VW/Audi hasn't only cheated on diesel cars. Moreover, even if Japanese car makers should have done exactly the same, the irrefutable fact remains that they should have caused less harm in every aspect due to better production quality. If, on the other hand they haven't cheated, then the gap is even bigger.
The Germans have never (on this side of WW2) been even close to Japanese top quality. Even Porsche admitted it already back in the 1990s. And among German car makers VW is probably the worst, and in the VW family Audi is probably worst of them all because Audi is nothing else than tuned VW's, i.e. magnifying an already existing problem.
Klevius remembers when German "quality brands" like Blaupunkt etc. in the 1980's bought old Japanese video's, TVs etc. and labeled them with German brands, and stupid consumer bought them for a higher price than the same labeled Panasonic or JVC.
An other revealing experience was when Klevius in the early 1990s needed a roller bearing for a Japanese car and was offered a European (Swedish) SKF bearing. When Klevius asked if they had the original Japanese they said yes but insisted that SKF was "at least equally good". Klevius said that wasn't his expterience and asked to see the Japanese bearing. When compared it turned out that
1 the Japanese brand was perfectly and hermetically packed while the European was loosely wrapped in some oil paper and placed in a cheap looking loose box. Klevius bought the Japanese one, opened it and compared it to the European. It turned out that while the European had scratch marks in all directions the Japanese marks were one directional and extremely even.
2 When turning the bearings around near one's ear the Japanese was silent and smooth while the European was noisy and shaky. Klevius asked the seller which one he thought would last longer. He agreed with a surprised face.
When Kobe in Japan was hit by an enormous earthquake in the late 1990s all European "super cars" had to stop production because the most crucial high quality items were made in Japan (read more further down).
European hybrid passenger cars came ten years after they were introduced in Japan. And only with the help of Japanese technology branded German.
Against this background one might ask why world leading Honda isn't even on the list of the most sold cars in Europe?!
Honda (which together with Toyota/Lexus is the best car brand in the world) doesn't even show up on the list of the most sold Europan cars (2015 jan-jun):
1. Volkswagen: 867 147 sålda bilar, marknadsandel 12.1 %.
2. Ford: 528 902, 7.4 %
3. Renault: 508,850, 7.1 %
4. Opel/Vauxhall: 491,340, 6.9 %
5. Peugeot: 440 596, 6.1 %
6. Audi: 387 228, 5.4 %
7. Bmw: 356 444, 5.0 %
8. Mercedes: 354,471, 4.9 %
9. Fiat: 351,437, 4.9 %
10. Skoda: 304 635, 4.2 %
11. Nissan: 294 140, 4.1 %
12. Citroën: 287 344, 4.0 %
13. Toyota: 279 400, 3.9 %
14. Hyundai: 230 681, 3.2 %
15. Dacia: 205 115, 2.9 %
16. Kia: 195 158, 2.7 %
17. Seat: 180 272, 2.5 %
18. Volvo: 126 367, 1.8 %
2014 Lexus luxury cars far outscored every other brand (especially European ones) in dependability, with just 68 PP100, compared with e.g. Mercedes' 104 PP100.
Part of the reason for the misconception about German engineering is that German automakers did, at one time (i.e. before the Japanese showed up on the block, earn it. When Consumer Reports started its Long-Term Reliability Tests and Initial Quality Index tests way back in 1972, German brands like Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz came out on top. The initial quality of even the lowly VW Beetle topped many domestic vehicles from Ford, Jeep, Pontiac and Mercury.
In the 1980s and 90s the most reliable models ended up coming from Honda, Toyota, Acura, Infiniti and Lexus.
In the late ‘90s Mercedes had released the dismally unreliable M-Class SUV and the brand’s initial quality scores have plummeted since. Other German brands had similar experiences.
According to Consumer Reports, Mercedes boosted its reliability a bit in 2011, but is still inconsistent. The same can be said for Mercedes’ German competitors, Audi and BMW. In Consumer Reports last five annual reports, the last time these German brands have been above average in reliability was back in 2007. Since then, they’ve all slumped below the average in the industry.
Consumer Reports’ Long-Term Reliability test documents a car’s reliability over the course of three years, while the Initial Quality Index is based on consumer feedback from the first few months of a new cars ownership.
Consumer Reports also has a report card that ranks automakers based on their average car score, reliability score and the percentage of recommended vehicles. The average score for these carmaker report cards over the past five years (when they started the report cards) of the German brands doesn’t crack 68/100, below the industry average and the competition from the top Japanese automakers.
These results are reflected in numbers released by J.D. Power & Associates as well. In the both of the latest J.D. Power Surveys, the German brands can’t match up to their Japanese (and even some American) luxury peers. In the most recent vehicle dependability survey, Mercedes-Benz only gets a four out of five, which is “Better than most” rating, while Audi and BMW get 3/5 or “About Average.” Volkswagen falls below average with 2/5, what J.D. Power describes as “The Rest.” Porsche is also ranked “Better than most” in J.D. Power’s dependability survey, which give Mercedes-Benz some nice company. It’s important to note that only one car maker had a score of 5/5, and that’s Lexus. However, Lexus doesn't make cheap small cars for the masses as does Honda.
Nothing changes in J.D. Power’s Initial Quality rankings. Mercedes and Porsche have 4/5 ratings, BMW and Audi get just 3/5 and VW only achieves 2/5. Lexus tops that ranking as well with a 5/5.
The J.D. Power ratings are based on consumer surveys. Initial Quality is measured after 90 days of a new car’s purchase. Vehicle Dependability Ratings are surveys based on the past 12 months of original owners of three-year old cars. In other words, longterm quality issues do to poor parts quality will show the Germans being even worse.
In 2013 the German TÜV checked cars reliability etc and placed Toyota Prius in top for the up to 7 year old cars. Honda wasn't statstically available due to low sales.
In an other study German cars were 'among worst for engine failures'. Audi, BMW and VW ranked in the bottom 10 of a study into engine reliability.
German-made cars are not as reliable as many believe, according to new research. Warranty Direct has studied its claims data to compile a list of the manufacturers with the most reliable engines - and Audi, BMW and Volkswagen all finished in the bottom 10 out of a total 36 makers.
