Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

[Lastsoul]

Maybe they just ruin the imports to increase sales of domestic cars...

 

[Labcoatguy]

Maybe they just ruin the imports to increase sales of domestic cars...

Yes, that seems out have worked out great for the domestic manufacturers.

 

[Spectre]

Bear in mind that in the rest of the world the Honda Civic is know as being solid and reliable transport. the US seems to have a thing about taking cars with a good reputation and then ruining them for their own market... :lol:

Or maybe, just maybe, it might be even remotely possible that we have a more demanding road and driving environment than most other markets, hm?

Try this one on - it's currently 16C on course for a daily high of 23C. Last night's overnight low? 3-4C or so. This is a normal-enough temperature swing for large parts of this country. Does interesting things to machinery. As I recall, you don't see that sort of thing much in Europe. Add in the potholes and other terrain conditions, and you've got all the ingredients for a much harsher driving environment than seen in Central Europe.

 

[Cowboy]

Or maybe, just maybe, it might be even remotely possible that we have a more demanding road and driving environment than most other markets, hm?

Try this one on - it's currently 16C on course for a daily high of 23C. Last night's overnight low? 3-4C or so. This is a normal-enough temperature swing for large parts of this country. Does interesting things to machinery. As I recall, you don't see that sort of thing much in Europe. Add in the potholes and other terrain conditions, and you've got all the ingredients for a much harsher driving environment than seen in Central Europe.

Butbutbut.....you mean driving 5 km's to the shops while babying the gaspedal for the sake of the enviromeeeeent and polar bears is not harsher than a 100mile daily commute on the interstate?
You mean those stories about American V8's rounding half a million miles and more with ease and frequency can't be duplicated with the new 1.1L tdcpdfwidi engine in the new Skopeot Ibore? But it gets 5% more torque than anything in it's class, it can even get up a small hill in a moderate headwind!*

Blasphemer!


*results may vary depending on how much the driver had for dinner.

 

[Lastsoul]

Well, some Finns store their cars in heated garages. That means possible drop from +22?C to -30?C on some days, and through the whole winter drop from 22?C to -5?C. This is bad for rust, because the temperature difference causes water to condensate all around the body structure which may lead to more rust than cars left in the cold. But we don't see any problems in electrical or mechanical systems.

Anyway, most of the cars are parked outside. And there is no problem whatsoever when you start the engine at -20?C and in 5-15 min or so it has reached 90?C. Modern engines and transmissions consist of huge amount of parts made out of very different materials, but most of the engines cope this ovr 100?C temperature rise without any problems. Some cars used in Northern parts of the country face this challenge every single day for about three months or so. We do use blockheaters, but with modern oils they're only used to reduce fuel consumption.

And we still have some gravel roads too, which are also pretty rough.

So is it really the high temperatures that make the cars break?

 

[frankiess]

Or maybe, just maybe, it might be even remotely possible that we have a more demanding road and driving environment than most other markets, hm?

Try this one on - it's currently 16C on course for a daily high of 23C. Last night's overnight low? 3-4C or so. This is a normal-enough temperature swing for large parts of this country. Does interesting things to machinery. As I recall, you don't see that sort of thing much in Europe. Add in the potholes and other terrain conditions, and you've got all the ingredients for a much harsher driving environment than seen in Central Europe.

 

[argatoga]

The thing is their reliability is horrible even here where the weather is mild.

 

[Lastsoul]

Do we have any US Mitsu or Civic driving members here to tell us how their examples have been working?

 

[Aston Martin]

The Mad Max Xsara is still for sale...

 

[The Spie]

Do we have any US Mitsu or Civic driving members here to tell us how their examples have been working?

Doesn't it really depend on where that Civic was built? Suzuka versus Swindon versus Indiana versus Ontario? One of the key points for me buying my Fit was that it was made in Suzuka rather than one of the North American plants. On that front, I chose well. I'm about to hit 60K miles, with a mixture of outdoor and garage parking (about 2/3rds the former), and anything that's been done to it has been my fault, apart from the recall repairs.

 

[argatoga]

The Goldwing was made exclusively in OH for decades and it was known for its reliability.

 

[Lastsoul]

Doesn't it really depend on where that Civic was built? Suzuka versus Swindon versus Indiana versus Ontario? One of the key points for me buying my Fit was that it was made in Suzuka rather than one of the North American plants. On that front, I chose well. I'm about to hit 60K miles, with a mixture of outdoor and garage parking (about 2/3rds the former), and anything that's been done to it has been my fault, apart from the recall repairs.

Japanese have this weird skill of building factories in a way that emphasizes quality a lot. Toyota Corollas for Europe are built in Turkey at the moment, but they are still known for their quality. As long as the factory is designed in a right way it can produce even quality.

Of course if the factory management screws things no production system can save the quality, and I don't have any idea how the factories of Japanese brands are generally doing outside USA.

 

[NecroJoe]

In my experience, Civics are still considered reasonably reliable. The issue is that they last so long, that there are a lot of old, shitty ones still running.

 

[rickhamilton620]

In my experience, Civics are still considered reasonably reliable. The issue is that they last so long, that there are a lot of old, shitty ones still running.

That's what i figured...they always seem to litter college parking lots, even relatively old models.

