Sallad

I recieved a letter from Ford saying my current vehicle ('96 Explorer) is getting old and it's time to buy a new Ford. I was shocked to read this, and even sent an email to Ford saying this doesn't say much for the confidence in your own vehicles, if you think under 200,000 km's is old! The truck had about 187,xxx on it at the time.

My car is almost at 212,000 km (131,652miles), and from what I've heard about these cars, that's low mileage. So according to Ford, I should have junked my 4ks and bought a brand new TT? Nice marketing...

Ford responded to my email, saying that they would re-evaluate the wording of the letters from now on. I guess they didn't like that fact that I told them that I think my POS 4ks is a better built car than my '96 Explorer. (I've worked on both)

Why can't North American car companies build long lasting cars?

Econobox!

They can, in theory, but in our culture (North America specifically) cars are considered somewhat of a disposeable item. Look at all the cars whose resale value goes to **** in a few years- it's because people feel the need to drive a nice pretty shiny new car instead of an older one. Generally speaking, there's nothing wrong with the majority of American made cars. Just like any other type of car, take care of them and the should last. Example- I had a van with 600000 miles (no it isn't a typo) come into work (emissions testing station) and pass with no problem whatsoever. That's more than I can say for my 4K the first time it got tested.

Shadowfax

It has 175,000 miles on it , drives like new,looks as good as the day it was built and will no doubt go another 170K without major problems!

StormChaser404

<center><img src="http://members.***.net/duandcc_forums/78IMPALAFRONT.jpg"></center><p>You jsut didn't choose to buy one of them. The big V8 powered RWD sedans last for ever and are uber reliable. My Impala has over 500,000 miles on it...

Mtouring_Tuff*typing

i got a Benz 82 300d turbo diesel thing is a beast, it will kill jeeps off roading and will handle better that s4 in the snow plus it has 450k and I beat it all day! No leaks either!

AudiSport4000

We used to have old Chevys too (78 Mailbu Classic 4cyl, 77 Chevy Caprice, 82? Chevy Impala Wagon).
All lasted forever but always had problems. The Caprice would leak oil everytime you made a right turn. They certainly were tanks though. I suspect all are in a junkyard somewhere, however.

Mike

PJM99

yeah, they are built finer and have a little more quality, but I think they break more than an American car and cost a hell of a lot more to reparair and maintain. Not just Audi, but other European cars as well. American cars tend to be more practical. They're built simple, cheaper, and easier to fix and maintain. European cars are more refined and have higher build quality, but you're gonna pay more to won it and pay more to maintain it. Now, Japan got it right, they have quality, reliability and practicality down to a science.

IMO. out of every car I've owned, the Audi has given me the most headaches and most expensive repairs. Not that it's a bad car, just these cars require a lot of maintaince. And the newer Audis are even worse.

My Cobra has four wheel disc brakes too, it will cost me about $300 to replace everything in the front and rear when the time comes. But the car doesn't need brakes yet. Still has the orignals from when it was new too.

On my Audi I spent about $300 just to do the rear brakes, and they still give me trouble from time to time.

It's a love hate relationship for me. I love the car, I love to drive it and I love the feel of it. But it cost more than it's worth to maintain. All the money I've spent on this car could have gone towards other things. But I enjoy the car. At this point, i probably have about $2K into the car total. That's more than half of what a bolt on supercharger would cost for the Cobra, and that would give me a reliable 360 RWHP.....

PJM99

<center><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/pjm99/1979HurstOlds.jpg"></center><p>this car is 26 years old and it was my daily driver for 4 years. And up until I got my Truck, it was my back up for when the Audi would crap out. Everything works including the AC. It's a great running car, I haven't driven it much since I got the truck so it usually needs a jump start. But it will fire right up and run strong. On a good day I can usually chirp the tires going into 3rd gear (Auto)

DBF

...money. All auto manufactures design sections are littered with design engineers whose primary tasks are to produce a product that is reliable, albeit only to a certain degree. Each of the features/options that are included in any new car is tested to death. Anything, a nut, fastener, bearing etc that exceeds a normal 'life expectancy' will be reverse engineered so that it will meet the minimum standard. This ensures that, under normal wear and tear, an automobile will be finished after a certain period of time. This does 2 things, allows the creative juices to flow and ensures a customer's return to the showroom. Take the Dodge Neon. First year, C&amp;D Car Of The Year. Then the head gaskets blew, oil pans rusted out. Then the SRT-4. Funny what a turbo charged engine will do!
I drive 3 1980's vintage vags, 2 which I consider daily drivers and to be honest, I wouldn't trust a North American POS of the same genre. Yah, they are tenuous, but what car that is 20+ years old isn't? Let's face it, we drive what we drive for reasons only we know. The big 3 could certainly learn allot from European carmakers. Or maybe they have and are unwilling to produce a cheap, reliable and safe car that will last more than 5 years. They make baskets full of money every year doing what they do.

Sallad

that's my point, Ford trying to get me to buy a new truck when mine only has 189,000 km's