Red Ring Tupperware Party, Ringing in the New (23)

I've had my Honda Pilot for over 5 years now, and no problems at all. It pulls our trailer nicely too.

I have had:
1) Volkswagen - crap
2) Honda's - Awesome
3) Toyota - Awesome
4) Nissan - Awesome

JWright wrote in post #16306973
So are Suzukis... (Automobiles, that is. Their motorcycles are great.) I've had two and I don't ever want another one. Honda or Toyota the next time.

I think they're separate companies, rather than different makes under the same corporation.

Edit: Hyundai owns 32.8% of Kia, but I can find nothing that indicates they share platforms like Ford and Lincoln.

All you have to do is look at them. They use each other's parts. Same engines, transmissions, etc.

Skrim17 wrote in post #16307100
I have had:
1) Volkswagen - crap
2) Honda's - Awesome
3) Toyota - Awesome
4) Nissan - Awesome

I have a VW now. Love that car. They definitely went through a really rough patch though, but they've improved a lot the last gen or two.

Stupid expensive to maintain though.

We have an '07 Honda Odyssey and an '07 Civic. Love 'em both. I got in a wreck when the van was two months old... $18,000 worth of damage and the insurance company wouldn't total it. Haven't a lick of trouble since, except for needing a new AC compressor.

We've had three prior Civics, and never had issues.

I've had:
1. '62 Chevy Impala - Awesome.
2. VW Super Beetle - Super Awesome. Drove it 130k miles. other than routine maintenance I had to replace one $37 vacuum advance. Sold it for $200 less than I paid for it new.
3. Chrysler Cordoba - Junk - probably the worst car I've ever owned.
4. Dodge van - Okay.
5. VW Golf. Great car, but got tired of replacing CV boots/joints.
6. Volvo wagon. Great car. No problems.
7. Volvo sedan. Close to junk. Later model- not made in Sweden. Major electrical issues.
8. '99Toyota 4Runner. Great SUV and still going strong after 190k miles. A real SUV - not one of these leather clad, soccer mom, grocery getters.
9. '06 BMW 330i - wife's car. Outstanding fun to drive, but the maintenance costs are nuts. Keeping it running properly doesn't just eat holes in your wallet, it eats the WHOLE wallet...and your checkbook for desert.

I don't have a long list...

First vehicle I owned was my 1995 Chevy Silverado. Regular cab, long box, power nothing. Didn't even have a tape player (but it did have 4 cup holders and 3 power points). Drove it for 5 years, put 149,991 kms on it. Never had any major issues with it until the frame cracked. Even then it ran and drove wonderfully.

Now I have a 2002 GMC Sierra SLE extended cab, short box. Seats 6, has power everything (even heated mirrors), four cup holders, and three power points. Paid $3500 for it. Have had a few issues - intake manifold gasket, wheel bearing, brakes, and normal maintenance. Currently have an issue with the ABS - low speed ABS activation - one of the wheel speed sensors loses signal at low speeds and makes the ABS think that the wheel is sliding. Temporary fix was to pull the fuse.

I spent many years driving my Grandpa's 1978 Ford Pinto Runabout. That was one incredibly reliable car.

Skrim17 wrote in post #16307100
I have had:
1) Volkswagen - crap
2) Honda's - Awesome
3) Toyota - Awesome
4) Nissan - Awesome

I know a couple people with newer Volkswagens and swear they will never consider one again, no matter good it is supposed to be. With both (one my brother) it comes down to the poor service (at two separate dealers), there willingness and ability to deal with issues, and the high cost to do so.

The cars I have had owned. I mostly typed this up just to reminisce.


