Are you brand neutral?

[AutoMechanic]

@ Auto Mechanic......in your view how has the reliability been with the Subaru CVTs? What company makes them for Subie?

They actually aren’t bad. They are Jatco. It’s rare to have one come in with a transmission problem. As long as you’re keeping up maintenance on them as recommended then they do really well. I hate the feeling of a CVT in general but that doesn’t affect the reliability. It’s rare you’d walk into a Subaru shop and see a transmission torn down.

 

[SC Maintenance]

I have owned Ford, GM, Chrysler, Nissan and Toyota. I think everyone makes good and bad, some more of one than the other.

I would currently avoid companies that are actively pushing hard against right to repair. Call it political if you want but I don't see why OEM's are trying to freeze me out of fixing my own stuff.

When I am buying new I avoid brands that only have one dealer in my entire area, but that's the only real reason, not the cars themselves.

 

[99Saturn]

Basically only ever owned GMs but like to at least think I am brand neutral. Only new car I've bought is our Cruze, and right or wrong a major selling point wast the $4K or $5K in rebates being offered at the time. And used they didn't hold their value so have made for cheap acquisitions.

Don't need a new car right now but given the lack of incentives now and the car market being what it is, find myself wondering if we were to "upgrade" or a small hatch/CUV/SUV what I would be shopping. LOL I might start my list by seeing what is new and is sold with a MT.

 

[Shel_B]

Right now I'd probably not consider anything but a Toyota product ... Camry, Avalon, certain Lexus models ... with minimal fancy features.

 

[Wrenchturner44]

They actually aren’t bad. They are Jatco. It’s rare to have one come in with a transmission problem. As long as you’re keeping up maintenance on them as recommended then they do really well. I hate the feeling of a CVT in general but that doesn’t affect the reliability. It’s rare you’d walk into a Subaru shop and see a transmission torn down.

Thanks for your reply. I forgot one other important Subie question......do you feel in your expert opinion that the head gasket issues are finally solved?

 

[marc1]

I would say I am neutral on my pickup trucks, I have owned Dodge, GMC, Chevrolet and now a Toyota. I have shopped for all the brands at one point or another. Looking to get another 5+ years on the current pickup and I can't say right now what I will be looking for then. If I had to buy immediately tomorrow for some reason then it would either be an F150 with the 3.3 or a 1500 Silverado with the new I4.

On my old muscle / classic cars, I am GM but I wouldn't mind opening that up to a Mopar maybe one day if I find the right one. I am partial to the 68-69 Road Runner / GTX line.

New muscle, I owned a 2011 Shelby, loved it. I'd probably consider a C8 if I was looking for new muscle / performance (which I am not currently).

I certainly like European cars but I avoid them due to unfamiliarity and costs (initial and lifetime). If I had to pick a European driver, it would probably be a BMW, a friend has one and I rented one once, they are nice. In Europe, to date, I have only driven Opels and Fiats.

eVs are not on my radar yet, not opposed to them per se, I am just not there yet so I have no idea what I like in that space. I did like the Nikola Badger truck when I read about it but that truck never materialized.

 

[AutoMechanic]

Thanks for your reply. I forgot one other important Subie question......do you feel in your expert opinion that the head gasket issues are finally solved?

I would say yes. They revised the gasket a few years ago it’s a lot stronger now. 2012 and up is a safe bet to avoid the issues. We see far fewer of the 2012 and up models for the head gasket issue than we do the older ones.

 

[Nick1994]

I'll add to my list of me not buying, Toyota. For now. Their technology is ridiculously old and outdated. A friend of mine and his wife wanted a RAV4 last month and I helped them negotiate out a 2023. It finally has wireless Apple CarPlay this year but outside of CarPlay the radio is older than my 2014 Jeep.

 

[FishFry]

Never really cared about brands.
When I was young it was - whatever is available, that I can afford - so my first car was a 1971 Toyota Celica ST, just because my neighbor sold it to me for 300 bucks.

After that it was VW, Honda, Lada, Audi, Citroen, Alfa-Romeo, Renault, Mercedes, Chrysler, Daihatsu, Pontiac, and now Ford as my daily driver.
For fun I had always one or two classic vehicles on the side - now it's a 41 Chevy, but I pretty much find beauty in every other brand - actually I have a thing for rather quirky brands like Plymouth or Desoto.

Never bought a new car though - I think it's a waste of money.



Frank

 

[NismoNVT]

If you price shop, brands become irrelevant. The only issue is how much that price takes into account long term ownership costs.

 

[Watchthis2021]

I had Dodge, GM , and Fords for work in the last 40 years and fairly good luck with all. In 2006 went exclusively with Gm for employee pricing bought 2006 Sierra had 201000 miles when traded in 2015. New 2015 Silverado had 106000 miles when traded for my 2021 GMC Sierra Denali last year. I’m a little disappointed cause the new GMC already burns oil at 20000 miles and the other 2 never did.

 

[ATex7239]

I used to be very brand loyal. Dodge trucks or Honda cars - full stop. I’m not anymore. However I will say I have had better “luck” with Honda, Toyota, and Ford so I gravitate towards those brands first.

 

[KrisZ]

It’s hard to be totally neutral because we naturally gravitate towards things we have had good experience with and avoid things that we had bad experience with. It’s basic survival instinct that once protected us from eating poisonous food or being eaten by a predator, but now it applies to our possessions.

 

[RaymondP]

Are you brand neutral? No. I look for fun to drive over practicality when selecting a car but drew the line on a Lotus Elise that was almost impossible to get in to or out of. LOL.

From experience after driving many brands, most are very dull to drive. Exceptions are Porsche and Mazda (Miata). I love a manual trans. so sadly today's options are very limited. Current drive is a manual Beemer, but still needed to revert back to motorcycling to supplement the fun factor while remaining affordable.

Quality and reliability are important, and I service and maintain whatever I can whenever I can. Test drove many cars including a new manual trans Mustang. Was appalled at the trans that shifted like a truck. Just terrible. Maybe better in current models?? Tried a Pontiac Solstice in the day. On/Off clutch engagement. Complained directly to manufacturer and was told it was a "performance vehicle" and that's how it was supposed to be (???). Rember inviting the salesperson to try my manual VW Passat (six cylinder), my regular commuter. He was amazed at how smooth the gearbox was in a ten-year-old car. Have learned that handling is more important than raw power so have stayed away from muscle cars.

Sadly, with greater influence of the bean counters have seen quality decline in the German/Euro brands with the adoption of more plastics, particularly in the engine bay. Time will tell if the weight/cost savings tradeoff is a prudent decision.

 

[IndyIan]

I try to purchase reliablilty.

I try to purchase by the actual model and year reliability as well. I don't assume anymore that even a Toyota or Honda is going to be major issue free. As a brand they usually have less gotcha's but there are still some problems in individual years.
I do assume I can't afford to maintain an Audi, Mercedes, Volvo, and maybe BMW. A relatively simple mtx rwd non turbo 328i is appealing though!
I like to do some research anyways so I don't end up with a common $2+k repair bill I could have avoided...

 

[I<3oil]

Yes with the exception of a couple companies that I won't ever buy from.

 

[IndyIan]

They actually aren’t bad. They are Jatco. It’s rare to have one come in with a transmission problem. As long as you’re keeping up maintenance on them as recommended then they do really well. I hate the feeling of a CVT in general but that doesn’t affect the reliability. It’s rare you’d walk into a Subaru shop and see a transmission torn down.

I think since 2012 all subaru CVT's are designed and made by Subaru. I can't think of another longitudinal engine, AWD vehicle with a CVT? maybe some Audi of the past...
Anyways since 2015 the transmissions have rated quite well for reliability, and lots of the earlier ones problems just were a couple bad solenoids in the valve body, which can be replaced individually.
I don't think the CVT's can take as much abuse as an old 4 or 5 gear automatic, especially when cold, but if someone told you ours was a 6 speed auto, you would never know different if you are in a warm climate using between 20 and 100% throttle. If its -5C or less the trans doesn't simulate gears and doesn't lock the torque converter until it warms up a bit, so it feels pretty lethargic for the first couple miles.

This is my first Subaru and I don't have any regrets yet, the majority of the their cars share 2 engines and 2 transmissions, all in the same driveline configuration, and I believe all of them now use the same basic platform with just the dimensions changed. I like their KISS approach and how they prioritize things like safety structure and driver sightlines.

 

[Delta]

They actually aren’t bad. They are Jatco. It’s rare to have one come in with a transmission problem. As long as you’re keeping up maintenance on them as recommended then they do really well. I hate the feeling of a CVT in general but that doesn’t affect the reliability. It’s rare you’d walk into a Subaru shop and see a transmission torn down.

Subaru's are in house built units. The old 3 and 4 speed automatics were a Jatco design.

 

[John Galt]

When I am buying new I avoid brands that only have one dealer in my entire area, but that's the only real reason, not the cars themselves.

^^ This was important to my latest used Ford purchase with a five year factory warranty. I can easily drive to four rather large Ford dealers within 25 minutes from my house. They compete for my attention/business, I have already seen it with service special mailings and coupon offerings.

 

[redhat]

I have owned quite a few brands, and enjoyed many vehicles, but now I will probably only purchase GM if I had to buy something new today.

They all make good vehicles, and they all make junk. Ford's handling of my PowerBoost truck is what has turned me against them. You can't let a customer in a $70k truck be hung out to dry. My most recent Honda Accord (2020) had many trips back to the dealer for oil leaks, boost leaks, electrical issues, etc. I really wanted to love that car but it make it tough. If it didn't fetch such a compelling offer from CarMax in early 2021, I'd probably have lemon lawed that car also.

Reasons why I would probably seek out a new GM if needed is that Dad's new Silverado has been great and Mom's 2018 Tahoe with 85k and average maintenance has been great. I think GM is coming back around.