will include the 2001 and newer 6cyl Dodge Caravan.My mechanic said that somewhere around 2000 they got the transmission problems worked out.
Eugene
November 14, 2008 @
1:59 PM
Rustico wrote:esmith,
I think [quote=Rustico]esmith,
I think a later similiar survey will include the 2001 and newer 6cyl Dodge Caravan.My mechanic said that somewhere around 2000 they got the transmission problems worked out.[/quote]
Maybe not.
Those millionaires are heavily Republican, and minivans are Democratic vehicles.
NotCranky
November 14, 2008 @
6:24 PM
esmith wrote:Rustico [quote=esmith][quote=Rustico]esmith,
I think a later similar survey will include the 2001 and newer 6cyl Dodge Caravan.My mechanic said that somewhere around 2000 they got the transmission problems worked out.[/quote]
Maybe not.
Those millionaires are heavily Republican, and minivans are Democratic vehicles.[/quote]
That’s funny esmith! Yeah, that might keep it off the list but it’s not a very good reason. At 6-7k for a decent car with 40-50k miles it is a real winner for cheapskates.
Eugene
November 14, 2008 @
7:43 PM
Quote:That’s funny esmith! [quote]That’s funny esmith! Yeah, that might keep it off the list but it’s not a very good reason. At 6-7k for a decent car with 40-50k miles it is a real winner for cheapskates.[/quote]
Another factor is that minivans are mostly for people with young kids. IIRC the median age of a millionaire in that book was 57.
NotCranky
November 14, 2008 @
8:05 PM
The book sounds interesting The book sounds interesting esmith.
moneymaker
November 14, 2008 @
8:46 PM
I drive 3 of the best I drive 3 of the best vehicles ever made, in my opinion. Excluding the transmission on my 2002 Jetta TDI I have never had a problem with any of them after the warranty period. I would include my 1988 Jeep Cherokee, but right now it is not running, a combination of the previous owner installing a kill switch and me fumbling around under the dash.
paramount
November 14, 2008 @
10:23 PM
I have found my full size I have found my full size American made SUV to be very reliable.
I’ll opt for safety even over perceived reliability.
mike92104
November 14, 2008 @
10:31 PM
Subaru! Subaru!
Coronita
November 15, 2008 @
1:10 PM
threadkiller wrote:I drive 3 [quote=threadkiller]I drive 3 of the best vehicles ever made, in my opinion. Excluding the transmission on my 2002 Jetta TDI I have never had a problem with any of them after the warranty period. I would include my 1988 Jeep Cherokee, but right now it is not running, a combination of the previous owner installing a kill switch and me fumbling around under the dash.[/quote]
Don’t mean to give you crap. But I found your post really funny…Because you mentioned you drive the 3 best cars ever made, and then went on to say one had a transmission problem and the other one currently isn’t running….I know what you meant, but it sounded like a classified ad I read once.
“2000 {make/model}…Runs great. Needs a new engine and transmission.”…..
Sorry, it was funny…..
Just curious, what is your TDI getting in terms of gas mileage? I’m guessing 30-40mpg….I wish they had more TDI’s available.
CardiffBaseball
November 14, 2008 @
1:47 PM
Definitely not a liberal Definitely not a liberal here, and only buy GM. Now I did have a used Nissan for about a year or two. It wasn’t anything special some crap little 4 door, but it got me to work and grad school and back…
I don’t really investigate Asian or German cars in any way shape or form. I don’t know BMW numbers from various flavors of Toyota, though one my toyota rental cars from my traveling consultant days was quite nice. In short I don’t know what I am missing, and happily live in ignorance regarding this because as long as GM is a going concern it’s what I’ll buy.
Yes, I am being provincial and but I grew up in a UAW family.
sdduuuude
November 14, 2008 @
10:51 AM
My theory is this:
Buy My theory is this:
Buy American trucks (Toyota OK, too), Japanese passenger cars, European Sports Cars.
Reminds me of this:
In heaven the police are British, the mechanics are German, the cooks are French, the lovers are Italian and the Swiss organize the place.
In hell the police are German, the mechanics are French, the cooks are British, the lovers are Swiss and the Italians organize the place.
Coronita
November 14, 2008 @
11:22 AM
Although I voted for one, I Although I voted for one, I actually drive two.