63 Chevy II - First car, two speed auto tranny. At least I was cruisin'.
64 Oldsmobile Super 88 - Big car, went fast. Rolled it a few times, and drove still drove it for a few months after that. Back seat could be made into a BIG bed.
64 Oldsmobile F85 Cutlass - 330 big block, 4 speed muncie. Very fast, tough, and looked great. One car I would love to have again.
69 Dart Swinger - 340 engine, barely ever went under 90 mph with it. Took lots of girls for rides. Blew the engine.
65 Chrysler 300 - Big ol' best with chrome everywhere. Bought it cheap, it died and was abandoned a few hundred miles from home. Cool car though.
75 Ford Grand Torino - Bought at an auction cheap. 400 engine, lousy car but did get good use out of it.
71 Toyota Hilux - Fantastic little pickup. Drove it tons, worked it hard, couldn't kill it, gave it to a friend who used it for a couple more years.
73 Volvo 142- Great little car. Another one that I rode hard but could not kill. Sold it cheap to a friend who worked it over and drove it for years.
79 Ford F250 Supercab- Last year of that model pickup. Heavy and tough. Great truck, loved the look of them.
68 Lincoln Continental - Won at a AAA ball game. Drove it for a bit, but way too big for my needs at the time.
88 Plymouth Caravelle - bought by my outlaws for my wife when I went into the hospital with leukemia, after my MIL drove the Volvo when here. Cheapo car, but good value.
96 Mercury Sable Wagon - Bought off the outlaws after the Caravelle died. Worked good for use until it ran into another car.
02 Ford F250 Supercab - First ever new vehicle bought by my company. Powerstroke diesel. Still driving it for work. Has been a great value. I will likely keep it until I retire (soon I hope).
05 Chevy Cavilier - Bought it mostly for our kids to use. Performed great for a cheaper model car. Sold it to my daughter who killed the tranny, and sold it for parts.
05 Mazda6 Sport Wagon - Zoom zoom. My wifes care. Fantastic performance. Not great on fit and finish, but still acceptable. Has been very reliable. We still have it.
09 Honda Pilot - Actually bought in June 08. Has been a very reliable vehicle, lots of room for its size, and it pulls our trailer around for us nicely. Will be keeping it for a while yet.

I've had a ton of cars. Pretty much until I hit 40 I never owned a car that was manufactured in the same decade I was driving it in. I also never paid more than $500 and most of the time way less than that.
First car was a 1967 beetle - Paid $100. I bought this when I was 13 and sold it when I was 18. I put 150k miles on the beast. It just kept running.
In there I had a '67 GTO - AWESOME.. just awesome.
Some Plymouth Valiant with push button trans. I don't remember the year.
A Dodge Monoco, early 70s I think.
A '67 caddy. I loved that car
197? Dodge B100 van.
A 72 or 73 Plymouth Duster.
Then a whole string of Grand Prix. Started with a '78, then a early 90s Grand Prix and a lat 90's Grand Prix and then a 2003 Grand Prix. Also had a GMC Sonoma truck and now my Pontiac G6. Mixed in were my wife's cars, A Toyota Corolla = biggest turd ever built. Olds Ciera, Plymouth Voyager, Ford E150 van and another E150 van and I know I'm missing a couple.

Let's see . . .

• '63 Ford Falcon wagon with a 4 on the floor(!)
  
• '73 Vega. Loved its handling and probably hastened its demise by overloading it WAY past what Chevy ever thought it would have to haul.
  
• '84 Nissan pickup
  
• '95 Volvo 850 wagon, which I still drive.
  
• '98 Volvo S70; we only got rid of it because Ann didn't want to pay for a new exhaust system, so for somewhat more than that would have cost we got a
  
• 2011 Subaru Forester. Auto transmission (a first!), which (among other "features" on the car) we hate.

I've been quite happy with Hondas, the most recent being an '02 Accord, it served me well until a family member borrowed and wrecked it a couple years ago

Oh, I decided with that car to have it "serviced" by the dealer and they always treated me well.