In fact, the only firm whose cars had a worse engine failure rate than Audi was MG Rover. MINI wasn’t much better, finishing third from bottom, while its parent company BMW came seventh from bottom. And, despite its unfounded reputation for "rock-solid reliability", Volkswagen came ninth from bottom.
Honda scooped the gold medal – the study found that just one in every 344 Honda engines failed, compared to one in every 27 Audi engines.
Apr 16, 2015 Honda has retained its status as the most reliable used car manufacturer in the UK for the ninth consecutive year, according to research by What Car? and Warranty Direct.
The German protestant myth and the Japanese Shinto secret
Audi has constantly managed to score below average quality. Japanese have constantly managed to score above average. Why?
Has Hitler's cars victimized more people than his army?
German car maker Audi used Nazi slave labor during World War II
It all started with the stupid idea of a cheap car for the
masses with the driving unit over the driving wheels in the rear, the
battery in the middle, and the fuel tank in the front as the main impact
zone. As a consequence the engine was made air cooled with a huge noisy
fan. Luckily we don't see these kinds of dangerous cars anymore -
except for Porsche of course. Ever tried to drive a classic Porsche on a
road littered with grovel, old leaves etc., or just wet?! The Beetle
was definitely safer because of its lower power output and smother on
the road. However, the noise is almost the same.
The
need for a cheap, simple car to be mass-produced for Hitler's new
Autobahn network of Germany, was formulated by Hitler himself, the
leader of the National-socialist Germany. In June 1934 Ferdinand Porsche
received a contract from Hitler to design a "people's car" (or
Volkswagen). The production of this death trap went on from 1938 until
2003.
In other words, VW continued to spit out this dangerous car in
less developed countries for profit for 40 years after its much safer
front engine and front wheel driven successor Golf had been introduced.
In
1937, Porsche joined the National Socialist German Workers' Party
(becoming member no. 5,643,287) as well as Schutzstaffel (SS). By 1938,
Porsche was using the SS as security members and drivers at his factory,
and later set up a special unit called SS Sturmwerk Volkswagen. In
1942, Porsche reached the rank of SS-Oberführer. During the war, Porsche
was further decorated with the SS-Ehrenring and awarded the War Merit
Cross.
A new city, "Stadt des KdF-Wagens" was founded near
Fallersleben for the Volkswagen factory, but wartime production
concentrated almost exclusively on the military Kübelwagen and
Schwimmwagen variants. Mass production of the car, which later became
known as the Beetle, began after the end of the war. The city is named
Wolfsburg today and is still the headquarters of the Volkswagen Group.
Hitler
contracted Porsche in 1934 to design and build it to his exacting
standards. Ferdinand Porsche and his team took until 1938 to finalise
the design. This is one of the first rear-engined cars. With over 21
million manufactured (21,529,464) in an air-cooled, rear-engined,
rear-wheel drive configuration, the Beetle is the longest-running and
most-manufactured and most dangerous car of a single design platform,
worldwide
This car was made in the 1960s at the same time as this Japanese Mazda
Luce (below) which in every aspect was its direct opposite - except for
the price tag. Yet, people continued buying the catastrophic Beetle!
Why? Because it was German and you couldn't trust the Japanese, could
you.
VW Beetle 1966: Air cooled engine based on WW2 technology. Maximum Output: 50hp, Top speed: 123 km/h.
0-60mph 23.0 (declared by factory but usually slower - the lousy engine rarely worked as it was planned to).
A more expensive but poor quality Audi from the same time
Audi 1700, 1966, 71 hp / 72 PS, top speed: 148 km/h (declared by factory
- not in real life); accelerations: 0- 60 mph 14.8 s (declared by
factory - not in real life). The engine was extremely old fashioned
compared to Mazda Luce's engine. Moreover, it was nowhere near the
quality and reliability of the Japanese. The car was in every other
aspect also inferior. Where the Audi had mechanical fuel pump, poor
electric generator, poor brakes etc. Mazda was just the opposite.
Already
in the late 1950s the Japanese technological and quality superiority
was obvious. Just compare the bikes above from BMW and Honda.
Mazda 1500 Luce 1966: 84 hp/86 PS, top speed: 160 km/h; accelerations:
0- 60 mph 14.3 s (declared by a cautious factory but usually faster).
OHC, Alu top, 50/50% weight distrib. Kad all the latest safety devices
etc that VW lacked. The most beautiful (did BMW copy it?) and reliable
(compared to its time) sedan ever made? Remember that Mazda was the only
one who managed to develope a functioning rotary engine! After the 1992
le Mans win Mazda's rotary engine was, of course, excluded from racing
again!
Sweden's biggest motoring organization warns: This is why Audi/VW engines fail
Is Audi the world's worst "luxury" car?
compared to the best
Some voices from VW/Audi victims further down on the posting
Klevius wrote:
Why is the media shouting FIRST EVER when a bunch of European countries try to copy what Japan did a decade ago?!
Nissan rocket no. 1 with the Hayabusa robot first ever in the world to
land and bring back stuff from a body (Itokawa asteroid) outside
Earth/Moon
Nissan rocket no. 2 Nissan GT-R Nismo the world's fastest non-electric super car
With a lap time of 7 min 8 sec Nissan GTR is the fastest, (non-hybrid*)
globally-homologated road car around the world's most famous race track
Nurburgring in Germany.
The old GTR was the first car to go under 8 minutes at Nurburgring.
* i.e. using a battery and Japanese hybrid technology to get extra power for the short time the ride lasts.
A Nissan Skyline* GTR ATESSA 4WD (2700 cc 6 cyl 280-1600 hp) from the
1990s - the Japanese legend that Lambourghini Gallardo (5000 cc) was
aimed to beat - more than a decade later! But consider huge difference
in quality! The old Skyline GTR has the world record for legal cars abt
350 km/h on a German (!) autobahn (unofficial >380 km/h)!
What all GTRs have in common compared to non-Japanese super cars is
superior quality. Already in the 1990s a Porsche CEO admitted that they
can never achieve the same quality level as the Japanese.
* The new GTR has dropped the Skyline name. However, the basics are the same: 4WD and a small but powerful 6 cylinder engine.
Obama fines the cleanest cars and the highest quality - while the culprit is a US company and a rotten legal system!