Nah, his opinion of a car is formed entirely around the softness and beigeness of the interior plastics.

:lol: the plastics in that gen civic are mostly hard but nicely grained.

Dude, there was pretty much nothing in that good of a shape in your price class at the time except the SHO.

True. So far it's been smooth sailing as well.

So FG, my dad's looking for a small car to commute to work in. He had his eye on a nice looking toyota paseo but the guy was a douche and led him on (sold the car in the morning yet said it was available in the afternoon...dad even took off work for that asswipe...anyway....) so now we're looking at alternatives.

Car has to be small, fuel efficient and above all, reliable.

I suggested this: http://york.craigslist.org/cto/2788981695.html

I know, mitsu...but it looks like its in great shape. Am i crazy here?

There's also a 1995 taurus for around 1k.

 

[The Spie]

What's the budget, Rick? And as for another clue, what will your stepmother not approve of? That should help us tremendously.

 

[rickhamilton620]

What's the budget, Rick? And as for another clue, what will your stepmother not approve of? That should help us tremendously.

:lol: she's a skeptic at anything that's not as close as possible to new, she was even skeptical about the paseo until she saw it up close on the web. Dad said he'd just buy it anyway if it looked good, regardless of what she said.

Budget is 1000-1500.

Edit: i should add that this is randomness about the Summit, i wasnt trying to say you all have to help or anything. Last thing i want to do is be rude and reading back it came across that way.

 

[Spectre]

Do we have any US Mitsu or Civic driving members here to tell us how their examples have been working?

I think that would be mooglebunny, who has a Mitsubishi that has aged rather poorly.

Also, Blind_Io is a former Civic owner. IIRC, it did not go well for him.

That's what i figured...they always seem to litter college parking lots, even relatively old models.



:lol: the plastics in that gen civic are mostly hard but nicely grained.



True. So far it's been smooth sailing as well.

So FG, my dad's looking for a small car to commute to work in. He had his eye on a nice looking toyota paseo but the guy was a douche and led him on (sold the car in the morning yet said it was available in the afternoon...dad even took off work for that asswipe...anyway....) so now we're looking at alternatives.

Car has to be small, fuel efficient and above all, reliable.

I suggested this: http://york.craigslist.org/cto/2788981695.html

I know, mitsu...but it looks like its in great shape. Am i crazy here?

There's also a 1995 taurus for around 1k.

Rule 1 For Toyota Purchases In The US: Never, ever, ever buy a Toyota model that was smaller than its contemporary Corolla. It usually ends up being made of failure and shame to some degree.

Also, yes, that Mitsu is a bad idea. Unless you like driving around emulating a mosquito truck.

Taurus non-SHO of that era is generally a safe but boring and not terribly fuel efficient choice. The automatic transaxles are their weakness and some of the V6s have problems as they age. But they're usually so cheap you can pick up a good one that will last you a while and dump it for another one a few years down the line when you do have issues.

Japanese have this weird skill of building factories in a way that emphasizes quality a lot. Toyota Corollas for Europe are built in Turkey at the moment, but they are still known for their quality. As long as the factory is designed in a right way it can produce even quality.

Of course if the factory management screws things no production system can save the quality, and I don't have any idea how the factories of Japanese brands are generally doing outside USA.

Depends on the make and even the product being made. I have two Hondas - one was made in a plant in Japan, another was made in a plant in Italy, and both seem equally well made. Likewise the US-built Honda I had for a bit - but these are Honda bikes, not cars. The US market Hondas come from Japan and North America - in fact, some car models they gave up on making in Japan and have made here instead for export back to Japan, because the quality of the end product was better from the US plant.

Toyota's problems in the US aren't limited to US-made cars.

In a related comment, I hear that .eu Hyundais aren't very good, but this may be because most of the ones sold in that market are made in Lower Slobovia or something. The US market doesn't get any from there - ours are from Korea or produced here and have earned a good reputation.

Mercedes makes the S-Class in Mexico as well as Germany. From what I hear, those are no better or worse than their German-built counterparts.

 

[BlaRo]

I'm tempted to buy this and liberate it from its fiberglass hell.

 

[MaTaR]

when i was a kid , my dad owned a mitsu galant , three engine changes werent enough to keep it on the road . if its not taken care of , its gonna die pretty early in its life .

 

[rickhamilton620]

Rule 1 For Toyota Purchases In The US: Never, ever, ever buy a Toyota model that was smaller than its contemporary Corolla. It usually ends up being made of failure and shame to some degree.

Also, yes, that Mitsu is a bad idea. Unless you like driving around emulating a mosquito truck.

Taurus non-SHO of that era is generally a safe but boring and not terribly fuel efficient choice. The automatic transaxles are their weakness and some of the V6s have problems as they age. But they're usually so cheap you can pick up a good one that will last you a while and dump it for another one a few years down the line when you do have issues.

when i was a kid , my dad owned a mitsu galant , three engine changes werent enough to keep it on the road . if its not taken care of , its gonna die pretty early in its life .

No mitsubishi's, or subcompact toyota's got it! On a random note, on the way to see said Paseo, we saw a Eagle Medallion wagon on the freeway. I didn't even know they made those in wagon form, ditto that they came with a forward facing third row seat (complete with 3 point belts):