Ask the Car People.SM


Brand Problems Swept Under The Rug - READ ONLY

1210 messages,  Last post on Dec 05, 2009 at 10:18 PM

You are in the Automotive News & Views-Archives Forum.

What is this discussion about? Toyota, Chevrolet, Honda, Chrysler, Kia, BMW, Lexus, Subaru, Nissan, Engine

    

Messages Page 1 of 121

#1 of 1210 Brand problems swept under the rug by steve_ HOST

Aug 19, 2009 (4:34 pm)

Pick any brand and someone can name a problem they tried to sweep under the rug or downplay.
 
Who wants to go first? British Rover?

#2 of 1210 oooooooh by nippononly

Aug 19, 2009 (6:26 pm)

I want to hear what problems Land Rover tried to sweep under the rug! j/k
 
Toyota: sludging 2.2 and 3.0 in the late 90s (at least, some would say they tried to sweep it under the rug, including all those in the lawsuit action class that eventually won their suit), failing head gaskets on the 3.0 (different 3.0) from '90-'95. (and a few '96s, there was eventually a silent recall and a 100K extended warranty)
 
Subaru: failing head gaskets on the 2.5s in the late 90s and early 00s. Failing wheel bearings on Outbacks (perhaps other models as well?).
 
Honda: ?? The auto trans's in the late 90s and early 00s V-6s? How quickly did they respond to that? Was the "fix" effectual?
 
VW: ignition coils on 1.8Ts for most of the early 00s. Claimed it wasn't a big problem even as owners waited on a six week backlog of parts before they could drive their cars again.....
 
GM: DexCool?
 
Ford: head gaskets in the "Vulcan" V-6?
 
I hope someone will help me out with the domestics. Seems like most Chrysler products were short-lived products of ill quality until the 300 came along. Andre might beg to differ....

#3 of 1210 Re: oooooooh [nippononly] by fezo

Aug 19, 2009 (6:34 pm)

Replying to: nippononly (Aug 19, 2009 6:26 pm)
Ford - gaskets on the 3.8 commonly in Tauri and Windstalls. Automatic transmissions until at leats 96 when they finally replaced that aluminum piston with a stainless steel one.
 
VW - too many electrical glitches to remember.
 
Early fixes on those Honda trannies were a problem. They eventually got things right and at least in my case didn't take it out of my pocket and kept me rolling the whole time.
 
My folks had an OHC 6 in a 67 Pontiac Tempest that GM spent some time denying was a defective design.
 
Everyone will have stories in here...

#4 of 1210 Re: oooooooh [fezo] by steve_ HOST

Aug 19, 2009 (7:04 pm)

Replying to: fezo (Aug 19, 2009 6:34 pm)
I think Honda had a class action about the early Odyssey transmissions. Now the CR-V AC compressors seem to go south a bit more frequently than you'd expect.
 
My sister had the electrical issues, mostly with the power window and locks, on her '00 New Beetle.
 
Ford Explorer roll-overs?

#5 of 1210 . by fintail

Aug 19, 2009 (7:07 pm)

Transmissions in earlier Taurus were weak, too.
 
Earlier MB W210 in harsh winter regions are becoming rusty, and many enthusiasts aren't loving those cars.

#6 of 1210 Re: . [fintail] by steve_ HOST

Aug 19, 2009 (7:22 pm)

Replying to: fintail (Aug 19, 2009 7:07 pm)
That reminds me of Toyota Tacoma frame rust. Extended warranty on some of those, so it's not exactly swept under the rug.
 
Older Passport/Rodeos and Axioms seem to have more frame rust than normal too.
 
Back to Ford, I had friends who had the "plastic" gear failure happen to them long ago.

#7 of 1210 Re: . [steve_] by british_rover

Aug 19, 2009 (8:25 pm)

Replying to: steve_ (Aug 19, 2009 7:22 pm)
Calling me out I see.
 
They denied the frame rust problem for a long long time though. Started buying back rusted out Tacomas for XX percent over KBB trade in a couple years back.
 
GM plastic intake manifold gaskets on the NA 3800 series II motors

#8 of 1210 Re: Brand problems swept under the rug [steve_] by andre1969

Aug 20, 2009 (6:14 am)

Replying to: steve_ (Aug 19, 2009 4:34 pm)
Seems like most Chrysler products were short-lived products of ill quality until the 300 came along. Andre might beg to differ....
 
Well, I can dig up some dirt on Chryslers over the years...
 
