Bad luck with cars

[wuttja]

Re: Bad luck with cars

Sorry to hear about your bad luck! My 2000 Accord is at 218,000 miles and running strong. Over the life of the car I've replaced most wear items (tires, front and rear brakes once) and a few additional items have been radiator and some rear suspension parts. Overall one of the most reliable cars we've ever owned. Just over 100K on my 2005 Pilot, and nothing but scheduled maintenance, tires, and both front and rear brakes once. Probably get another Honda when we finally replace the Accord.

 

[bkwapisz]

Re: Bad luck with cars

I have a friend who swears by those subies... They are very nicely built cars.

Yeah, and easy to work on too. I've owned 2 (drive one now) and they're really nice. Simple, but nice. The one before the current one I sold to a friend with 157000 on it and he drives it every day. In the last 2 yrs he's put brakes on it and of course oil changes.

 

[4JawChuck]

Re: Bad luck with cars

$98 for brake pads at 15K? Seat issues? These are not major problems in any definition of the word. Get the seats fixed, keep bringing it in and eventually they will have to fix it under warranty.

My 2008 Dodge Minivan is on its second set of brakes in 65K...and those are all highway miles, other than that it has been pretty reliable. I expect in the next 25K it will need an alternator and new belts...the rental versions I drive of the same vehicle tell me it will need new steering components soon.

Am I distressed over these "maintenance items"? Am I angry that my motor vehicle needs regular maintenance? Am I angry that only my first set of brake pads/shoes and rotors were covered under warranty?

I call it the cost of ownership.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Bad luck with cars

$98 for brake pads at 15K? Seat issues? These are not major problems in any definition of the word.

$98 is the half price they charged us since the pads wore out so soon. We surely won't be getting this deal again. We put a ton of mileage on this car so at this current rate we can look forward to doing this every 6 months at a cost of $200-300. And that's just the rears! I'm sure the fronts won't be setting any records for longevity. This kind of money having to be spent on maintenance every 6 months (in addition to regular maintenance) is certainly a big deal on a new car. We bought this car for one reason and one reason only: perceived reliability and quality.

 

[itsaboattime]

Re: Bad luck with cars

I've never owned a foreign car, don't plan on it either.

I have trucks. Preferrably fords. I've posted on here about the '94 F150 that I had that had over 400k on it that I had to junk after the front end wore out. Loved that truck. Towed everything from the boat & camper to other people's cars.

EZ I'm sorry to hear about your luck with cars. That really sucks. You may want to try a Ford. I noticed you hadn't mentioned one. You even went to a foreign car before you tried one.

A previous posted mentioned somthing like "I'd tuck a ford hubcap under my arm and walk". I'm not that extreme, but, you can't argue with my experiences with fords.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Bad luck with cars

Hadn't driven any Ford cars mainly because up until the Fusion and the new Taurus.....they were all too ugly to own

However I would quite like to own either of those new vehicles.

 

[itsaboattime]

Re: Bad luck with cars

Hadn't driven any Ford cars mainly because up until the Fusion and the new Taurus.....they were all too ugly to own

However I would quite like to own either of those new vehicles.

lol


Don't think I'll ever own another actual car. I really don't have much of a use for one.

 

[jkust]

Re: Bad luck with cars

I believe I am the antithesis of your situation or the luckiest car owner ever. I have owned mostly GM's and a few Chryslers over the past 20 years but have literally never put a dime into my vehicles beyond very basic maintenance. My lowest mileage vehicle was my 97 Bonneville SSEi which I just sold this past june but my average mileage I buy at is about 80,000 and keep them well into the 100,000's. I will only buy the most optioned package that was offered whether it be supercharged with a ton of gadgets or whatever. I do that because in the used market most of the options someone paid a lot extra for when new garner very little extra used. The worst vehicle I ever owned was a Toyota I took over payments on for my sister when she was in a jam. These days, I no longer buy older vehicles out of necessity but continue to until my luck runs out. My current daily driver is a 2000 Oldsmobile Silhouette minivan with well in excess of 100k which has some poor reliability reviews. Again for some reason none of the issues have affected me. I have even towed my heavy boat/trailer rig for a season with no issues. I think part of my luck stems possibly from very attentive original owners. I feel for your situation and bet it is very frustrating.

 

[ezbtr]

Re: Bad luck with cars

I've been pretty lucky,the biggest problem Ive had is replacing the fuel pump on my 99 Yukon, about $800.00. I've only bought one new truck, an 86 Toyota truck. I've had a 93 Toyota 4x4, 92 Cherokee, 90 F250, and a few others, no major problems, gotta say the 93 Toy and 92 Cherokee were so easy to maintain, and both with WELL over 100K. Zero probs. I have an 87 Camry that I got for $900, did brakes, and a few small things, need to fix oil leak/seal, but my daily driver and it only has 115K on it now. I look for past maint. clues, I've turned down a few due to lack of maint. , that is key.

 

[vegasphotoman]

Re: Bad luck with cars

Get an early 70s INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER truck and I gaurantee you will only have GAS MILEAGE problems! lol bullet proof farm trucks for sure! 1/8 thick sheetmetal and can tow a house

I gotta ask Jeremy, your wifes 1rst car was a dodge neon? BUMMER! lol

my 1rst was a 1972 dodge dart slant 6 motor,it was a bulletproof car....

 

[xxxflhrci]

Re: Bad luck with cars

I have never had "bad luck" with cars. Currently, we have 2 Fords, a Jeep, Toyota, and Mercedes at my house. The oldest is an '87. The newest is a 2000. I would not hesitate to drive cross country in any one of them.

 

[4JawChuck]

Re: Bad luck with cars

$98 is the half price they charged us since the pads wore out so soon. We surely won't be getting this deal again. We put a ton of mileage on this car so at this current rate we can look forward to doing this every 6 months at a cost of $200-300. And that's just the rears! I'm sure the fronts won't be setting any records for longevity. This kind of money having to be spent on maintenance every 6 months (in addition to regular maintenance) is certainly a big deal on a new car. We bought this car for one reason and one reason only: perceived reliability and quality.

I have another car, a 2001 Cavalier the wife drives to work. Estimate to replace the f+r brakes from the dealer was $1200. I replaced pads, discs, shoes and drums including hardware in my driveway in 2 hrs for $180.

I needed a 3/8" allen key, screwdriver, c-clamp, shoe spring tool (10$), jack and lug wrench to do the work...I had two coffees while I changed out the entire brake system. You might look elsewhere than the dealer for regular maintenance items like brakes, they hose you on those items.

Since they are regular maintenance items a local garage can perform the work for a fraction of what you will get charged at the dealer, you will likely find aftermarket pads last longer than factory pads too. It will not affect your warranty since they aren't covered!