Any cars you regret buying? - My '14 CR-V experience

[slo town]

Biggest POS we ever owned was a 2001 Subaru Outback, 5 speed manual. Bought new by us and well taken care of. BUT, it had bad wheel bearings on all four corners (and they were stupid expensive to replace), clutch chatter because of a bad flywheel (replaced clutch twice only to find out there was a recall for the flywheel that the Subaru dealer didn't know about), leaking head gaskets (Subaru's official fix was a bottle of radiator stop leak), HORRIBLE snow traction (5-speed has a less intelligent center diff, which I didn't know about), entire rear taillight electrical including taillights had to be replaced, and the Subaru dealership experience was never a good one.

My BIL and SIL are in love with the brand but they have nothing but problems with them. I never understood the love for these things.

Scott

 

[gman2304]

1995 Cadillac Seville STS. If it hadn’t been under warranty it would have bankrupted me. Lots of electrical issues plus when I bought it I had no idea that GM had designed the newish Northstar engine as a two stroke like the old Detroit diesels. It would burn a qt of oil every 1,000 miles from new and on road trips I had to put a qt of oil in the trunk for top offs. Sadly, it was the last domestic car my wife has owned.

 

[OVERKILL]

I bought an Audi e-tron that my wife hated and I didn't realize didn't have the extended leather option that the one we test drove had. That was a mistake.
We also bought an EcoDiesel RAM 1500. Truck was great, but my wife short-tripped it and it was doing weekly regens, so we ended up trading it on the 1500 we have currently. Can't say I regret buying it really however.

We bought a '16 Durango Limited, I regret not getting the V8 or skipping the Durango all together and just getting a truck, which is the direction we ultimately went in the first place. It was a good, cheap to drive, people hauler though for the kids at the time.

 

[JimPghPA]

Dgunay, 1) turn off traction control in snow. 2) valve train noise on startup can be caused by a faulty oil filter anti-drain-back valve.

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My 2016 CR-V EX with the CVT that I bought in 2020 is my first Honda and has been a very nice vehicle. Honda and Toyota make good CVT transmissions. Nissan and a few others not so much. However the Honda CVT does require you to change the CVT fluid and some say only use Honda fluid in it.bb The rear end also requires frequent fluid changes and also only with the appropriate Honda fluid. There are YouTube videos on how to do those. Engine oil changes and other fluid changes on them are super simple to do.

Actually if I had it to do over again I would still buy my 2016. But I would avoid some of the dealer rip-offs that they caught me with.

I agree that the interior is drab. But it is also built to last.

My biggest disappointment with mine so far has been the noise at highway speeds, but I seldom drive on any highways.

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[dgunay]

Dgunay, 1) turn off traction control in snow. 2) valve train noise on startup can be caused by a faulty oil filter anti-drain-back valve.

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My 2016 CR-V EX with the CVT that I bought in 2020 is my first Honda and has been a very nice vehicle. Honda and Toyota make good CVT transmissions. Nissan and a few others not so much. However the Honda CVT does require you to change the CVT fluid and some say only use Honda fluid in it.bb The rear end also requires frequent fluid changes and also only with the appropriate Honda fluid. There are YouTube videos on how to do those. Engine oil changes and other fluid changes on them are super simple to do.

Actually if I had it to do over again I would still buy my 2016. But I would avoid some of the dealer rip-offs that they caught me with.

I agree that the interior is drab. But it is also built to last.

My biggest disappointment with mine so far has been the noise at highway speeds, but I seldom drive on any highways.

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1) Tried every combination possible, been there done that, see the video in the original post, it happens when you try to go through deep snow and both front wheels lose traction (in my case that's how it happened, but video in the original post clearly shows the problem)

2) It's not, clearly coming from VTC cam gear - this is what I am talking about




Not sure about 2015+ MY and CVT, maybe they improved things. But I'd not recommend 2012-2014.

 

[millerbl00]

The is a free fix for the VTC cam gear noise. Its a TSB. if under 100000k

 

[dgunay]

The is a free fix for the VTC cam gear noise. Its a TSB. if under 100000k

It is a free fix for US-market CR-Vs (16-012), there is no TSB for Canadian CR-Vs.

It really doesn't change anything though, it happens with the replaced units as well.

 

[Vegoose]

I bought my oldest son a 2006 Ford Focus when he was in high school. I wanted him to learn to drive a stick and it was literally the only car I could find locally with a manual. The car had damage when I bought it. The owner had hit something on the highway and the radiator, condenser, and support bracket were all bent in. The front bumper was also cracked. I replaced the parts myself and had the bumper painted, which added about $1100 to the cost of the car. I also discovered some paperwork in the glove box indicating the car had been in a fairly major accident and had extensive work done to the rear-end. So yeh, a car that had been in two collisions.

Beyond that, this car was just a maintenance nightmare. The 2.0 duratec motor was actually reliable, as was the manual transmission, but everything else just fell apart - window regulators (3 of the 4), intake manifold funner flaps rattled (replaced the manifold), weird electrical gremlins I could never figure out, dash lights that would randomly quit working then start working, broken exterior door handles (twice), torque strut motor mount (probably 3 times, but I kept buying aftermarket crap), steering rack started leaking at about 80k miles, front control arm bushings shot at around 80k. And, the interior of that car just fell apart. The plastics got brittle and stuff was constantly breaking or cracking, the seats were junk, steering wheel leather came apart. I know part of the issue was the driver - a knucklehead 17-year old - but the car itself was just not well made. When he finally went to basic training in his early twenties, I unloaded that car for about $2k and was glad to have gotten that much!