German for fun, Japanese for reliability, 50/50, excluding the car I’m waiting on for a delivery….Damn crappy U.S. bound allocation….
fredo4
November 14, 2008 @
5:38 PM
I have the flyest ride in I have the flyest ride in town– a red Honda van. It looks like a big rolling toaster.
jennyo
November 15, 2008 @
11:50 AM
We have three cars – an We have three cars – an Accord that I drive daily to work and such, a new Jeep Wrangler that is my husbands car – which sits in the garage because he bicycles to work, and a 2000 3/4 ton Chevy Suburban that we have to keep because we have a large boat to tow and three dogs to haul around. I never thought I would have American cars (we had an Xterra before getting the Burban) but I have to admit the Chevy is pretty nice, we got it used cheap and since it’s now worth nothing due to gas prices, etc, it does us no harm to keep the beast. We put about 1000 miles a year on it.
We just got the Wrangler because my husband always wanted one, and the local Jeep/Chrysler dealer was having a fire sale because they were closing as part of a national “consolidation.” I still have apprehension about the quality of the Jeep (aka Heap) but so far it seems ok. Just don’t try to get in the back seat, you have to be a contortionist.
Coronita
November 15, 2008 @
1:23 PM
jennyo wrote:
We just got the [quote=jennyo]
We just got the Wrangler because my husband always wanted one, and the local Jeep/Chrysler dealer was having a fire sale because they were closing as part of a national “consolidation.” I still have apprehension about the quality of the Jeep (aka Heap) but so far it seems ok. Just don’t try to get in the back seat, you have to be a contortionist.[/quote]
Ok…Time to start listing the famous auto acronyms.
Ford: Fix or Repair Daily
(or Found On Road Dead )
Chevelot: Constantly Having Every Vehicle Recalled Over Lousy Engineering Techniques
Dodge: Drips Oil & Drops Grease Everywhere
GM: General Maintenance
Honda: Hang On, Not Done Accelerating
Jeep: Junk Engineering Executed Poorly
Audi: Awfully Unsafe Designs Implemented
Another Ugly Deutsche Invention
You forgot:
Honda Accordion.. You forgot:
Honda Accordion.. and that is what the CHP even calls them, and you can guess why – I really like the picture of the BMW though.
My present ‘ride’ is an old 1985 Chevy K30 with over 300k miles and original engine, no rebuild yet. A puff of blue smoke right now on startup, but otherwise absolutely no problem other than being a bit beat up.
I have worked on both American, Japanese and British cars that I have had. I have found that American cars tend to be over-engineered with higher safety factors in design and better quality steel… but with bouts of stupidity in design and/or quality control. Knowing some of the design history of these, I suspect management/bean-counters getting in the middle of the design/engineering process (ok thats good enough, go into production and the shops can fix the remaining problems-aka fix-it-in-the-field) Too many managers/directors/VPs/CEOs in the US that are managing engineering tasks who themselves have absolutely no experience in the subject matter itself.. but after all they have a MBA.. so they know everything?
Japanese are engineered to the least significant digit (just because we can do it?).. if it is designed to last 100k miles, almost 100% will last to 100% miles.. but at 120k miles only 25% are left-remaining have rebuilds. With US cars, you get 75% going to 100kmiles and then a gradual die off. The steel that Japanese cars use is softer than the steel that American cars use (easier to precision mill and does not wear out the tooling as fast). Japanese steel also corrodes faster than American steel. That is why you don’t see that many Japanese cars back east. They don’t last very long until they rust out. Many of the managers in Japanese companies worked up the ranks.. so they have a foundation knowledge in what they are managing.
The British engineering is just real quirky. I don’t understand why they do things the way they do. Some of it does not make sense, like the following: The engine on the old MGs was derived from a firepump engine. It is a straight 4 cyl but only uses 3 main bearings on the crankshaft (normally there should be 5). This means that there is an unsupported section of the crank between every two cylinders where pressures against the crank exceed 3000lbs every cylinder firing. The Japanese took the basic engine design for the MG and added the additional bearings and it became the engine for the Datsun B210 (quite reliable in itself, particularly more so when compared to the MGs).
I also wonder if some of the reliability issue has to do with who is doing repairs on the vehicle. I had almost no problems with a Nissan 300zx Turbo until I brought it to the dealer on a repair. After that, the car never ran the same (don’t have the car now). NOTE: Nissan V6 engines of that period have a design flaw in their cooling system. My sister had persistent problems with her Honda Prelude until she switched mechanics.
orthofrancis
November 15, 2008 @
6:30 PM
I have a Porsche, wife drives I have a Porsche, wife drives an Audi both 2006s. I used to drive a Saturn when I was in my surgical residency.
We’re both Dems. The only American car I might have considered would have been the new Caddy CTS-V or aZ06 Vette. Either that or a superformance “kit” car – check them out – they’re really fun.
