Back in January, we asked you B&B to tell us about the least reliable car you’d ever owned. The stories poured in, amounting to a shocking 240+ comments. It took us days to emotionally recover from the sad tales expressed in your replies.

But today will not be a day of tears. We want to know: what’s the most reliable car you’ve ever owned?

Much like unreliability, reliability is not always a surprise occurrence. Some cars can be picked from whichever particular crop is being shopped and provide the owner with reliability. It’s their nature. The most basic of upkeep, and one can enjoy thousands of miles of carefree driving.

Other times, you might discover you’ve “picked a good one,” realizing much better reliability than others who purchased the exact same ride as you. It’s not hard to find an Internet Person with a 1994 Cadillac DeVille who has not once experienced a gasket issue with their Northstar, even after 25 years and 180,000 miles. Likewise, there’s an owner of a 1998 Land Rover Discovery who has never had an electrical or water leakage issue. Miracles happen!

Your author’s most reliable ride falls squarely in the unsurprising category. A 1997 Infiniti I30. Pearl white paint, tan leather, wood tone, all propelled forward by the VQ30. It was purchased in the summer of 2005 to replace the ’93 Audi 90S (that white one up there) that was getting on its owner’s nerves. At time of purchase, the I30 had something like 120,000 miles on it, and was on its second owner, who purchased it off lease. $3,900 left my bank account, and multi-spoke alloys decorated the street in front of my parent’s house (where it got hit by a Wrangler in the door, and repaired).

In over three years, I experienced nary a mechanical issue. Oil changes and checking tire pressures sufficed for maintenance. I did fix one thing — a rattling center console lid. It was down to the clip which held it closed being slightly too worn to function. Eight dollars and five minutes, and all was well. I kept the I30 through the rest of college, until I was forced to sell it in September of 2008, shortly before fleeing The America to avoid the big unemployment.

Whichever side of the reliability coin you’ve found yourself on, today’s your chance to spill it. What was your readily reliable ride?

Most reliable for me was a 2002 Saturn Vue, 4-cyl, 5-speed. Got ten good years out of it myself and another three years by my Father-in-Law with over 120K on the original clutch plates and NO major out-of-warranty repairs (one McPherson strut under warranty.)

That’s right; a first year of production model proved to be the most reliable single car I’ve owned to date.

Mine was a 1997 Saturn SL1. Bought it at 150k, wound up selling it 7 years later with 214k and all I did to it besides regular maintenance was a cooling fan, an easy swap with help from YouTube videos from Richpin. It did burn a little oil, but it just ran (and ran, and ran…)

My 1999 SL was reliable. I got it for a commuter, and it did well.I do remember apologizing for all the rattles and buzzing to passengers lol. Yes, it burned oil, and I know the previous owner had to replace the plastic shifter linkage, but it was a good runner. I actually sold it for a couple hundred more than I paid after putting like 20k on it.

We had an ’03 VUE with the unfortunate CVT. That car was rock solid, but the transmission kept blowing up.

Its crazy how many Saturns are still on the road. Those things just wont die.

The ones with the early Honda drivetrains were crap; the Opel drivetrains were rather solid. I’m a fan of them for that. GM made a big mistake by doing what they did to Saturn.

It is a weird little nugget in the history of American cars.

I learned of it from my former team manager who was a paragon of thrift. He drove an early Prius which had hundreds of thousands of miles on it yet met his match in his wife, who owned an SL in black with the stick shift and nothing but seats. Even he, cheapest of engineers, could no longer stand that car by a quarter million miles. Yet it persisted. Nothing ever broke, and it racked up more than 30 mpg on every tank. The only way he ever got her out of it was the gift of a new CUV.

I thought briefly that I should have owned one, but I’m not sure I could have stood the long, slow, torture that would be the rubber interior of an SL for years. Yes, man can exist on bread and water alone, but why?

I just sold my 97 sw2 to a friend. 226k on the clock and burns a quart every 1k but it’s still running just fine. s series cars don’t die, people kill them.

Say what you will about GM “quality” (and I certainly can) but that 2.2L Ecotec/5-speed manual combination is pretty damn stout in my experience.

Most reliable — 1998 BMW 328i sedan, 5-speed Least reliable — 1997 Subaru Legacy

1992 Saturn SL1 manual was my most reliable.

– There was a factory defect that caused a broken rocker arm after about 2 years of ownership. – I wore the clutch out after 225,000 km, but I think that is reasonable. – It used to eat front brake rotors like they were made of tin. I never had to touch the drums in back.

Beyond that, it was all regular maintenance. I sold it in 1999 after 7 years and almost 275,000 km. I replaced it with a 1998 Chrysler Cirrus, thus starting my string of incredibly unreliable vehicles.

I thought my current 2011 F-150 was going to be my most reliable until it went in for its stretched timing chain repair this week. It lasted 195,000 km without a major repair though. I guess the timing chain issue is common on pre-2013 Ecoboost motors.

The RVR is so far flawless but only 15000 kms in, that doesnt really count.

Most reliable was my 98 Grand Am SE, 2.4L 5 speed. Ate wheel bearing but was otherwise solid and I could swap those out fast.

Next reliable was the 2002 Alero. 2.2L 5 speed.

Turds? The Verano obviously, and the 2004 Mazda 6 GT V6 5 speed, and a 2003 Sunfire GT 2.4L 5 speed.

Neutral, because they were only shortly in my possession were my two Sonomas.

For trouble free motoring I don’t think you can beat the 1990 Vauxhall Cavalier SRi I had in the UK. By 1998 I think it had 250,000 miles on the same clutch and the same engine despite being driven all over Europe, very hard.

It wasn’t a fluke either – our small company had two others of the same make and they both achieved starship mileages as well.

Miles? Or kilometers? That’s still a lot, don’t get me wrong, but too many people insist 120K miles is nearly impossible for clutch plates in the States. 250,000km comes out to 155,000 statute miles.

I am talking miles, not KM. Those cars were damn near unbreakable.

Great performance, relatively good fuel economy, would comfortably seat 4 adults, decent space in the boot (trunk)

Then Vauxhall replaced it with the Vectra, which had numerous problems, and they never really recovered. And now GM has sold them to PSA, purveyor of self destructing plastic and bent wire garbage.

My father junked his ’81 AMC Concord wagon around 180k miles and it still had the original clutch, it’s not hard at all to make a clutch last, just gotta “do it right”.

People just don’t get clutches.

My ’89 Taurus SHO, a car with a notoriously weak clutch, ate its manual transmission at about 80,000 miles. The transmission mechanic told me my clutch was at 10% remaining friction material and was p!ssed when I told him I just didn’t have the money to replace it right then. He said “You’ll be back in two months.”

Six years and almost 80,000 miles later, I traded the thing in, with the same clutch, and it still wasn’t slipping.

I’ve driven nothing but manual cars since 1976 and I never replaced a clutch in any of them. Some of them I sold with over 180K miles on them. They were all Honda’s of course…

I am fairly certain I am an anomaly.

1. 1998 VW Jetta TDI 5 MT (manual windows, no sunroof I knew what I was buying): not 1 issue, ever.

2. 2003 Dodge Ram 2500 SLT 5 sp MT Cummins. Never had an issue. Traded in 2010 for the Suburban.

It goes to show – a vehicle is as reliable as its owner.

I’m right with you, 87 Morgan:

’97 Jetta TDI (I sprung for the sunroof) did the math and traded up to the…

’00 Golf TDI (unfortunately totalled) felt like an extension of my arm

‘98.5 Dodge Ram Cummins 5MT 4×4 ClubCab. Sold it at 190K w/ original clutch and front brakes! I figured I was on borrowed time & sold it. Should have kept it ’til it clicked 300K.

These vehicles combined for nearly 275K trouble-free miles. I was on a roll and knew it.

Not an anomaly, mine was a 2007 Rabbit 5-speed with the highway-honey 5-banger. Bought it for $10000 in 2010 with 45k, drove it to 185k over 6 years with no tow trucks ever. The only close call was a bad coil pack but I was close to home and was able to nurse it. The original battery lasted 8 years. When it had 130k I took it on a solo 5k road trip and it was flawless. After a minor deer hit, State Farm totaled it for $4400, and I sold it for $2500, still with the original clutch, exhaust, starter, alternator, water pump, and timing chain. My only repairs were wear items like front struts, hubs, and cv axles. Maybe Veedubs are more reliable than they get credit for?

Not just you. 2005 VW Golf. 2.slow, automatic, GLS so sunroof, power windows, etc. Horrible gas mileage (sub-25mpg highway), had as much power as four hamsters, one of which had died, but no issues in nine years. Would have been a perfect first car for some kid.

Ultra reliable (if wheezy) 1ZZFE engine, routine maintenance is simple (ie, has an ATF drain plug), parts are relatively cheap and it’s easy on tires. Besides the airbag recall, it’s never been to the dealership or a repair shop. I’m approaching 200K miles; I’ve read of a guy taking it well over 350K on one of the Vibe forums.

I want to get rid of this car, but besides vanity there just isn’t a good reason to dump it. With a kid approaching 16 soon, it might stay around a bit longer…

My least reliable car was a 2003 Vibe, but it wasn’t it’s fault. It had bad rings in #1, probably due to infrequent oil changes from previous owners. These things will run forever if maintained appropriately (I’ve owned 2 Prizms as well). I wound up losing 3/4 of the value of the car in almost half a year. But I would buy another again.

My Toyota Matrix with the manual transmission. The transmission failed for a cost of $3,000. The manuals on them all fail.

You didn’t have to replace the valve cover gasket? Or resolder the clock? Granted both are easy and cheap problems to fix. But they are pretty common. My 06 TSX has my 05 Matrix beat by not having a single problem.

Too bad the later generations of both cars are such disappointments.

…And my brother-in-law bought a ’95 Maxima (platform mate to the I30). It was very reliable but rusted like hell in Syracuse, NY. Audis don’t rust worth a damn.

Depends upon what “reliable” means if it is so rusty it won’t pass inspection and all the body grounds are shot.

03 4Runner, bought new, now with 197k miles. Non maintance repair list is very short. Have sticky caliper fixed, replace corroding battery cable, reclamp weeping cv joints, hood struts. That’s it. I think the brake repair was most expensive at a couple hundred. A few age related issues recently started popping up however. Center diff is leaking, which would be an expensive repair.

Yeah, but if you live anywhere that they salt the roads, I can pretty much guarantee that your frame and undercarriage is rusted to hell. Mine was on the ’04 4Runner.

