The German Un-Reliability Thread

That's because they don't break down usually. I think it's fairly safe to say Japanese marques have the least number of breakdowns. Jags are fairly reliable too apparently? French cars are the most un-reliable, but that's a different kettle of fish....

I bought a new BMW 320D in 2001,untill then, I always had a BMW as a daily driver.A week after driving it out of the showroom,plastic and rubber parts started falling off.BMW apologised and replaced the parts........a month later the turbo popped!BMW apologised again...and replaced the turbo...one day later I sold it and swore I would never buy another BMW.The only BMW I would buy today is an E30.The last of the good ones.

Another complaint....Bought a '91 Merc 300E in 1992.The auto gearbox started giving problems.I replaced it,electric windows started acting up.........sold it one month later.

I saw a broken Accord the other week, I had a Civic that was made out of tin-foil (it didn't break, but it creaked like buggery and had really awful handling) and I had a Corolla GT coupe that ate suspension parts, but generally I agree that the Japs are uncannily reliable.

Saw a '55' plate Accord estate on the back of a recovery truck today.

Just remembered. My neighbour was the bodyshop manager at a local Honda dealer for a few years and now works for an insurance company. He says Honda Civics suffer from recurring windscreen rattle problems.

6 Corollas in the last 10 days!!!!
Couldnt believe it. All Circa 96 - 99
1 VW Polo With bits falling off the front under the bumper.

A friend of mine drives a red VW Golf, it's clutch went a few weeks ago and she told me that it's common for clutches to go in VWs.

My last car was an audi A4 Avant and although it never broke down I was never happy with the front suspension. A complicated set up to say the least it always needed something changing come MOT time and it always clunked over speed bumps or pot-holes, no matter what I did or how slowly I hit them.
Compared to the feel and steering of my 156 it was a pure tank!

Mate had an A4 that was never out of the garage. Another mate has a SLK 240 which has never broken down, but is always misbehaving in a minor annoying fashion.

Slightly of topic: a colleague once told me he'd never own an Alfa "because they are unreliable"...
...2 days later his Pug 406 spat its gearbox innards out.

Unreliable Italian cars eh?

For the record the most reliable car I ever had was a Hyundai.

Originally Posted by Dfens

Mate had an A4 that was never out of the garage. Another mate has a SLK 240 which has never broken down, but is always misbehaving in a minor annoying fashion.

Slightly of topic: a colleague once told me he'd never own an Alfa "because they are unreliable"...
...2 days later his Pug 406 spat its gearbox innards out.

Unreliable Italian cars eh?

For the record the most reliable car I ever had was a Hyundai.

Had a Hyundai Sonata once,totaly underpowered but very reliable,never broke down

A lot of people mention of the poor service of Alfa dealers here (and especially that of the importer, ATECO) - but here's some of the quality experiences my godfather had with BMW Australia ('05? E46 325ci)...

On one occassion he had to get the car towed (something to do with no compression in certain cylinder(s)). Anyway when he eventually went to pick up the car from BMW Perth, he noticed the whole rear bumper was caved in near the centre and dropped from its usual sitting point (i.e. it was rooted). And the best thing........ wait for it......... "It was like that when it was brought in." For liability purposes the tow truck driver had listed any exterior damage/faults prior to picking up the car, which was later presented to one of the senior service advisors at BMW. It finally transpired that they'd (BMW) apparently authorised the unloading of the car not in the usual area - later on when they went to move it, ended up reversing into a half-wall...

ALSO...
During a routine service at the same dealership in Perth, for some nonsensical reason they'd swapped the front and rear tyres around. Yes, of course this is fine on any normal car but not on a car that is (FACTORY-FITTED) with wider rear wheels/tyres!!

Friends new X5 - auto handbrake stuck on.

Originally Posted by Dfens

For the record the most reliable car I ever had was a Hyundai.

Ditto - Hyundai Accent

0 - 100 in about a calender month and as sexy as cotton maternity underwear, but never brok down.

Had a flat spot from 1200 - 5500

Then saw one on the side of the road yesterday.

Spotted an 05 plate Volvo V70 with the bonnet up and RAC in attendance this morning on the way to work.

Today:

Volvo V40 (new)
Renault Megane Sport (New) - loooked like collapsed suspension
55 PLate Vauxhall Signum
New Megane Scenic

Originally Posted by Degu

A friend of mine drives a red VW Golf, it's clutch went a few weeks ago and she told me that it's common for clutches to go in VWs.

Most are driven by Clutch Plates... (Slang here for an idiot..)