What Cars do You Swear By?

Just found out that my current car will die any day now due to a known defect. It’s out of warranty and I have no money to replace it right now.

I’ve been cursed with car problems my whole life, no matter how well I take care of them, I keep getting screwed.

All of the cars have been Fords because I always heard they were generally dependable and cheap to repair/upkeep, but so far they have all failed me.

What cars do y’all recommend? What cars do you have that just won’t give up the ghost no matter how old/beat up they get? If your life depended on your car lasting as long as possible, what car would you drive?

I want whatever car I get next to last me 10-20 years. I want to be that person posting a picture of the odometer hitting 300k miles. I also don’t care much about features, reliability is key.

braiseit420,

You know what “Ford” stands for, eh?

Fix It Again, Tony.

But to add something to the conversation, my vote goes to Toyota and Honda.

Anecdotally: Had a 1999 Corolla that I drove into the ground, ignored oil changes, was a stupid teen, and it ran fine until I wanted automatic windows. Currently riding in a Nissan Altima, which seems to be pretty great (as long as the transmission doesn’t fail, which they can do sometimes).

Parents had a Ford Eacort that was a lemon, and a Ford Escape that was a money-pit.

KitDeMadera,

deleted_by_author

    •
    kryllic, (edited )

    It’s a joke from King of the Hill, one of the main characters misquotes the joke the way the OP commentor wrote it.

    I will say the variation of the Ford joke I’ve always heard growing up was “Fixed Or Repaired Daily.”

    InternetUser2012,

    First On Race Day

    diggit,

    Fucked Over Rebuilt Dodge

    (But I like yours)

    dingus,

    Idk… I’ve had my Escape since 2015 and it hasn’t been a money pit. There was one massive issue it had with a cable for the transmission snapping, but it ended up being a recall so I was completely refunded the money it cost to fix it. I’m not saying they are necessarily the best, but it’s been fine for me is all.

    I think with any of these questions, picking a specific brand seems silly. Hell, even a specific model isn’t always a good idea because some of the models made in a specific year might be shit and the next year they might be great. You have to do a lot more research in depth rather than just blindly picking a brand imo.

    someguy3,

    FIAT is “fix it again Tony”.

    ryathal,

    Ford is Fix Or Repair Daily.

    Pickle_Jr,

    I’m kind of surprised nobody said Kia (and for that matter, Hyundai) yet?

    JD Power has ranked Kia in the top 3 in dependability for the past few years and gave them the #1 spot last year. They also have a 10yr/100k mile warranty so theoretically they’ll survive for a very long time.

    They do have a bad wrap with the car thefts going on, but that issue is addressed with their newer models. I do suppose though that to a dumb “thrill seeker” that doesn’t mean you’re immune to attempted thefts.

    dog_, (edited )

    To be honest, even though you brought up them and the car thefts, the car thefts are what ruined Hyundai Motor Group for me. Their lack of caring about the safety of others and their lack of spending a couple more dollars to put in immobilizers means more to me than them being “dependable.” Their vehicles looked cool, but they ruined their chance with me as a potential customer. The way Hyundai Motor Group has been handling the situation has been a complete pigsty and everything else after that means nothing to me as a consumer. They could have the best safety/longevity, but at what cost? Thousands Tens of innocent lives being taken because they were too cheap to put in immobilizers? Cars can be replaced. Humans cannot.

    Edit (September 6th, 2023): Made a correction. At the time of this correction, according to a user below this conversation, there have only been 8 deaths. That’s still 8 deaths too many in my honest opinion.

    PorkTaco,

    Maybe I missed something, but how have thousands of lives been lost due to this?

    dog_,

    People stealing cars and crashing into people, houses, etc.

    PorkTaco,

    Well the good news is it hasn’t been anywhere near thousands of deaths. Everywhere I’ve looked says “at least 8” have been killed. Bad news is that is still way too many.

    One source

    dog_,

    Appreciate the correction. Thank you.