While I would claim that both a Miata and an LS400 that I owned for 5 years (They never had any major issues) would be my most reliable, I would actually have to defer to my wife’s Ford Explorer Sport Trac. It’s a 2001 that we bought used in 2003. She’s driven it since coming up on 15 years and now at ~150,000 miles. It has only left her “stranded” once and it was just because of a faulty coolant temp sensor.

Sure it leaks a little, the paint is kinda crappy, it chews through brake pads every 20,000 miles but damn ain’t it cheap to fix and starts 99.9999% of the time. I’ve only had to do maintenance items on it and oil changes (and the coolant temp sensor) but there hasn’t been anything big $$ ever.

It makes me want to get another Ford. There will be a new Ranger in the driveway in 2019-2020.

I don’t really think I have a “most” reliable; shopping in the 150k+ range means most repairs are going to be the result of age and use rather than poor design or materials.

For a used car, my 1998 Grand Prix GTP did not live an easy life when I was in college/early adulthood, but acquitted itself pretty well. Took that one from about 90k to 150k. It was rough by the end but never left me stranded.

I ended up selling it when I bought my 2008 G8 GT new. I put about 80k on that one in 4 years and other than the well known control arm issues, I never had any other problems.

A 2003 Tacoma, and a 2005 Scion xB. Both were entirely problem-free.

Even my most unreliable vehicle was more reliable than the “Remember Me” feature of the login for this website.

If I leave it blank, it just asks me another math problem. Better that than asking for Grey Cup winners.

Wonder if it has something to do with AdBlock. I quit putting anything in that space a long time ago, and it’s always worked.

Weird, I’ve had both experiences like bumpy ii and Corey’s.

In either case when I finally got in it took me to the Dashboard to update my profile.

Select “Visit Site” instead and got to where I wanted to be.

2005 ford escape xls 2.3 5 speed was still running strong at 200,000 miles when I sold it Other than plugs, oil and filters, I did the front brakes and rotors at 110K. Oh and cleaned the IAC once. That was it. Still had 50% on the rear brake shoes.

A 1987 Nissan Stanza that I got from my dad when it had 210k miles on the clock. He drove 40k miles a year for his job, so the miles piled on quick. It had an automatic has never been flushed or had the fluid been changed. Still running on the original distributor (if you opened the hood at night, you could see the sparking action through the thin dist. cap plastic).

Eventually the fuel pump needed the be replaced at 240k-ish miles.

Tires, oil/air filter, and gas. And pretty much a whole exhaust system – Michigan! Everything worked in the interior too, including a pretty nice stereo.

The old man had three of these underpowered cars – all in a row – including one with a manual transmission, which really helped in the meager performance department.

others: 1994 Nissan hardbody truck, Toyota T100, 1997 Mercury Mountaineer – all three required minimal trips to the mechanic.

2002 Toyota Highlander, hands down. At 225K miles it’s feeling the pain, but it’s still remarkably solid and reliable. We’ve had it since new, and it’s never had major issues of any kind (recurring check engine lights are annoying though usually an easy fix). Almost more impressive is that the paint and interior finishes are still in great condition, despite never being garage kept (in the rust belt no less) and heavy use moving supplies and equipment.

They don’t make ’em like this any more…

1992 Honda Accord Coupe. 180K totally trouble-free miles. Paint was a little beat up and oxidized, but otherwise it was great.

I guess I’ve been lucky in that all my cars, except for an awful Chrysler T&C have been extremely reliable.

That said, my first car, ’91 VW Jetta, was remarkable. 260k miles, albeit mostly highway. 2nd clutch. One large cost (gasket), otherwise only oil changes. Full synthetic, every 15k miles. Like literally almost no other money spent. $1k or something for the one large repair, don’t recall exactly, was a long time ago. Over 260k miles, I’ll take it.

2001 SUBARU OUTBACK 2001 BMW 330XI-CURRENT CAR.

I owned my ’02 Civic Si from Aug. 2010 to Jan. 2017 and nearly doubled the mileage it had when I bought it, going from 90k to 160k. Not a thing broke on that car in 70,000 miles of spirited driving besides an air conditioner compressor at 110k miles, which is about par for the course.

1988 Toyota Landcruiser. Never had an issue. 180K when i sold it.

My current 2014 Honda Accord, 6 speed manual. Bought new, 105,000 miles. One recall about a battery voltage sensor. That’s it. The tires even lasted 80,000 miles. They would have made close to 100,000 miles if I lived in a warm climate. It replaced a Ford Fiesta that was crap. It had at least 17 issues in 80,000 miles.

All the cars I’ve had new have been reliable in the 1-3 years I’ve had them. But reliability is a matter of perspective. That being said, the most reliable car for the age/mileage was a 1994 Oldsmobile 88 Royale. Bought it at 200k km, drove it 60,000km with nothing more than oil changes, sold it with a new set of front brake pads for $800 more than I paid for it.

My first new car: 1985 Toyota Celica GT. 90K miles with only oil changes; the original tires lasted 70K miles. . .

That’s nice. I came of age that year, and would have loved one of these. By the time I left College…their time was over and my earnings were not adequate. Still, I think, one of the prettiest of the pre-Taurus “angular” designs. Also, every bit an over-engineered Toyota.

The 80s Toyotas lasted forever with minimal maintenance. Hence the “Toyota halo” that is present today.

My wife Honda pilot would win the award in our home, 2005 ex l bought new still have it, replaced a batt or 2 and the only repair we did was airbag sensor on the front bumper about $200 bucks IIRC, and a heated seat bottom nothing else except regular maintenance , the 100K check up was pricey but that is maintenance so I do not count it, has about 115,000 miles on it still runs great and will be going to the teenage driver next year. My wife could never understand why I had to do repairs on my brand new TDI Jetta wagon which I bought new and had more miles than her car in 4 years. I had several accords as company cars and they all ran great for three years 75,000-90,000 before they were sold so I am a big believer in Honda.

As a favour to a friend we had watched an 84 Chevy Caprice come down the line. .. A long story, but I bought it used in 1987. I sold it in 96 with 245,000 on the odo, to another plant worker. That dude commuted 80 miles a day with it. I lost track of it around 2000 ??

Regular maintenance, a few brake jobs and an annual rust spray. That chevy was the best car I ever owned.

2012 Nissan Leaf – no problems during the 3 year lease

2005 Scion xB – one window switch (warranty), one O2 sensor in 7 years

2005 Toyota Camry XLE 4-cylinder, 5-speed auto. Bought new, kept for 9 years and a relatively low 73,000 miles. Only normal maintenance/wear items including filters, fluids, wiper blades, a couple of rear light bulbs, and tires. Never had the brakes touched.

1999 Civic. 14 years at 205k (km) of trouble free driving. Nothing but scheduled maintenance and replacing normal wear & tear items. I almost 100% certain that it’ll stay the most reliable car I will ever own.

We had a 1999 Civic DX 4spd (auto) that was passed around between brothers, sisters, and cousins after my grandmother stopped driving it. At 130,000 miles the timing belt unexpectedly let go, though it had been changed around 70,000 miles.

Very sad. That Civic was destined for greatness. It never asked for anything other than oil and gasoline, and it never failed to start or deliver about 30mpg combined. Remarkable thing, even if it was a buzzy tin can.

2000 Ford Taurus with the 3.0 Vulcan, a little over 260,000 miles, in my 140,000 miles with it the only thing changed was the alternator with just basic maintenance. Moved on after the the transmission started acting up at the 260k era.

2011 F150 5.0L XLT Supercrew 2wd. Bought new, 106K when I sold it, almost 5 years old at the time. Used for everything- towing my 27′ Travel Trailer, hauling the family, hauling stuff, daily driver in Houston traffic. Replaced brake pads, resurfaced rotors for first time at 95K. Absolutely no issues, nothing needed repair, no squeaks or rattles.

1) A 1962 VW Beetle. Passed around various family members for 21 years. Brakes, tires, 1 clutch and oil changes. 2) A 1982 Honda Civic hatch, 5-speed. I put on over 200,000kms. Oil changes every 6,000km, changed the timing belt and tires as needed. Moved it to another family member who put on another 100,000 kms. The engine was still sold and not burning oil. Original clutch! It was then sold it to a friend, who drove it for another couple of years before rust finished it. 3) 1986 Honda Accord sedan. Ran it for 7 years, requiring only a new A/C compressor (have posted regarding this) and oil changes. Sold to a co-worker who drove it for another 6 years before it was written off in an accident.

Won’t right about any of our current vehicles as we would not want to bring down a jinx.

Yes! Honda Accord. Bought a new ’93 EX 5-spd and put 314K on it. Only clutch work was a leaky slave cylinder that I replaced with an $8 salvage yard piece. I loved that car…and miss it regularly. Replaced the 2600.00 steering rack at about 300K, but when the head gasket started to leak and I couldn’t afford to mess with it any more. I had to send her to the Honda farm to live out the rest of her days with the other Accords.

1994 Dodge RAM2500, RWD, Cummins 5.9L diesel, 47RH 4-speed automatic. Bought used in 2001 with just under 200,000km. Sold to my brother in 2016 at 430,000km.

Oh yes, my wife’s 2006 CR-V with the 5-speed stick has been extremely reliable also.

Short term: (six years & 96,000 miles) ’97 Nissan Maxima Long term: (twenty five years & 325,000 miles) ’91 Jeep Cherokee

1984 Buick LeSabre Limited. The last of the V8 B-bodies.

Thirteen years, 313,000 kilometers, 194,500 miles. Routine maintenance and wear item replacement, except for five water pumps. Road salt perforated the roof at the edge of the windshield, a very expensive repair.

My next GM was excellent, until the warranty expired. Then everything went to hell, some several several times. Have bought Japanese brands since.

2008 Toyota Sienna, 165k miles. The obligatory steering rack at 98k, and an idler pulley at 130kish. Still going strong – just did a 3500 mi Rockies round trip with a van full of skiers and gear.

Our ’08 has 174k (bought it used with 83k), replaced the rack and the front drive axles last fall at 165k. The rack because of the usual right side seal leak, the drive axles because the CV just plain wore out (the boots were fine, and we drove for over two year with the noisy joints). The fuel pump had to be replaced at the same time (code P0171 traced to low fuel pressure). Other things were one coil, last month (#2, code P0352), and one vehicle speed sensor (VSS #2, code P0717).

One of the fittings on the radiator filler neck disintegrated, so I’ve repaired it temporarily until I have the time to replace the filler neck (Dorman part), and it’s had all the recalls done, plus the instrument panel under the warranty enhancement (cracks in pad, and other areas softening).

