4th Nov 2009, 10:50
First, Honda has a 5 year 60K powertrain warranty which is pretty standard other than Hyundai at 10 years and 100K. GM has a 100K powertrain warranty, but it is also 5 years so 90% of owners will never see that last 40K of warranty making it exactly the same as the "puny" Honda warranty.
AS far as constant repairs.. the only car I ever had that needed constant repairs to the tune of $6,000 before it hit 100K was an Oldsmobile. ANY and all imports I have had have been flawless with only maintenance issues such as tires, brakes and exhaust. This argument goes both ways and is tiresome... For every import owner who has a 300K mile Honda there is a Ford owner who has a 300K mile Ford. Obviously it is a matter of luck of the draw in ALL car brands. Most of my cars have been middle of the road and I have not ever had a major breakdown on any of them import or domestic. My Olds just nickel and dimed me to death... only the parts were expensive! When I traded it in it still needed a wheel bearing and the transmission kept sticking in third which was never fixed. I would have been way over the $6K if I hadn't traded it in when I did.
4th Nov 2009, 10:55
Yeah, too bad Chrysler just announced they are dropping ALL of their Hemi powered cars including the Charger and Challenger. They are going smaller and more efficient with Fiat. We'll just have to wait and see what happens to them now. Grab that Challenger while you can as it will be an instant classic when they no longer make them.
5th Nov 2009, 15:08
Neon and reliable don't really go together well. They are the cheapest quality cars out there, which is why they were so inexpensive. Not saying no one ever got 200,000 miles out of one, but it is rare! Plus $8,000 was no bargain back when an Omni was a new car!! I bought my first brand new Mustang 5.0 in '88 for $12,000. Now a loaded V-8 powered Mustang is around $30K, so in today's dollars your Omni would be about $17,000 or more. Not much of a bargain when you can buy a Hyundai Accent for $9,995, and it has a 10 year 100,000 mile warranty on it.
5th Nov 2009, 16:25
Yes, unlike Honda and Toyota, Hyundai does have the confidence in their product to offer a decent warranty. Still, I can't see a Hyundai making 300,000 miles the way Fords, GM's and Dodges routinely do.
6th Nov 2009, 12:21
I wish people would stop using a long warranty as a measure of confidence in a car line. It is purely a marketing strategy to sell more cars, and it worked beautifully for Hyundai, which is why other companies have copied it. It is a gamble that they will sell enough cars to cover any warranty repairs needed up to 100K on the (hopefully) few that are problematic. It has obviously paid off really well for Hyundai.
The most laughable 100K warranty is GM with their 5 year 100K warranty. 90% of people average 60K or less in 5 years of driving so they are only taking a 10% gamble that they will cover anything after that mileage on their cars. Talk about lack of confidence... and yet everyone says their warranty is so much better than Honda's at 5 year 60K... which in reality is the exact same warranty for at least 90% of the drivers out there!
And why do people have so much faith in Dodge products, especially from the 80's? Please cite any source that gives the majority of Dodge vehicles (outside of the Hemi powered cars and their trucks) a good rating for quality and longevity. They have long been known as the bottom of the domestic brands. Yes, I have seen examples go for many miles too, but overall they are not up to par with most brands.
6th Nov 2009, 17:15
Or, that Hyundai HAS to offer this warranty as an incentive to buy its vehicles, just like Ford, GM, and Chrysler do.
I can agree with you that they won't be making 300,000 miles though. However, it will be them along with most of the domestics. All of them are in a mad rush to catch up to the Japanese.
8th Nov 2009, 00:17
"All of them are in a mad rush to catch up to the Japanese."
Ford caught up with them years ago. Fusion outranks all of the Japanese competition.
8th Nov 2009, 10:49
00:17
Sorry to burst your bubble, but the Fusion is based on the Mazda 6, which is Japanese.
8th Nov 2009, 14:36
"Ford caught up with them years ago. Fusion outranks all of the Japanese competition."
Yeah, one vehicle class. What about the compact, sub-compact, (Oh wait, Ford doesn't make a sub-compact yet) SUV, crossover and other classes?
9th Nov 2009, 11:42
In reliability Asian cars are NOT "at the top". J. D. Powers ranks Ford and GM TIED at number one, ABOVE Lexus. Check the facts instead of repeating ad hype.
9th Nov 2009, 13:23
12:21. What's laughable is Honda or Toyota not offering the same in writing. Do not need it? Great, so give it anyway and it will not cost the imports a dime as well with your logic.
I do drive a lot, and had major issues with new Honda and Nissan. In a couple years my warranty was up. Maybe I drive more than most, but I adhere to service intervals, all performed at the dealership.
I do not buy the cheapest entry level models and expect quality, and not having drivetrain issues waterpumps and A/C failures.
I now have GM V8 models; no issues, better ride, handling, better warranty and up to 30 mpg. Even our Vette is flawless and gets 28-30 mpg on the readout. And it's not boring to drive.
Our Acura took 93 octane, same as the Vette, and any tap of the VTEC pedal ate gas, tires were high, Xenons were high, brakes worn out quickly, rears faster than fronts. Fun to drive at least, but issues took that away.
9th Nov 2009, 17:23
Fusion seems to be a pretty good car. But it's been on top for only 4 years now. The Honda Accord was on top for over 20 years running. That's pretty impressive no matter what anybody says. Until the Fusion beats that record, it's just another runner-up. And I doubt it will because Ford will have renamed it or stupidly discontinued it by then.
10th Nov 2009, 14:26
Again, extended warranties are a marketing tool and obviously Toyota and Honda do not need to offer these warranties to sell vehicles. The companies that need to expand their sales by adding these gimmicks, like the 5 year warranty GM offers, have done so with great success. If Toyota and Honda feel the need to expand their warranty to keep up with the marketing strategies of their competition I am sure they will do it.
Apparently, they don't need the added warranty to keep their sales in line... or the employee pricing programs and deep discounts that domestic companies have been riding on for years now. These marketing tools are the only reason the domestics are ahead on sales. Money talks... loud and clear, these days!
4th Nov 2009, 09:44
If you had owned a more recent Chrysler product, chances are you would understand why they are circling the drain.
In my opinion Chrysler has been building inferior products for some time now, and their customer service is horrendous.