Now I am considering buying a commuter car, and if the Americans would make a decent electric vehicle that is fun to drive, I might get it. While I do like the Tesla a lot, it’s a little to much for a beater commuter car.
November 14, 2008 @ 9:52 AM
I voted for European, my Audi
I voted for European, my Audi and my Vespa. You don’t have a category for motorcycles/scooters, but I’m gathering you just want to know which country is the vehicle from, although you did provide “Other,” but I don’t think the motorcycle/scooter category applies there. Maybe my rollerblading.
November 14, 2008 @ 10:10 AM
if american car companies
if american car companies didn’t care about old people being able to push big buttons, and got away from using such cheap plastic in their cars, they would have done a lot better through the years.
Some of their cars had good styling, but the cheap plastic, ugly buttons etc. ugh…
Their cars are getting better, if they get electric cars going, they might have a nice comeback.. who knows
I drive a mazda and my wife a toyota though.. 🙁
November 14, 2008 @ 10:15 AM
Isn’t Mazda a Ford product? I
Isn’t Mazda a Ford product? I know Ford is the parent company…but not sure how much impact they have on the final product.
November 14, 2008 @ 10:32 AM
I believe Ford owns a big
I believe Ford owns a big stake (about 20%) in Mazda. They shared certain platforms (chassis/engines), but I’m not sure I would call it American. It is still an Asian auto maker (unless I haven’t caught up with the latest news)
November 14, 2008 @ 10:36 AM
Is a Toyota Camry
Is a Toyota Camry manufactured in Kentucky considered an Asian car ?
November 14, 2008 @ 10:34 AM
I agree with James. I have a
I agree with James. I have a truck and I need a truck, F-250. Even though it is supposedly the “eddie bauer” edition the interior just fell apart, including the door handles, seat adjustment controls, Coffee holders,seat gliders,etc.
I didn’t buy it because of the Eddie Bauer thing of course. I bought it because they were cheap used after a huge O% fiancing campaign. I did get much more than money’s worth but it is still a POS in the interior.
November 14, 2008 @ 11:28 AM
Rockemsock wrote:Isn’t Mazda
[quote=Rockemsock]Isn’t Mazda a Ford product? I know Ford is the parent company…but not sure how much impact they have on the final product.[/quote]
Nope, Ford owns part of Mazda (for now), but Mazda doesn’t typically raid the Ford parts bin for it’s main cars (my understanding).
November 14, 2008 @ 12:00 PM
Asian makes are the best
Asian makes are the best quality and reliability for the money.
American cars have horrible fit and finish and their resale values suck. The seats are designed for fat people and the control buttons designed for stumpy fingers. They are simply gluttonous cars.
German cars have more drivability and “character” for those who don’t mind “throwing away” money for the “pleasure” of driving. Kinda like “throwing away” money on a mortgage to get the opportunity to paint the walls purple and make a “home”.
*
I wonder what rural Republicans drive. Do they really believe in free markets? Or are they just social conservatives concerned about abortion and sins?
November 14, 2008 @ 12:10 PM
Rural Republicans drive
Rural Republicans drive trucks. Ford F-150 is the quintessential Republican car.
November 14, 2008 @ 12:23 PM
Don’t listen to esmith.
Don’t listen to esmith. F-series pick-ups are for un-licensed, undocumented, “contractors” and rural, cheapskate, non-affiliated kooks. Rural republicans drive luxury trucks, especially anything with a Hemi in it.
November 14, 2008 @ 12:54 PM
Have you heard about a book
Have you heard about a book “The Millionaire Next Door”? It has all sorts of statistics about American millionaires.
At the time their numbers were collected (around 1996), 58% of millionaires drove a car by the Big 3. Most popular millionaire cars were:
– Jeep Grand Cherokee (5.8%)
– Cadillac DeVille (5.3%)
– Lexus LS400 (4.2%)
– Lincoln Town & Country (3.9%)
– Ford F-150 (2.8%)
– Toyota Camry (2.8%)
– Ford Explorer (2.4%)
November 14, 2008 @ 1:43 PM
esmith,
I think a later
esmith,
I think a later similiar survey will include the 2001 and newer 6cyl Dodge Caravan.My mechanic said that somewhere around 2000 they got the transmission problems worked out.
November 14, 2008 @ 1:59 PM
Rustico wrote:esmith,
I think
[quote=Rustico]esmith,
I think a later similiar survey will include the 2001 and newer 6cyl Dodge Caravan.My mechanic said that somewhere around 2000 they got the transmission problems worked out.[/quote]
Maybe not.
