Posted on 10/16/2007 10:27:25 AM PDT by eraser2005
NEW YORK, CNNMoney.com -- The Toyota brand has lost its top position for iron-clad reliability, according to an influential Consumer Reports survey released Tuesday.
The survey dropped Toyota from first to fifth place - behind Honda, Acura, Scion and Subaru - in average vehicle reliability. The rankings are based on average predicted reliability for all models sold under a given brand.
Brands made by Toyota Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. still dominate the rankings: Scion is Toyota's low-priced car brand and Acura is Honda's luxury car brand.
Consumer Reports said it no longer recommends V6 versions of Toyota's Camry or V8 versions of its Tundra pick-up because of poor reliability.
In the past, because Toyota (Charts) products have so consistently proved reliable, the magazine would assume at least average reliability for Toyota's brand new cars, without waiting for survey data from owners.
But from now on, the magazine will wait for a full year of reliability survey data to come in before it recommends a Toyota product - as it does with most other manufacturers.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Quite tempted to buy GM for next car.
If you have a “gathering” of car owners of a particular brand, you will be gathering the most passionate and satisfied drivers of that brand. Not the guys with reliability problems.
I’ve seen fuel injected Jaguars that have been sitting for 10 years crank right up when supplied with fresh gasoline and a battery.
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Fresh gas is important? Gas loses potency over time or something?
Very nice, but I hear the suspension system breaks easily.....(chuckle)
Just kiddin.
‘But doesn’t CR determine reliability from customer surveys? So at least some Hummer drivers reported problems, right? I guess I’m not really sure what you’re saying. Are you claiming that CR is fabricating unhappy Hummer customers?’
I’m saying I’ve personally met several dozen H1 (three to be concise) H2 (dozens) and H3 owners (dozen or more) in the past three years...and not ONE of them has ever indicated any concern about ‘reliability’.
I honestly don’t know where CR got that. Its not been the case with me either.
Hmmmm, I can generally agree with what you posted.
‘They don’t like Jeep Wranglers either. The only car I
drive.”
They hate the Jeep Cherokee with quite a bit of intensity over the past decade.
We owned a CJ 5(?) years ago. No problems with it.
‘If you have a “gathering” of car owners of a particular brand, you will be gathering the most passionate and satisfied drivers of that brand. Not the guys with reliability problems.’
Okay, still doesn’t change my personal experience with the H2.
We have a 1995 Cherokee 4x4 with 149,000 miles on it. Runs great. Doesn't leak, doesn't burn oil it just keeps on running. We also just got a 2008 Jeep Wrangler 4x4 4-door. Looks great, mileage sucks, but who buys Jeeps for the mileage? :)
Was looking at the FJs too but heard about the problems not to mention that it is very hard to not get nickeled and dimed to death at a Toyota dealer.
My wife is on her third Toyota. The two previous were Avalon’s, and they were great sedans.
She’s had a Toyota Highlander for about three months now, and its very nice, lot more power and acceleration than I expected...then again I’m used to my H2.
Thanks for the ping. I am looking forward to reading the FReeper comments on this one.
I had a 1994 Tercel that I gave to my son. It had around 140K. Never any problems with it. But, then again, we also had a 1991 Dodge Caravan that we traded in when it had around 138K on it. NEVER any problems with that car.
Wait! It did break a timing belt at 134K but since it was a non-interference engine it only cost a couple hundred bucks to fix. Other than that it was a great car!
I have no questions about Toyota’s reliability based on our personal experiences. Had one fo the first ‘King Cabs’ from Toyota back in 1982, ran great for 80K miles.
Looked good too.
Yup, it does. Left to its own devices without a fuel stabilizer mixed in, gasoline will degrade and eventually crystallize into a sticky substance that resembles brownish rock salt.
Even with stabilizer, eventually the stuff degrades to the point where you can’t run your car engine on it without greatly increased possibility of damage.
My Chevy Avalache 05 needs nothing with 47,000 miles and looks perfect,my 2004 F150 at 93000 miles has developed a little seal leak on the rear axle,but nothing else.My moms DTS Cadillac has a new trans at 88000,my 93 Ranger turned 153,000 and had been on three trips lately ,of 8-1000 miles each trouble free.My last three F150s 2000,2002 and 1976 went 154,000, 167,00 and 430,00 respectively.The last on two motors and two trans.My friends with Toyota,Mitsus, Nissans, Audis, Bmws, VWs and Jaguars hate me.I sold a hand me down 1983 Civic sedan 276,000,that was never torn into,to a guy I saw 5 years later,he just changes oil and brakes.
I don't believe that manufacturing employees make the primary difference at 100k+ miles in automotive car systems or consumer electronics.
Manufacturing screwups are most apparent in the first 20,000ish miles....squeaks, misfit leaks, bad components, etc.
The design gives you the long term reliability, and that's why I'd prefer a car designed in Detroit and built in Canada than a car designed in Tokyo and built in Georgia.
I'd brefer a car designed in Detroit and built by non-union labor in Arlington, but that's not possible today!
| But let me depart with you on the "that country killed X no. Americans in WWII." Puhlease! We probably don't have a better, true ally than the Nipponese in Asia, bar Australia. They adapted some of our society and culture, they have fewer socialist commies in their government, it is not a 'bad' thing to be a conservative in that country, and it's one of the ONLY countries in the world where you can see toddlers running around dressed in t-shirts emblazoned with red/white/blue and old glory. We won! Get over it! |
You may have missed the point. It was in response to the lame union comment by another poster. I figure that if he wants to give the union as an excuse to not buy American and give the money to Japan, I’ll use the fact that 100,000 Americans died at their hands. Fortunately, my Dad was not one of them.
No. I got the point.
I’m trying to agree with you.
But you probably need a better comparison/contrast.
Japanese are typically pro-American, pro-capitalist.
Unions are unfailingly anti-capitalist*, and they unfailingly support Democrats and other socialists.
If you do the math, Unions are doing what Kruschev promised: to bury us from within.
(*Strictly speaking, a Unionized house aims to devolve the ‘ownership’ of the means of production from the owners/management to the workers.)
Your point?
I seem to recall making a comment about Toyota having their own quality issues. Lurk around this place long enough and you begin to think, based on the comments, that Toyota can do absolutely no wrong while US manufacturers can do nothing right.
Was I was ragging or bragging about any particular vehicle? I’ve had plenty of different vehicles in my life, so I am sure I could rag and brag w/ the best of them.
Never owned a BUICK, so I can not help you there.
Your point?
I seem to recall making a comment about Toyota having their own quality issues. Lurk around this place long enough and you begin to think, based on the comments, that Toyota can do absolutely no wrong while US manufacturers can do nothing right.
Was I was ragging or bragging about any particular vehicle? I’ve had plenty of different vehicles in my life, so I am sure I could rag and brag w/ the best of them.
Never owned a BUICK, so I can not help you there.
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