What Obama & Co did against Toyota is perhaps the worst of crimes against consumers
but quite in line with other evils of his administration - like the eager support of medieval islamofascism.
Electrical failures (like other types of failures) rare in Japanese
cars - because of a superior production policy compared to all others.
Decades of quality surveys paint an unambiguous picture.
Just one of hundreds of examples. In a study of the worst models, two
thirds of all Chrysler Sebring’s (66 per cent) experienced electrical
breakdowns, while the Hyundai Matrix (63 per cent) and Mercedes-Benz E
Class (60 per cent) followed closely behind. The study also found that
over 25 per cent of Renault, Saab, MG, Audi, Citroen, Seat and BMW
models suffered electrical failure each year.
In contrast, just one out of seven Subarus developed an electrical fault
each year, whilst there were no recorded claims with the Honda S2000
(the best high rewing non-turbo 4 in line engine ever built), Mazda 5,
and Toyota Prius (the world's first mass produced hybrid already in
1997).
Why Toyota Must Replace Flawed CTS Gas Pedal With Superior (Japanese) Denso Pedal
By Paul Niedermeyer on February 1, 2010
Update: a portal to all of TTAC’s articles on the subject of Toyota gas pedals is here:
Toyota uses two different electronic gas pedal designs in its cars. The
version built by CTS (lower) is the subject of a massive recall, and the
2.3 million units in affected Toyota cars are to be “fixed” by the
insertion of a steel shim. This CTS design is also being modified for
new Toyota production, currently suspended. To our knowledge, Toyotas
built with the other design (by Denso, upper) are not subject to any
recalls or NHTSA investigations,. We have spent the last two days
tearing down both units, and familiarized ourselves with their designs,
reviewed Toyota’s “shim fix”, and replicated the fix ourselves. Toyota’s
planned fix will undoubtedly reduce the likelihood of sticky pedals in
the short term, but after examining both units, we are convinced that
the CTS unit is intrinsically a flawed design, and poses safety risks in
the long term, even with the fix. The only right action for Toyota is
to acknowledge the long history of problems with the CTS-type unit, and
replace them all with the superior Denso or another pedal unit that
lacks the intrinsic flaws of the CTS design.
Before we briefly review the key design differences, we must acknowledge
that Toyota is ultimately responsible for both designs. CTS has stated
that its product was built to Toyota specifications. What we don’t know
(or understand) is why Toyota has two such fundamentally different units
in production. Is one unit cheaper to build? Or was CTS tooled up to
produce its unit because of other similar units it builds for other
manufacturers? What we do know is that the CTS unit has been used in
Toyota products since 2005, whereas the Denso unit has been in use since
well before that time. Toyotas sold in Europe are also subject to a
similar recall, and based on the description of the issues and the unit,
it appears that it is the same or similar design as the CTS unit, but
we do not know if it was built by CTS or another supplier.
The key component in question is the friction arm of the CTS. It is both
essential and desirable to have a certain defined degree of friction in
these electronic gas pedal assemblies. The amount of friction is
designed to be some degree less than the return spring, so that when the
pedal is released, it returns to the closed position. But the friction
(hysteresis) makes it easier to maintain a steady throttle setting, and
relieves strain from pushing against the spring continuously. It
simulates the intrinsic friction that is present in the traditional
throttle cable as it passes through the cable housing.
The two units generate the desired degree of friction in very different
ways. In the Denso unit (above), the return spring (steel coil) is
squeezed on both sides of its housing. It rubs against the plastic
housing as it compresses, which generates the desired amount of
friction. Both sides of the full length of the Denso coil are in
continuous contact with the rubbed are, spreading out the contact area
size. And the metal to plastic interface seems to be relatively
unproblematic.
The CTS unit is a fundamentally different design. The friction is
generated by two “teeth” (A) that extend from the friction arm, and ride
in two grooved channels of the housing (B). The friction arm is an
extension of the pedal itself, and moves as the pedal is moved. Both the
friction arm, its teeth and the surface it rubs against are plastic.
Notice the small area of contact (dulled gray spot on tooth). This is
the fundamental source of the problem with this unit, and one that
Toyota has not come clean about. The friction unit assembled, showing
the teeth engaged in the two grooves, is shown below.
In Toyota V.P. Jim Lentz’ appearance on the Today show, he claimed that
issues with the friction arm go back to only October of 2009. Not so.
According to a letter from Toyota to the NHTSA , in 2007 Toyota changed
the plastic material used in the friction arm (from PA46 to PPS) in
response to problems similar to those occurring now.
Furthermore, Toyota has been facing similar issues in Europe going back to 2008:
Toyota has been modifying the friction-arm (CTS) type assembly since
2007. Yet to our knowledge, the Denso design has never been implicated
in any sticking-pedal issue, and has presumably been in production for
some ten years. Why didn’t Toyota change over years ago?
Klevius answer: Because Toyota wanted to use US suppliers for more easy to do components on its biggest market outside Japan.
This is in line with what happened to their Avensis model long time ago
when its production started in UK. A Finnish car magazine (Tekniikan
Maailma) made an extremely thorough comparison between Toyota cars made
in Japan and same cars made in UK. The magazine even demounted the
engines into its smallest parts before measurements and analysis. The
results where striking and showed that the Japan made were clearly of
better quality. However, the UK made Toyotas still easily outperformed
the Germans and others!
Porsche is said to have the best quality of non-Japanese cars. Despite
the fact that more expensive cars are easier to produce do to bigger
profit margins. However, already in the 1990s Porsche's executive
admitted that they can never achieve Japanese standard of quality.
He was so right!
Porsche will replace the engines in all of its current model year 911
GT3 sports cars due to poor quality engines, and has told owners to stop
driving the cars because they could catch fire, the Volkswagen AG
(VOWG_p.DE) unit said on Tuesday.
Last month, Porsche said it was
recalling all of the model year 2014 911 GT3 cars produced because of
oil leaks, fire risk and engine break down.
The action was taken
after Porsche said it investigated engine fires in which a loosened
fastener caused oil to leak, which then caught fire.
Porsche is allegedly cooperating with U.S. regulators (why isn't
Obama suing VW?!) in the recall and engine replacements, and is in touch
with each customer who owns one of the affected vehicles.