Those millionaires are heavily Republican, and minivans are Democratic vehicles.
November 14, 2008 @ 6:24 PM
esmith wrote:Rustico
[quote=esmith][quote=Rustico]esmith,
I think a later similar survey will include the 2001 and newer 6cyl Dodge Caravan.My mechanic said that somewhere around 2000 they got the transmission problems worked out.[/quote]
Maybe not.
Those millionaires are heavily Republican, and minivans are Democratic vehicles.[/quote]
That’s funny esmith! Yeah, that might keep it off the list but it’s not a very good reason. At 6-7k for a decent car with 40-50k miles it is a real winner for cheapskates.
November 14, 2008 @ 7:43 PM
Quote:That’s funny esmith!
[quote]That’s funny esmith! Yeah, that might keep it off the list but it’s not a very good reason. At 6-7k for a decent car with 40-50k miles it is a real winner for cheapskates.[/quote]
Another factor is that minivans are mostly for people with young kids. IIRC the median age of a millionaire in that book was 57.
November 14, 2008 @ 8:05 PM
The book sounds interesting
The book sounds interesting esmith.
November 14, 2008 @ 8:46 PM
I drive 3 of the best
I drive 3 of the best vehicles ever made, in my opinion. Excluding the transmission on my 2002 Jetta TDI I have never had a problem with any of them after the warranty period. I would include my 1988 Jeep Cherokee, but right now it is not running, a combination of the previous owner installing a kill switch and me fumbling around under the dash.
November 14, 2008 @ 10:23 PM
I have found my full size
I have found my full size American made SUV to be very reliable.
I’ll opt for safety even over perceived reliability.
November 14, 2008 @ 10:31 PM
Subaru!
Subaru!
November 15, 2008 @ 1:10 PM
threadkiller wrote:I drive 3
[quote=threadkiller]I drive 3 of the best vehicles ever made, in my opinion. Excluding the transmission on my 2002 Jetta TDI I have never had a problem with any of them after the warranty period. I would include my 1988 Jeep Cherokee, but right now it is not running, a combination of the previous owner installing a kill switch and me fumbling around under the dash.[/quote]
Don’t mean to give you crap. But I found your post really funny…Because you mentioned you drive the 3 best cars ever made, and then went on to say one had a transmission problem and the other one currently isn’t running….I know what you meant, but it sounded like a classified ad I read once.
“2000 {make/model}…Runs great. Needs a new engine and transmission.”…..
Sorry, it was funny…..
Just curious, what is your TDI getting in terms of gas mileage? I’m guessing 30-40mpg….I wish they had more TDI’s available.
November 14, 2008 @ 1:47 PM
Definitely not a liberal
Definitely not a liberal here, and only buy GM. Now I did have a used Nissan for about a year or two. It wasn’t anything special some crap little 4 door, but it got me to work and grad school and back…
I don’t really investigate Asian or German cars in any way shape or form. I don’t know BMW numbers from various flavors of Toyota, though one my toyota rental cars from my traveling consultant days was quite nice. In short I don’t know what I am missing, and happily live in ignorance regarding this because as long as GM is a going concern it’s what I’ll buy.
Yes, I am being provincial and but I grew up in a UAW family.
November 14, 2008 @ 10:51 AM
My theory is this:
Buy
My theory is this:
Buy American trucks (Toyota OK, too), Japanese passenger cars, European Sports Cars.
Reminds me of this:
In heaven the police are British, the mechanics are German, the cooks are French, the lovers are Italian and the Swiss organize the place.
In hell the police are German, the mechanics are French, the cooks are British, the lovers are Swiss and the Italians organize the place.
November 14, 2008 @ 11:22 AM
Although I voted for one, I
Although I voted for one, I actually drive two.
German for fun, Japanese for reliability, 50/50, excluding the car I’m waiting on for a delivery….Damn crappy U.S. bound allocation….
November 14, 2008 @ 5:38 PM
I have the flyest ride in
I have the flyest ride in town– a red Honda van. It looks like a big rolling toaster.
November 15, 2008 @ 11:50 AM
We have three cars – an
We have three cars – an Accord that I drive daily to work and such, a new Jeep Wrangler that is my husbands car – which sits in the garage because he bicycles to work, and a 2000 3/4 ton Chevy Suburban that we have to keep because we have a large boat to tow and three dogs to haul around. I never thought I would have American cars (we had an Xterra before getting the Burban) but I have to admit the Chevy is pretty nice, we got it used cheap and since it’s now worth nothing due to gas prices, etc, it does us no harm to keep the beast. We put about 1000 miles a year on it.