Other than that, just brakes, bulbs, etc. I change the oil every 4k with synthetic, and I had the dealer flush the transmission at 100k.

1988 Buick Park Ave, 250,000 miles on it and still able to get 30 MPG on the highway when I got rid of it. Just normal wear and tear, suspension, maybe a wheel bearing and a half-axle. I think it lost compression in one of the cylinders once.

Funny you mention the NorthStar. My first head-gasket in an Eldorado went at 96k, the one in my Seville went at 150k despite obsessive maintenance to avoid the problem. Oh and the family had an LS400 that was our first non-GM vehicle. I think it was up over 100k and we needed a new gas cap. Should have never gotten rid of that car.

’93 Mazda Protege. Put 130,000 miles on it, and while it was decrepit at the end, it never failed me.

http://zombdrive.com/images1600_/1992-ford-escort-8.jpg

I swear that might have been my car. 1992 Ford Escort LX 5-speed.

It was anemic the shift linkage took 2000 miles to have proper shift feel and was not the GT (an actually fun car). It did however only require a new set of tires (which I expensed to the seller who no-showed but left the keys on the tire) and regular fluid changes.

It ran, got decent gas mileage and never broken for me. Perfect 3rd car after the first two last had huge mechanical issues.

It was the humble mobile though.

I had a 93 LX 5-speed. Put 200k miles on it with one timing belt change, one clutch, did the front brakes once, and the automatic seatbelts went out once. And the intake manifold gasket got a leak at 190k. Not too bad. That Mazda drivetrain was solid.

On the downside, the paint started peeling in the roof gutters after 100k, and the clutch never felt quite right. When it was replaced at 100k, found out the bearing was bad, and it had gouged the spindle. They fixed it with JB weld and a new bearing, and worked great after that. And the steering was pretty loose after 200k miles.

Hmmm, just remembered I had to replace the radiator once, and the heater core…which was the job from hell. I think maybe I kept it too long.

1) 1991 Chevy Lumina Z34. White with grey interior. Bought is when it was 8 years old. Owned it for 5 years. Not a single issue. What a cool car!

2) 1992 Pontiac Trans Am. Bought new (as a college graduation present to myself). Still have it! Emerald green T-Tops. 26 years old and I’ve replaced altenator twice, hood and liftback struts once. Other than that, a wonderful 138K miles on it so far. Love that GM 5.0!

3) 2007 Saturn Aura. Beautiful car. Owned for 7 years. 110K miles. Not a single issue. Wife fell in love with the Fiat 500 and that was that (see below)

4) 2010 Dodge Charger RT AWD. Factory ordered. My current ride. 84K miles and no issues. I hope it never ever dies.

5) 2013 Fiat 500 Turbo. Bought new. 66K miles. Black with red leather interior. All options. An amazingly fun car to drive with the 5 speed stick. Wife traded it in 2 weeks ago as we now have a 8 year old child and it was too small for our newly grown family.

2007 CR-V AWD w/230,000 miles. still in the family. still in service. looks great inside.

never stranded. died once overnight in the driveway due to a bum relay that drained the battery.

And given how climate control/infotainment electronics has become ubiquitous, won’t let it leave the family until it explodes.

No auto brand is perfect. but having grown up in a GM house as a kid, I won’t go back to Detroit. Yes, GM may have come a long way since the 80’s, but sorry memories are long.

My first eBay purchase back in ‘04 was an ‘01 Mitsubishi Lancer for my teenaged daughter. It was a salvage vehicle but it looked and ran great. After going through the NYS hassle of registering a salvage title, the car took massive abuse for seven years and 150K miles. She backed through the wall of a Dunkin’ Donuts with it, the rear end was literally inside the building, and it only suffered a cracked lens. Oil changes, brakes, and tires were the only costs associated with it, well that and insurance. The motor and tranny were bulletproof, she beat that thing to within an inch of it’s life. Not bad for $4,000.

I never had a truly reliable car, but a ’97 Taurus comes closest. Bought used from a dealer, it already had a rebuilt transaxle installed. Non-maintenance repairs during the next 9 years: A/C evaporator, front hubs, rear calipers, serpentine belt idler pulley.

‘00 Jeep Wrangler Sport 4.0/5spd. Bought as a late birthday present in ‘03 with 31K on the clock and a set of 33×12.50’s on 15×10 ARE Outlaw II’s. Drove the snot outta that Jeep for right at 10 years, and 100K more miles including towing everything I owned from west TN to Oregon. 2 issues:

—A case of death wobble showed up early, turned out the track bar bushing had been doused in oil and turned to goo. A fresh urethane replacement and a beefier steering stabilizer as added insurance fixed it permanently for about $100.

—Radiator top tank developed a crack and leaked. $300 fixed it for good, turns out from ‘99 to about ‘02 the radiators had a bad run. A ‘99 I almost bought before the ‘00 literally cracked the tank after I test drove it…had my checkbook in my hand to make a deposit when it happened.

So far, my current ride: a 1999 Ford Expedition.

I’ve driven it almost 4 years and 98,000 kilometers and all I’ve done outside of regular maintenance is an alternator. It now has 228,000 kilometers.

When I bought it the guy gave me a big stack of receipts. He had a lot of work done, including front end components, so this is probably why I’m having such good luck.

Also up: 2001 Suzuki XL7. What a great vehicle. This was our family vehicle for several years, but I felt there was impending expensive mechanical work, so I sold it. Maybe I shouldn’t have. I had never actually grieved the loss of a vehicle before and this came as a surprise.

Worst: 2009 Ford Taurus X. What a piece of crap. I bought it used with low kms, and there was always something wrong with it, the components like bearings were garbage, the PTU unit went the week after I bought it, and the last straw was the water pump that would have cost 2-3 thousand to replace. My mechanic brother-in-law offered to replace it for us, but didn’t know what was involved.

I sold it to a guy that was so impressed with my “honesty” about the expensive water pump that he bought it, thinking he “has a guy” who could replace it cheap. Yeah right.

Mine has been a 1997 Toyota T100 that I bought in 1999 and still own today. The only unscheduled repair in 19 years has been the alternator.

Second to that has been my current Land Rover LR3 which I am happy to say.

This one is easy…by a landslide. In 2007, I bought a 1997 Toyota Tercel with 120k on the odometer. My older sister drove it for a year before it went to my son as his first car. He drove it his last year of high school, then went off to the Air Force Academy. His first year there, he could not have his own vehicle, so I kept it for him, and drove it every day. His sophomore year, we had it shipped out to Colorado Springs, where the little white shoebox (we called her Tee-Tuu…kind of a play on it being my sister’s second Toyota) carried him around the region until taking him to Texas and then across country to Delaware (he could have had the AF ship it for him, but decided to drive it himself). Last month, the faithful little T2, now a family treasure, met an early and unplanned end when a semi tried to occupy the same lane as the Tercel. She had well over 250k on the original engine, clutch and transmission. There were exactly ZERO unscheduled maintenance requirements. Nothing, other than the need to replace the outside door handles from time to time. It all worked. No leaks, freezing A/C, 40 MPG and steadfast reliability. Until the accident, I was telling my son that I wanted the car back. She’ll go down as legend in the family for how trustworthy she was. Maybe not the fastest or most glamorous…but consider this. My son came out of the AF debt-free and could have easily afforded a nice, new car. Many of his pilot-friends did so. He refused to give up the Tercel.

My first car was a hand me down 94 tercel. We sold it with over 230k on it a few years later but it was still in great shape with the original clutch.

sorry to hear the demise of this clearly well loved car, threeer!

Nick…genuine tears were shed. After assuring my son’s GF was okay, the next question was “but what about Tee-Tuu?”

I have a second cousin who is very, very pretty. After hearing of a car accident she was in, more than one person asked, “Is her face OK?”

Not to jinx it, but all but one of my family’s electronic ignition era cars (starting with a ’78 Caprice Classic) have been very reliable.

The one exception was an E28. In retrospect, the combo of German/1st year model/1st year engine was like playing Russian roulette with three bullets in the cylinder. In point of fact, it never stranded us, but it did have a litany of expensive, annoying, and unusual problems.

The four Toyota/Lexus products we’ve had, collectively, have had TWO problems: – an overly complicated, drawer-style cupholder on a ’93 Paseo on which a foam rubber gasket was prone to falling off its mount. And that wasn’t broken, per se. Put the gaskit back on its mounting, and it’d stay there for several more weeks or months, depending on how often you used it and how rough you were. – a radio button on the same car that broke about 10 years into ownership. Folks, the Toyota reliability thing is not empty hype.

Our Detroit vehicles of the past 40 years have been good too, varying from perfect (the Caprice Classic, e.g., had ZERO problems in 10 years of ownership; shouldn’t have sold it) to ankle-biter stuff (e.g., replacing a broken lumbar knob on a Chevy pick-up; that was like a $15 part). The worst problem was a temperamental power steering pump on a ’99 Seville. I didn’t pay for that repair, so I don’t know much it cost.

Only three strandings in those 40 years: – Dead battery on the ’93 Toyota. Not really the car’s fault, as the battery was 10+ years old at that point. – Dead fuel pump on an ’88 Bonneville at about seven years and 60,000 miles. Tow-truck driver got it started by whacking the fuel tank with a rubber mallet. We drove it to a garage and got the fuel pump swapped out – very cheap repair. – Periodic dying by my grandmother’s ’88 Celebrity. That turned out to be undiagnosed damage to a computer suffered in a fender bender (cabbie’s fault, not hers). Once the cracked electronics were swapped out, it ran like a top.

The BMW gets a dishonorable mention for stranding in that the driver’s door handle and lock mechanism broke. Unless you’re name is Bo or Luke, having a car with the driver’s door fixed shut is not cool.

So, really only one legitimate stranding amongst several drivers and 40+ years. Tip of the cap to Japan *and* Detroit, as far as I’m concerned.

I’ve had a lot of very reliable cars. Hard to pick the most reliable. Moat were very cheap to buy as well.

My current 1995 Taurus, I’ve put almost 60k on it, its never broken down. I have had to do some stuff to it, but mostly deferred maintenance items and normal wear and tear stuff like struts/springs, brakes, subframe mounts, a motor mount.

1983 Mercury Zephyr GS. I paid a whole hundred dollar bill for it. Beat the crap out if it for a year or so, drove it from Seattle to Phoenix and my brother got another two years out of it before the idiot left it, running/driving, in a parking lot because they were relocating. Pi§§ed me off big time.