    LastYearsPumpkin,

    Problem is that even if you have a newer kai or Hyundai, if you live in an area with a lot of car thefts, they’ll still break the window and try.

    So you might not lose your car, but you’ll still be more susceptible to damage. You’ll probably be fine, but it is worth noting.

    CmdrShepard,

    Totally agree. I worked at a few lube shops over the years and was always impressed with Hyundai and Kia as they rarely ever had as many issues as a lot of other manufacturers. They totally screwed the pooch with the interlock decision, and have had some recent reliability issues with certain engines, but I think they build pretty good cars overall. Hyundai has also been doing some pretty good styling with their newest models

    dog_,

    Would you like to retract this statement by any chance? I mean a family member of mine’s kia caught on fire, so I’m wondering if you’re still firm on your decision or not.

    CmdrShepard,

    If you can name a single manufacturer that hasn’t had a recall for an issue that lead to death/injury/property damage maybe I’d consider it, but I know there isn’t one so I stand by my statement.

    dog_,

    All the cars my family has owned have never caught on fire until now.

    CmdrShepard,

    Unless you’ve owned millions of cars, that has no statistical relevance.

    BadPoopSmell,

    My Toyota ran for 25 years until it got hit N run by a Jeep

    mackwinston,

    Honda. The answer is Honda.

    InternetUser2012,

    As long as you don’t take your a/c into the equation, or have one of the 3.5s that have ring problems.

    SkepticElliptic,

    Friend had an insight with oil consumption issues, so not those either.

    InternetUser2012,

    Most of the newer stuff with miles on it uses a bunch of oil, it’s crazy.

    someguy3, (edited )

    Honda and Toyota sedans are extremely well known for their longevity. Double check their SUVs or minivans if you want that, some were misses. If the model has a CVT (continuously variable transmission) look into the reliability of it.

    MxM111,
    @MxM111@kbin.social avatar

    Don’t trust what people say from their individual stories. You need statistics of hundreds of cars, not single anecdotes. There must be sites that evaluate cars reliability, average spending on repairs and so on, model by model. Find those.

    rhythmisaprancer,
    @rhythmisaprancer@kbin.social avatar

    If you really want a long lasting machine, listen to this person. So much nose in this thread. For example: Subarus, in fact, do not have reputation for being long lasting without major repairs. Most people do not keep a vehicle for 10+ years nor for 300k miles. I have a vehicle that is older than that with 30% more miles. As said above, an anecdote.

    Somebody keeps track of the cost of ownership over time. Perhaps a company, maybe a government agency.

    Good luck!

    Ecology8622,

    Spent 10k on a 2014 Subaru Outback with 120k miles, headgasket leak. First and only owner. Whats even worse is brake error light after spending that much. Carmaxed that junk. I will never ever buy a Subaru. Replaced it with a Honda.

    insomniac,
    @insomniac@sh.itjust.works avatar

    Yeah you’re the kind of anecdote they’re warning about

    sndrtj,

    The average car age in the EU is 12 years old. Even in richer member states the average is often over 10 years (germany: 10.1, Netherlands: 11.4)

    So at least in that part of the world, most people absolutely do keep a vehicle for 10+ years.

    Source: acea.auto/…/average-age-of-eu-vehicle-fleet-by-co…

    theragu40,

    The average in the US is 12.5 years old.

    spglobal.com/…/average-age-of-light-vehicles-in-t…

    I think people’s impression of things is skewed because overall cars are much more reliable than they used to be. When I was a kid a car over 10 years old was something you expected to have issues, and certainly wanted to avoid buying. That’s not the case these days, and the huge numbers of functional older cars on the roads make us not realize just how many old vehicles are out there because they’re normalized.

    My car is 15 years old, my wife’s is 9. They’re both perfectly fine and they don’t feel old to us.

    rhythmisaprancer,
    @rhythmisaprancer@kbin.social avatar

    I agree entirely with what you are saying, but that doesn't change what I said about how long people keep the same car. I suspect we are in the midst of the length of ownership increasing, but not to 10-20 years on average.