We just got the Wrangler because my husband always wanted one, and the local Jeep/Chrysler dealer was having a fire sale because they were closing as part of a national “consolidation.” I still have apprehension about the quality of the Jeep (aka Heap) but so far it seems ok. Just don’t try to get in the back seat, you have to be a contortionist.
November 15, 2008 @ 1:23 PM
jennyo wrote:
We just got the
[quote=jennyo]
We just got the Wrangler because my husband always wanted one, and the local Jeep/Chrysler dealer was having a fire sale because they were closing as part of a national “consolidation.” I still have apprehension about the quality of the Jeep (aka Heap) but so far it seems ok. Just don’t try to get in the back seat, you have to be a contortionist.[/quote]
Ok…Time to start listing the famous auto acronyms.
Ford: Fix or Repair Daily
(or Found On Road Dead )
Chevelot: Constantly Having Every Vehicle Recalled Over Lousy Engineering Techniques
Dodge: Drips Oil & Drops Grease Everywhere
GM: General Maintenance
Honda: Hang On, Not Done Accelerating
Jeep: Junk Engineering Executed Poorly
Audi: Awfully Unsafe Designs Implemented
Another Ugly Deutsche Invention
Acura: Another Crummy, Useless, Rotten Automobile
Toyota: The One You Ought To Avoid
VW: Virtually Worthless
BMW: Big Money Waste
(or more recently, Broke Man Walking)
And this picture takes the cake
http://www.dunkworld.com/pix-pdfs/bmw_petrol_hose_big.jpg
November 15, 2008 @ 3:10 PM
You forgot:
Honda Accordion..
You forgot:
Honda Accordion.. and that is what the CHP even calls them, and you can guess why – I really like the picture of the BMW though.
My present ‘ride’ is an old 1985 Chevy K30 with over 300k miles and original engine, no rebuild yet. A puff of blue smoke right now on startup, but otherwise absolutely no problem other than being a bit beat up.
I have worked on both American, Japanese and British cars that I have had. I have found that American cars tend to be over-engineered with higher safety factors in design and better quality steel… but with bouts of stupidity in design and/or quality control. Knowing some of the design history of these, I suspect management/bean-counters getting in the middle of the design/engineering process (ok thats good enough, go into production and the shops can fix the remaining problems-aka fix-it-in-the-field) Too many managers/directors/VPs/CEOs in the US that are managing engineering tasks who themselves have absolutely no experience in the subject matter itself.. but after all they have a MBA.. so they know everything?
Japanese are engineered to the least significant digit (just because we can do it?).. if it is designed to last 100k miles, almost 100% will last to 100% miles.. but at 120k miles only 25% are left-remaining have rebuilds. With US cars, you get 75% going to 100kmiles and then a gradual die off. The steel that Japanese cars use is softer than the steel that American cars use (easier to precision mill and does not wear out the tooling as fast). Japanese steel also corrodes faster than American steel. That is why you don’t see that many Japanese cars back east. They don’t last very long until they rust out. Many of the managers in Japanese companies worked up the ranks.. so they have a foundation knowledge in what they are managing.
The British engineering is just real quirky. I don’t understand why they do things the way they do. Some of it does not make sense, like the following: The engine on the old MGs was derived from a firepump engine. It is a straight 4 cyl but only uses 3 main bearings on the crankshaft (normally there should be 5). This means that there is an unsupported section of the crank between every two cylinders where pressures against the crank exceed 3000lbs every cylinder firing. The Japanese took the basic engine design for the MG and added the additional bearings and it became the engine for the Datsun B210 (quite reliable in itself, particularly more so when compared to the MGs).
I also wonder if some of the reliability issue has to do with who is doing repairs on the vehicle. I had almost no problems with a Nissan 300zx Turbo until I brought it to the dealer on a repair. After that, the car never ran the same (don’t have the car now). NOTE: Nissan V6 engines of that period have a design flaw in their cooling system. My sister had persistent problems with her Honda Prelude until she switched mechanics.
November 15, 2008 @ 6:30 PM
I have a Porsche, wife drives
I have a Porsche, wife drives an Audi both 2006s. I used to drive a Saturn when I was in my surgical residency.
We’re both Dems. The only American car I might have considered would have been the new Caddy CTS-V or aZ06 Vette. Either that or a superformance “kit” car – check them out – they’re really fun.
Now I am considering buying a commuter car, and if the Americans would make a decent electric vehicle that is fun to drive, I might get it. While I do like the Tesla a lot, it’s a little to much for a beater commuter car.