Why are cars so complicated nowadays ?

Marlin47

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My habit is to buy a new car about every four or five years, make all the changes I want to by accessorising it etc, and then replace it. I have several cars and don't drive as much as I used to so I insure each car on the basis of driving it
for no more than 2000 miles per annum.

After several years of Porsche 911 ownership, my last two cars have been Aston
Martins. It has been noticeable that each change of car has been accompanied by more and more issues to deal with. These relate mainly to technical advances, but latterly have included matters such as extended warranties,
Tracker device fitment etc.

Because of a growing family, I have recently had to change from Aston Martin
to Bentley. The "issues" attending this car are vast in number and quite mind boggling. Of course, the car is perfect, as one would expect from a new Bentley,
but the technical complexities are overwhelming

Putting to oneside the fact that the car comes with a Bentley battery charger,
but not a battery conditioner, a device which is very necessary due to my using the car infrequently, it has keyless entry. This is all very well and permits one to enter and start the car without use of a key, but not if, between the driver and the passenger, both parties are carrying all three keys ( a situation that is not unlikely ).

What I am complaining about is that by all means, of course, continue to advance vehicle development technically since to do otherwise would be utterly idiotic, but at the same time continue to contrive to make them SIMPLER at the same time !
 
Go to India and buy a band new Tata unfortunately you won't be able to bring it back to the US because it won't have the electronic equipment necessary to pass any Western nation's emissions tests.

A quick search on the interweb suggests cars are becoming more reliable. Unfortunately because there is so much electronic and computer equipment on board the days of you fixing things by yourself are quickly receding. Especially for high end motors. Auto mechanics now need computer equipment and electronics training.

Your best bet is to buy the simplest vehicle with the least options that sells in large volume so that ten years from now you can cannibalize parts.

Luxury and simplicity is probably only available with the classic cars.
 
Thanks, but I'll stick with the Bentley ! I wouldn't be able to live down turning up at the golf club in a Tata. Not only that, but I spent three weeks in India last November and have just about recovered from the ill effects.
 
Thanks, but I'll stick with the Bentley ! I wouldn't be able to live down turning up at the golf club in a Tata. Not only that, but I spent three weeks in India last November and have just about recovered from the ill effects.


Col you would look just as dumb in a Bentley?
 
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You drive Bentley's and Aston Martin's......

Do you own Microsoft....???

or are we talking minatures here :D
 
It is well within the financial ability of anyone to drive whatever car he wishes. All you need
is to able to make reasonably sound car buying decisions. Apart from Alfa Romeos, of which I am inordinately fond, but have lost money on every one I buy/sell, I have consistently made good profits on every other car I have ever owned. Perhaps the best example was my Jaguar " E " Type series III roadster. I paid £6250 for it in 1979 and sold it ten years later for £65,000. I bought it back two years later for £69,950 and then sold it for a second time three years later for just over £100,000.

Mind you, buying it was not as smart a move I could have made, because parked next to it in the showroom was an Aston Martin DB5 drophead. The Aston was within my budget of £10,000, but I bought the Jaguar instead. That model of Aston Martin now quite easily fetch well over £400,000.
 
I omitted to mention the fact that last year I flew to Fort Lauderdale in Florida to buy a Bugatti Veyron. Although it had been a hire car it was as sweet as a nut with 9000 miles on the clock. This mileage is low for any other car, but quite high for a Veyron. The vendor let me have it for nearly a week in order to test drive it. I very nearly bought it, but had doubts as to being able to sell it later without losing money, so I walked away.
 
I omitted to mention the fact that last year I flew to Fort Lauderdale in Florida to buy a Bugatti Veyron. Although it had been a hire car it was as sweet as a nut with 9000 miles on the clock. This mileage is low for any other car, but quite high for a Veyron. The vendor let me have it for nearly a week in order to test drive it. I very nearly bought it, but had doubts as to being able to sell it later without losing money, so I walked away.

Are you sure you didn't sit outside a Colchester McDonalds having a cig dreamin?
 
Col you would look just as dumb in a Bentley?

Nothing to do with me Tony. I haven't logged in for about two weeks, too busy housing French students. July is a busy time.

If it was me, I wouldn't even contemplate a Bentley.

Col
 
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I have never had a car serviced, I think it is simply a license to print money for Car Manufacturers and Garages...

I have an onboard diagnostic computer that checks the electrics of the car everytime I turn the key, and I have an MOT each year that determines the mechanical wellbeing of the car... so why oh why do I need to pay somebody 200 quid to lift the bonnet (Hood for our American cousins ;)) scratch their head, tamper with something and then tell me something is wrong when perhaps it even isn't simply so they can get more money from me...

