Most unreliable car you’ve owned?
Discussion
Two spring to mind.
1)2002 Renault Laguna 2.0 IDE. Renault's first attempt at a direct injection engine in possibly the least reliable car they have ever made. I used to have to say a prayer to the car as I started the car and prayed all the lights would go out.
1)Sat nav would just turn itself off for no reason.
2)Tyre pressure sensors would come on 50% of the time to the point where I would have to remove the fuse to reset them.
3)Single CD would skip
4)Sunroof leaked and drenched the head lining. The drain pipes run behind the front arch liners and there were literally handfuls of mud there, blocking the end of the pipes
5)Misfired at higher revs. These are incredibly fussy about spark plugs and the previous owner had fitted the wrong ones.
And finally the IDE engine suffered with a problem with the Fuel Pressure Regulator where it would put the car into limp mode with no warning whatsoever. The final kick in the teeth was the car had a speech synthesizer which would tell you there was a fuel injector fault issue and you should contact your Renault dealer. Just what you want as you are trying to get off a main road in limp mode whilst holding up every other car who think you are driving slowly on purpose.
I have read reports of people having six fuel regulators fitted in the space of 12 months, so after the second time it happened the car was on eBay. I ended up selling it for £750 having paid £3k six months previously.
2)2003 Audi A4 Convertible 1.8 T Automatic
It looked lovely and for the first three days I thought I had got a bargain until the low oil level light came on. I popped into a petrol station, topped it up and was on my way. Over the next year I had the following issues
1)Would need the oil topped up on a weekly basis
2)Alternator clutch pulley failed putting the charging light on
3)Plastic dipstick tube snapped due to age/heat and sprayed oil all over the engine
4)After that the low oil pressure light kept coming on requiring the sump to be dropped and a new oil pickup to be fitted
5)Power steering pump failed
6)02 Sensor failed
7)Engine management light kept coming on, I suspect it was due to a vacuum leak
8)Window regulator failed leaving the window stuck down
8 was the straw that broke the camels back, it was on eBay as spares as repair after that. Amazingly three years later it is still on the road according to the MOT checker.
1)2002 Renault Laguna 2.0 IDE. Renault's first attempt at a direct injection engine in possibly the least reliable car they have ever made. I used to have to say a prayer to the car as I started the car and prayed all the lights would go out.
1)Sat nav would just turn itself off for no reason.
2)Tyre pressure sensors would come on 50% of the time to the point where I would have to remove the fuse to reset them.
3)Single CD would skip
4)Sunroof leaked and drenched the head lining. The drain pipes run behind the front arch liners and there were literally handfuls of mud there, blocking the end of the pipes
5)Misfired at higher revs. These are incredibly fussy about spark plugs and the previous owner had fitted the wrong ones.
And finally the IDE engine suffered with a problem with the Fuel Pressure Regulator where it would put the car into limp mode with no warning whatsoever. The final kick in the teeth was the car had a speech synthesizer which would tell you there was a fuel injector fault issue and you should contact your Renault dealer. Just what you want as you are trying to get off a main road in limp mode whilst holding up every other car who think you are driving slowly on purpose.
I have read reports of people having six fuel regulators fitted in the space of 12 months, so after the second time it happened the car was on eBay. I ended up selling it for £750 having paid £3k six months previously.
2)2003 Audi A4 Convertible 1.8 T Automatic
It looked lovely and for the first three days I thought I had got a bargain until the low oil level light came on. I popped into a petrol station, topped it up and was on my way. Over the next year I had the following issues
1)Would need the oil topped up on a weekly basis
2)Alternator clutch pulley failed putting the charging light on
3)Plastic dipstick tube snapped due to age/heat and sprayed oil all over the engine
4)After that the low oil pressure light kept coming on requiring the sump to be dropped and a new oil pickup to be fitted
5)Power steering pump failed
6)02 Sensor failed
7)Engine management light kept coming on, I suspect it was due to a vacuum leak
8)Window regulator failed leaving the window stuck down
8 was the straw that broke the camels back, it was on eBay as spares as repair after that. Amazingly three years later it is still on the road according to the MOT checker.