1955: I've heard stories that the 1955 models were poorly put together. However, I think this was partly because the 1949-54 models were almost tank-like. Truth be told, all cars started getting flimsier around that timeframe. Once upon a time, cars had to be built like trucks, to handle all sorts of road conditions...dirt, gravel, deep ruts, washouts, etc. But as America got paved and more civilized, the car became "softer" and started to differentiate itself more from the truck. From examples I've seen though at car shows, I would say that the typical 1955 GM product, or 1949-54 Mopar, does look like it has better fit and finish.
 
1957: These cars suddenly made the competition look about 4 years old, and Plymouth's ads proclaimed "suddenly it's 1960". Unfortunately, rust resistance was so bad that many of these cars would not be around in 1960! The market in general softened for 1957. About 8 million 1955 domestics were sold I think, and around 7.5 million 1956es. 1957 saw that market shrink to about 6.2 million...but Mopars were wildly popular that year, taking something like 20% of the market. It was Plymouth's best year ever up to that point, and I think that would only be surpassed once or twice in the early 1970's, thanks partly to the Duster. I think it was DeSoto's third best year ever, surpassed only by 1953 and 1950. Something like 37,000 Imperials were built, and I believe that was an all-time record. Dodge and Chrysler also had strong, if not necessarily record-setting sales. The 1957 cars were rushed to the market, which hurt quality, and because of their wild popularity, assembly lines were no doubt sped up in an attempt to rush the cars out the door. The biggest problems were squeaks, leaks, rattles, and rusting. And of course, leaks could lead to electrical problems. However, even things that Chrysler is normally good at, such as engines, transmissions, started to suffer, as they were rushed down the production line.
 
Dodge Dart: Many people consider the Dart and its Valiant sibling to be one of the best cars ever built, especially when equipped with the slant six engine. However, at least one rag joked that it was one of the worst cars ever made! The reason was that the fresh air intake vents tended to hold water, a problem only exacerbated by drain holes that were easily clogged. Accelerating, braking, and turning would cause that water to slosh around, spilling into the car. Well, the cars tended to be durable and long-lasting otherwise, so they'd subject the owner to the torture of wet feet long after most "ordinary" cars had worn out and been junked!
 
Lean Burn: A rudimentary computer that first debuted for 1974, that controlled the spark advance and a few other functions. When it failed, it was supposed to default to run rich, to keep from burning up the valves. But it wouldn't always. Supposedly a horrible, horrible invention, but I've had three cars with it, and two of them were reliable. The third, a 1979 New Yorker I still have, will occasionally stall out, and sometimes won't start, but my mechanic doesn't think it's the Lean Burn. I drove it to work today, and it behaved. Hopefully, I won't be hitching a ride or hoofing it tonite!
 
This post is becoming epic length, so I'll cut off here and write more later...

#9 of 1210 Re: oooooooh [nippononly] by ateixeira

Aug 20, 2009 (8:44 am)

Replying to: nippononly (Aug 19, 2009 6:26 pm)
The funny thing about this thread is that the fans of a brand will actually know its flaws the best. So this is really a measure of how honest we are.
 
I'll play...
 
Toyota: you beat me to it, I was gonna say sludge on the 1MZ (3.0l V6). Add to your list the hesitation complaints on the new U660E 6 speed automatic. And let's not forget the glass camshafts on the new Tundra, which had to be replaced.
 
Subaru: just a few more specifics, most of the head gasket failures seemed to be from 1999 to 2001. And yes the wheel bearings failures also occured on the Forester and Impreza but only 98-2001 on the Impreza and 98-2002 on the Forester. 2002 glass trans on the WRX, though to be fair most of those were heavily modified.
 
Honda: the Ody added a cooler to the trans, IIRC, for model year 2004. So 2003 and earlier trannies are basically time bombs. CR's data shows an immediate improvement under "Transmission" for 2004. Early power doors were also very problematic, though many vans have that problems.
 
Mazda: the CD4E transmission in the 90's 626 4 cylinder models will need a rebuild every 60k miles, you can count on it. 1990 Miata crank. 99 Miata also had an issue but right now it escapes me.
 
VW: not only the ignition coils, but also the window regulators. So bad dealers did not have enough stock.
 
Dodge/Chrysler vans: transmission. A neighbor down the street had 3 differnet Grand Caravans and each ate through a trans, one of them ate two.

#10 of 1210 With Toyota's 3.0 V-6 sludge... by andre1969

Aug 20, 2009 (8:48 am)

didn't the biggest problem tend to be in the Sienna minivan? I heard that it had something to do with the engine being in a tighter compartment that tended to trap heat more, and in certain conditions that would start cooking the oil, and making it more prone to sludging?

Messages Page 1 of 121

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement