German auto makers becoming more alike

[Waynerm002]

Found this article interesting:

The Big Three German Automakers Are Becoming More and More Alike | Feature | Car and Driver

 

[EchoesMyron]

I have honestly never understood the obsession with German cars, they just don't do anything for me. I was a tech at a VW/Audi/Porsche dealership during the early 2000s and I had a couple of VW GTIs because I could get such a great deal on them. They were decent cars but I looked at them as more of a utilitarian object than as something that really got me excited about driving.

Perhaps this is a case of familiarity breeds contempt but after being on the 'inside' and working on the cars, I like them even less. They are incredibly over-engineered which means they're really over-complicated and prone to failure. It seems that a lot of the technology they introduce is somewhat experimental and when it fails, it's incredibly expensive to repair. When I was working on the cars, the manufacturer wasn't very good about releasing repair information, even to the dealerships. It was like everything was top secret. All of that was incredibly frustrating as a technician.

The last straw for me was that I had an '03 Passat Wagon with the W8 engine. This engine was so failure prone that they only made it for 2 years. I had the car knowing it's weaknesses since I was a dealer tech. It was a very nice driving car and my wife's daily driver and she loved it. After dealing with a bunch of small issues, one day the check engine light comes on. I pulled the code and it's related to cooling system performance which means the engine isn't warming up at the expected rate. This is typically an issue with the thermostat not responding quickly enough so I planned to put a thermostat in it. Where on nearly every other car in the universe, a thermostat is $10 and takes a half hour to replace, this one was $400, was dealer only, and an 8 hour job. The next day we traded the car in for an Accord.

I always warn folks about German stuff and tell them that if they're really gung-ho on it to either lease or sell them as soon as the warranty is up. YMMV.

 

[westcoastGT]

I hear you ! after 2 BMW lemons I swore off BMW , and because I had spent 12 years owning them had a degree of distain for both Audi and Mercedes.............If Peter and Albert keep their heads down and focus on , driving dynamics , styling , quality/reliability and value they will have the Germans watching a new butt !

 

[mldavis2]

My 2-cents. I was a GM, Subaru, BMW service manager back in the '80's. I agree with @EchoesMyron above that BMW's are expensive, finicky and prone to very expensive repairs. I had people who would buy them as a status symbol and then scream when they came in for service and the car was out of warranty. Usually they sold the car and bought something else. Most people who can really afford to buy these car will lease them through the warranty period and then ditch them for the next new status symbol. They aren't car people, they are status seekers.

 

[Kia Stinger]

In my opinion the obsession with German engineered automobiles exists because of the way they handled. Back in the 70s and 80s while the domestic manufacturers were making cars that could be considered rolling couches (actually, my kind of cars) - the Germans were building cars that could carve corners. Depending on the type of driving you wanted to do - you'd buy accordingly. Nowadays the line is blurred as most cars are pretty competitive with one another...

 

[Waynerm002]

I’ve had VW, Audi and BMW, all were great cars to drive as they handled well at high speeds and would corner amazingly well. I drove the snot out of them! The ‘97 Passat I lowered and it made the car perform very well, both it and the Audi A4 I had to replace the pads and rotors with higher quality stuff as they didn’t hold up to my style of driving. Passat had suspension issues which led me to the Audi, 2 years and 78K miles later it had cooling system leaks and the power steering was also leaking. I replaced the Audi with a Subaru Legacy wagon and warped those rotors in the first 1k miles, upgraded them, then I went VW again and got a Touareg. The Touareg only got stickier Continental summer tires and Hakka winter tires as it was a well designed vehicle and handled my driving, really loved it but high gas prices had me ditch it for a 525 manual with the Sport Package. That was a dream to drive and I drove it hard! I understood at that point when folks said these cars handled well, I loved it but wanted more power and went to look at a used 530 but ended up with a new 535 loaded with M-Sport and 20 way adjustable seats, yes I loved this one even more and it was the car I had the longest, almost 4 years. How I loved when you stepped on it and that flap in the muffler opened up and it belted out another tone as things went by in a flash. The cabin was hushed at speed and the HK system sounded great, what a joy it was.

That joy was broken when it started to have engine problems, after 2 head cleaning, full injector replacement, multiple coil pack replacement and the dealer stamp on the work sheet telling me how much money my warranty saved me, I started shopping around. The KIA Optima turbo was what I wanted but a move to a new location and a longer commune had me going with the hybrid. I’m on my 3rd hybrid now, never had anything wrong with them but the noise level and a want for more power had me checking out the next version and switching out. I enjoy driving but after the issues with the Passat, A4 and the 535, I went to the company that had a vehicle that I liked and drove close to the European vehicles. With the Stinger GT and it’s driving feel, it feels like being in that 535 again, only this time with a longer warranty so I can feel comfortable knowing that when I get one, I can drive with confidence knowing it will last longer. I tell folks that yearn for them to not think about a long term relationship with them unless you know a good mechanic. Get one and enjoy it but know that when it’s out of warranty, it will cost a lot to repair. I specced a 5 series out the other day and it’s $70K to get it the way I would want it. I did notice that the all inclusive warranty is no longer available (where they replaced wiper blades and rotors and pads during the 4 year warranty) but they offer a paid protection package now. Yeah.