German cars 'among worst for engine failures'
- Thread starter geepee
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Engine failure does not depend only on the manufacturer but also on how you maintain your car. My own cars never had such an issue as they are always serviced at the right time whereas the cars we have in our business had a few engine failures as they often exceeded service and oil change milage as a result of the rush we have and the many drivers that are using them. However, it is well known that Japanese cars are the most reliable whereas german cars tent to fail more often, especially as modern german engines have got very sophisticated with many electronic bits. However, in terms of engine failure I do not completely agree with that article. During the past 6 months I visited my mechanic many times (not for issues with the zed 
) and every time i was there a mercedes (either a c200k, e200k ,clk200k etc) had an engine failure. I saw no bmw's with engine failures in the same time. Just my own experience 
) and every time i was there a mercedes (either a c200k, e200k ,clk200k etc) had an engine failure. I saw no bmw's with engine failures in the same time. Just my own experience Based on personal experience, I'm surprised that Merc are so high.
Parents bought an e240 in 2004. Engine had blue smoke flowing out from the engine months into ownership. Several thousand pounds of parts replaced the EML still stayed on.
Mercedes traded it a year later for an e280. A few months later the EML light came on intermittently.
Swapped it out for an e92 335i and have had nothing but happiness!
All cars serviced via main dealer and no modifications either.
Parents bought an e240 in 2004. Engine had blue smoke flowing out from the engine months into ownership. Several thousand pounds of parts replaced the EML still stayed on.
Mercedes traded it a year later for an e280. A few months later the EML light came on intermittently.
Swapped it out for an e92 335i and have had nothing but happiness!
All cars serviced via main dealer and no modifications either.
Surely it will also matter what type of drivers drive these cars. As it will be across the whole model range, most Hondas are driven slower by old people and do less mileage, as a higher percentage of Audi & BMW are driven harder, do higher mileage, carry families about and heavier loads in the boot space. Looking at the list I think there will be a lot more factors than reliability of each make.
figures from warranty direct are unreliable because their sample is biased towards cars that owners fear may cost a fair bit to repair. Nobody bothers to warrant a fiat.
Finisterre said:
My thoughts exactly.
I'm a big fan of WD figures but as with any stat's you need to take care. The index is actually calculated on an equation of failures x cost. So a basically reliable car can score badly if it's expensive to fix - which is a good measure if like WD (and me) you want to know what the financial risk is, but no so useful if you are purely interested in how often something goes wrong.
The other point is that 'engine failure' includes things like pumps, thermostats etc. As we know the BMW six very rarely has 'engine failure' but expensive ancillary failure is not uncommon.
But it's a good headline
The other point is that 'engine failure' includes things like pumps, thermostats etc. As we know the BMW six very rarely has 'engine failure' but expensive ancillary failure is not uncommon.
But it's a good headline
1066 Country
... or could it be that the other manufacturers fight tooth & nail to avoid warranty claims,
on my last 2 AUDIs it has been 'bring it in Sir, u have an equivalent courtersey car for the day & then a call to say it's all fixed, nothing to pay' ... ZERO hassle
on my last 2 AUDIs it has been 'bring it in Sir, u have an equivalent courtersey car for the day & then a call to say it's all fixed, nothing to pay' ... ZERO hassle
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Jembo said:
Have you ever had an equivelent courtesy car from BMW? I always get either a Mini or a 1'er when I go in. Admittedly, one of our cars is a 1'er, but even when I had a 3 series it was the same. Do BMW have anything bigger than a 1'er as a courtesy car? Guess its dealer specific, but I would like to try out a 5 series etc, and as a courtesy car, its an excellent opportunity.
I always ask for an M5 and they laugh.
kevinmarkwhite said:
My Zed's a second car, has never been into my local BMW as is serviced by an independent backstreet specialist who races M3's, so can't comment here. Half the reason I have Xenons & changed my car was because of the couple of toys they let me have over the years (a6 estate, TT, A4 cab (felt too heavy), A4 Quattro, A3 cab (much nicer than u think) & A5 (nice cruiser)
Like both BM's & AUDIs, as are both good at different things -sounds like BMW aren't willing to invest in tomorrow with their customers