Reliability of European Makes and cars in general

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Originally Posted by SatinSilver
Buy what you like. Kind of simple. What I don't care for is the constant brand bashing on here by some. Even my least favorite car isn't all that bad. If I won one in a contest/lottery I'd still be happy I won a car.


If I don't care for a car I just don't comment in that thread. What irritates me are people who have zero knowledge about a particular car reciting what's wrong with them. I call those dimwits "read testers"- you can usually detect more than a little of a sour grapes attitude in their comments.
I will say that there are some vehicles that I dislike so much that if I won one I would sell it-even at a loss-rather than drive it. However some people may love that same vehicle and I'm not going to bash it- unless those same folks take a shot at my vehicular choices...
 
Originally Posted by wings&wheels
Originally Posted by Wolf359
Originally Posted by StevieC
Honestly of all the German cars we have had come through the door whether the light was on or not and you would scan it, 9 times out of 10 it would be storing codes for some sort of fault.
21.gif

I think here the only folks that buy these vehicles are the hobbyists that want to drive something different and the snobs that want a status symbol in the driveway because they certainly aren't driving it for longevity and for economic reasons on this continent.


Well they also have options that you can't get on a regular car. Active curve illumination, headlamp washers, massage seats, power trunk closer are some that come to mind. You can't really get them on American cars and not that common even on Japanese cars.


Also style and material quality. We prefer conservative styling with classic leather and wood interiors which tends to be offered by the European makes. When you spend a lot of time in a vehicle, you want to enjoy it.

I'll speak to our family cars, Range Rover and BMW, which while having a myriad of features, still both have understated interiors and panels. Also, the mid level+ European makes, in my experience, use better quality materials. My last Grand Cherokee's 'leather' interior, despite being the top trim line, was leather faced only and the vinyl seat sides started to crack at ~25K miles... Our SAAB 9-7x (Trailblazer in disguise) had peeling radio knobs in two years... Frustrating.

Wanting a decent place to enjoy time behind the wheel is as valid a reason as any for a car decision.

I drive 600 miles a week (1,000km). I'm fine with the Caravan. It's comfortable and roomy and has enough "features". No snobbery status symbol badging though.
lol.gif
 
Originally Posted by StevieC
I drive 600 miles a week (1,000km). I'm fine with the Caravan. It's comfortable and roomy and has enough "features". No snobbery status symbol badging though.
lol.gif


No handling or performance either.
 
Since I started my new job I've been driving the Clubman. It's nowhere near quick but it gets 35-40 mpg and it keeps me from putting commuting miles on the 2er and 3er. The Clubman should hit 150,000 miles at about the same time my term ends- at which point it will have more than served its purpose.
 
Originally Posted by StevieC
I drive 600 miles a week (1,000km). I'm fine with the Caravan. It's comfortable and roomy and has enough "features". No snobbery status symbol badging though.
lol.gif



It's interesting to think that what other people think. That's why I don't even bother to list my cars in my sig. It would be nice if people dropped that attitude, it's just another car for me, I just enjoy driving it and all the gadgets it has. Didn't buy it for the snob factor although I assume lots of people probably do as that probably explains why there are so many out there that are just base models without any options but it has the name. I actually find it annoying sometimes when people stare at me, I just wonder what the heck are they staring at. That never happened when I was driving a Ford. I could really care less about that part. They're smooth quiet and fun to drive. No complaints here.
 
Originally Posted by SatinSilver
If I won one in a contest/lottery I'd still be happy I won a car.


Right up to the point when you were handed the tax bill.
 
Originally Posted by Wolf359
Originally Posted by StevieC
I drive 600 miles a week (1,000km). I'm fine with the Caravan. It's comfortable and roomy and has enough "features". No snobbery status symbol badging though.
lol.gif



It's interesting to think that what other people think. That's why I don't even bother to list my cars in my sig. It would be nice if people dropped that attitude, it's just another car for me, I just enjoy driving it and all the gadgets it has. Didn't buy it for the snob factor although I assume lots of people probably do as that probably explains why there are so many out there that are just base models without any options but it has the name. I actually find it annoying sometimes when people stare at me, I just wonder what the heck are they staring at. That never happened when I was driving a Ford. I could really care less about that part. They're smooth quiet and fun to drive. No complaints here.



Having owned ones of these brands for the better part of two decades I think I'm at the point where I'm ready to feel less guilty and reduce my obsessive-compulsiveness with regards to keeping the car looking good. It's a [censored] shame that I never really could enjoy these cars to their potential because I was always worried about how the wear-n-tear would impact resale.
 
My daily driver has a bench seat & 1 ton spring packs on all 4 corners, and I find it comfortable.

It doesn't bark at me in a foreign language either.
 
Originally Posted by ofelas
My daily driver has a bench seat & 1 ton spring packs on all 4 corners, and I find it comfortable.

It doesn't bark at me in a foreign language either.

Good for you.

European cars typically speak more than one language, unlike American cars or people.
 
Originally Posted by rooflessVW
Originally Posted by StevieC
I drive 600 miles a week (1,000km). I'm fine with the Caravan. It's comfortable and roomy and has enough "features". No snobbery status symbol badging though.
lol.gif


No handling or performance either.

Biggest wagon on the road?

P.S. I think he needs comfortable seats because of back problems.....
P.S2. When I bought my car the contenders where Golf SportWagen and Toyota Prius V. Why? They both had wagon form in a midsize car length.
 
Originally Posted by MCompact
Since I started my new job I've been driving the Clubman. It's nowhere near quick but it gets 35-40 mpg and it keeps me from putting commuting miles on the 2er and 3er. The Clubman should hit 150,000 miles at about the same time my term ends- at which point it will have more than served its purpose.

