Got Farfenugened

[12,000 RPM]

I dont know - what position is the throttle and transmission in?  why does it exist in the first place?

It seems like it's a holdover from VW's turbo cars. Those need a vacuum pump. I think VW forgot NA engines pull enough vacuum on their own. Stupid extra failure point for no reason.... typical German design.

Plus keep in mind my wife drives the Rabbit and it still had all those issues. Axles? You guys know how I drive and my axles are pristine. Belts/tensioner? Really? It's all stuff that has no business failing when used by a sane and normal human being.

[shp4man]

I bought my 2001 Dodge Ram 1500 used with 59k miles. Did some needed maintenance work on it, then drove it another 45k miles. No repairs were needed in the time I've had it.
I figure it's got at least another 100k of good miles in it.

[MexicoCityM3]

I bought my 2001 Dodge Ram 1500 used with 59k miles. Did some needed maintenance work on it, then drove it another 45k miles. No repairs were needed in the time I've had it.
I figure it's got at least another 100k of good miles in it.

I think the saying "drives like a mechanic" applies in this case.

[2o6]

To be fair, I think a BMW product holds up far better than an Audi/VW one, or even a Mercedes.

[12,000 RPM]

To be fair, I think a BMW product holds up far better than an Audi/VW one, or even a Mercedes.

It's debatable. They all have pretty ridiculous design issues. Shit like suspension bushings that only last 50K miles.... just doesn't make sense.

[Soup DeVille]

 VW frustrates me the most. They perfected simplicity in the real Beetle. It kept them alive for 30 years. The original Rabbit and its offshoots showed them the same thing.

Modern VWs are the antithesis of those cars from a complexity/elegance perspective.

[2o6]

It's debatable. They all have pretty ridiculous design issues. Shit like suspension bushings that only last 50K miles.... just doesn't make sense.

They also tend to consume coolant and oil under normal use, for seemingly no reason at all.

[MX793]

It's debatable. They all have pretty ridiculous design issues. Shit like suspension bushings that only last 50K miles.... just doesn't make sense.

Not just that, they use internal specs rather than widely recognised industry standards for stuff like oil.  Everyone but the Germans specs SAE oil standards, why the hell do I need to find oil per VW specification XYZ123.45Q?

[12,000 RPM]

Yea the oil thing is stupid too. Thankfully there are some mainstream oils that fit their spec. I can still get an oil change for the Rabbit at Walmart.

Speaking of which, the 2.5 takes 6 quarts (!!!!). Civic takes 4, G freaking 37 takes 5. Maybe they have extra capacity for whatever it's gonna burn off

[MexicoCityM3]

To be fair, I think a BMW product holds up far better than an Audi/VW one, or even a Mercedes.

I have little experience with other brands. Monika had a Beetle for a while. That held up well and I liked it but it didn't have many miles.

I really like how my E46 has held up. I am even taking it later to Leon to join the family there. The E90 I had (and that my friend wants to sell back to me) hasn't held up in the same way with now similar mileage on both. The E46 interior is of better quality for sure.

I think a good indicator for reliability in luxury cars is what people choose for Uber black cars. Around here it's mostly Acuras and huge American SUVs. You sometimes get a Merc/Audi/BMW/Infinity but it's pretty rare.

[2o6]

I have little experience with other brands. Monika had a Beetle for a while. That held up well and I liked it but it didn't have many miles.

I really like how my E46 has held up. I am even taking it later to Leon to join the family there. The E90 I had (and that my friend wants to sell back to me) hasn't held up in the same way with now similar mileage on both. The E46 interior is of better quality for sure.

I think a good indicator for reliability in luxury cars is what people choose for Uber black cars. Around here it's mostly Acuras and huge American SUVs. You sometimes get a Merc/Audi/BMW/Infinity but it's pretty rare.

Acuras are OK, but I don't trust anything with a V6 automatic Honda. Honda was making garbage V6 + AT combos for years.


Uber Black here gravitates towards Lincolns, namely the MKS and MKT.

[Cookie Monster]

I have little experience with other brands. Monika had a Beetle for a while. That held up well and I liked it but it didn't have many miles.

I really like how my E46 has held up. I am even taking it later to Leon to join the family there. The E90 I had (and that my friend wants to sell back to me) hasn't held up in the same way with now similar mileage on both. The E46 interior is of better quality for sure.

I think a good indicator for reliability in luxury cars is what people choose for Uber black cars. Around here it's mostly Acuras and huge American SUVs. You sometimes get a Merc/Audi/BMW/Infinity but it's pretty rare.

Yeah, but E46's still have weird design issues like the rear subframe tearing... My friend had to spend $$$ to get his welded up so it wouldn't fail.

[2o6]

Yeah, but E46's still have weird design issues like the rear subframe tearing... My friend had to spend $$$ to get his welded up so it wouldn't fail.

Yeah almost forgot about that. I've seen that on those more than once.


Also, VANOS failure is not uncommon on BMW cars.

[MexicoCityM3]

Yeah, but E46's still have weird design issues like the rear subframe tearing... My friend had to spend $$$ to get his welded up so it wouldn't fail.

That is true. Mine has held up so far.

