Other marque's reliability...

As there are so many "Bad Alfa Quality" threads,
thought I'd start one to list all the issues
I come across with other people's cars over the last 3-4 years:

Audi A6 Alarm system need at least 4 visits to fix.

Renault Laguna 2.0l diesel. Broke down at least 6
times in 3 years with "engine management" issues
unable to even limp home. Leaving colleague stranded
for weeks on end. Never fixed.

Mercedes C class: 2 blown turbos, fuel leak.

BMW 5 series. 2 ABS sensors after going
over a speed bump a bit to quick.


Anyone else?

Nissan Murano: broken rear washer.

BMW 330Ci (last model) - delivery delayed for unspecified reason.
BMW 5-series (current model but not sure which engine) - BMW demanded the car back and replaced it for unspecified reason
BMW 530 (current model) - door handles, windscreen wiper arms and trafficator switches fell off.
BMW 1-series - new dashboard due to intermittent dash lighting problem.
Volvo S70 - New brakes, suspension parts, air con unit.
Mini Cooper - 2 new steering wheels, new brake systems and new gearbox.
VW Golf - new engine, rear-wash water supply pipe parted company inside c-pillar, new fuel pump, constant brake system and steering pump problems.
Subaru Imprezza - new steering pump.
BMW 328i touring - engine self-destruct.
Honda Civic - poor build quality
Audi A4 - solid but boring and very expensive to service.

New Volkswagon Diesel Rabbit, its first service they kept it for 2 days, turns out it had a cracked block.

New S70 the ignition had to be replaced because when I put in the key it went round and round and round ? Volvo ordered me a new one from Sweden.

Recently I've seen quite a few newer BMW's on the back of recovery vans

Originally Posted by Nev

Renault Laguna 2.0l diesel. Broke down at least 6
times in 3 years with "engine management" issues
unable to even limp home. Leaving colleague stranded
for weeks on end. Never fixed.

If this is the six-speed model he can also get ready for serious gearbox issues too

wrinx

A colleague at work told me of an issue with diesel lagunas that causes them to suck all the oil into the turbo and rev the engine out of control until it blows. This after he had just had a new turbo on his laguna. And a clutch. And suspension... He spent around 8 grand in one year on repairs, though some of it was recovered through warranty. I doubt he'll buy a second hand laguna again.

To be fair the 1.9l Diesel company car
one of the guy had in our office, identical
in every way to the 2.0l one (right
down to trim spec and colour) ran fine.

But that 2.0l was a totaly pile of sh!t.
They ended up giving it back before the
end of the contract and he got someone's
cast-off Merc for 6 months.

A good site to visit for this kind of thing, in my opinion, is the www.reliabilityindex.co.uk site.

It gives rankings of most marques and models based on actual warranty claims rather than owner opinions. Just wanted to point out, only because this was brought up before, that the index is provided by an aftermarket warranty company so it's strongly in their interest to get this data right - if not, they pay out more. Also, it is not created by What Car, only featured in the magazine.

Interesting to see that Audi are hardly streets ahead of Alfa: http://www.reliabilityindex.co.uk/to...28339010848601

And that only one of the German marques (Mini) makes it into the top 10: http://www.reliabilityindex.co.uk/to...28339010848601



Personal experiences:

VW Golf Mk IV GTi - no issues at all
Audi A3 2.0 TDi - no issues but it was with us for less than 15,000 miles to be replaced with...
Audi A3 2.0 TDi Sportback - wheel bearing failure, engine mgt issues, gearbox failure...
VW Golf Mk V GT - oil warning light not operational, hole in roof so now the car stinks as the soundproofing rots... booked into the bodyshop to rectify...
Saab 9-3 Aero Saloon - no issues at all (I miss this one the most)
Peugeot 106 GTi - no issues at all, a cracking little car!
Peugeot 206 cc - no issues at all (apart from occasional embarrassment )

My experiences:

Peugeot 306 XTDT: Built like Mr Potato Head, everything that could go wrong did. Switches fell off, in-car heater blew, sunroof leaked, leccy windows stopped working ....

VW Polo 1.4 TDi (Girlie's car): Nothing bad to report after 2 years

VW Bora 1.9 TDi (My last car): Nothing bad to report in 18 months

Reliability,or vunerability to go 'Pop' ? Most reliable on the home front? A seventeen year old, 100, 000 miler plus, 205!: Reason? It's about as complicated as an 'empty match box!'

1995 SEAT Ibiza GTI 2.0. Absolutely no problems for the first 60,000 miles (100,000 kms) . Over the next 40,000 miles the coil went, as well the distributor and the headlight switch......then I sold it and bought another Alfa Romeo .....sold my Alfetta GTV and traded the SEAT on the same day I picked up the new Alfa)

Hyundai Santa Fe: New engine after 18000km
Opel Zafira: Complete electrics failure while crossing a road
VW Golf: New engine & Gearbox
Seat Leon: Continuous engine management warnings but no faults recorded & central locking opening on its own
Land Rover Discovery: Ignition barrel, gearbox, clutch, brakes, steering, sunroof, electric windows, light clusters all replaced within 2 years

Interesting reading.

I have seen three of Vauxhall's nre Corsa's on pick-up trucks over the last week or so.

I have owned a multitude of cars, from MG to Mazda and none of them have been any better or worse than the others; the Japanese cars have been better built in the scale of things.

2003 Renault Megan-
Don't let me start- sold it after a year
2004 Opel Meriva 1.6 90000km-
Rattles, rattles, rattles
Gear linkage replaced 12000km & again 54000km
Master Electric window switch (drivers side) replaced twice
Tyres every 25000km.
Fresh air smell, always drive with Aircon on - can't find the problem
Driver side Headlight blows every 2/3 months - can't find the problem
Red paint fades in shades and paint chips off.
Factory fitted radio only works off steering wheel and does not switch off

Warranty has just run out so we are selling it.

Could be because they are the wife's cars.
No problems with my Golf, Subaru Impreza or Alfa

Old Pugs an eighty ninner' Stori, so long as she gets her MoT's and stays reliable, it's a sticker for now.

Originally Posted by BlueEvo2

A good site to visit for this kind of thing, in my opinion, is the www.reliabilityindex.co.uk site.

As you say, it's been brought up before so I'll repeat my concerns over it's accuracy because I don't honestly believe that a Porsche Boxster is the second-worst car in the country for reliability.

'03 Megane:
- three replacement cables for the link from the clutch pedal sensor to the start button
- two replacement connectors for the passenger airbag
- new passenger airbag wiring loom