The GT3 is the sportiest of the 16 variants of the Porsche 911 sold in
the U.S. market but the real question is how this poor production
quality has affected other Porsches as well - not to mention all VWs
with their enormous DSG (gearbox) and other quality problems that makes
them stall when you overtake, catch fire, accelerate unintentionally
etc. VW's (incl. Audi) severe quality problems have been going on for
years. Actually, VW is most possibly the worst road killer ever. It all
started with Hitler's revenge on the after world, VW Beetle with an air
cooled engine (that consumed like a V8 and never lasted for long) placed
in the trunk (compare Porsche) and the gas tank placed behind the tiny
front bumper, and the battery inside the car! So, although the front was
soft enough, the gas shower you got in your face through the broken
windscreen then continued to the battery behind you. But most people
didn't bother anymore - with a steering rod penetrating their body.
The two-seat Porsche has a base price of about $131,000 (94,200 euros)
in the United States and about 137,000 euros ($191,000) in Europe.
more car safety etc info:
Ever seen a super car - or rather a small high quality car, which is
much harder to produce, the French need state (tax payers) support to
produce their low quality cars - or some other high tech made in Saudi
Arabia, Egypt, Abu Dhabi etc muslim countries?!
But why is Top Gear's Richard Hammond so stupid. Has he converted to
islam*?! Why is he lying? Why isn't he even trying to deliver some
relevant consumer info?
* Only in islamofascist places like Abu Dhabi (built by oil money from the West) where it's proposed that only stupid
wealthy people should be alloved to drive, can you find so many stupid
cars, buyers and drivers. And contrast this with poor countries, what do
you see if not loads of old Japanese cars. To be poor forces you to
chose quality!
Unlike May, who openly admits the
stupidity of his beloved Italians, Hammond seems to desperately try to
rescue Porsche from drowning in the sea of real facts. It's a pity cause
otherwise he too seems to be such a lovable creature. Btw, Porsche was
made as a "sporty" Beetle (aka "Hitler's revenge") and because of the
weight over the rear wheels caused by its tail engine, it got better
acceleration grip and became popular as a race car in the 1950s and 60s
in the hands of skillful drivers. However, precisely because of the same
reason it also became a death trap for less skillful drivers.
Klevius (who is extremely* normal - possibly except for his
driving skills he got on dark icy roads in Finland with used Japanese
cars at maximum speed without a single mishap for decades) has
always considered the Top Gear guys lovely insane. However, if pressed
Klevius has to admit that before Jeremy saw the light in Nissan GTR and
Lexus LFA (and Honda S2000 - not sure about his view), he appeared only
marginally more intelligent than his dummy in Madame Tussaud's cabinet.
What disqualified Jeremy as a human being was when he long ago, missed
to truly recognize the technological wonder under the hood of a Honda
Civic Type R. Not a word about the unparalleled high reving engine and
quality that made it the world's only small and cheap but fast hatchback
that could be used as a normal car on low revs (without a turbo) while
turning into a sports car when needed on high revs. And unlike Ferraris
and other costly big low quality stupidities, the Honda engine
technology, because of its small size, has to stand much more of high
revs in use than a four litre Ferrari with hundreds of more horsepower.
You can't possibly utilize a big engine at high revs as often as a small
one. This was actually the whole idea: Fiat makes small low reving cars
and Ferrari makes expensive big ones that no one can use to the max
very often and if used on the track warranties are gone. Actually, you
don't need a track to destroy a Ferrari it does it quite often just by
itself.Very unlike Honda S2000 which already 1999 managed to produce a
9,000 rpm 251 hp 1997cc engine without a turbo that also lasted due to
superior production technology.
* Klevius is like most people. Most
people are Atheists. Most people have kids. Most people adhere to the
thought about Human Rights that everyone should be seen as equal - even
women. Most people aren't addicts. Most people aren't violent or bad to
other people. Most people don't have extremist political etc. views
(adhering to Human Rights isn't extremism). Most people aren't sexual
predators. Most people don't have criminal records. Most people are
social. Most people like football. Klevius ticks every box - that's why
he's extremely normal.
However, rumor tells Jeremy may have participated in a heroic
demonstration against stupid and racist Euro 5 emission rules which
punish Type R precisely for its technological capacity to pollute less
than its turbo charged rivals. If this is true Jeremy has the Human
Right to be reassessed as a human being. Don't you think?
Japanese Shinto continues ruling Nurburgring/Germany
Nissan GTR Nismo is the fastest non-hybrid serious production car on Nurburgring
2-seater (Nissan GTR is 4-seater) Porsche 918 is a RWD w 4WD when
battery allows it (Nissan is 4WD whenever needed) extremely low, 1,167
mm (Nissan GTR 1,372 mm) plug in hybrid which is just an overweight RWD
car easily beaten by a GTR Nismo after the short period the battery
lasts. And even w fully charged battery, performance is about the same.
The only reason it could creep under 7 min was the electric motor torque
(compare the Americans which took their torque from even bigger
engines!
Porsche 918 will cost US$845,000 while the better quality and performing
2015 Nissan GTR Nismo will cost from $149,990 with a 3.8l V6, 600hp,
481lb/ft of torque. It currently holds the lap record for a mass
production vehicle at Germany’s famous Nordschleife circuit with a time
of 7:08.679. It has a top speed just short of 200mph, 0-60 in 2.6 and features
technology perfected by the truly Japanese Nissan Nismo factory (i.e.
not the same as ordinary Nissans but the one behind Infiniti's Formula
One success etc).
Fastest laps reported at Nurburgring
6:57 (this car was built only for repairing Porsche's damaged reputation - it's a stupid heavy monstrosity in all other aspects)
Porsche 918 Spyder
4.6l V8 + Toyota hybrid motors and tech
Marc Lieb
4 September 2013
Equipped w 'Weissach Package' with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres. Observed by Sport Auto.
7:08.69
Nissan GT-R Nismo (2015)
Michael Krumm
September 30, 2013
'Track Pack' with 255/40RF-20 run-flat Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT 600 DSST tires.
7:12:13
Dodge Viper ACR (2010)
with an 8l V8
Dominik Farnbacher
14 September 2011
SRT conducted test. Video and manufacturer confirmed. OEM Michelin Pilot
Sport Cup R compound track DOT competition tires. TTAC article.