1993 Taurus. Bought with 224k, sold with ~300k. Went across country a few times.

1992 Tempo LX V-6. Put 100k very, very hard miles on it. It laid more rubber than the entire complement of a Navy ship on shoreleave for the first time in months. Spent way more time in triple digits than any Tempo in history, I’d bet. I should have my @$$ kicked for getting rid of it.

There were others, but I didn’t have them as long or get as many miles from them before getting rid of them.

1. 1997 Toyota 4 Runner with 145k miles 2. 2004 MINI Cooper S with 145k miles 3. Fiat 500 Abarth with 50k miles. Worst cars ever was a Ford Aerostar, 2002 MINI Cooper s.

1994 Previa All-trac supercharged. Bought new and driven by one family member or another until sold in 2006, with something like 140 K miles. Only non-maintenance repair was U-joint failure in 2001 at 120K miles. It did eat brake pads for breakfast.

2008 Honda Pilot EX-L. Replaced starter motor, which was failing at 120K. All other repairs were maintenance (I include replacing rear shocks this year at 130K in that category). Did have the Takata air bag recall, but I don’t count that.

Doing well so far: 2015 GMC Sierra 1500 4wd with 8-speed auto and 6.2 Liter engine. 67K with only scheduled maintenance. About 60% of those miles pulling my 28-foot Airstream travel trailer. Contrary to other folks; experience with Honda and earlier GM VCM systems, zero oil use between changes (roughly every 7K miles, as dictated by the service indicator). Original tires need replacing; original brake pads don’t.

2011 Chevy Malibu 4-cylinder. Bought new. Kept for 75 months and 102k miles. ONLY ONE REPAIR, and minor one.

Two of the four seat springs broke at some point, but I didn’t notice, girlfriend borrowed car and said seat felt ‘funny’. We both weigh less than 175.

At 97k, I fixed. $300. That is the ONLY repair I paid for.

(At 88k miles and 4.8 yrs, CHECK ENGINE light went on. Car ran fine, but took it in, Intake Cam Sensor. Emission warranty item.)

Best car ever! (as far as reliability)

1988 Honda Prelude 4ws 5-speed. Nothing but oil/filter changes and the usual other consumables in the 4+ years I owned it. Fun to drive, extremely supportive and comfortable seats, sharp looks, the 4ws feature really worked — a lovely car.

1993 Honda Civic EX – my wife’s daily driver for several years when she had a 40 mile plus commute. We purchased it new but upgraded the wheels with wider aftermarket units. It never saw a service bay for any reason other then maintenance items (oil, tires, battery). I can’t remember how many miles we put on it, but it was around for about 4 or 5 years. During that time it was 100% perfect. You couldn’t ask for a more reliable vehicle.

2002 Dodge Dakota SLT Quad Cab 2WD 4.7l V8 AT – my current tow vehicle, which I’ve owned since new. Off and on its performed daily drivers duties but I’d say 80% of the time it is pulling my boat on the highway each weekend the Florida heat. In 120K miles its only seen a repair bay just 5 or 6 times for minor issues. Ironically per Consumer Reports this vehicle is a black dot special and should be avoided at all costs so go figure.

2003 Nissan 350Z – my current daily driver and track toy. Sure its had some problems but they are well known weak points of the early Z33 platform. Given the ABUSE it sees on track I have been downright amazed at just how good this car is. Vehicle has 75K miles now, I purchased it used with only 18K since it was a garage queen. However in the last 4 years its be doing track days every other month plus a daily 36 mile commute. Considering how its pushed on track the only issues are accelerated wear items (hubs, brakes, tires) so I have zero complaints.

Believe it or not my ’89 Topaz. Bought it with not quite 100k miles, drove the piss out of it, never needed anything but oil changes and tires in the 100k+ miles I put on it. Hell, I trusted that car so much that when my mom needed a car I gave it to her with a clear conscience. It was that good of a car. My mom got rid of it @ 264K miles and all she had to do to the car was have a left from outer tie rod end replaced. Just a spectacularly reliable little car.

Those cars were reliable. I’ve had many 4 cylinder versions and they were very durable. Things like power windows failed, but under the hood, they were solid.

That 2.3L was based off the old Falcon In line 6, very robust engine.

@JohnTaurus – Wow, I had always just assumed the Tempo/Topaz I4 was a transverse version of the Lima/Pinto 2.3. I had no idea it was from the Thriftpower Six family tree. Mind blown!

Obligatory Jackie Stewart clip: youtube.com/watch?v=u4Ws_Bp7WYA

I have had several very reliable cars. My 2004 & 2012 Impalas, our old 2002 CR-V and our 1990 Plymouth Acclaim.

Would be a toss up between three cars:

2007 Dodge Magnum SXT. 160,000+ miles. Broke down once (starter died)

1987 Chrysler 5th Ave. 170,000+ miles. Rock sold. Died when family member decided to “help me” and do an oil change and forget to tighten the filter. Then drove it till it locked up.

1984 Olds Delta 88. 280,000-320,000 miles. Odometer died before the car did. had to replace a few parts (transmission, etc). Family member blew lower radiator hose and locked motor on freeway.

I think you may consider either stop lending to family members, or getting some new ones :D

lol my Dad borrowed a late 60s Delta 88 from his Dad to take my mom out on a date in their High School days. Dad decided to goose the accelerator to impress her and blew a radiator hose in the Dairy Queen parking lot. :-P

1999 Saturn SL2 with manual. As basic a car as one could get in 1999. Crank Windows and the radio just had am/fm, no CD player or cassette.

But it was quick, nimble, had nice cloth seats, and bulletproof reliability.

Got it with 21k miles and sold 8 years later with 180k miles. I drove the hell out of that car for 160k miles and only needed to replace a starter once. It still worked perfectly with no leaks when I sold it for $2500 to the next happy owner.

My mother owned TWO of those little Saturns, but they were the coupes with 1/2 door on the driver’s side. She loved those cars and would have gotten a third if Saturn hadn’t closed shop. The car was gutless and rattled but never stranded her while she was doing home health care which meant lots of driving often in rural areas with rougher then average roads.

2011 Malibu 4-cylinder, continued. NO Warranty work (I didn’t have any issues).

2-3 safety recalls, in one, they changed a screw in the seatbelt where it attaches to the seat, I don’t think they did anything in the others.

Also, to their credit, Hamilton Chevrolet of Warren, MI, DID NOT hound me for extra crap. Other and one oil change, I had them do all the service–which was oil changes, front and rear brake pads in the 90k area, trans fluid and rad coolant flush in the 90k area. I got 69k out of the original tires, a record!

What a great car! If this car was as fun to drive as a Cobalt SS or VW GTI, it would be the PERFECT car! It drove well, from day one to the end, very good ride and handling, ergonomics, seats, HVAC. It was a great care

Thank you General Motors! Yes, you may make some crap (but so does everyone else, sadly), but your modest Malibu was outstanding!

Sometimes I wonder if I should have kept it… just got bored with it.

“I got 69k out of the original tires, a record!”

1990 Honda Civic LX 5-speed sedan. I drove the thing hard for 15 years and 250K+ miles, including daily commuting, long trips, and bashing around large construction sites and vacant properties. Basically nothing broke, fell off, or stopped working the entire time I had it. The only repairs that were non-maintenance/normal wear items were for a resistor box and an engine pulley. What a great car.

I would say, Highlander. It had 8 recalls but only 1 actual problem in 9 years and 120K miles. After that, 2011 Mazda3 but only because it has 40K less miles but it didn’t have a problem (yet).

Mechanically it’s a tie between my 2004 F150 Heritage owned for 15 years (given it’s long production run they should have had the bugs worked out) and my 2010 Toyota Highlander (I’ve put about 70,000 miles on it of the 115,000 total).

The bonus was that the F150 didn’t have any interior trim pieces fail – in the Toyota I can clearly see the cost cutting in the interior and squeezing suppliers.

Yea, Highlander is not “expensive” on the inside. But nothing fell off so far and most importantly, upholstery holds pretty good. This is actually surprising considering my personal knowledge of knobs and door handles falling off in Toyotas of certain age.

Well the driver’s armrest had one of the internal supports fail, so now it’s wobbly AND the driver’s side sun-visor went into “limp d*&%” mode at about 70,000 miles and had to be replaced under a “warranty” that only covers the sun-visors. That’s what smacks of squeezing suppliers to me.

I think, I know your problem. Yours is 2010 – Made in US, right? Mine – J-VIN. And still managed failed water pump within a year, covered by warranty. But it has been eating oil in 2.7L. And even that is not new for toyota, especially toyota of the 2008-09

Yup, proudly made in Princeton, IN.

I can’t imagine driving one with only 4 cyl… Oy what a pig!

You would be surprised how little difference at low speed. Once you get on highway, passing other cars definitely a chore. Also, in the mountains, it doesn’t do too well. But since it is lighter – no third row, no extra block of cyls, etc, it is actually pretty capable under highway speed.

2010 Jeep Patriot we currently own. 105,000 miles that has needed standard maintenance only.

My wife’s 07 Camry LE, now approaching 290,000 km on the car.

Other than wear items, the only repairs have been the O2 sensors, and a water pump proactively under recall. And of course the Takata airbags.

Of course she killed the motor at around 200,000 km by driving after having punctured the radiator after hitting road debris. That motor was burning oil at 1 liter every 800 km, and would have probably been subject to the piston recall, but instead it now has an ’09 motor in it with around 180,000 km on it, and continues to “just work”.

But it’s sooooo boring!

Corey, mine is very similar to yours. 2002 Infiniti I35. Bought as second owner with 42,000 miles on it in 2006 and sold to someone in my neighborhood 11 years later with 170,000 miles on it. Its still going and looks great. Sometimes (ok, many times) I wish I had kept it. Its a bit of slight torture when I drive by and see it in their driveway.

It was a GREAT car. Gas, oil, tires, brakes. Thats it!

The E class that replaced it has never, EVER been able to even think about getting close to it in reliability – but that’s a whole other post…

Glad you had a good experience!

The I30/35’s weak point is rust I think, anywhere with salt the wheel wells will start to go.

Also, it’s noticeable if you get out of a gen 1 I30 and into a gen 2 I30/35, the level of cost-cutting in materials which took place.

Oh yes, mine did have a bit of rust starting to show on the passenger rear wells. I kept on top of it – scraped and touch up painted myself to keep it at bay but I am sure both rear wells had more than I could see (we are in MD so do get salt use).

2004 Corolla 270K miles with nothing but wear items (I consider a starter at 250k/11 years a wear item) and never left me stranded.