Modern cars are precision made instruments they should be left alone and not tampered with...

The sad thing is how the industry prices down cars that have not had a regular service record regardless of how well the car runs...
 
Part of the inspections and servicing is a scam to line pockets with money, but also I am sure that the mileage you put on a vehicle is not extensive based on the size of UK. Also with all those people condensed into a country that size I am sure that being in traffic must play a huge role in fuel burn.
Just wondering how much fuel someone would go through on average and what sort of distance is logged in a year?

I have never had a car serviced, I think it is simply a license to print money for Car Manufacturers and Garages...

I have an onboard diagnostic computer that checks the electrics of the car everytime I turn the key, and I have an MOT each year that determines the mechanical wellbeing of the car... so why oh why do I need to pay somebody 200 quid to lift the bonnet (Hood for our American cousins ;)) scratch their head, tamper with something and then tell me something is wrong when perhaps it even isn't simply so they can get more money from me...

Modern cars are precision made instruments they should be left alone and not tampered with...

The sad thing is how the industry prices down cars that have not had a regular service record regardless of how well the car runs...
 
Part of the inspections and servicing is a scam to line pockets with money, but also I am sure that the mileage you put on a vehicle is not extensive based on the size of UK. Also with all those people condensed into a country that size I am sure that being in traffic must play a huge role in fuel burn.
Just wondering how much fuel someone would go through on average and what sort of distance is logged in a year?

An average motorist who commutes to and from work and does average personal miles in their car would do around 12,000 to 14,000 miles per annum.

My mileage is around the 12,000 mark. My annual fuel bill for my car, it's diesel, is about £1,800 per annum.
 
The cost of Diesel in the UK is £1.39 per litre, approximately £6.95 per Gallon, my car averages about 55 miles to the Gallon, which is pretty good.
 
I was just wondering the mileage, I do know that the fuel prices are dear in UK and Europe as compared to Canada which is about half (equivalent to £0.79 petrol £0.76 diesel) and we are not as low in pricing as USA (equivalent to £0.60 petrol). Our mileage is about double for the year though, but things are very spread out in rural Canada.
 
I have never had a car serviced, I think it is simply a license to print money for Car Manufacturers and Garages

So you don't change the engine oil? It certainly doesn't last forever and running old oil will eventually do damage.
 
My habit is to buy a new car about every four or five years, make all the changes I want to by accessorising it etc, and then replace it. I have several cars and don't drive as much as I used to so I insure each car on the basis of driving it
for no more than 2000 miles per annum.

After several years of Porsche 911 ownership, my last two cars have been Aston
Martins. It has been noticeable that each change of car has been accompanied by more and more issues to deal with. These relate mainly to technical advances, but latterly have included matters such as extended warranties,
Tracker device fitment etc.

Because of a growing family, I have recently had to change from Aston Martin
to Bentley. The "issues" attending this car are vast in number and quite mind boggling. Of course, the car is perfect, as one would expect from a new Bentley,
but the technical complexities are overwhelming

Putting to oneside the fact that the car comes with a Bentley battery charger,
but not a battery conditioner, a device which is very necessary due to my using the car infrequently, it has keyless entry. This is all very well and permits one to enter and start the car without use of a key, but not if, between the driver and the passenger, both parties are carrying all three keys ( a situation that is not unlikely ).

What I am complaining about is that by all means, of course, continue to advance vehicle development technically since to do otherwise would be utterly idiotic, but at the same time continue to contrive to make them SIMPLER at the same time !

I have a very similar problem with my craftsman mover, If I am not sitting on the seat it won't start, and once I am sitting on the seat and its running and I pass gas, the engine stops. It's so embarrassing I can't take the fool tractor were there are ladies around. It does have a nice built in gun holster,<G>
biggrin.gif
 
I was just wondering the mileage, I do know that the fuel prices are dear in UK and Europe as compared to Canada which is about half (equivalent to £0.79 petrol £0.76 diesel) and we are not as low in pricing as USA (equivalent to £0.60 petrol). Our mileage is about double for the year though, but things are very spread out in rural Canada.

It's stop start motoring that causes wear and tear not steady miles.

Brian
 
So you don't change the engine oil? It certainly doesn't last forever and running old oil will eventually do damage.

Never have changed engine oil, simply topped it up when the oil level has got low...
 
The whole car industry as based around trying to fleece as much out of the consumer as possible, if it's not with the price of the vehicle, it is with servicing of the vehicle or insuring and fueling the vehicle...

Think I will walk... could be a long journey to work... ;) better call my boss and let them know I will be late.. :p
 

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