7:14.64
Lexus LFA Nürburgring Package
Akira Iida
31 August 2011
Lexus conducted test. Video confirmed. Stock LFA with "Nürburgring
Package". OEM Bridgestone Potenza RE070 street tires. Additional Roll
Cage was equipped
7:19.63
Chevrolet Corvette C6 ZR1 (2012)
7l V8
Jim Mero
9 June 2011
General Motors conducted test,[24] base specification car with optional
track DOT competition tires (Michelin Pilot Sport Cup Zero Pressure),
video confirmed.
7:24
Porsche 911 GT2 RS
the fastest non-hybrid Porsche
Horst von Saurma
Sport Auto
7:24.22
Nissan GT-R (2011)
Toshio Suzuki
1 October 2010
Nissan conducted test.[29]
Semi-wet conditions. Video confirmed. Best Motoring (12/2010).
7:24.3
Maserati MC12
Marc Basseng
August 2008
Evo Magazine conducted test
Best Ferrari comes way down:
7:25.7
Ferrari Enzo
Marc Basseng
August 2008
Evo Magazine conducted test
Car quality study 2014
Do note that Acura and Honda are the same - just like Audi and
Volkswagen. Also note that while Mercedes sell expensive cars in US
Honda does the opposite. Same with BMW compared to Subaru. With such a
reading you'll soon realize that among luxus cars no one is even close
to Lexus and that among ordinary cars Honda and Toyota are the by far
best brands. And although Toyota may have a lead in selling hybrids
Honda has always been ranked the greenest car producer overall in the
world.
Compare this to:
2006 Consumer report: "After Lexus, Honda and Toyota, the brands
rounding out the top ten for reliability were Mitsubishi, Subaru, Acura,
Scion, Mercury, Mazda and Suzuki. The ten lowest-rated brands were
Audi, Infiniti, Saturn, Lincoln, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Land
Rover, Hummer and Porsche."
Porsche can't even produce a high
tech small car and BMW's Mini is a quality disaster! Compare this to the
extreme quality and built-in drivability and Honda high tech feeling
(also compare Honda Asimo) in a Civic made for ordinary users! Not to
mention high tech Honda hybrid and Fuel Cell cars. Honda also makes the cleanest diesel engines.
Honda has the world's best engines followed by Toyota - and Germans are among the worst
German cars 'among worst for engine failures'
Audi, BMW and VW ranked in the bottom 10 of a study into engine reliability
German-made cars are not as reliable as many believe, according to new
research (Klevius comment: German cars have never been even close to
Japanese best brands - but the myth is still on). Warranty Direct has
studied its claims data to compile a list of the manufacturers with the
most reliable engines - and Audi, BMW and Volkswagen all finished in the
bottom 10 out of a total 36 makers.
In fact, the only firm whose cars had a worse engine failure rate than
Audi was MG Rover. MINI wasn’t much better, finishing third from bottom,
while its parent company BMW came seventh from bottom. And, despite its
reputation for rock-solid reliability, Volkswagen came ninth from
bottom.
Honda scooped the gold medal – the study found that just one in every
344 Honda engines failed, compared to one in every 27 Audi engines.
Honda has the world's best engines followed by Toyota - and Germans are among the worst
German cars 'among worst for engine failures'
Audi, BMW and VW ranked in the bottom 10 of a study into engine reliability
German-made
cars are not as reliable as many believe, according to new research
(Klevius comment: German cars have never been even close to Japanese
best brands - but the myth is still on). Warranty Direct has studied its
claims data to compile a list of the manufacturers with the most
reliable engines - and Audi, BMW and Volkswagen all finished in the
bottom 10 out of a total 36 makers.
In fact, the only
firm whose cars had a worse engine failure rate than Audi was MG Rover.
MINI wasn’t much better, finishing third from bottom, while its parent
company BMW came seventh from bottom. Volkswagen came ninth from bottom.
Car safety study
According to Swedish Folksam's insurance statistics on car fires only
one out of the 55 most dangerous cars in Sweden was Japanese, whereas 34
out of the 47 least dangerous cars were Japanese (with Toyota and Honda
in top)!
Japanese high tech in context
Although Japanese technology, in its "relentless pursuit for
perfection", always has created the world's best swords, and the Arabs
usually got their inferior ones from others, it seems that the latter
ones have been in much more frequent usage for submission throughout
history than the former!
Klevius wrote about HAYABUSA’s space mission 2005 (mainly because
almost no one else did): To bring back samples from an asteroid and
investigate the mysteries of the birth of the solar system. This
Japanese ultra technology, and world unique performance, isn't even
reported in Sweden, so far (9/2005)!?
Today we know Hayabisa landed not only once but several times on the
asteroid and then successfully delivered samples back to Earth. An
accomplishment no other nation has succeeded with so far.
The phony Porsche 918 and what Richard Hammond forgot to tell you about it
Porsche 918 Spyder has a big V8 engine coupled to a Toyots hybrid
technology similar to that used in a Lexus SUV and, according to the
official figures, emits just 70g/km of CO2 while using just 3.0l/100km.
So we are to believe it’s faster than a Porsche 911 Turbo, and more
economical and emits less carbon than a Prius.
The NEDC (New European Driving Cycle) test on which these fanciful and
gravely misleading official emission figures are based, unreasonably
favors cars that use plugs as well as petrol, and with no realistic
assessment of engine size, real time driving etc.
These official CO2 (and associated fuel usage) figures are used to promote cars. But the figures are deeply flawed.
The official test is done at warm temperatures (between 20 and 30deg C)
and cold weather reduces the efficiency of the hybrids’ batteries while
you’ll also need to use the electric-powered heater or, when it's hot,
air conditioner, increasing electric energy consumption and reducing
range.
Moreover, air conditioning, lights and heated windows are all turned off
in the test cycle, the test is statistically biased to a high amount of
urban driving, where hybrids perform better.
The official test is even less accurate for plug-in hybrids such as the
Porsche 918 Spyder, because the CO2 emissions from power stations used
to charge their batteries are ignored. On top of this there are numerous
assumptions, each of which flatters a plug-in hybrid’s fuel economy.
