Reliable brands of cars

[IAmTheWalrus]

Hi,

So I like a reliable car however I had a bad experience with BMW 320ci sport for the last five years and it was my first BMW, which has left me feeling with a sour taste in my mouth. It might just have been a bad one, however it seems overly complicated to fix anything on it. My previous cars Nissan, Hyundai and Mondeo ran great but I kinda fell into the idea of a BMW as it looked nicer and the interiors of Hyundai look a little plastic...

Anyway as I am now looking for another car in case mine doesn't fix itself what are everyone's thoughts on the following questions about popular German brands:

Which are most reliable:

A BMW
B Mercedes
C Audi

which costs the most to run

A BMW
C Mercedes
C Audi

which are easiest and cheapest to fix?

A BMW
C Mercedes
C Audi


Also if you have any experiences, good or bad please share.
Thanks in advance

[Burgerbob]

If you like a reliable car, then can I suggest that you look at other brands....

This is a couple of years old but may be relevant if your buying used.

[Smint]

You don't buy those makes for their reliability, but if i had to have one or the other it would be a RWD Mercedes, much depends on how close you are to a make specific independent workshops.

[troika]

Think I can spot where you’re going wrong…

[Ivan stewart]

IAmTheWalrus said:

Hi,

So I like a reliable car however I had a bad experience with BMW 320ci sport for the last five years and it was my first BMW, which has left me feeling with a sour taste in my mouth. It might just have been a bad one, however it seems overly complicated to fix anything on it. My previous cars Nissan, Hyundai and Mondeo ran great but I kinda fell into the idea of a BMW as it looked nicer and the interiors of Hyundai look a little plastic...

Anyway as I am now looking for another car in case mine doesn't fix itself what are everyone's thoughts on the following questions about popular German brands:

Which are most reliable:

A BMW
B Mercedes
C Audi

which costs the most to run

A BMW
C Mercedes
C Audi

which are easiest and cheapest to fix?

A BMW
C Mercedes
C Audi


Also if you have any experiences, good or bad please share.
Thanks in advance

Answer is D Lexus .

[Strudul]

Why not Lexus?

[IAmTheWalrus]

Smint said:

You don't buy those makes for their reliability, but if i had to have one or the other it would be a RWD Mercedes, much depends on how close you are to a make specific independent workshops.

Really, isn't Audi or Mercedes any better then?

[blue_haddock]

If you want reliable I suggest Kia, Hyundai, Toyota and Honda.

No premium badge but also no major headaches.

[IAmTheWalrus]

Burgerbob said:

If you like a reliable car, then can I suggest that you look at other brands....

This is a couple of years old but may be relevant if your buying used.

WOW thats astonishing. I always new BMW were mega complicated given the amount of chat on a BMW forum but to top the list, gosh. I wish I had seen that before I bought it.

[snowandrocks]

I'm involved with an executive private hire business which buys new cars and keeps them to 250k miles and I would say Mercedes is still the best of the Germans.

They are a long way from perfect and any repairs needed are expensive but on average the e and s class cars are more reliable than their equivalents from Audi and BMW.

Toyota/Lexus are leagues ahead of all 3 and have been almost faultless. They're running a Tesla as a trial now but it doesn't look too promising!

[sideways man]

Wow! Who’d have thought Peugeot would be top of the list, not me.
And look at Toyota….
Is this list correct

[Evercross]

sideways man said:

Wow! Who’d have thought Peugeot would be top of the list, not me.
And look at Toyota….
Is this list correct

Funnily enough, in response to a thread about overrate cars I was going to say that every BMW I have owned had started to rust and leak oil once it reaches a certain age, yet I have kept a couple of Peugeots for the same age/mileage and they suffered no such issues.

[ZX10R NIN]

IAmTheWalrus said:

Hi,

So I like a reliable car however I had a bad experience with BMW 320ci sport for the last five years and it was my first BMW, which has left me feeling with a sour taste in my mouth. It might just have been a bad one, however it seems overly complicated to fix anything on it. My previous cars Nissan, Hyundai and Mondeo ran great but I kinda fell into the idea of a BMW as it looked nicer and the interiors of Hyundai look a little plastic...

Anyway as I am now looking for another car in case mine doesn't fix itself what are everyone's thoughts on the following questions about popular German brands:

Which are most reliable:

A BMW
B Mercedes
C Audi

which costs the most to run

A BMW
C Mercedes
C Audi

which are easiest and cheapest to fix?

A BMW
C Mercedes
C Audi


Also if you have any experiences, good or bad please share.
Thanks in advance

The answer is that all cars are reliable but the repair costs when they go wrong will vary dependent on the badge on the bonnet, remember all that tech comes at a cost.

Now if you want to mix a bit of luxury with then depending on your budget the Infiniti & Lexus brands are a good mix of sensible running costs & premium feel.

[Muddle238]

There is a myth perpetrated by the marketing departments of so called “premium” German brands that their vehicles are reliable, evidence such as the JD surveys suggest otherwise. Personally I’d avoid all three brands, I don’t think they offer anything over and above other brands.

[IAmTheWalrus]

Muddle238 said:

There is a myth perpetrated by the marketing departments of so called “premium” German brands that their vehicles are reliable, evidence such as the JD surveys suggest otherwise. Personally I’d avoid all three brands, I don’t think they offer anything over and above other brands.

Who makes Infiniti? Never heard of them. Repairs surely a nightmare?

[IAmTheWalrus]

Evercross said:

Funnily enough, in response to a thread about overrate cars I was going to say that every BMW I have owned had started to rust and leak oil once it reaches a certain age, yet I have kept a couple of Peugeots for the same age/mileage and they suffered no such issues.

Yea I though that was strange. I had always considered French cars to be poor.

[Jasandjules]

sideways man said:

Wow! Who’d have thought Peugeot would be top of the list, not me.
And look at Toyota….
Is this list correct

Can't be. My parents Peugeot has had several things go wrong. In contrast to any toyota MR2 I have had that has pretty much been bullet proof (except one Mk1 lunching it's engine!)...

Actually my BMW was faultless too..

[GroundEffect]

IAmTheWalrus said:

Muddle238 said:

There is a myth perpetrated by the marketing departments of so called “premium” German brands that their vehicles are reliable, evidence such as the JD surveys suggest otherwise. Personally I’d avoid all three brands, I don’t think they offer anything over and above other brands.

Who makes Infiniti? Never heard of them. Repairs surely a nightmare?

They're Nissans.

Buy a Lexus. Be happy.

[The Rotrex Kid]

IAmTheWalrus said:

Muddle238 said:

There is a myth perpetrated by the marketing departments of so called “premium” German brands that their vehicles are reliable, evidence such as the JD surveys suggest otherwise. Personally I’d avoid all three brands, I don’t think they offer anything over and above other brands.

Who makes Infiniti? Never heard of them. Repairs surely a nightmare?

Nissan.

[MrGTI6]

IAmTheWalrus said:

Yea I though that was strange. I had always considered French cars to be poor.

I can honestly say that the most reliable cars I've owned have been French. They might be cheap and tacky, but they're surprisingly durable and parts are next to nothing. They don't seem to rust either. As with any manufacturer there are certain models to be avoided, but on the whole French stuff is my go-to when buying with a <£1,000 budget.