 

[Skippy722]

I bought a certified pre owned 2011 Dodge Durango in 2014. It proceeded to break something expensive every single year. A week after I got it the water pump failed in spectacular fashion, then the brake booster, then the AC Compressor, then the drain bolt seized into the plastic oil pan requiring replacement…. After the oil pan I traded it in. Also, I grew to absolutely despise the 545RFE transmission. Why is 1st gear 3.00:1 and 2nd gear 1.67:1? It accelerated nicely then fell flat on its face.

 

[millerbl00]

It is a free fix for US-market CR-Vs (16-012), there is no TSB for Canadian CR-Vs.

It really doesn't change anything though, it happens with the replaced units as well.

It fixed mine. its an updated part. The part and labor is under $500 if you what to get it done yourself
Fix it now as it will eventually stretch the timing chain

 

[The Critic]

It fixed mine. its an updated part. The part and labor is under $500 if you what to get it done yourself
Fix it now as it will eventually stretch the timing chain

That is impossible. A rattling timing gear cannot cause a timing chain to stretch.

 

[dgunay]

It fixed mine. its an updated part. The part and labor is under $500 if you what to get it done yourself
Fix it now as it will eventually stretch the timing chain

Sorry for the bad news, but it'll eventually come back. You will find same results all over the internet but here is the comment from that youtube video:

A couple months shy of two years after getting it fixed and the noise is back! Not sure if I should bother getting it fixed again. Only does it in the winter when cold and sitting overnight.

Here is another comment if you scroll down a little bit:

I had same issue, Honda helped me replace the VTC under factory warranty, but a year later it starts doing it again. What should I do? Can I just leave it like that? Or, I should get fixed? If so, How much would it be? thank you.

Also, it won't stretch the timing chain. There are other factors cause timing chain stretch, but noisy cam gear is not one of them.

Mine doesn't do that often, I'd say occasionally, less than a second and not too loud, but it's definitely there. If it gets too loud/frequently I'll DIY, but not worth the effort for now.

 

[jeepman3071]

What causes the oil burning in the 2.4L, piston rings? I just don't have much experience with them besides basic maintenance. My grandparents' CRV probably burned a quart every 2000 miles. I'm seeing a girl with a 2009 Accord 2.4L that has higher mileage but it eats oil like crazy.

 

[RooflessVW]

It's hard to explain, but we went from an '06 X3 to a '15 XC60 to a '15 Q7 to a '19 Atlas to a '22 Odyssey.

Hindsight and experience helps me realize we shoukd have either kept the X3 until the Atlas or the XC60 until the Honda.

Honestly wish I still had that X3; it was a great little car and I'd happily drive that in place of my Touareg.

 

[RooflessVW]

And it's not that I didn't like the in-betweeners, they were just unnecessary money spent.

 

[Nick1994]

Thinking back, I’m not sure I regret buying any of them. Somewhat the Tesla Model 3 that I sold after 6-7 weeks last month. But it was a learning curve. The car just wasn’t quite all that. And I didn’t know it would have child sized seats in it. Just wasn’t comfortable enough to keep.

Now I do regret selling some though. The 2015 Sonata I should have kept and got rid of the Camry, keep it as a backup beater.

Live and learn.

 

[The Critic]

I guess I slightly regret buying my truck. It is a 1/2 ton crew cab with 5.5' bed. Although I purchased it for a great price last year ($13k under msrp), there are other vehicles I could have purchased that would better serve my needs for the next 10-15 years.

For a long time,, it was a dream of mine to own a pick-up. But after owning one for the last 18 months, I have learned:

- If you do not tow or haul dirty items (e.g. lawn equipment, pressure washers or dirt bikes), a minivan can do the same job as a 1/2 ton truck.
- Minivans can actually haul longer items than short-bed pick-ups.
- A 3/4 ton gas pick-up with an 8' bed is more useful for serious hauling and is more future-proof for towing (if I ever develop a need).

For some unknown reason, my wife likes the vehicle so we are keeping it for now.

 

[Krieg]

1984 Pontiac Fiero!

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Just about every car I have bought except maybe 3 or 4 of them. A few of the bad ones were mustang GTs with fragile T-10 mt.
The worst was a "used' lincoln Mark viii. A fancy mustang with a trunk. Great dohc V8 engine and trans, junk front suspension and the car was a flood car and I didnt know that. Lost the rear suspension airbags on the highway and almost crashed. Then there was a Renault Fuego; great handling but junk engine and trans. Then a used Camaro v6 5 speed, Nice driver bu it had that L.I.M gasket problem that I was not aware of. I though the HG was gone so I flipped it. This list could go on for hours ...

Best ones were:
1) A factory order early 80's Chevy S-10 short box pickup with carb V6 and 4 speed mt. Nice WT. just a nice driver and zoomy engine.
2) A 1996 Subaru Impreza Wagon 5MT. A little cramped, but great car and great driver. Loved those racy bridgstone potenza re-091 (?) subaru used at the time. you could really read the road. Wife's car.
3) '65 Buick Electra 225 convertible. 401 Nailhead. Nothing more needs to be said.

 

[2_Tall_Mitchell]

Biggest regret happened this year. Bought a 2006 trailblazer with only 116,000 miles. Looked great. Always wanted one as I have a bit of an I-6 fetish. The atlas I-6 in it is awesome. The suv around the engine was absolute hot garbage. No wonder they’re so cheap used. After replacing the transmission, chasing numerous electrical gremlins and never getting it to idle and take off just right without hesitating, I finally got it in decent enough shape to sell to someone who will never notice the hesitation. I made it reliable but I was so tired of even looking at that thing at that point. Still somehow broke even on it. Learned a lesson that only cost sweat equity.