Why? Because European car makers were so much behind the Japanese and
now when they finally bought in to the Japanese technology they chose
the plug-in variant
The NEDC test assumes a plug-in hybrid starts each journey with a fully
charged battery on which it can run electric-only until the charge is
depleted. Once the battery is exhausted, it assumes you’ll go no further
than 25km on petrol power before charging again. Just a few km more
with a near five litre V8 compared to a 1,6 litre Prius makes a huge
difference, not to mention that people buying a Porsche don't drive like
Prius drivers in the first place.
If you don’t charge up as regularly as the test assumes, or drive longer
distances between recharging, fuel consumption (and CO2 emissions) will
be much higher.
The normal hybrid Prius officially emits 89g/km of CO2 while the
otherwise identical ‘Plug-in’ Prius emits 49g, and consumes 3.9 vs 2.1
(L/100km).
Plug-in hybrid "supercars" (918 Spyder, new ‘Enzo’ Ferrari, McLaren P1
etc) are easily beaten in overall performance by, for example the much
cheaper but qualitatively superior, Nissan GTR Nismo and Lexus LF-A/RC1.
Honda engine fun in a lousy old fashioned BMW
Do note that this is already an old story.
Here's
a funny story abt some crazy Japanese street mechanics enlivening a
tired BMW by the help of an old 1999 Honda S2000 STANDARD engine - 250
hp from 2 litre WITHOUT A TURBO more than a decade ago! Kiss my ass
Ferrari). Note the BMW's rev meter's redline at 6000 plus, & how the
lively Honda engine pushes the needle all the way round to the start
position at zero! see
the hilarious video!
Here's what Klevius wrote 2005:
Update January 9, 2006 (American Daily):
"Christianity,
Judaism, Hinduism, Shintoism, and Confucianism are all religions of the
world. Islam says it is a religion among world religions. It is not. It
is a killing cult, nothing more. Islam demands that those who do not
convert to Islam be slain or taken as slaves. There is no third option.
With the genuine world religions, they tolerate those who do not agree
with their tenets. They do not declare that those who do not agree with
their dogmas be slain or taken as slaves."
Klevius comment:
Look at those pathetic males (pathetic if they are racist/sexist
pan-Arabic Islamist mosque-building oil-billionaires who trade in
Islamic darkness in mosques, schools, universities, youth organizations
etc?)! Too busy spending oil-money on technical wonders their own slave
& oil-fuelled pan-Arabic/Islamic culture is uncapable of producing?
Whereas
Shinto (the world's oldest* religion) created the world's best high tech,
Islam (the world's youngest "religion") created terror and Koran-brainwashed suicide-killers in the service of fascist and sexist pan-Arabism (i.e. true Islam)!
For a better world in Darfur and elsewhere - bury Islam! Islam has caused more suffering than any other ideology (incl. Hitler's & Stalin's socialism/communism),
yet it has always been excused (and surprisingly often by its own
victims, i.e. the opposite compared to the "black"/"white" situation)!
This (Saud based OIC and its Saudi Sharia Fuhrer Iyad Madani) is islam
today - and it's against the most basic Human Rights! No matter how many
times you or your informants tell us islam is nice!
How come that the best tech in the world comes from a non-muslim and non-Christian people?
Who moron bought Steinway?
And why do many churches, concert halls etc keep buying inferior grands?
Klevius has the answer - keep reading!
BBC's confused "piano expert" Chris Hopkins, didn't even mention the
best brand when he named his favorite piano makers. Instead Chris
Hopkins blabbed about Steinway and their top model D. And here comes the
truly revealing part. When asked to motivate his opinion Chris Hopkins
had nothing logical to say but instead admitted that the Steinway D's
quality differed widely between individual pianos. But this devastating
fact he then tried to turn positive in the old tiresome babbling about
"hand made"* and "individuals", when the fact is that Steinway cannot
produce the same quality pianos as Yamaha because of the same reason
Ferrari, Porsche etc cannot produce the same quality as Lexus etc
Japanese high tech cars.
* Compare extremely over-prized (part
of the selling trick) handmade European watches - usually driven by some
already outdated Japanese tech.
Kevin Higgins (about Yamaha CFX): I was pleasantly surprised by the warm
round tone of each note. It was the best piano I have ever played. The
action was easy and the keyboard had a nice textured feel that gave me
confidence and security in my play. Much easier to play than the
Steinway D. More clarity on the bottom end. This piano achieves real
depth but with a better action. It's amazing.
Klevius: Not only that. Yamaha's superior and even production quality guarantees that you really get what you want.
Yamaha talked to hundreds of the world’s most accomplished pianists,
including those that did not play Yamaha pianos, and they asked them all
what it was they most wanted to see in a concert instrument, and also
what they hoped not to see.
Klevius comment: If they'd asked the buyers instead they'd likely got
the answer that they hoped not to see the Yamaha brand name on the
piano. Btw, have you noticed how TV cameras tend to be allergic to the
Yamaha brand name while never missing an opportunity to show the
Steinway brand name. Crypto-racism?!
The V10 engine in Lexus LFA is made by Yamaha.
Never buy a camera with a Zeiss lens
I got a cheap Sony bridge camera more than four years ago. I've taken
thousands and thousands of pics and I've had it out almost every day in a
variety of wet, sandy, dirty, hot and cold environments loose in the
car or in some suspicious bags etc without any other protection. It has
never failed (the only Japanese camera that has failed for me was a
Panasonic with a Zeiss lens - which very soon lacked working both
zooming and focusing while the rest of the camera works perfectly). I'm
sure I'm not alone. Just check quality lists etc.
This photo was taken hand-held with my soon five year old cheap Sony HX1 recently.
No Audis at the top
It's not just Lexus - it's Japanese world leading quality
Ignorant people don't realize that Japanese quality is older than
Germany is as a nation. The pre-history of Japanese quality goes deep
into Shinto tradition. No dude, Shinto isn't a stupid "monotheist
religion"!
There's a multitude of quality surveys out there from the last half of a
century which could vary considerably due to methods etc. However, when
summed up the Japanese stand out as overwhelmingly superior. And
despite an equally long period of besserwissers telling us it won't last
- it still lasts.
