The word technology may be stretching the point but my question is this:-
Having read one or two reports about the so called reliable brands having trouble with new models or technology, namely Mazda with the early 5's, the first Honda Civics (being only as reliable as a Golf in recent surveys) and Honda diesels (e.g. - new technology to Honda) giving people problems, should we wait a couple of years after the launch before we buy with our own hard earned.
The particular car that springs to mind is the long awaited diesels from Scoobeeroo.
Should anyone interested wait to see what problems emerge first - particulalrly as IMO the so called relaible brands do seem very quick to fix stuff when it gets hi-lighted - so the logic being buying a couple of years after the release should make it trouble free.
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Its an interesting question; one that I have asked myself several times, although I do not buy new cars.
I know many people near me, generally with more money than sense who have to have the latest 'must have' car. It doesn't matter if its a Range Rover or a MINI, if its new and say less than £50K they order one and its on their drive within days of the launch.
Sometimes they are right and the premium value for the last new car is still sufficiently high that they effectively suffer no depreciation, although they keep the cars for only a year at most and do little mileage.
In terms of technology, I would trust some but not others. It is generally the fleets that act as guinea pigs, but given that the new Subaru diesel is based on the existing flat four petrol, one hopes it will enjoy the same level of reliability.
If it were French, then I wouldn't trust it even after ten years..... :-)
Edited by Espada III {P} on 05/02/2008 at 21:24
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For me my last car was a 94 astra, 1.4 with a hitorq engine, recently i bought a 53 registered honda jazz 1.4.
For me the jazz had some innovations, the petrol tank moved forward the engine equiped with 8 spark plugs, all of this persuaded me to buy it.
I find it a pleasant car to drive reliable, and fuel effiecent, and spacious any problems all covered under warrant
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Saw a tv prog on this last night.
Branded as the "Boxer diesel".
Even the Su marketing guy couldn't explain why they developed their own engine instead of buying it in.
Quick overview here:
www.autoobserver.com/2008/01/subaru-boxer-di.html
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"Even the Su marketing guy couldn't explain why they developed their own engine instead of buying it in"
Marketing guys in a peripheral overseas market do not necessarily understand the strategy set by the HQ. Developing your own technology may cost you in the short term, but in the longer term it offers you the ability to control your own fate and to differentiate your product from those of others. How different would Subaru be if it simply bought in a Peugeot or VAG diesel? Probably not much. And could Subaru be sure that the reliability of a bought-in engine would be up to its own standards? Probably not. And if the bought-in engine wasn't up to scratch, would Subaru be able to do anything about it? Probably not.
As a general point, Japanese manufacturing companies (a category to which Fuji Heavy belongs) like to do their own thing rather than rely on externally sourced technology. That is why Toyota and Honda also have their own diesels.
Suss
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Specifically the Subaru - I believe the Legacy will be replaced next year anyway, maybe also true of Forester - perhaps better to wait, rather than the run-out of the old model(s)
Personally I wouldn't worry unduly about about the new diesel engine, they probably enjoyed
developing it & over-engineered it to take greater power for different models.
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Subaru have a flat boxer engine which is situated low to lower the centre of gravity of the car. They couldn't have bought in an established diesel engine because they are all upright and would have required the car to be redesigned to suit it.
The conversion of a petrol engine to diesel is not straightforward. I imagine that the old rule not to be the first to wear the new fashion or the last to wear the old would apply here too. Let someone else try it out for a couple of years first.
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based on my experiences of buying a new Mazda5 in Spetember 2005 I'd have to say NO !!
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Susukino has got it spot on from what I have seen of japanese companies in that they like to do things themselves - that way they can learn from the experience - which means alot to them for their long term strategy and also they can gaurantee the quality better than buying in.
Unfortunatley most european companies think the opposite is true and that if you outsource, you can reduce costs, increase profit and all is well with the world - even if it does mean letting the customer down from time to time - that does not matter as long as we can make a profit this year.
Not true for the long term unfortunately and if you look at Toyota as an example - they make huge profits yet they outsource less of their parts than anyone else.
The bit I found strange about the article the link takes you to is the line that says " Europeans love the smooth, high-torque, low cost.........."
Since when has a diesel been smooth - they're having a larf ain;t they.
Although maybe that will change with a diesel boxer !
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