    Rocketpoweredgorilla,
    @Rocketpoweredgorilla@lemmy.ca avatar

    www.carcomplaints.com

    Take any site with a grain of salt, but I find they’re usually not too bad for a general idea of what you may be in for.

    Wrayth,

    This one is my favorite and was super helpful last time I was looking for a car. You can see trends year over year in the same generation, so like if the first 2 years of a 4 year run had some chronic issue that was fixed for the last 2, that sticks out.

    Rocketpoweredgorilla,
    @Rocketpoweredgorilla@lemmy.ca avatar

    Yup, the only real gripe I have is a small percentage of the complaints seem to be more user error than design flaw, but that’s to be expected from any review site.

    theragu40,

    This is good advice in general.

    But the answer to this question is extremely well known across the internet and every thread that comes up will eventually boil down to the same two responses: Toyota and Honda as 1 and 1a.

    There isn’t some secret answer to find, those are just the answers. People will definitely come up with anecdotes supporting various other cars, but as these threads hit a certain mass of replies they invariably boil down to those two choices.

    They are not the flashiest cars, nor the most feature rich, nor the most efficient or most powerful. But if you want to buy a car that will just keep on running after years of minimal maintenance, often even after being abused during that time, a Toyota or Honda is what you should buy.

    Bye,

    And their daughter brands. Lexus = Toyota, Acura = Honda. For when you want something flashy.

    ProtonBadger,

    deleted_by_author

    •
    theragu40,

    No not perfect, certainly. And cars are definitely complex, and recalls are a normal and expected component of car ownership for most people. Watch for them, get them rectified.

    To be clear though, recalls are sort of outside what we are talking about when we are talking about reliable and long lasting cars. A recall is a known issue that the company addresses. It doesn’t mean the car won’t last.

    Toyota and Honda, while they have the normal minor issues any car might have, are absolutely head and shoulders over other makers when it comes to their cars simply lasting longer with less maintenance.

    Consumer reports is good for identifying which older models or vehicle have stood the test of time. I’m not sure it’s as useful for newer vehicles since it’s very hard to assess longevity of new models before there is data.

    idunnololz,
    @idunnololz@lemmy.world avatar

    Prius/Prius prime might not be the most efficient but it’s pretty damn good.

    LanternEverywhere,

    https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/ is exactly that!

    spider,

    There must be sites that evaluate cars reliability, average spending on repairs and so on, model by model. Find those.

    In the U.S., that would be Consumer Reports magazine, available at most public libraries.

    u202307011927,
    @u202307011927@feddit.de avatar

    deleted_by_author

    •
    CmdrShepard,

    This whole comment reads like an advertisement for a porn site to someone who doesn’t speak German.

    knotthatone,

    I’ve had 2 Chevys 1 Ford & 2 Hondas. I had multiple breakdowns and expensive mechanical issues with Chevy & Ford.

    The only thing I ever paid to repair on either Honda was a windshield because a rock hit it.

    JokeDeity,

    America doesn’t make reliable and dependable. 3 Chevys have taught me that. Go with something from Toyota, Subaru, Honda or Nissan and you will be so glad you did. I’m never buying American again if I can avoid it.

    Tikiporch,

    Reliability is only part of it, you should also consider maintenance costs. Even if imports are more reliable they often cost more to repair, and if you’re talking luxury models the difference is even greater.

    CmdrShepard,

    I have a Camry and parts are dirt cheap and its super easy to work on. Domestic manufacturers have all but abandoned cars (sedans/coupes) at this point because Japanese cars have been so good for decades. I will say European cars are going to cost more to work on and often don’t have the long term reliability without deep pockets.

    Leviathan,

    A civic. They just don’t break.

