The "back in the good old days" is a MYTH!
When WERE these "good old days"?

Exactly which years/decades comprise the "good old days" when cars/trucks were "well-built, quality vehicles"???

It must have at least prior to the 60's because anything from the 60's until now has been VERY MUCH LESS than well-built, quality vehicles...

 

I've been a Ford man and always will be, but I had a hiccup a few years ago. I bought a used Dodge, then got tired of the payments, so I traded it in on a new Beetle for the wife. 40k miles, no problem. Traded that in on another new Beetle, but that was given back after about a year cuz the hatch wouldn't stay locked (quality problem). Traded it in on a Hyundai Santa Fe, and after 45k miles, not a problem. I think they've got their stuff together, unfontunately, the same way that the rest of the import manufacturers do. So far, my Ranger's been in twice, and is gonna go back again. The DS window motor works 90% of the time, then it atake a good swift punch to the door to get it going again. Also, when they replaced the slave cylinder, they buggered up the 4wd shifting mechanism and broke the bezel. So apart from quality of parts, quality of labor has also decreased, but that's been an ongoing problem in this country since the 60's.
Back then, a hard day's work meant something. People got more respect for being blue collar, and there was no danger of your job being outsourced. Nowadays, with the looming danger of outsourcing, you'd think people would work harder to keep their jobs. I think they actually work softer, cuz regardless of the work, their job is STILL gonna be in danger of being offshored cuz it's cheaper to pay a developing counrty to do it. ALso, in today's society, by and large, 'blue-collar' doesn't go real high on the status chart. I just find it amusing that the white-collar worker looking down his nose at the blue-collar worker is gonna be out of a job and getting a government check long before the blue-collar worker.

 

It's not a question of being grateful- the customer was happy that the problem was identified and resolved to his satisfaction in a timely manner. Anyone that expects zero problems in anything mechanical is being unrealistic to the point of living in a fantasy. I mean really- Lexus has, arguably, the best assembly quality in the industry. If they were perfect, they wouldn't need service departments and warranties, now would they?

 

I would argue that the quality of the new cars is far superior to anything manufactured in days gone by- in terms of build quality, reliability, and durability.

 

You LOOKIN for a fight?
That'll go two ways. An old valiant with a slant-6 and a pushbutton tranny will last forever, but really, how complicated was it? Considering everything that we expect today's vehicles to do, and still expect them to do it cleanly and efficiently is a good point.
Then again, refrigerators haven't really changed that much.Those built YEARS ago, I think, were of a higher quality. Same with most old simple appliances. And when they DID break, they were (generally) cheap and easy to fix. It's just that today, things are so much cheaper, it's cheaper and easier to upgrade a product every 3-5 years than to have a repairman over to fix it.

 

So you're saying that to expect to be able to buy a new vehicle and not have to return to the dealership for warranty work is "living in a fantasy"?
It must be...because, as I've stated, I've bought a few new Fords and this has NEVER happened to me...so I guess you're right.

Why is it a fantasy to expect zero problems in anything mechanical? I know anything mechanical can/does break, but shouldn't a trouble-free vehicle be possible, if all the parts are designed/manufactured correctly? At least aside from failures due to age/mileage/wear? That's where the term QUALITY comes into play...

so...I guess it's an impossibility then? How sad is that??? to assume that instead of hoping for thousands of trouble-free miles, we should expect to take it back to the dealership for repairs.

I know I've heard more than one person say they bought their new xxx and NEVER took it back to the dealership for repairs. So, either they are very forgiving with things breaking or they're lying about their experience.

Either way...I'm not going to expect to EVER buy a trouble-free vehicle...at least NOT a Ford...my experiences bear this out.

 

Not so. The 390FE that I built myself begs to differ. The alternative is to buy something older (like a 1970 F100) and build it up yourself how you want it. That way you know the quality of work that went into it. Plus, mine will cost much less. If you dont have time, or you're concerned about resale value... that's your problem. Make the time, and dont sell it!

And I can guarantee mine will run circles around any new comparable truck. (specialty vehicles like the SRT-10 are not considered comparable)

 

I'd have to agree with appliances. Here's where I'm coming from, though. the typical new car/truck gets delivered, and the customer fully expects to twist the key and drive the thing 100,000+ miles with a minimum of problems of maintenance. By and large, that's a reasonable expectation- no matter what make you buy. Double and triple that mileage isn't even unusual anymore either. True, the older rigs were easy and cheap to fix- which is why I think they'll always be more desireable compared to the late model stuff. A crate motor for an older Ford pickup costs the same as an ECM and ABS module for a new one (now there's food for thought). But, in terms of build quality, reliability, and durability, car, trucks, and airplanes are light years ahead of where they were a few decades ago- which is interesting, considering how the level of complexity has increased on those products over the years.

 

Sorry for not clarifying...I was referring to those who want to buy a new vehicle. Even building your 390 yourself, you're still at the mercy of the parts manufacturers/remanufacturers. Quality REALLY counts in that arena.

Regards,
Scott

 

Almost sounds like double-speak to me...in another recent post, you said it was "living in a fantasy" to expect something mechanical not to break...now you're saying that 100,000+ miles with minimum of problems of maintenance is a reasonable expectation. I guess the difference or distinction of "minimum of troubles" is where we differ. In the first 3 years of ownership, my 98 Ranger XLT supercab 4x4 was in the shop 53 days (19 visits). That, to me, is TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!

Heck, I don't even expect it to go 100,000 miles trouble-free...I'd be happy if it went the first year without having to return to the dealership. My experience has dictated that this is not even possible.

 

We're talking statistics here. You build 1000 new vehicles, X will come back for something. It always was that way, and always will be- any make, any model, any country of origin. If we lived in perfect, it wouldn't ever happen. We don't, and sometimes it does.

That's a different issue. Boulders fall on top of houses too- but what are the odds? It sux if it's you, but it's generally helpful to take a deep breath and more on. Over a ten year period, we owned 6 new Suburbans. Five were perfect, one literally couldn't stay out of the shop. It ultimately wound up being a factory buyback. Did I buy another one? Sure- what are the odds of lightning striking twice? It was a good call- it's replacement never generated a warranty claim while we owned it. Stuff happens.

 

How could you possibly wear out 6 new Suburbans in 10 years??? If 5 of the six were perfect, why did you keep them less than 2 years each average?

And yes...stuff happens...I've experienced PLENTY of STUFF

Regards,
Scott

 

Who said I was wearing them out that fast? It happened to make $$$ sense at the time to trade them that often. re: the Ranger. Sorry about the troubles- but that rig would have never made it that long in my driveway. Life's too short.

 

Ok...I'll bite - how could it ever make $$$ sense to trade vehicles that often? I believe it was Consumer Reports which stated - a person must keep a vehicle at least 10 years to recover any financial investment in that vehicle. In other words, it would take 10 years of use to get your money back on that investment...

Regards,
Scott

 

That's all relative to trade-in values, rebates, and what YOU consider 'financial sense'. If we're talking totally even recovery or even a RETURN on the investment of buying a new car, unless you plow snow or use it for commercial purposes, it's gonna take a LONG time, possibly never, to make a return off the investment. I've known guys that have bought a brand new truck in August, and because of a good cold wet winter and a hot summer, have their trucks paid off in under 2 years. My Ranger, though, I can GUARANTEE that it will NEVER give a return on the investment. I just deal with the $17 a day that it costs me to drive my truck as a failed business venture.