Probably would have made 300k but I lent it out and despite a CEL coming on for a transmission issue they drove on and likely exacerbated the problem, killing the trans for good.

the question was about a “car”. Corolla is just an appliance

No, cars have crank starters, no power anything, no entertainment system, no sippy cup holders, manual transmission. Every other car is an appliance.

Easy – my ’95 F-150 SuperCab XLT (5.0, 4R70W). Bought it new, drove it 214k before trading it in after 17 years. The last year was not so reliable, with a occasional hard start/no start problem, which I’m thinking now was probably the PCM. The only thing it had that considered a defect were the pinion bearings that started going at 92k – someone told me that it was caused by the factory putting too much preload on the bearings. It was an excuse to add a Detroit Truetrac LSD.

Coming in at second was my ’76 Vega GT, that I bought in ’84, with 93k. It only let me down twice in eleven years – first, about a year in, when the in-tank electric fuel pump died, and the second time, about six or seven years later, when the ignition coil broke down, grounding the spark to the cylinder head. I sold it with 218k on it, for $750, after I bought the F-150.

The best car I ever had was a 1979 Mercury Cougar that I drove about 10 years ago. My second-best car was a 1973 Pinto 1.6 stick-shift that I drove about 5 years ago. Really! The worse cars have been my two Audi 5000’s.

I have been commuting 600 miles a week on the Detroit freeway system for the past 29 years. I have gone through many cars. Between gravel trucks, pot holes, and salt spray I subject my cars to some of the worse conditions in the nation. In the warm months I get the stone chips and in the winter I get massive salt spray from being behind other vehicles. The automakers should give me cars to test!

My strategy is to buy un-loved low mileage cars with a proven drivetrain at low cost. Then drive it for 5 years or so until the rust gets bad enough that servicing the car becomes difficult. At the same time, I over-maintain the vehicle so the drivetrain lasts without any rebuilding. Grease the front end, add a drain plug to the transmission pan for regular drain & fills, and of course oil changes with Mobil-1.

My ole 1979 Mercury Cougar had a 302 V8, massive disc brakes, and large sway bars. It drove really nice at speed. Out of the box it only got 14 mpg but with some de-smogging the engine would knock down 18~20 mpg on a regular basis. That mileage was acceptable while having no car payments or insurance coverage on the car. The car went over 180,000 miles and was still running great. Rust dictated that I sell it dirt cheap and start the process over with another car.

Just this week I bought a similar 1979 Ford Thunderbird 302 V8 with 13,300 miles. I will put it into storage until I wear out the 1984 Audi 5000 Avant I am presently driving. You will see this old Audi daily on I-75, I-94, and getting around the Rouge bridge closure. I will not be sad when I sell the Audi as it requires too much work to keep it running. The only thing I will say good about the Audi is that the body holds up well to salt spray.

2005 Toyota Tacoma prerunner double cab v6. Bought in 2006 after it was a test vehicle owned by a NUMI factory employee. Started with 15,000 miles and I traded it in with 140,000 miles in 2015. Traded in on a new Lincoln Navigator L as the children couldn’t even fit their car seats in the back of the Tacoma. Did my own oil changes, filter changes, brakes, new battery every 4 years, and other basic maintenance. Never broke down and no electrical gremlins. Good little truck.

1995 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon. Aside from regular maintenance, the only items to break and need repair were a radiator and A/C compressor – both well after the 200,000 mile mark. Has 222,000 miles and still going strong.

My 2006 Lincoln Town Car is also gaining a history of being bulletproof. Only repair it has ever needed is an alternator replacement. Has 121,000 miles.

I still drive it everyday almost. ’04 F-150 SC STX, 16 valve 4.6 V8, 4-speed, near zero maintenance since new. It gets passed around like cigarette, between friends/family.

I’m ready for a new truck but it refuses to die. But I bought this truck new, guessing it was a solid build, like the old GM 350/350 combo.

God knows the aging 4.6/AODE combo had logged some million trillion miles of experience by 2004, in taxis, cop cars, Town Cars, Mustangs, vans, pickups, SUVs and a few others I’m probably forgetting.

I’d heard taxi services just drove them until they died, no oil changes, and simply replace the engine. I’m not like that so I’ll go 50K miles between oil changes.

I’ll break open its used oil filters just for giggles, and still no signs of metal sand.

1994 Nissan Altima – the one that ripped off the Infiniti J30 styling. Fun car for 150hp, had some light hail damage so got it new for a decent deal, or so my 22 year old self thought buying the monthly payment as opposed to the price of the car.

I put (I think) 96k miles on that car with only tire/brakes/oil services. Nothing broke.

Then dumb me decided to try a BMW 530i from ’95. I went from a paragon of reliability to a paragon of oil leaks and sweet V8 noise.

The Altima had a run from ’97 to ’06 that turned out to have cockroach like longevity. I see clapped out ones still tearing up the streets quite frequently. Then along came Nissan’s expendable CVT. Sad.

Surprised there’s been no Panther love so far in this one, but here goes:

1996 Mercury Grand Marquis. Purchased with 73,000 on the clock, took it up to 175,000 before the ODO stopped working. My daily driver for 10.5 years, then sold to my mother-in-law who drove it the last 18 months of her life. Best guess is that it had around 200,000 on it and still running strong when I sold it to some kid for her first car.

I put about $700 a year in preventative maintenance into her and she only broke down once, when the plastic intake manifold that was a major Ford screw-up blew out. I frequently miss that car.

I’ve had great luck with my Panthers but not quite as great as I did with my Topaz. My current P71 has 160K miles, bought it for $500 with 112k and a lost of issues. Put maybe $1200 into it and it’s been bulletproof. My long gone and much lamented ’91 Grand Marquis was a sweetheart too but was on its second engine when I bought it (car only had 78k miles on it when I bought it) and I had to have the trans rebuilt in it once when OD went out. Did drive it to 278K before selling it for $500.

1995 Avalon. Sort of goes against the mantra “don’t buy first year of a new model”. Of course it was just a tarted up proven Camry platform.

Still a daily driver at 23 years and 160K miles. Other than routine maintenance only expense has been elective suspension upgrade (struts, bushings) at 20 years and 145K miles. No rust and I am amazed at how the leather and paint has held up.

At this point absolutely no issues with the car that I am aware of. Has never thrown a code.

From the mid 60s to the mid 90s I had pretty much all German autos with a couple of Volvos for the kids. Stories of poor reliability in US and European autos moved me to Japanese brands and I haven’t looked back

I usually keep cars 15-20 years and 200-300K miles (pretty boring). I have high expectations for them to need only routine maintenance during that period.

But I do have another car for fun driving.

1990 CRX HF with ZC engine/transmission swap. There’s just nothing in them to go wrong. Change the oil and that’s it. Always starts right up and runs great.

2003 Toyota Sienna CE, bought new in Jan ’03. Now at 190k miles.

The control arm bushings failed a year after the warranty was up, cost $1k to fix. At 12 years old, the rear AC unit leaked. We had it short-circuited and the front works fine, no leaks.

That’s been it for “failures”.

It’s never left us stranded. My wife loves this thing. She was offered to swap for my ’17 Grand Caravan but prefers the old one.

Upkeep wasn’t exactly cheap but everything as expected: – Timing belt & water pump done at 120k -> now drive unto death. – At 100k, I dropped the pan and did a transmission service. I will never touch that again, either. – all 3 O2 sensors replaced. Two of those are hard to get to, with the bill to match. – brakes, several times. In MI, calipers will stick after some years. – Intake needs to be cleaned every 3-4 years, or hard starting results.

And the body is holding up extremely well for the climate. Unfortunately there is a scratch in a rear wheel well that has blossomed into a rust spot the size of a pack of cards. Otherwise — and especially underneath — the car has held up well.

I expect the exhaust to go some time soonish, at which point i’ll probably hang a complete new system and a new cat.

I’ve been thinking ‘two more years’ for the past five. Right now I see no end in sight.

I’ve had more than one car that was absolutely reliable. One that wasn’t so surprising and another that shouldn’t have been but totally was.

The first was a 1997 Saturn SC2 5spd. The only thing that ever broke on that car was the plastic shift linkage which i sorted out with a metal bushing and a 3d printed part to affix to the end of the shift cable. Other than that unscheduled repair i only ever put regular and preventative maintenance into that car. It never complained or failed in any way up to today. I sold it in 2017 but befriended the new owner who is still enjoying the car today.

The surprising one was a hand me down 1991 Pontiac Sunbird LE. I was 19 and beat the heck outta that thing. Drove it like it was a Corvette and the throttle only had two positions… ON and OFF. It needed a thermostat one time and that was the only repair i ever did on the car. Even after it was involved in an accident nothing mechanical broke and i only got rid of it because the cosmetic repairs were actually more than the value of the car at the time.

My most reliable car is my current 2006 BMW 330xi with 216,000 km still feels like new however I’ve only had it for a year but compared to my past cars its by far the best.

More impressive though is my mothers 2004 Volvo V70 that car had 400,000KM when she sold it and as far as engine and drive train it needed nothing it had a couple of electrical things ABS sensors the radio was a little temperamental and by the end the sunroof was acting up but that car had no rust the interior was still in pretty good shape and it was 10 years old. We sold it for $1300 and I saw it on the road a few months ago.

one anecdote isn’t data….the auto transmission in my cousin’s, original owner, 330i fell apart at 110,000 miles.

i hope you avoid his fate.

1993 Ford F150 S/C 4X4 with a 302, 4EOD Transmission, limited slip on both axles. Bought it in ’93 with 14K miles on it, sold it in ’09 with 310K miles on it. The Golden Retriever of pickups- went everywhere, did everything, never complained. Replaced an A/C compressor @ 100K miles, an alternator somewhere along the line, and a radiator and water pump. Went through brake pads frequently, but everything else was routine maintenance items. Rust isn’t a problem in the Pacific Nwst, and I take care of my stuff, so it looked and ran like a truck that was a fraction of its age when I sold it.

Honorable mention goes to a ’01 Mercury Grand Marquis. 210K miles on that one, replaced the plastic intake manifold as the only “out of the ordinary” repair. Sold that car to friends of the kids that needed a cheap driver about 4 yrs ago. It’s still on the road as their DD.

The 2006 Honda Ridgeline we currently own. It has 150K miles on it with just normal maintenance being performed.

I am sooo tempted to call our 2012 TSX reliable but, can a car be called reliable if its brakes start shimmying after 20K miles? To me, this, combined with the dealer charging $500 per axle to replace rotors and pads, makes me think that it’s the usual POS Honda brake product.

I’ve rarely owned a vehicle into mileage high enough to make any remarkable claims.