Just one example from a safety aspect:
Risk of car fires recorded by Sweden's biggest insurance company Folksam
Japanese brands on average face a far less risk of bursting into flames,
than do European cars (see note above)! Especially Volvo and French
cars, but also all the German brands, are much often involved in
accidental or even spontaneous car fire. Although this is well in line
with previous studies on TV-fires, which found that European brands were
involved up to 50 times more often than similar Japanese and Korean
brands, Volvo and others continue to talk safety! When a Swedish mother
left her child for day care, she found her new Volvo X90 in spontanenous
flames after having left it for a few minutes. Luckily she took her
older child with her inside the day care center! These kinds of stories
are very common. So next time you buy a car you may reconsider the
safety issue, especially the one that concerns the real life situation
where you want to use your car.
The most dangerous brands? BMW, VW & Peugeot plus, of course, perhaps the worst, Volvo
which, apart from burning very easily, has much more than the average of safety problems related to poor build quality.
According to Swedish Folksam's insurance statistics on car fires only
one out of the 55 most dangerous cars in Sweden was Japanese, whereas 34
out of the 47 least dangerous cars were Japanese (with Toyota and Honda
in top).
Just the tip of the VW/Audi iceberg of quality problems
http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/long-term-quality-the-audi-syndrome-1683110437
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome
77,394
69
Steven Lang
2/02/15 10:00am
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome
We all have biases. Sometimes it comes from experience. Other times,
it's a psychological trapping whose foundation can range from hard data
to soft rumors. In the case of Audi, it's both.
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome
12345...8
Audi has the inglorious honor of ranking among the six worst active
brands you can buy (click the graph to the left for a closer look). Land
Rover, MINI, Jaguar, Volkswagen and Smart are right down there with
Audi's overall ranking.
However, that low overall ranking doesn't mean that all Audis deserve to
be recycled into low-content Chinese versions of Corollas and Camrys.
Far from it. In fact, my brother and my niece now own a late model A6
and an A4 respectively due to my recommendations of both models.
I believe they're going to be perfectly happy with both cars due to three big reasons.
1. They can afford the high maintenance costs that come with owning an Audi.
2. They don't get too bothered by minor electrical issues that tend to gradually creep up on these models as they age.
and the monumental #3 — they will never own any model that has the enduring mechanical ugliness of an old Audi A4.
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome910
The A4 from the late 90's to the late 00's that featured the 1.8 Liter
turbocharged four-cylinder engine usually needed a lot of special care
to last. Synthetic oil. Specific oil filters (never the cheap stuff). A
unique attention to minor issues before they became major ones, and for
most buyers of this compact sports sedan, the willingness to pay a
garage $$$$ to keep 'em going,
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome11
See the engine issues pointed right towards the red? That will be the
eternal legacy of Volkswagen's 1.8 Liter turbocharged four-cylinder that
was put into the Audi A4.
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome
That red bulge before the big black peak represents an army of ex-Audi
owners trading-in their older A4s well-before the industry average which
is to the lower right of it.
Most likely these A4 owners got tired of throwing more money into a
middling level of horsepower, or the Audi alums were afraid to see yet
another repair bill in the four figures.
Throw in a not so good overall rating for Audi transmissions and it's
easy to simply write off Audi altogether. After all, the Audi A4 has
been the best selling model in the Audi fleet for nearly 20 years.
But then there's this...
Audi A3
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome
and this...
Audi Q7
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome
The Audi A3 and Audi Q7 are holding up quite well. If you click here and
scroll down a bit, you'll find that both models are traded-in before
they reach the industry average. But this is because they are far
younger models than the eleven and a half year average age of today's
car in North America. However, because they also tend to have minimal
mechanical issues compared to their competitors, we don't count the
early trade-in as a negative, which is why they are rated "Above
Average" overall.
The Audi Q7 in particular has an overall reliability rating that, to be frank, would do any Honda or Toyota owner proud.
What happened? Audi dramatically improved the overall quality of their
powertrains, gave their dealer networks a far better means to handle
early issues, and designed a certified pre-owned program that is among
the strongest in the industry. Both of the vehicles my family bought
were CPO models with a 6 year /100,000 mile warranty. BMW matches it
while Mercedes is now at a 5-years and unlimited mileage.
Everyone has upped their game a bit in the near-luxury market. Will the
late model Audis be able to endure past the 100k mark without any major
mechanical issues? The 618,000 data samples we have collected so far
doesn't support that view quite yet, and let's face it. The current
reputation of dual-clutch transmissions and any non-diesel VW with a
turbocharger is still fighting the uphill battle of a nasty legacy.
But when the data is out there, we'll get it and show it here at
Jalopnik. This information will be available for free, forever, and in
the coming weeks, we will also be releasing a comparison tool that will
let you evaluate the used cars that interest you by year, make and
model.
For right now, here's a compilation of how each Audi model has
performed. Want to look at other brands and market segments? Feel free
to click away. By the end of 2015, we will have nearly a million data
samples to help consumers find those used cars that are worth keeping.
Long-Term Quality: The Audi Syndrome
69
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Steven Lang’s Discussions
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drjohannvegas
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Steven Lang
2/01/15 3:30pm
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Might have missed this in a prior post, but what IS your data source?
Edit: I even went to the mainpage of your site and goofed around. Still not clear.
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Iamopenlyjudgingyou
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DrJohannVegas
2/02/15 12:04pm
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I have been a car dealer, an auctioneer, and part-owner of an auto
auction over the past 15 years. During that time, I have seen a lot of
easily detectable patterns between those brands that have truly stood by
their promise, and those that were merely giving lip service.
However, one man's experience can only go so far. That's why over
the past year and a half, I have co-developed a long-term reliability
study that now has nearly 350,000 sample trade-ins from all over the
country.
These vehicles were all independently inspected and appraised by
professional car buyers who are trained to detect mechanical and
structural issues, which can be overlooked or unreported by the owners
in other industry studies, and are recorded by those who have no owner
bias.
https://autos.yahoo.com/blogs/motorami...
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drjohannvegas
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Iamopenlyjudgingyou
2/02/15 1:43pm
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I understood that Steven has some background with the used car market,
but thanks for the more in-depth reminder. My question is perhaps more
wonky than originally posed, however.
Full disclosure: I spend a good part of my working days thinking about
inference from data, so things like sampling methodology, potential
selection problems, data missing at non-random, and the like, matter a
lot to me.
