Most Reliable Car You Know Of....

[Bob_T]

We've recently had a number of unexpected expenses, and my '98 528i seems to be presenting new (and expensive) problems every other day. Sigh. The car is very nice, but perhaps more expensive to maintain than we are currently capable of.

I'm wondering.. for someone who just needs basic, reliable, easy and cheap to fix, transportation to work (16 miles each way), is there something that would best meet my needs? Perhaps a Jeep, with it's 4WD would be nice for our horrible Rochester, NY winters? Or perhaps a Honda Civic? Or....???

What kind of experiences have you folks had when you're only looking for something to get you to work.. not something you want to live in.. but basic, reliable, cheap, fixable, etc...?

Thanks,
Bob

[thekid]

For the most part anything by toyota. If you are looking for cheap and you don't really need a back seat then a 90-93 celica are super easy to work on, also they are pretty much bullet proof with a few exceptions that are easy and cheap fixes, that you really only have to do once. If you need more room, then of course Civics and Accords are always good choices for commuter cars. THe Jeeps are not very reliable in my experiances. Some of the will work forever others are complete crap, and most seem to fall into the crap category. For example, a friend of mine owns his own landscape company. He bought back in 90-92 a brand new Cheap Grand Cheroke. He put over 100k miles of daily hauling and off road on it. Then it started to break. So he bought a 2000 Jeep Grand Cheroke, the thing went to hell within 2 1/2 years. They couldn't fix it. Had to sell it. Know a couple other jeep stories but I'll save them for later.

['89 635 csi]

Yes, anything Toyota!!!!!
My daily driver is an '87 Toyota pick-up with 267,000 miles! All I've ever done to it is change the oil! I've put a water pump in it and a battery! I drive it 100 miles a day!

[Hoppy's535i]

though it wont last as those japanese cars... a mid 90s ford f150. the ford 300 straight 6 engine is indestructable .... the rest of the truck. ehh n


oh and i agree toyota's are very reliable. new hyndais ( spelling?) are surpassing ( if not surpassed) honda on customer satisfaction. they are very nice cars. one of there models is liek a bmw wanna be

[M3Rider]

LEXUS LS 430 <--- Most reliable car ever made!!!!!!!! One problem, RWD = No Good for NY Snow, believe me I have one, I live in NY, it sux in snow especially ice

[BMWLotAttendant]

Yes....Toyotas are reliable, easy and cheap to fix. Thats why my parents got me a Camry. I like the newer bodystyle. So far I haven't had any serious problems. Other than the basics of new tires (front ones), front break pads (like $40), and new spark plugs (cheap). I've had this car for about 3-4 years...and I'm really please with it.

Honda Accords are easy to maintain also.
Lexus is really good...LS300/400....SC300/400.

[Live_the_Curves]

I am going with Toyotas, I have 4 year old sienna with 227 000 km on it, and it runs like its off the show room, the engine runs very smooth and the transmission shifts without you noticing. In 4 years, there was only 1 problem with the car, the steering fluid hosed leaked that had to be replaces, that was it. Absolutely no other problems.

[gotKRAUT]

Toyooooootaaaaaa....lol my friend has a late 80's toyota pick up with 460,000 miles on it(GOOD GOD) and it still has the stock head gasket lol he has kept tabs....the total amount in repairs(not counting brakes oil or spark plugs or any general maintenence) but he has spent $200 since he bought it...(excluding general maintenance) lol

another friend of mine has a 1987 BMW 325 with 360,000miles and she treats it like CRAP and its still goin and they NEVER put money into it...

[gotKRAUT]

Originally posted by BMWLotAttendant@Sep 21 2004, 08:52 PM
Yes....Toyotas are reliable, easy and cheap to fix. Thats why my parents got me a Camry. I like the newer bodystyle. So far I haven't had any serious problems. Other than the basics of new tires (front ones), front break pads (like $40), and new spark plugs (cheap). I've had this car for about 3-4 years...and I'm really please with it.

Lexus is really good...LS300/400....SC300/400.

[snapback]196435[/snapback]

Lexus is to toyota as honda is to acura....one in the same :P

[Bob_T]

Hmm... so I guess nobody here likes Toyotas, eh?

The truth is, every Toyota I ever drove impressed me.. you hit a bump and there are no rattles.. you may feel it but you don't hear it. At all.

The guy who mentioned the LS-430 Lexus.. yeah, RWD would be a problem.. but not much of one since I can only afford that car in my dreams! Besides, my 528i is RWD also, so I wouldn't be losing much in that regard! Would love to have the car though! (If I could afford an LS-430, I could also afford to have it pulled out of snow drifts anytime I needed.)

I was thinking Toyota.. second choice perhaps Honda. You guys have pretty much settled that question.

Thanks!

Bob

[ldsbeaker]

I was going to disagree with you guys about the toyota's, but then I remembered the first car I ever owned. I was in Okinawa, Japan, and had myself a little 1987 toyota trueno (corolloa, in us). It was automatic, and was one off from the legendary AE86, but it was still a zippy little car that was a LOT of fun... Oh and since it was a free car, and my first car, of course I didn't do any maintenance on it... just put gas in it, and fixed the front strut and bumper when a taxi slid into me... other than that, never even LOOKED at the oil, let alone change it.... And I drove the hell out of that car... even drifted a little on the streets when they were quiet. (hehe, scared the hell out of some of my troops one time taking them home) and there was this one right hander going towards my barracks that I would try and drift around, one time it was wet, and i drifted.... did a 180 spin out and ended up in the other lane, stalled the car, scared the hell out of me, but from then I was hooked... anyways, that car took everything I gave it, and I didn't do any maintenance on it.
On the other hand, when I got back to the states, I bought a 1979 GMC suburban, V8/350, 3 speed with a granny low and commenced to driving that. I've had it almost 5 years now, and it has VERY rarely broken down on me. I have learned so much from that truck (remember this is before big time computers were put in cars) and now consider myself a pretty knowledgeable gearhead. She's always been there to bail me out of trouble, and she will do donuts and slide around corners too... I need to make a video of her doing donuts and post that here, along with donuts in my 325es...
Anyways, the moral of the story is, if you love your vehicle, it will love you back, most times. I know it's an inanimate object, but sometimes I feel like all cars are some version of Christine.... All they want is a little attention...

(sorry for the novel)


Drive on, Bimmerheads.

[Torque]

My friends dad had a 82/83 corolla that he used as a daily driver/beater and the thing died last year (20 years) after being driven for about 400k miles.

also old civic hatbacks. my dad sees one come in for a oil change real often where he works at and the thing has almost half a million miles on it and it hasnt broken down in the last 2 years... guy drives it over 150 miles a day.

[bmwcrazy]

I know what you mean about the snow. Im from syracuse. I drive a Civic for a daily driver. I also drive it in the winter. Its great but you got to take it slow. It goes up hills on icy bridges and everything but I cant go faster than 20. I dont care, im never in a hurry. Just pisses off the guys with the 4x4 going 60 with 0 visibility.

[Hoppy's535i]

i dont see what the big deal with snow is. i drive in the snow in my e28 535i, e28s are known to have the back ends pop out easy, no snow tires, and lots of torque.

[ronaldo]

had 2 volvos, a 760 and an 850. never had any problems with either of them, ever. other than 2 minor electrical issues with both, and the ignition somehow not turning on the 760 so i had to replace that. but otherwise, never had problems.