Car quality going down the tubes?

[Camo]

I’m a big Toyota fan. Sad to hear they are making them like that.

It’s all of them. None have made a half decent vehicle in the last 10 years. Everything made now it straight junk

 

[Jason Freeland]

I've had good luck with the Hyundai Elantras I've been buying the last few times, but I do have an open recall on a seat belt tensioner. They apparently like to explode during wrecks. They also have an engine on other models that has issues.

 

[El Pablo]

I've had good luck with the Hyundai Elantras I've been buying the last few times, but I do have an open recall on a seat belt tensioner. They apparently like to explode during wrecks. They also have an engine on other models that has issues.

Hyundai’s and kias are supposed to be the most reliable mfgs right now. Honda’s and Toyota’s have dropped.

all mfg reliability dropped across the board during 2020 and 2021.

FYI, if you don’t have push button start, you may want to YouTube how easy your Elantra’s are to steal and add an Immobilizer.

 

[Jason Freeland]

Hyundai’s and kias are supposed to be the most reliable mfgs right now. Honda’s and Toyota’s have dropped.

all mfg reliability dropped across the board during 2020 and 2021.

FYI, if you don’t have push button start, you may want to YouTube how easy your Elantra’s are to steal and add an Immobilizer.

I have push button

 

[El Pablo]

Well that 2010 Outback is worth the repairs, it it’s in good shave I’d buy it with no reverse and have it fixed (They are ALL CVT today) Quality has taken a few hits due to several issues. 1) being built in America and more importantly the downfall of our culture 2) engines have looser tolerances so that they have less friction and use less gas in theory). But I can tell you the cars built in Japan are built better than ones built here. (“There are only a few still built over there). 4 Runner is one, I think the Forrester is another, different culture different results. Some companies just suck building reliable cars. And Toyota has pretty much carried the Torch for everyone, before they came along and when I was a kid, when your car hit 100K it was worn out and needed to be replaced. That started to change in the late 80’s and 90’s with these over engineered 22RE yota’s. I have had mulitple Toyotas well into the 200K range 245, 239, 276, with just routine maintenance. We have our first new car that wasn't a Toyota 2 years ago it‘s a Subaru Outback XT I will let you know in 10 years if it measures up, it’s an oddly capable and effecient SUV but I would have loved to have been able to buy it with a 6 speed

Those 22re Toyota trucks I’m pretty sure were built here to get around the chicken tax.

I've always bought used vehicles, never new. When I was younger (for reference, I'm 39 now), I'd get clunkers due to lack of funds, run them for a few years, then buy another clunker. My general impression was that American cars from the 1980s to mid 1990s were terrible, though they could be expected to pretty much keep running/driving at least. So I went with imports...Datsuns/Nissan, an Alfa Romeo, Honda, BMW, my wife had an Infiniti G20 for a bit. Then I started having a little more money, and of course with the passage of time, the "old" cars I was buying were newer models than before.

And I began to notice something. First, as I would research various cars to possibly buy, I kept running across discussions of how such and such car has a weak transmission, some truck has a common engine problem, this other car tends to blow head gaskets, etc. Then I started running into issues myself.

As of right now, my wife's 2010 Subaru Outback with 142k miles and a 6spd manual transmission, has no reverse.
My '09 Mazdaspeed 3 has a misfire, shop says it's low compression on cyl #1 and probably internal engine issues.
About two years ago, my '08 Mazda 3 started drinking oil and spun a bearing. I eventually learned this is a common issue for the 2.3L. I also learned the 2.3L is actually a Ford engine.

I also seem to hear a lot more about weird random issues just weeks or months after someone drives a new car off the lot. Sometimes it's some sensor or computer module, but other times it's mechanical (like a customer's Ford truck that shook at certain highway speeds and the dealership was stumped, or the Mazda RX-8 engine debacle a few years ago).

Then there are the recalls.