    ShadowCatEXE,
    @ShadowCatEXE@lemmy.world avatar

    German cars. Not because they’re great, but because I swear whilst being in the same physical location as them. I’ve owned a handful of VWs/Audis and they are rather annoying vehicles to work on. Though half of them I’ve owned lacked any major issues. Just expensive… Fairly expensive.

    Joking aside, Toyota is always a safe bet for reliability.

    ElRenosaurusReg,
    @ElRenosaurusReg@hexbear.net avatar

    Suckless philosophy. The less computerization the better. I wanna be able to fix the whole thing with a 10mm, a jack, and an adjustable spanner.

    Currently I have a 92 Corolla, it has too many computerized parts and I’m planning to replace the engine with a carbureted 3 rotor and a manual transmission. Ideally, I’d also like to implement Koenigsegg freevalve as well.

    If all goes to plan, it could handle an EMP and keep running, though I’m not a prepper or anything, i just want a fully mechanical vehicle because I understand mechanics, but adding computers into the mix muddies the water.

    raven,

    The problem with the computer parts is that they’re closed sourced and tivo-ized. Computers could be as flexible and tractable as mechanical parts.

    ElRenosaurusReg,
    @ElRenosaurusReg@hexbear.net avatar

    If I’m gonna have computers in my car, ideally they’d be arduino-like such that I can modify the code on-board as I see fit or replace the parts relatively cheaply if damage were to occur to the electronics.

    raven,

    And if there’s some issue of people making modifications to that code that should reasonably be illegal, that part could be made read-only. I can’t off the top of my head imagine what people would want to modify but shouldn’t but if it became a problem it would be easy to fix.

    ElRenosaurusReg, (edited )
    @ElRenosaurusReg@hexbear.net avatar

    For me, I’d edit things like timing as well as whether a given cylinder/rotor is actively firing based on engine load, disabling cylinders under low load (eg: already at speed, idling) to improve fuel efficiency and maximize power output for a given amount of fuel based on load and whatever the task at hand is (eg hauling loads, hauling ass, or gentle driving)

    Edited: I was really tired when I typed this and missed a couple very important words.

    DeathWearsANecktie,

    Toyota Yaris, most reliable car ever in my eyes

    derocker,

    Those things are indestructible

    D61,

    gigachad-hd

    Azal,

    My mechanic buddies all swear by Toyota, the Prius is rated the kind of car least likely to seen in a shop and pretty much any other Toyota is bullet proof.

    Flipside, I will never own a Nissan. Worked at an auto auction for 6 months as an inspector. One thing that was hammered on us is check engine oil even before it went to the auctions mechanic for sludge. The reason it was hammered so hard is because it was a problem. Only with Nissans. In 6 months, hundreds of cars a day, Nissans were the only ones with the engine sludge issue.

    Acters,

    The new prius body style is better than before. I hated how their previous models look.

    I would recommend electric vehicles too. Even a used electric car will likely need the 12v lead acid battery changed. But the whole car is super sound and reliable from less moving parts. The bolt ev is fast, and the range is long enough for most people. I would only suggest an ev if you can keep it plugged in at home, and since most people live in apartments, the prius is the better choice.

    bradorsomething,

    Oh good point, I have a hybrid and just did a road trip this weekend because I wanted to cycle the gas tank after 3 months driving around town.

    bradorsomething,

    Hondas and Toyotas are expensive but last well. If you’re in the PNW, look at a suburu so you can blend in if you need to commit a crime. Seriously, if the police are looking for a green suburu outback in Washington they might as well be looking for every Starbucks.

    owatnext,
    @owatnext@lemmy.world avatar

    I would recommend pretty much any Japanese vehicle. Look closely at Honda or Toyota. I have had good experiences with Hondas, personally.

    I want to be that person posting a picture of the odometer hitting 300k miles.

    I am at ~280k in my Honda Insight, my dad is ~320k in his Accord, and my mom is at ~400k in her Odyssey. My husband is at ~186k in his Civic, but he doesn’t drive much.

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