Car lists of auto's I've had-

1st car, '73 Pontiac Catalina -front doors would freeze and it had no traction. I would hop in front from the rear doors, start it up and put it in reverse, jump out push if to get it rolling and hop back through the rear doors and get back in the drivers seat. 10 or 15 minutes into the ride the doors would un-freeze and open. I could park at school and put the car in reverse, it would slide sideways causing me to have to use the bumper jack to lift it up and push it away from the car next to me.
1965 Plymouth Fury convertible, great in snow, but I froze. I had one heating tube under the dash I would hold when driving in cold weather. Rust got the better of it.
1963 Renault Dauphine. Bought for $100 from the side of the rode. Drove it once down the block before pulling engine to rebuild. Loved that car. When my parents moved from that property I had to give it up as I had no place to store it. Will have another one day.
1976 Pontiac Astre. Had a crappy 140cid engine that would blow head gaskets. It was quicker for me to pull the engine and put a donor motor in, I could do a removal and replacement in just over an hour. I had 1 donor Astre that had a broken axle mount so I chained it to the frame and drove it 20 miles home on the interstate, it would swerve violently when you would accelerate or decelerate. Also had a gate latch to hold the door closed. I would also take options off other donor Astre's to upgrade mine. Put power brakes, rear window defrost and power steering in. Also had a nice Astre I was building to put a V8 in. I re did the interior to perfect, I got board on day and cut the roof off to test my new pneumatic nibbler.
1980 Chevy Citation. Purchased for $200 as a repo from a bank. The banker laughed when I made the initial bid, but called me 3 months later and I picked it up. The clutch was completely shot so the car would stall at lights, I would use the starter to roll and get the car running. 1st front wheel drive clutch I put in, I pulled the engine to do it instead of the tranny. I sold it to my brother, who sold it to my other brother, put 90k on that car before it died.
1978 Pontiac Sunbird. Very fast little car, great in Winter. Put a crank kit and oil pump in it after letting a girlfriend use it for college, she never checked the oil. She left it on the interstate and told me where it was.
1988 Chevy Caviler Z24, purchased new.
1989 Chevy Caviler Z24 Convertible, purchased new after selling the 1st.
1987 Chevy Monte Carlo LS Went car shopping and told the salesman I was specifically looking for a Monte, he knew better and told me to drive some old Nissan, I took that car to another dealer and test drove a Monte Carlo which I purchased. Brought the Nissan back hours later and tossed the guy the keys and told him I bought a car.
1984 Chevy Corvette What a beast, suspension was super tight and would bounce off the ground over railroad tracks. I drove it like a Vette should be driven. It was a nice day car while I had the Monte. Marriage ended that fun.
1993 Ford Taurus, not bad. Never liked it but it was fast and roomy. I always swore I wasn't a Ford Owner.
1989 Ford Probe, drove for short time gave to now wife whilst we were courting.
1993 Ford Probe, Still drive today. Longest I've owned a vehicle at 12 years now.

Family owned - 1997 Chrysler Town and Country. Great vehicle, nothing bad to say about it, actually miss it.
2007- Mazda CX-9. I'm a Mazda fan, but the crossover isn't living up to my expectations. I swore I would run it into the ground. I may change my mind.

When I worked for the dealership, I purchased 5 additional cars that I purchased and sold after slight repairs. I was always looking out for those with no money, so I probably lost almost $1k doing deals for others I need. I had initially thought I could make a heck of a profit and make a good dollar, but realized I'm not that kinda person.

Jon wrote in post #16307844
Let's see . . .

• '63 Ford Falcon wagon with a 4 on the floor(!)
  
• '73 Vega. Loved its handling and probably hastened its demise by overloading it WAY past what Chevy ever thought it would have to haul.
  
• '84 Nissan pickup
  
• '95 Volvo 850 wagon, which I still drive.
  
• '98 Volvo S70; we only got rid of it because Ann didn't want to pay for a new exhaust system, so for somewhat more than that would have cost we got a
  
• 2011 Subaru Forester. Auto transmission (a first!), which (among other "features" on the car) we hate.

CVT. Constant Velocity Transmission. I hate the things, they feel weird, the engine sounds weird, they cost a ton to repair. I would never buy a Subaru with an automatic.