I understand that some of this is going to be proprietary/privileged
information, but I was mostly interested in how an individual
observation ends up in the database? Are those cases systematically
different from those which are not in the sample? For me, I can respect
the excellent work on data display and cogent explanation of findings
from the sample, but for me to evaluate how much I can infer from the
sample to the larger population, I need a bit more than "we have a
study".
I've seen many studies, from economics, politics, and the sciences,
which are perfectly valid internally, but suffer from sampling problems
which makes generalization a problem. This is sometimes an artifact of
an unscrupulous writer (which is reprehensible), but often the
unfortunate consequence of limited research resources or an overlooked
complication by a genuinely truth-motivated researcher. So, every time I
see work which passes the first sniff test (Are the stats from the
sample baked in some way?), I go to the second: Where do the data come
from? The generalized inference you can draw is only as good as the
sample you select.
Steven, keep up the good work, and great site!
1
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Iamopenlyjudgingyou
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DrJohannVegas
2/02/15 2:08pm
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Very good questions. Hopefully Stephen can provide additional detail.
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kyree-s-williams
Kyree S. Williams
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Steven Lang
2/01/15 4:00pm
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I've just been telling people to avoid the 3.2-liter in the longitude-engined models...
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Aero
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Steven Lang
2/01/15 4:39pm
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I've never owned an A4, but I did have a 1.8T Passat. Terrible car.
Turbo issues, insane timing belt replacement, sludge. It wasn't the
worst though, that was the '01 Allroad I bought a year later.
My sister owned a '96 A6 Quattro, which was an amazingly reliable car.
Even after 180k miles it only ever needed basic maintenance. So when an
Allroad popped up for a decent deal I jumped on it.
Worst. Car. Ever. The transmission reverse drum broke, the air
suspension failed, and then the front control arms fell to pieces. I
decided at that point that VAG cars weren't for me.
6
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NJAnon
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Steven Lang
2/01/15 6:04pm
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They are one of the 6 worse brands to buy? Yet articles in other
magazines say that men owning an Audi attributes to their attraction to
women. See ladies, men having paradoxes they have to deal with to!
1
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amgtech
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Steven Lang
2/01/15 11:12pm
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FYI Mercedes CPO is unlimited mileage now.
Also the 2.7tt is terrible, and one of the newer v6's is terrible as
well. But overall I think you're right, they are really stepping up
their game.
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mistermic
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:15am
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I hate it when I spill my chocolate shake in the cylinder head too
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longbowmk2
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450X_FTW
2/02/15 11:32am
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that picture horrified me.
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RalphieDC
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450X_FTW
2/02/15 12:15pm
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Ummmm.....pudding!
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rauthwilliam
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:19am
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2. They don't get too bothered by minor electrical issues that tend to gradually creep up on these models as they age.
dealbreaker. shut it down.
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mtdrift
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:20am
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Gah!
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themanwithsauce
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:20am
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Former 200 20v owner.......Mine was at 270k miles on the original engine
and transmission. If replacement hoses and wires weren't so expensive I
would've saved it. But I couldn't justify driving it when a Fiesta ST
was cheaper. And more reliable.
However, my car was not an oddity. The old inline-5 motors were tanks
and the original quattro systems were built to last. The Audi legacy has
two chapters - "Unintended acceleration" and "Intended obsolescence"
The first one was undeserved and those cars are part of why "German
quality" was superior to all. The second one IS deserved thanks to VW
cost-cutting to move units. But it worked. The first cars died out
thanks to 60 minutes while everyone kept buying allroads and A4s that
exploded after 50k.
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marend
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:22am
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Former owner of a Volkswagen. Current owner of a Lexus and a Toyota. This is the reason.
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trevor-burkett-
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:24am
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I have a 2002 Audi A4 with the 3.0 V6 and it's been surprisingly reliable.
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tapzz
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:26am
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Hank thought it was dead.
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thejustache
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Steven Lang
2/02/15 11:28am
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I had an '02 GTI with I believe more or less the same 1.8T (actually
tuned to make a little more power than in the audis). Other then
replacing the coil packs (twice) and a scheduled timing belt change I
never had a single issue with the engine in the 4 years/100kmi I owned
it. Plenty of other mechanical issues, sure - just none with the engine.
Sold it at 220kni running smoother than ever and holding stock boost
just fine. I guess I'l just consider myself lucky?
Still never buying another VAG product....
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west-coaster
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thejustache
2/02/15 11:47am
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I have essentially the same car, though it's fairly low miles at this
point. Been very reliable, though yes, two sets of coil packs that were
done at the VW dealership under recall. (Never had trouble with them,
but they did the replacement anyway.)
However, my very trustworthy independent VW/Audi mechanic does have some
key points of advice, after seeing hundreds of these engines over the
years.
As the article states, full-synthetic oil and OEM filter are a must, about every 5-6K miles.
At timing belt replacement (via time in my case, as I hadn't done
the mileage at that point) he insists on replacing the water pump, which
is a good idea with any car. But beyond that, he insisted on an
all-metal pump imported from a specialist in Europe, instead of the OEM
pump, which is made of plastic. On a shelf in his office is a row of
failed pumps with impellers that had crumbled into bits, sending shards
of plastic through the water jackets and ruining engines in the process.
Keeping an eye on small things and taking care of them promptly.
The first and last points, he noted to me, are often overlooked when
Audis and VWs start aging and fall into the hands of second owners who
want it to behave just like an old Honda or Toyota. In other words,
lasting forever with a minimum of attention and the cheapest fluids and
parts available. Daddy's Little Princess, fresh out of singing or acting
school and with her car far down on her budget priorities (below hair,
nails, clothes, and personal electronics), is bound to be disappointed
in the reliability of "that stupid German car."
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thejustache
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west-coaster
2/02/15 12:56pm
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Agreed... as usual maintenance is the best thing you can do for
yourself. I always ran full synthetic and changed my oil religiously.
I'm sure that helped minimize the sludge issue.
I will say that owning a MKIV VW product was pretty much a crash course
in vehicle repair overall though. Driveshafts, suspension components,
brakes, wheel bearings and the like I got very good at replacing, and
multiple times at that. I'm sure the roads around here didn't help at
all, but at the same time I've been driving an '05 impreza for almost a
year now and have had NO repairs during that time. I pretty much
expected something to go monthly on my GTI....
