Is one brand of car really better than the other???

**Calendyr** · 06-09-2016, 09:38 AM

If you are talking reliability and durability, yes there is a huge difference from one manufacturer to the other. JD Powers publishes a report every year on this very subject. Here is the one for 2016:

2016 Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS) by Make | J.D. Power

Some brands come on top year after year, Porshe comes to mind. Some brands are at the bottom every year (ahem! Mini).

Some of the quality issues are also easy to see. Look at cars on the road, some brands are showing a lot more rust than others. Mazda comes to mind. I did a detail on a Mazda for the first time 2 weeks ago, while I was polishing the roof, the metal panel kept bending and flexing even with no pressure other than the weight on my Rupes Bigfoot 21ES on it. That to me is really cheap, construction, no wonder they don't last. The car was a 2010 and the paints was in horrible shape. I did not even dare clay it, there were perforation all over the roof and hood where primer was showing. I am talking whole sections of the panel, not just a few rock chips. I put some Essence polish on it then added Reload sealant. This should help but that paint is in really bad shape and unless the owner really protects it periodically, it will start to rust.

So yes, if you are in the market to purchase a new car, do consult reliability reports, they will help you avoid brands that don't offer any quality in their products. Some manufacturer work really hard to make decent cars, all you have to do is find out who they are.

**oneheadlite** · 06-09-2016, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by andy2485

I'm looking to get a new/newer car?

Out of curiosity - are there any front runner cars you're thinking of/looking at?

**andy2485** · 06-09-2016, 11:13 AM

Ford, Hyundai, Chevrolet are pretty much it at the moment.

**ski2** · 06-09-2016, 11:16 AM

When considering reliability data you have to examine how the data is collected and weighted. As an example-- Some organizations (J.D. Powers comes to mind) weight poor blue tooth performance the same as a failed transmission.

**Skimmer0220** · 06-09-2016, 12:33 PM

Originally Posted by Mike.Phillips@Autogeek

Yes.

Classic Chevy trucks are the best.

Now that this discussion is settled and we've all come to a concensus I might as well close this thread.

I did laugh really hard at this

When my wife was looking for a new car, we tried out a bunch of different car's that met our price range and what we needed, some we found wre just cheaply made and the hole "lifetime no maintanance" gimick really pissed me off with one car company so much as I wanted nothing to do with it, All in all we settled on car that fitted everything we wanted as well as looked great, so no there not all the same there all designed different and have different features and price ranges

**briarpatch** · 06-09-2016, 12:53 PM

my criteria is simple...drive what my mechanic drives.....he has Toyotas, I have Toyotas......two in the garage currently...no complaints

**brettS4** · 06-09-2016, 12:57 PM

Of the three.. Ford, then Ford, then Ford. Then Chevy if you choose very carefully. And never Hyundai unless it's a free loaner. This in no way is based on my personal preference but has been scientifically proven.

I'll say that I bought my first Audi (A4) when they offered a 5yr 50k all-inclusive warranty (that covered everything but tires). I reached the limit of the warranty in only 2 years because I loved driving the car so much. In that time frame the only thing that I needed to have replaced was the brakes. And I don't recall having to do much more in the next 50k miles. So yeah, some cars are better than others.

**andy2485** · 06-09-2016, 01:12 PM

well thats based on what i like, miles, and price.. if i could get an Audi, i would. ha

**dDavid** · 06-09-2016, 01:26 PM

FYI, Ford didn't do so well on the JD Power Dependability survey linked to above.

**Calendyr** · 06-09-2016, 04:56 PM

Originally Posted by ski2

When considering reliability data you have to examine how the data is collected and weighted. As an example-- Some organizations (J.D. Powers comes to mind) weight poor blue tooth performance the same as a failed transmission.

JD Powers rate vehicles on 4 criteria. You can decide what is most important to you. For me it's Drivetrain reliability then the rest. I would rather have an accessory break than the transmission or engine