How are the tires treating you?
 
Originally Posted by BMWTurboDzl
Originally Posted by Wolf359
Originally Posted by StevieC
I drive 600 miles a week (1,000km). I'm fine with the Caravan. It's comfortable and roomy and has enough "features". No snobbery status symbol badging though.
lol.gif



It's interesting to think that what other people think. That's why I don't even bother to list my cars in my sig. It would be nice if people dropped that attitude, it's just another car for me, I just enjoy driving it and all the gadgets it has. Didn't buy it for the snob factor although I assume lots of people probably do as that probably explains why there are so many out there that are just base models without any options but it has the name. I actually find it annoying sometimes when people stare at me, I just wonder what the heck are they staring at. That never happened when I was driving a Ford. I could really care less about that part. They're smooth quiet and fun to drive. No complaints here.



Having owned ones of these brands for the better part of two decades I think I'm at the point where I'm ready to feel less guilty and reduce my obsessive-compulsiveness with regards to keeping the car looking good. It's a [censored] shame that I never really could enjoy these cars to their potential because I was always worried about how the wear-n-tear would impact resale.


YOLO!

Also, you have 2 very big positives in your area:
-good weather
-some twiesties/uphill loading about 1-2 hours from you
 
Originally Posted by rooflessVW
Originally Posted by StevieC
I drive 600 miles a week (1,000km). I'm fine with the Caravan. It's comfortable and roomy and has enough "features". No snobbery status symbol badging though.
lol.gif


No handling or performance either.

I take corners at 86mph no problem on the Toll Road here which has some pretty steep turns in some places. I also have to problem passing anyone. Put my foot down and the PentaStar does it's thing and I'm gone. Sure it's not a "Kool Kid" vehicle but it does just fine performance wise.
 
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Originally Posted by ofelas
My daily driver has a bench seat & 1 ton spring packs on all 4 corners, and I find it comfortable.

It doesn't bark at me in a foreign language either.



What?
confused2.gif
 
I have no response to VW, "handling", and "performance" in the same sentence.

1100+ ft-lbs at the wheels out of my old bench-seat heap sings a very pretty song out the tailpipe, especially on a relatively light 5700lb pickup hauling up a grade. Even my mono language cassette player doesn't compare.

I did see a short-arsed little TSI something this afternoon, complete with 4 shiny little pencil bore "tipz" and ultraz-lowz skinz squirting & sliding around the highway. Didn't even have a bed, I suppose a leather satchel takes care of all the load carrying needed.

Ford? Sounds like a four letter word. And no Globalist world carts, EQ or GQ here, just Filson & Badger Ordnance.
 
Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by ofelas
My daily driver has a bench seat & 1 ton spring packs on all 4 corners, and I find it comfortable.

It doesn't bark at me in a foreign language either.



What?
confused2.gif



Did anybody told him the big 3 have been Global/World producers since before him being born?

EQ, Ford building vehicles in Europe during WW II
 
Originally Posted by pandus13
Originally Posted by MCompact
Since I started my new job I've been driving the Clubman. It's nowhere near quick but it gets 35-40 mpg and it keeps me from putting commuting miles on the 2er and 3er. The Clubman should hit 150,000 miles at about the same time my term ends- at which point it will have more than served its purpose.

How are the tires treating you?


The Quatrac 5 tires are working out great. I have put nearly 7,000 miles on them and NVH is low and and overall grip is excellent for a grand touring tire. Last week I was driving the car on the interstate in a moderate rain; I wasn't paying attention to the speedometer(easy to do in an R55 Mini) and when I did glance over at it I found I was cruising at over 85 mph. The car felt solid as a rock- the tires performing as if the road was bone dry.
 
Originally Posted by MCompact
Originally Posted by pandus13
Originally Posted by MCompact
Since I started my new job I've been driving the Clubman. It's nowhere near quick but it gets 35-40 mpg and it keeps me from putting commuting miles on the 2er and 3er. The Clubman should hit 150,000 miles at about the same time my term ends- at which point it will have more than served its purpose.

How are the tires treating you?


The Quatrac 5 tires are working out great. I have put nearly 7,000 miles on them and NVH is low and and overall grip is excellent for a grand touring tire. Last week I was driving the car on the interstate in a moderate rain; I wasn't paying attention to the speedometer(easy to do in an R55 Mini) and when I did glance over at it I found I was cruising at over 85 mph. The car felt solid as a rock- the tires performing as if the road was bone dry.

Thank you for the update!
P.S. If you with your driving experience could not sense the car going quicker, hmmmm..., that makes for a pretty comfortable little car
 
Originally Posted by Wolf359
Originally Posted by StevieC
Honestly of all the German cars we have had come through the door whether the light was on or not and you would scan it, 9 times out of 10 it would be storing codes for some sort of fault.
21.gif

I think here the only folks that buy these vehicles are the hobbyists that want to drive something different and the snobs that want a status symbol in the driveway because they certainly aren't driving it for longevity and for economic reasons on this continent.


Well they also have options that you can't get on a regular car. Active curve illumination, headlamp washers, massage seats, power trunk closer are some that come to mind. You can't really get them on American cars and not that common even on Japanese cars.


You can get all of that on a Lexus, though.

In fact, you could get most of that on a 1960s vintage Citroen, plus more.
 
Originally Posted by littlehulkster


You can get all of that on a Lexus, though.

In fact, you could get most of that on a 1960s vintage Citroen, plus more.


Yeah, but then you're driving a car that looks like it has a predator mouth grafted onto the front of it.


272DB3AC-9B40-423E-93D9-B65487658B0E.jpeg
 
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