Right now my nicest car is my '78 Datsun 280Z. It's rock solid on the road, starts every time, runs like a top. And the most dependable cars I've had in the past were my '79 and '82 Z cars back in my 20s. My wife's 2001 Infiniti was a solid ride as well, despite having been rebuilt from a wreck. Even my old abused, poorly maintained '94 BMW 530 was stubbornly reliable. Our '99 Chevy van had that 80s-90s cheap American car vibe with the interior and some ancillary systems-related stuff, but I never worried about the driveline.

So what gives? Has quality really taken a hit? I'm now shopping for a used vehicle again and it feels like I have to really be a lot more careful what model I pick. Would love to have another 1st-gen Mazda 3, it was an outstanding car except for the engine issue. Kinda nervous about buying another. I'm almost to the point where I just want to buy a late 70s/early 80s Japanese car, or maybe a mid-80s Civic CRX (always though they were neat). I thought I might be getting spoiled with the creature-comforts of the newer cars, but then I bought the '78 Z and discovered it suits me just fine (but it's way too nice to make a daily/work car).

Matt

2010 outback’s ere not known for reliability . 2013 is even worse.
https://www.motoraudit.com/subaru-outback-years-to-avoid/

 

[emapples]

Those 22re Toyota trucks I’m pretty sure were built here to get around the chicken tax.

2010 outback’s ere not known for reliability . 2013 is even worse.
https://www.motoraudit.com/subaru-outback-years-to-avoid/[/UR

Those 22re Toyota trucks I’m pretty sure were built here to get around the chicken tax.

2010 outback’s ere not known for reliability . 2013 is even worse.
https://www.motoraudit.com/subaru-outback-years-to-avoid/

2010 is not the worse and they are pretty easy to work on, besides the torque converter issues on the 2010 is of little consequence when you have a standard. And for whatever reason the 22RE was created it is one of the most reliable engines ever created

 

[El Pablo]

2010 is not the worse and they are pretty easy to work on, besides the torque converter issues on the 2010 is of little consequence when you have a standard. And for whatever reason the 22RE was created it is one of the most reliable engines ever created

2013s are the worst Subaru of all time according to many. My wife just got a 2022 OutbackLimited a few days ago… so we shall see… Not my choiceMy wife got rid of her 2018 accord sport for it. We did have software issues with the accord and and the ac failed after 3 years and only 30k miles. Mfg defect on the condenser, covered under Honda extending the warranty 10 years on that part.

The paint on my 2015 brz is terrible. Too hard and chips easily. I assume Subaru did not handle the transition away from VOCs in paint well. I’ve had zero problems otherwise.

 

[1shott]

The new Turbo V6 Tundras are junk too, the turbos give out in under 15K miles, you need to remove the cab to get to them as well. Not a shade tree mechanic job.

Plenty of 2022 tundra owners have well over 15,000 miles with no turbo issues.

When the new model finally made it to production, yes there were some issues with the wastegates, Toyota uses a electric wastegate vs a spring wastegate. Those issues were related to the manufacture of the wastegate. Since those initial quality issues have been corrected the wastegate issue has all but disappeared.

I will say that new V6 with those little turbos is a very smooth and powerful engine, makes its peak HP and TQ at 2400 rpm.

Most common complaint now is wind noise, mine has it on the passenger side top windshield, its a on again off again issue, does not really bother me. I will have it looked at one day.

Ford had several issues with the eco boost turbos when they were first released and for the most part has those ironed out as well now.

Most vehicles these days are designed to remove the body for larger maintenance repairs.

 

[1shott]

I’m a big Toyota fan. Sad to hear they are making them like that.

Most of the initial qc issues have been corrected, go drive one, it will surprise you.

 

[Timmy59]

The quality of near everything is down. If your in tune with the world today then your aware of. Today's vehicles are rolling computers, which reflects in the price tag. Not to mention the average Joe can't park it under a shade tree and service it. Fred flintstone never had auto complaints.