1993 Civic run from 100K to 180K by 2008. Very cheap to own over that time but by the end needed several grand in work and rust was building momentum so it was sold to a snit of a teenager who was then openly berated by her father in front of us for being so ungrateful about her first car. Her brother was WAY more interested in that Honda, so it may have spent the rest of its natural life braaaaappppping its way down the road through aftermarket exhaust on lowered springs, blinding everyone with cheap blue tint headlights. Wasn’t too sad to see it go: while it was fun in the curves and the best-looking compact car ever made, the 1.5L was a gutless and unrefined engine and it was punishingly loud on the freeway.

2010 2.5 Jetta Sportwagen made it to 7yrs/85K with Toyota dependability, which is only notable because of VWs modern reputation and the stark contrast to:

2012 Altima–The supposedly reliable Nissan with the same mileage was perfect as well…except for a little $4K part known colloquially as the transmission.

2001 Jeep Cherokee Sport hands down. 205k miles, regular maintenance only, aside from one crank position sensor. Maintenance parts are dirt cheap and available anywhere. A/C is ice cold and heater is toasty warm; cloth seats wear like iron and are much more comfy than any leather seats in extreme hot or cold. With the torque of the 4.0 liter six, it’s almost unbeatable from 0-20 mph. Above 20, a turtle towing a cabin cruiser accelerates faster, but it will drive through virtually any weather or terrain in 4WD. It’s starting to rust slightly around the edges, but the original paint still shines and it’s structurally solid as a rock. Most reliable, useful, go-anywhere daily driver I’ve ever owned.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO PLAY A GAME?

Here is every car I have owned with starting KMs and KMS I did with them, which was the most reliable?

1977 Alfa Romeo Alfetta 4 banger – 195K – 22K 1972 Alfa Giulia Coupe – 70K – 35K 2002 Chrysler Neon – 80K – 150K 2005 Hyundai Accent – 55K – 100K 2008 Saab 9-3* (2T) – 30K – 80K 2012 BMW X1 – 60K – 15K 2013 BMW X3* – 37K – 20K

The most unreliable by FAR. It was atrocious, the front end suspension needed new parts every second day. Horrible.

Accent, if it was a manual. The LCs were very sturdy, except for the auto trans.

Weird car the accent. It didn’t cost a lot to maintain i suppose but always had a niggle and IMO was ready to fall apart. Rust was already coming through, things were breaking etc but it’d be second on this list.

Current owner of my ’08 9-3SC that I bought new is at ~150K and the only non-maintance issue it has had is she pulled the shift knob off.

Personally, my 2007 base Cayman. I had it for about 6-7 years, and while it wasn’t a daily driver by any means, the only thing I had to ever do besides basic maintenance was replace the silly TMPS sensors. I sold it for about $2K less than I bought it for…so all in all, it was probably one of the cheapest cars I’ve owned.

If we expand it to the familly though, I don’t remember ever having any issues with the 92 Honda Civic, 88 Corolla, 96 4Runner, and 99 Tacoma. They were all dead reliable. The 2000 Golf we had for 4-5 years had infinitely more issues than all of them combined.

RAV4 1997, bought used 1999, 317K miles so far. Regular maintenance but no repairs except for two crashes (mostly bodywork that is now rusting). My daily driver until 2013. Now semiretired except when loaned out (frequently) to friends with transportation problems. Uses a little oil but still runs fine and totally reliable.

My parents had a RAV4 they got when my aunt passed away. I have no idea the mileage but it sounds similar to yours. Very basic vehicle, I think this one had crank windows. I drove it once and it was like a tractor: slow and noisy, but so simple I think if anything broke it could be fixed with zip ties or duct tape.

2003 Jeep Wrangler Sport 5-spd. Owned: 15 years, 140,000 miles. Code name: “Bravo”

– Cam position sensor failed after two and a half years. Replacement sensors are not prone to failure like the bad batch originally installed on many TJs. ($Warranty)

– Radiator failed at 13 years. Not bad, I guess, for a Wrangler radiator. Replaced the main hoses, too. ($750)

– Climate control switch. Notoriously bad design prone to failure. I keep a spare in the glove box. ($10 for two)

Did you ever flush the radiator, and if yes how often? Thanks.

My current 08 Scion xB has 122k miles, no problems. It does burn some oil, a common issue with the Toyota 2.4 of this era, and the tranny’s a little sloppy moving from a stop.

I’ve gotten 103K miles out of two used Z-Body Saturns since 2006 (MY98 82-167, MY02 30-48) The ’98 required little outside of wearables excepting a transaxle at 164, the ’02 thus far nearly all wearables, a muffler, and a tune up. Both required TPS sensors for some reason, which is easy on the 00-02 but a bear on the 96-99. The Pontiac outside of some replacement parts for cheap seals has been relatively solid. Zero drivetrain issues. Drained orange death out in fall 2010.

My C3 Audi 100 was also very good to me over four years, before the electric gremlins took her (<5k miles). I think the whole time I may have had to put tires on it, a serp belt, a battery, voluntary body work for rust removal, and added Pentosin CHF11S a bunch of times as the bomb leaked. "Self inspection" helped avoid PA's ridiculous rules designed to empty your wallet and/or hurt the working poor (of which I was at the time).

2001 CR-V LX in ubiqui-silver. Bought it used from a lady in the city with no garage, so it had a dash carpet, gangster-dark windows, and Betty Boop steering wheel cover. Dammed dash clock doesn’t work (apparently none of them ever did). End of list.

Oh, and it has the soul of a dedicated puppy who drags his unconscious master through bear-infested woods in knee-deep snow.

I took a hit from a nurse with a mohawk who ran a red light and it protected me fine. I fastened a makeshift rack to the roof of 2×4’s and Yakima parts from eBay and moved furniture. I loaned it out to a family member getting off substances and starting a factory job. I have taught three teens to drive in it. And, finally, I found myself 30 miles from home one day completely devoid of Tacos. As I sat in the drive-thru the temp went hot. That’s weird, I thought, and turned on the heat a bit and drove home. Upon reaching home, I discovered that one of the motor mounts had loosened after 15 or so years, and the resulting shake of the engine had caused the upper radiator hose to pull on the plastic radiator enough to eventually crack it. It had then steamed itself bone dry. It then drove me another half hour on nothing but determination and humidity and didn’t overheat. I put a $50 eBay radiator in it and it acts like nothing happened.

I now see this generation of CR-V all over town in the hands of the broke (or frugal) and wise. We nod at each other.

Most reliable car: My 2001 Cavalier, with the 5 speed manual and 2.2L (last year before it was overhauled and officially called Ecotec). I bought that car as a freshman in college with 40,000 miles for $4,000. I put a solid pounding on that car through all of college, working all 110 ish hp as hard as they could go (I don’t recall the actual hp output of that motor, but 110 is close). I did keep up on the all regularly prescribed maintenance as per the owners manual, but following the less severe of the two schedules, which shockingly called for oil changes to happen at 7,500 mile intervals on conventional oil. I figured the manufacturer knew what they were talking about and I stuck with that. I sold the car with nearly 150,000 miles on it and had no problems with it whatsoever, except for the typical cracking of the hard plastic piece between the dashboard top and windshield, but I just bought a dash rug and covered it up. I finally sold it after a couple years post college working as an Engineer when I decided I could afford a nicer car and bought a used 2008 Cadillac STS. The Cadillac was also very reliable, though I only owned it for one year before selling it and using the money for a down payment on a house. It was replaced with a 1991 F-150 with 200,000 miles. My vehicle history from there continued to jump all over the spectrum for the next several years, even I’m not sure what I was thinking at the time.

Either my 1991 Ford Ranger XLT regular cab 5spd manual or our 1999 Accord V6 coupe. Neither vehicle ever needed anything except tires and oil changes. I sold the Accord before the timing belt was due.

I drove a 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse GTS (with ye olde 6G72) from 2005-2017 and 30k to 170k miles, with practically no unexpected issues. Last year, having been sick of driving it for years, and with the car still showing no signs of impending failure. I donated it to my stepsister to be her first car, and finally got something more fun. It’s still kicking along another year later.

Has to be my ‘98 Mustang, V6 5 speed. Over 8 years, 125k miles only thing that failed was the CD player. Otherwise just oil changes and brake pads, one set of plugs and wires.

Time for a game! What would you pay for an MY08 Cadillac STS-V (which is the 4.4 S/C Northstar) with 140K miles otc in say average condition for age/miles?

There are only 459 units in existence. 2008 MSRP: $78,775.

2008 – 459 Total – 32 were exported to various countries

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_STS-V

$3500, $36 if you throw in the EDM clear tails. GM was well on its way to oblivion by then, and the electronics and plastic bits were made from parts rejected by British Leyland.

Would rather have SC Northstar than regular Northstar. But that seems like a top condition price, not an average condition price.

The weekly reports don’t list condition. As a rule, anything over 100K can nearly never be clean, and at best be “average” (extra clean <20K). Most and 100K over ten plus year olds fall under the "rough" category.

2011 Odyssey. Six and a half years, 143K so far. All its needed is a power steering pump, 4 brake pads, and a timing belt. Currently deciding whether to ditch it before timing belt #2 gets replaced or give it brake rotors, shocks, and try for 200K.

1995 Civic, drove for two decades.

No mechanical failures, just regular maintenance. Mechanic loved working on it, easy engine bay access.

there – you just gave it up. The mechanic worked on it, hence it wasn’t reliable. But, it was most reliable FOR YOU!

2008 Chevy Malibu 3.6 V6, 6-speed auto. Drove it for eight years (cross-country trips to boot) on nothing but oil changes. The water pump died on it the winter of the last year I owned it, I think it was ~$400 fix. Traded it in on a 2010 GMC Acadia, which turned out to be the biggest turd-wagon I’ve ever bought. Sucked about 3 grand out of my wallet in the six months I had it before getting rid of it.

They get a lot of hate from enthusiasts, but the most reliable car I ever had was a used 1998 Chevy Cavalier, base model coupe, with the 5 speed Getrag manual we got in 2001. It became my daily after my wife finished med school and we got our first new car, an E46 sedan.

The AC had to be replaced once, and I wore out something in the clutch on my morning commute in SoCal (I never claimed to be great at a manual, although I don’t care if a care has one or not. I’ll drive it.).

But other than that, it was fluids and consumables for 191,000 miles. I got 40mpg at highway speeds pretty consistently, and it never failed to start or ever had any electrical issues.

I wouldn’t have bought one new, but for $3,000 in 2001, on a car that had I think 32k miles on it when we got it (in Erie, PA), I can’t complain about its value as a used basic transport vehicle.