[AutobahnSHO]

Just cracks me up that BMW/MB are "luxury" here but run of the mill cars in Germany.

[MexicoCityM3]

Yeah almost forgot about that. I've seen that on those more than once.


Also, VANOS failure is not uncommon on BMW cars.

Varies by specific engine. The S54 is pretty solid.

[2o6]

Just cracks me up that BMW/MB are "luxury" here but run of the mill cars in Germany.

Is that even true? That seems more like a myth that people like repeating. Just quick search shows that they're still more expensive than the average car, even if they come with smaller engines and less options.


Quick search shows the 1-series (116i) starts at 6,000EUR more than a base Golf, and it comes with less options, and less space.

[Soup DeVille]

Yea the oil thing is stupid too. Thankfully there are some mainstream oils that fit their spec. I can still get an oil change for the Rabbit at Walmart.

Speaking of which, the 2.5 takes 6 quarts (!!!!). Civic takes 4, G freaking 37 takes 5. Maybe they have extra capacity for whatever it's gonna burn off

German cars have typically had bigger oil sumps; I always assumed for high speed cruising purposes. Some of the older Audis took 11 or 12 quarts.

[MexicoCityM3]

.

Just cracks me up that BMW/MB are "luxury" here but run of the mill cars in Germany.

I think they're luxury there too. Just available with smaller engines and less standard equipment. They definitely are more expensive than mainstream brands over there too.

Germany has a very high per capita income, a less extreme income distribution and of course national pride. All that makes them buy a lot of domestics IMO.

[SJ_GTI]

Yea the oil thing is stupid too. Thankfully there are some mainstream oils that fit their spec. I can still get an oil change for the Rabbit at Walmart.

Speaking of which, the 2.5 takes 6 quarts (!!!!). Civic takes 4, G freaking 37 takes 5. Maybe they have extra capacity for whatever it's gonna burn off

I don't think oil capacity is that related to engine capacity. My 2.0L engine also used 6 quarts. IIRC the 3.0L V6 in my Audi also used 6 quarts.

[12,000 RPM]

German cars have typically had bigger oil sumps; I always assumed for high speed cruising purposes. Some of the older Audis took 11 or 12 quarts.

12 quarts! JFC man.

[CaminoRacer]

I feel like the Germans just got so used to huge oil capacity in the air cooled days that they forgot that water cooled engines only need half as much.

[12,000 RPM]

I feel like the Germans just got so used to huge oil capacity in the air cooled days that they forgot that water cooled engines only need half as much.

[cawimmer430]

It's debatable. They all have pretty ridiculous design issues. Shit like suspension bushings that only last 50K miles.... just doesn't make sense.

On which brands?

[MX793]

I feel like the Germans just got so used to huge oil capacity in the air cooled days that they forgot that water cooled engines only need half as much.

Autobahn speeds require more cooling capacity.  Vehicles designed for use in countries with lower speed limits tend to overheat in sustained 100 mph speeds.  Like a lot of American cars from the 70s and 80s (those that would do 100+).

[cawimmer430]

Oil is also used to transport heat away from the engine and this is most definitely a feature on virtually all German cars.

One word: Autobahn.

If you've ever blasted down one at high speed for hours at a time and then pop the hood, you'll literally feel really hot air escaping the compartment. I'm talking really, really, really, really hot air. This is a subjective opinion, but when you're cruising at low speed or doing city driving and then pop the hood the escaping air doesn't feel as hot after a long high speed Autobahn cruise. So just imagine the cooling requirements for the engine.

I think on some German cars the large engine oil reserves are even used to cool the transmission.

[AutobahnSHO]

Is that even true? That seems more like a myth that people like repeating. Just quick search shows that they're still more expensive than the average car, even if they come with smaller engines and less options.


Quick search shows the 1-series (116i) starts at 6,000EUR more than a base Golf, and it comes with less options, and less space.

.
I think they're luxury there too. Just available with smaller engines and less standard equipment. They definitely are more expensive than mainstream brands over there too.

Germany has a very high per capita income, a less extreme income distribution and of course national pride. All that makes them buy a lot of domestics IMO.

BMW are used as police cars. MB are used as taxis. Not luxury at all.

Of course when I left (2005) you could still buy most of them with manual windows.

Yes they're expensive than smaller cars- but you're also talking about Fusions vs. Fiestas in size sometimes.

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As far as reliability, sure parts here are expensive, they have a lot of features which are costly to repair, but a friend let me drive their 20yr old 3-series (manual) that had 500,000+ km on the odometer.

[MX793]

An engine is actually really likely to over heat in crawling, stop-and-go traffic as well.  My motorcycle gets hottest crawling through urban stop-and-go (cooling fans run almost constantly and water temps over 200F).  Sailing along at 70+, the fans never turn on and water temp is like 175.

[2o6]

Naw, the 1, 3, and 5 series cars are more expensive than the C, D and E segment cars from "regular" makes from Opel, Ford and VW. A 316i is still more expensive than a base Mondeo or Passat, but it's Golf Sized.

[12,000 RPM]

On which brands?

All of them. It does seem they've got their act together with the current crop but time will tell