BMW E60, 525.
They came out in 2003, i got one 6 months after. Ex demo, every option
What a nightmare, I was a beta tester
11 dealer visits later, I got shot a few weeks before the warranty expired . Electronic gremlins/software problems (eg upgrade to fix air con, stopped sidelights working!)/2 steering columns/terrible auto box due to sw
I didn’t take too much of a hit strangely when px
My wife was put off BMW for life, a shame really
They came out in 2003, i got one 6 months after. Ex demo, every option
What a nightmare, I was a beta tester
11 dealer visits later, I got shot a few weeks before the warranty expired . Electronic gremlins/software problems (eg upgrade to fix air con, stopped sidelights working!)/2 steering columns/terrible auto box due to sw
I didn’t take too much of a hit strangely when px
My wife was put off BMW for life, a shame really
Cliched but... Vauxhall. From engine mounts to cam belts snapping at 20k (warranty) to idle air control valves, to oil air coolers, to head gaskets, other electronics, to drinking vast amounts of oil generally and then having the oil seals go, and so on and so on.
And I've only driven German cars since then so my bar is not exactly set very high. German cars are not very reliable either but the difference really is night and day compared to Vauxhall.
Should really go Japanese, am rather liking the LC500...
And I've only driven German cars since then so my bar is not exactly set very high. German cars are not very reliable either but the difference really is night and day compared to Vauxhall.
Should really go Japanese, am rather liking the LC500...
There appears to be an awful lot of 'quality German cars' in this thread...
That aside, for me, it's a toss up between:
2006 Audi A3 2.0 TDi
2014 VW Caddy TDi
2009 Porsche Cayenne 4.8S
They were all absolutely shocking, but the 2006 A3 takes the prize.
Owned from new and effectively scrap metal by 55,000 miles and 4 years old. Constant electrical issues, ECU's replaced, MAF sensor failures, water pump failed, battery always going flat if it was left parked, faults with the EGR valve. By 55,000 miles I was informed that the Turbo was leaking loads of oil and worse, that the head on the engine had gone porous and had started guzzling water. Car was out of warranty.
Audi told me there was good news, it was a 'common problem' so they had a replacement head kit available for only £1900+VAT, plus fitting.
I just traded it in without fixing it. I would have loved to put that piece of s
t car through a giant shredder.
The VAG Group can go fk themselves. I would rather eat my own excrement than ever own a 1998-onwards VAG group car ever again.
I would probably include BMW in that as well. My wife has had a couple of BMW's and they were problematic at times as well.
Seriously, fk German engineering.
That aside, for me, it's a toss up between:
2006 Audi A3 2.0 TDi
2014 VW Caddy TDi
2009 Porsche Cayenne 4.8S
They were all absolutely shocking, but the 2006 A3 takes the prize.
Owned from new and effectively scrap metal by 55,000 miles and 4 years old. Constant electrical issues, ECU's replaced, MAF sensor failures, water pump failed, battery always going flat if it was left parked, faults with the EGR valve. By 55,000 miles I was informed that the Turbo was leaking loads of oil and worse, that the head on the engine had gone porous and had started guzzling water. Car was out of warranty.
Audi told me there was good news, it was a 'common problem' so they had a replacement head kit available for only £1900+VAT, plus fitting.
I just traded it in without fixing it. I would have loved to put that piece of s
t car through a giant shredder.The VAG Group can go f
k themselves. I would rather eat my own excrement than ever own a 1998-onwards VAG group car ever again. I would probably include BMW in that as well. My wife has had a couple of BMW's and they were problematic at times as well.
Seriously, f
k German engineering.Edited by anonymous-user on Thursday 13th August 14:36
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