I donated it to an charity auction in 2010 when we moved to Washington DC. I had ZERO interest in driving it across the country, and we had 2 children by then, and I couldn’t figure out how to make them, their stuff, and whatever we didn’t trust the movers with in the BMW with my wife.

I ended up getting the second most reliable car I ever owned: a grandma driven (as in, my wife’s grandmother), low mileage W-body 1996 Cutlass Supreme (with the V6). Drove across America effortlessly, even fully loaded with kids and stuff.

I put 182K miles on a 1988, V-6, 5-speed Cavalier wagon. I replaced the half-shafts at 110K mi, and, the struts and bushings at 130K, but, that was the only major repairs/replacements. Still had the original clutch and rope-a-dope shift linkage.

For me, a tie between my sundry Volvo 940s and my ’92 Peugeot SW8. None of them had any actual failures while I owned them, just routine maintenance. And the lowest mileage on any of them while bought was 97K on the Peugeot. The 940s were in the 150K+ range. One was at 212K.

Worst car I ever owned that I actually drove was an ’82 Volvo 245T. But it was a used up heap I never should have bought. Worst I never really drove was my ’87 Porsche 924S. which was not supposed to be a project, but turned into one. For someone else.

Hands down, 1996 Ford Ranger, 3.0 V6, 5 speed manual.

190k miles of pizza delivery, brutal treatment, neglect, then off to college where it was only used for super short trips, more neglect, sporadic oil changes, and it never let me down.

Finally had an issue at about 165k miles where the A/C stopped working, never had it repaired. At 190k miles I sold it, dented and rough looking, to someone who put it into daily driver use.

Best vehicle I ever owned was a 1995 C1500 Silverado ECLB- 286K miles, no major work. Alternator, battery, brakes, tires- bought with 96K on the clock; 350SBC, 5-speed manual clutch at approx.170K. Great truck, gave to my son when I developed RA in the left leg and could no longer mash down that heavy clutch pedal (he was in the Army and sold it for the cash)

BTW- worst vehicle- 1991 Toyota pickup tuck- complete trash- crappy engine, crappy body, crappy interior- no more Japanese crap for this old boy!

Best driver’s car- 1993 Cadillac Sedan DeVille- sweet comfort, lots of power

Most reliable – 2006 Subaru Legacy GT Spec B. #305. For all 197,000 miles.

My family has had four vehicles assembled by Toyota/GM in California All of them were very reliable. 86 Chevy Nova stick shift Hatchback This car was before SS exhausts so I had to replace the muffler nearly every year. 96 Geo Prizm 1.6 stick shift 4dr. Brakes, tires and oil 04 Pontiac Vibe auto trans Orange paint. My wife’s all time favorite car. Ended up totaled when it got rear ended 08 Pontiac Vibe. There was no question that we’d buy another Vibe. Not interested in ever buying a Tesla. (Same factory in Calif I believe)

1989 Daihatsu Applause 1600 5 speed manual. Bought it at 80 000Km ( ex lease car). Had it for 9 years, tyres, fluids a set of rear shocks and a rear wheel bearing Sold it at at 420 000 KM to a kid at work who wrapped it around a tree two weeks later. Car totaled , he was unhurt. Replaced it with a new 2003 Daihatsu Sirion 1300 5 speed manual, for me a high spec car. It had electric windows, air bags (2) and air conditioning ! Kept it 9 years , sold it to a guy at work at 220 000Km (consumables and services only). Three months later he gets rear ended, car totaled, he was unhurt. Moral seems to be don’t buy a car from me but if you do, you’ll probably walk away unhurt.

1995 Mercedes E300 Diesel. Inline non-turbo I-6 Diesel, had it for just under 400K miles. Never broke down, never had a warranty claim, and only needed routine, albeit very extensive and expensive service through it’s lifetime. It didn’t fail me either, it was totaled in a street flood while parked. I take really good care of my cars and it had MB-Tex so the car inside and out looked essentially new. Sadly, it was full to the console with water, and was a total loss. Get this, at 13 years old and that mileage… State Farm still cut me a check for $9000…

VW TDI Wagon (not Brown) sitting out in the lot, 309K miles. Only issues caused by me turning up the turbo and larger injectors (2 clutches, 5th gear synchro)

1999 Subaru Impreza 2.2. In 93K miles and over nine years, knock sensor warranty after a few months, front brake pads about 60K, new gas filler neck, new spark plug tube oil seals, welded exhaust Y-junction, new battery after eight years. About $800 out of pocket. Normal servicing.

This is sarcasm, I hope :-).

well, i have owned my ’97 boxster since it was new – 21 years ago – but during that time, it has cost me a new water pump [plus a long and expensive tow and an unanticipated overnight at a nearby motor lodge]; plus a new clutch at 93k miles [along with all the recommended preventative IMS mitigation while i was at it]; and of course, the typical operating expenses resulting from normal usage of any automobile.

but my 1983 honda accord lx hatchback/fastback with a five-speed manual transmission – which i also bought new – was absolutely bulletproof. the only trouble i ever experienced with it was some eventual wear to the fabric on the driver’s door panel, resulting from the use of the manual window crank to roll it down/open it. everything else was perfectly trouble-free. so i sold it after only three years in order to purchase my first bmw.

1981 Volkswagen Vanagon. Bought new, kept 8+ years, 124k miles. Multiple trips into Mexico as far south as Apatzingan, Michoacan, burning leaded Pemex gas at sketchy octane numbers when hauling the ex-wife and 5 spawn to see the in-laws. Multiple trips during moves between Bremerton, WA, and San Diego, usually in the dead of winter chained up going over the passes. Two issues over those years – burned distributor cap stopped me on the overpass of I-5 transition from the CA163 at 92k miles and the cable for the thermostatic oil cooler door broke at around 100k miles (fixed that with a brake cable from one of the kids’ bikes). 74 leaping horsepower, constant 20 mpg regardless of load/speed/wind, max of maybe 72 mph or so on the freeway loaded. It never saw a VW dealer or any mechanic after the original sale.

I have not had any cars long enough to really be able to answer this question.

In the last year, I have put 15 thousand trouble free miles to a 2011 BMW 328xi. [Correction: busted a runflat on a pothole, I guess that should count].

For four years before that, I put 60 thousand miles on a 2006 Audi A4 3.2L. Bought it with a thick stack of receipts from original owner. Oil changes, one set of tires, one battery, a bulb replacement, trunk latch replacement, 125k regular service (all fluids spark plugs), valve cover gaskets, and a windshield wiper motor. Sold it with 140 thousand miles.

Before that put 70k miles on a 2000 Jetta. Five-speed 2.0. Loved its crank everything, still regret no buying an aftermarket armrest. Mixed bag. Very reliable, but a year in NYC killed its catalytic converter, and the Punjabs on 21st street did a hack job which necessitated done again a year later. I’m still angry about that. Still miss the car. Many NYC-Chicago runs, strong little bugger. Sold to a friend with over 150 thousand miles. Even then all it needed was two shocks, two tires. I bet he still has it.

I owned two Honda Civics: 1985 CRX Si with a 5 speed and a 1991 LX sedan, also manual; both purchased new. The CRX was still running strong with the original clutch when I got rid of it at 187k miles. I gave the LX to a friend in need at 185k miles, also with the original clutch. Neither car ever required anything other than routine service.

Most reliable car – 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis Purchased used in 2005, formerly owned by a corporation in LA that put 16,800 miles on it. Oddly – that’s what I paid for it from the dealer – $16,800. Presently has 279,000 miles on it.

What’s gone wrong – Paint – My car thinks it’s a stripper. I should buy it a pole. Remains unfixed. Lighting module ($550) Torsion spring for the serpentine belt. ($100) Vacuum leak in the HVAC system. Remains unrepaired. One-touch driver side window roll-down. Remains unrepaired. I hated that feature anyways. Operates as a normal power window. One headlight (both replaced) One tail light (replaced) Battery replaced for the first time last August.

I’ve had plenty of reliable cars, because I tend to buy new or low-mile stuff. But the only cars to give me zero issues whatsoever were both Hondas: my 2004 Acura TSX and my 2006 Civic EX.

Admittedly I didn’t keep either one all that long (2 years and 22k miles for the TSX, 3 years and just 12k miles of block-by-block East Coast city driving for the Civic). But other cars have given me minor issues after similar lengths of time. My Pontiac G8 GXP had a couple of failed electrical components fixed under warranty, my low-mile Lexus LS460 had prematurely failed control arm bushings and water pump, and my current C-Max Energi was bitten by the telematics freakout 12v battery drain issue on three occasions before Ford finally fixed it.

I have high hopes for my recently acquired, 67k-mile used LX570. The independent mechanic couldn’t find a single worn, leaky, or broken part despite instructions to be brutal in inspection. After a routine brake replacement it drives like a new car.

I put 232K miles on 1987 Mazda B-series pickup. I sold it in 1999 and I still, on occasion, see it rolling around town.

I had a V-6, 5-speed Cavalier wagon upon which I put 182K miles.

Most reliable to me? Or to the rest of the world?

I’ve spoken of this car before, but happy to do it again. In 2003, I bought my brother in law’s 1997 Cavalier coupe for $1000. He bought it new, drove it 192,000 miles in ~five years. It sat for another 18 months before he sold it to me. He only sold it to me because he got a company car and he lost storage for the Cavy.

It was my commuter car, both of my kid’s first car, then my commuter car again, then my younger kid had it for a couple of years. After 18 years on the road, and 11 of them with me I only scrapped the car because it was so rusty you could see through it. You could get tetanus just looking at it. By the end, the electrics were funky, but I think it was largely due to the fact the grounds were lost with all of the rust. But the car fired up and drove fine (minus things like IP lights and the radio), like it had for it’s entire existence in the Upper Midwest. It only ever saw a garage when it was in for service, which was infrequent.

I do admit to changing out brakes frequently, but that’s my doing. Along with tires. If you don’t have tread in Michigan’s weather, you’re screwed. But, mechanically, there was very little that went wrong with the car during our ownership experience.

If GM would/could make a car like that again, I would buy one.

Heh! I forgot to mention a couple of things: The final mileage when I gave the car to charity was 265,000+ miles. Through all of that time we had the car, we only put <80,000 miles on it. But, we hardly did anything to it but add fuel.

I took it back to my hometown several times, which is about five hours away. At that time, well over 200K miles on the original drive line, I got over 45 MPG if I stayed under 70 MPH. In warmer weather, when the A/C was on, it was closer to 40 MPG. Much over 70, it was really just a whole bunch of noise and the fuel mileage seemed to suffer, back into the 30's

WRT brakes and tires: I'm hard on tires and brakes, so it wouldn't matter what kind of car I drive, I'll change out the brakes and tires sooner than most other people. I feel it's cheap insurance. When I lived in Georgia, I saw people who would drive for months on tires that had virtually no tread. Which was great, until it rained. When I worked the service lane years ago, I can't begin to tell you how many people drive around with their brakes grinding like they've got a metal lathe attached to their car…

So far it’s the 2014 GMC Yukon I bought for my wife. 149k miles and not a single non maintenance item has gone wrong.

2006 Suziki Grand Vitara JLX-L. Hands down. Slam dunk. And even though it was the first year of an all-new generation. Bought new, still in the family.

2010 Jeep Wrangler, surprisingly enough… It only had one problem: a transmission cooler line leaking somewhere around 105k miles. I’m pretty sure it’s a testament to the general improvement in reliability of cars. TrueDelta reports that Wrangler is not among the most reliable vehicles. Well, it beats Mini.

Strictly speaking, my 2006 RAV4 was fully reliable, but I sold it too quickly for it to take the honours.

1987 Ford Thunderbird V6-I drove it for 13 years and 187k with few issues. Even the blue paint with optional clear coat held up well.

Over that time: Regular oil changes. Changed the front struts and suspension parts due to normal wear. A couple of brake jobs. Rebuilt the AC with new hoses, spring lock connectors with clamps and an accumulator. Installed a new radiator which is probably why the head gaskets did not blow until 187k. Oh and replaced the stock speakers with improved ones behind the stock grills. Some vehicles have to go through that in a year, this is over 13 years.

my 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix SE 3.8 bought new in 97 still drive it daily (retired) 178k miles never been tuned, original plugs & wires! replaced only 2 water pumps, 2 alternators, 2 window regulators, fuse block for heat/air, also had to repair the shift lock, the air still works as does the heads up display, radio cassette, cruise control, power driver seat, key fob and locks still work! not bad for a car that’s been paid for 16+ years and driving 21+ years! still looks very nice both inside & out. so much about the lease German buy Japanese moto! Fairfax built & Union Made in USA! :-)

I bought the same car in 97. Sold it in 2002, after 5 yrs and 82k.

I had to replace the rear shock mounts, and one tie rod ‘link’.

I also replaced brake pads and rotors, both axles, a year before I sold it (need to stop doing that).

When I sold it, my fuel guage sometimes showed full when it was not, and occasionally the driver window wouldn’t go down….

It was a great driving car with the 3.8, and pretty good on gas.

My 2011 Malibu however was a better car in every respect except acceleration and the A/C wasn’t as COLD.

And the Malibu had only one minor repair in 6 yrs and 102k miles. It was also built in Fairfax, in the good old USA!

funny story about my drivers side window regulator, when i went to have it replaced the mechanic said “and make sure you only buy a made by GM unit from the GM dealer”, so that’s what i did($350)when i took it back to him i waited until he installed it, he allowed me to stand by and watch, just before he finished the install he asked me “by the way what did you have to pay for this” when i told him $350 he said whaaaaaaat! “oh i’m so sorry for telling you GM only i had no idea they were that expensive “he finished the install, looked at me and said “no charge”! (would have been $100) no kidding!

also a 2003 Silverado v6 i bought new in 03 sold it last year with 186k, again never touched the plugs or wires, 2 alternators, 1 fuel pump and new cats, which i did not use GM replacement (big mistake) could never get the check engine light to stay off and was told by several mechanics that i should have used only GM cats, still started and ran good but wound up selling it because i didn’t need a truck (or so i thought) after i retired!

Currently driving it; my 1994 Nissan D21. Well north of 250,000 miles. An alternator, a water pump, have been replaced. I have always kept the oil changed and driven it mildly. It rattles a bit, wins no speed contests. But it runs.

After reading through several comments I realize I am an anomaly as far as reliability goes. I don’t consider repairs a big factor as I view them as inevitable for a mechanical contrivance such as an automobile. Obviously the fewer the better, but some are unavoidable. I consider the 72 Charger and 84 Shelby Charger I owned to be my most reliable. I had 286+K on the 72 when I got rid of it. The shop I took it to said I had no compression in one of the cylinders. Now I feel I should have repaired that issue. The body was still in good shape and I am convinced I could have easily gotten another 100K out of it. Other than that issue pretty much everything else I would consider routine with the exception of a rear axle. I had experienced an “accident” one night coming home from my GF’s when I dozed off momentarily. I ended up going into the ditch on the opposite side of my direction of travel narrowly missing a post and small culvert on that side. I traveled up and over a connecting gravel road (perhaps slightly air born) ending up quite awake on the other side – car still running. Though the ditch appeared somewhat steep, I drove out and down the road a ways until I found a suitable place to pull over. Visual inspection showed no signs of damage although I think the axle I eventually replaced sustained damage due to that incident.

Same with the 84. At 406K the manual transmission was slipping a bit under heavy acceleration (probably started around the 350K mark), but the car only burnt a quart every 2K (the mileage at which I changed oil anyway). At that 400K+ I don’t consider timing belt replacement remarkable (4X). Same with the head gasket – especially in light of the two different metals employed in the 2.2l. The only “unexpected” repairs I can remember were the lower shift linkage along with several upper linkage failures. The upper was a rod with nylon ends which “click fitted” onto ball ends. Kind of a pain to get to, but doable – IF it happened close to home. After seeing how it was “done” I didn’t consider it a surprise when it happened again. (4X, I think.) The other “wear” parts were expected with that many miles on the car. It always started when I needed it to and consistently delivered 35 mpg on the road.

400k out of any car is amazing!

400k out of an Omni is remarkable, that’s great!

2004 Dodge Neon R/T. It’s been a wonderful daily driver in all weather conditions. Well over 100k miles on the original clutch. It’s needed a couple of batteries, shocks, brake pads, plugs, shift cable bushings, and a muffler.

Mine was a 1989 Toyota Tercel EZ with 4-speed manual that I bought new. Manual windows, no AC, no radio, absolutely barebones. I drove it 93K miles with regular oil changes, tire rotations, and one set of new tires as the only expenses (besides gas and washer fluid of course). Original clutch, brakes, etc. Every once in a while I run into the guy I sold it to, who says it’s still going strong.

1st team most reliable–my 97 Mazda Miata. As many busted parts as worn out parts. Had to replace a strut killed by a pothole, and a wheel and control arm killed by a curb. The part failures–the distributor o-ring seeping oil at the back of the engine, a clutch slave cylinder, and a new convertible top after the rear window went yellow and cracked.

2nd team–2010 Chevy Equinox with one warranty repair to reseat connectors on the center radio stack. And, 3 recalls. Do they count?

Honorable mention–the infamous GM A-body front drivers. 1st mention for the A-body quad–the Chevy Celebrity, Pontiac 6000, Olds Ciera, and Buick Century. I bought 3 89 model Chevy Celebrities after using them as company rides. 2 for my garage and the other for my mother-in-law. They were pretty good rides–cheap to buy, cheap parts, and very few part failures. This was after my experience of multi-failures on a RWD A-body (Turbo Regal) that was the WORST car I ever owned.

My 99 Chevy S-10 extended cab with a 5 speed manual and a 2.2 I-4 (still have this truck). I have had it for 19 years and have kept the maintenance up. Many years I had a 73 Chevelle Deluxe with a 350 2 barrel which was very smooth running and very reliable–the Chevelle was very fast and would burn rubber. Most of my vehicles have been very good but those 2 stick out as outstanding.

96 Chevy S-10 longbed. 4.3 automatic Bought in 1995 and still a daily driver of a 100 mile round trip commute. Just turned 460k. I’ve driven this for decades while most of you have spent small fortunes on cars. I drive by broken down newer japanese cars regularly.

I smiled when I read this because my BFF still drives a 1993 Chevy S-10 ExtCab 4.3L that he says he can’t afford to sell because he has so much time and money tied up in it to keep it running.

Handy little truck, though. This past Tuesday I helped him bring back a new Washer and Dryer set from a Big Box store, loaded in the bed of this truck.

It may be sinfully ugly and nasty looking, but it still gets him from point A to point B at less cost than a new truck.

I wonder what parts he invested in so heavily he couldn’t buy another 1500 dollar truck?

Most reliable is the car I have now: 2006 Honda Accord Coupe V6 with a 6-speed.

I’ve had it for a year and a half and 10k, and other than replacing the driver’s door rubber seal (which had the bottom part sheared off inexplicably. Part cost: $35) I haven’t had to touch it. Supremely quiet, comfortable, fast car.

Aaaaaand the power steering started making noise this morning. Why did I say anything?

(There’s a TSB on it, and its a 5 minute fix. But still.)

Boring response: 95 Corolla with 1.6L and 3 speed auto.

The only things went wrong over its 23 years and 240K miles are: radiator cracks, AC (due to accident), alignment (due to accident), leaky gaskets (age), distributor (cracked coil pack, age), struts (due to miles and 4 people carpooling). It vibrates like crazy on highway though.

My IS250 would have taken the title had it not have the carbon intake buildup issues. Can’t complain for $14k back when it was new.

97 Civic EX 140K miles when sold…never saw the dealer. 05 Civic Si 180K miles when sold …never saw the dealer.

My most reliable car was a surprise. It was a 2000 Chevy Malibu with a 3.1 V6. Most I kmew of had issues, and mine was only $300 in 2009. I was short on cash and needed a car. I put some tires on it, lived with the dent and slight rusting, and only ever did basic maintenance beyond replacing the blower motor for $20. It survived a flood and drove another 3 years with no issues until the sub frame got rusty and needed replaced. It still had no other issues, and pretty sure the guy who came to get it fixed that himself.

Not the nicest car ever, but I got 5 years out of a $300 car, and didn’t have to replace anything major at all.

Even if you have to replace a clutch, replace the brakes, put a starter motor in it, do some body work it can pay in the long run to take care of a vehicle especially one that is relatively low maintenance and trouble free for 19 years. I have had a couple of other vehicles that have lasted 18 years, 17 years, and 14 years which were relatively low cost and trouble free. I have found it is less expensive to keep an older vehicle running than to buy or lease a new vehicle every few years. It is nice to not have a car payment.

Most reliable was easily the 2008 Honda Accord I got as a hand-me-down from my father-in-law. Got it in 2013 with 135,000 on it and traded it in 2016 with 165,000 on it for something that would legally seat 4 adults + 2 kids.

Only thing I did was replace some bulbs in the climate control unit.

You must be logged in to post a comment.