The slings and arrows of European parts and service can be a real eye opener.

Strong Euros (for now). Weak dealer service networks. A penchant for complexity and electronic doo-dads. European cars may be fashionable among those folks who are seeking a step up in prestige and driving excitement. But they often cost a heckuva lot more to maintain as well.

Enthusiast forums can often be the sole source of solace and salvation when a European car begins to deteriorate. As for longevity, these vehicles can require a strong DIY mentality once the brief honeymoon period of no repairs is breached.

Independent shops? They may not have the software updates or the unique fixes of the dealers. The ones that don’t specialize in the vagaries of that model may not know the ultimate answers to a complex problem. While the ones that do specialize can charge you dearly for the privileged information and convenience.

Dealerships? Pricey no matter what. Even those who are supposed to represent ‘The People’s Car’ can still charge upwards of $100+ an hour in labor. As for parts, often times the one needed may cost a multiple of other sources.  Let’s not even mention the unexpected software update that can often add upwards of a four figured sum to the cost of ownership.

No car is perfect. But European cars have a reputation for a reason. Would you buy one used, at market prices, without the golden parachute of a warranty? Even for a year or two? If so, what would it be?

You can read Jack Baruth’s extremely thorough track-test of the 2013 Mustang V8 here. All right stop, collaborate and listen: The Mustang’s back in a brand-new edition, Recaros, grab a hold of me tightly – Flow through the corners daily and nightly “Will it ever stop?” Yo, I think so, It’s got grabby pads and […]

By 1990, it just wasn’t done for Detroit to build its own really small subcompacts. Instead, badge-engineered cars designed and/or built by overseas subsidiaries or partners got the job done. GM had the Suzuki-based Metro, Chrysler still had the Simca-based Omnirizon, and Ford had the Mazda-based Festiva. You still see the occasional Festiva on the street, what with gas prices being what they are, but most of them were crushed long ago. Here’s one in Denver, sitting in the limbo between the street and The Crusher. (Read More…)

There is an unusual exhibitor at the International Tokyo Toy Show: Toyota. The company shows a grown-up toy car. The car seats 3 children up to 4 feet tall. It has an engine. It drives. Being a toy, it can be dismantled and put together in many different ways. Twist a few knobs, and the car converts from a retro sedan to an offroadish buggy. There is another turn: the toy is supposed to turn on kids to cars. (Read More…)

“This is my baby,” said Nissan’s Andy Palmer last year at the Tokyo Motor Show, and affectionately patted  the head of Nissan’s new NV350 Caravan. “Let’s be honest. The competitor is the Hiace. This car beats Hiace in every single way you could imagine.” This morning in Yokohama, Andy’s baby did its first steps into the rough world of light commercial vehicles. (Read More…)

Anonymous (no, it’s not Sajeev) writes:

Hi Sajeev and Steve,

I’m toying with the idea of selling my 2009 Honda Fit with an unethical 5-speed manual and trading down to a Panther, a VX10 Camry (in wagon form if I can find a decent one), or a B-body bubble wagon if I had my way. My wife and I have 1 young son and another may be on the way soon. The Fit currently fits (get it? I’m here all night) all of our junk and I love its gas mileage, handling, and low cost of ownership. Its also fully paid for. My wife and I completed advanced degrees in 09, and through a combination of black magic and hard work, we both have good jobs. For the excellent B&B financial advisers, we’re down to $35k of student loans and have a good nest egg stashed away. Free cash flow generally goes to savings and paying down student loans. Our other car is a 2011 Caravan purchased new in part due to its Baruthian driving qualities and crazy prices for used Ody-enna vans. We bought the van sooner than anticipated due to some internal family car shuffling and are very happy with it. We owe $16k on the van, so we’re not under water, and at 2.3% interest, the loan is essentially free money and far less than the 6.8% on the student loans.

Here’s my dilemma: I bought the Fit new because used car prices were obscene and I expected it to hold its value well. It has – I’ve seen similar examples listed at Carmax for damn near what I paid 4 years ago. I’m venturing I could unload it for about $13k private party and eat a $2.5-3k depreciation loss, making it the best performing asset I own. With fuel-efficient used car values still artificially high, I’m leaning towards selling it during a bubble rather than drive it till the wheels fall off.

I grew up driving a 1994 Crown Vic with a landau top that I adored but had to part ways with due to a relative needing a car (I didn’t buy it so it wasn’t my call). Last I heard, it had 240k on the clock and was still going strong. Given my first hand experience with the big cat combined with the obscenely cheap prices these things command on the used car market, I am thinking about buying a loved Grand Marquis in the 3-6k range if I can find the right one, pocketing $7-10k, and handing it over to Aunt Sallie Mae (no Vic’s unless they have landau tops – I hate asking “is that a cop?”).

The MGM and its superior highway ride would be a better long term vehicle as our family expands, but would burn a lot more gas than the Fit – I figure an extra $1000 in gas per year. I always coveted my friend’s VX10 Camry and have seen some good examples go for little money in these parts, including two immaculate and rare wagons. This would be better on gas, but not as luxurious as the MGM. Also, for the same money, the MGM would be 7-10 years newer. If I had my way, a B-Body wagon would be my personal pick, but parts and reliability are iffy. Such a car also may cause some “unpleasantness” at home.

Crazy-ist of crazy ideas would be to sell the van to replace with an MGM, but I’d eat a larger depreciation loss and that may cause issues at home. We also already toyed with getting an MGM when we purchased the van and putting extra money towards student loans, but we determined a van would be the best long-term solution.

I haven’t done the math in a while, but factoring in the extra compound interest if we don’t make a big lump sum payment vs a lump sum payment but a theoretical $80-100/mo drop in extra payments due to increased gas cost nets out to a mild present value win for selling the Fit all else being equal. That’s on a spreadsheet, though, and we’re on track to kill the student loans in the next few years without the lump-sum payment.

Has parenthood caused me to lust for the forbidden Panther fruit, or is this actually a good idea? (Read More…)

The European car market – if taken together, the world’s second largest behind China and before the U.S. – continues its slow drift to the bottom. Sales in May were down by 8.7 percent in the EU. This is the eighth month in a row that sales are in minus territory. Five months into the year, the market is down 7.7 percent. (Read More…)

Today is a Louisville day for me; Georgetown can’t have all the fun, after all. Oh wait: They build Toyotas not named FR-S. Never mind.

(Read More…)

Chris Harris may have been wrong about Miatas, but his review of the Audi RS4, where he describes the various configurable driveline settings as “adjustment theatre”, brilliantly describes the overly-complex systems that are cropping up in today’s performance cars as they attempt to appeal to not just the lead-footed, but the well-heeled.

(Read More…)

Yesterday, I shared a Toyota Corona ad from the February 1969 issue of Playboy. I like the Corona for personal reasons, but if the Time Machine took me back to ’69 and I didn’t have a lot to spend (or even if I did have a lot to spend), the Datsun 510 would be one of my top choices. Wouldn’t you know, there’s an ad for the 510 in the very same issue! (Read More…)

If you read Volkswagen’s global sales report for May, you get the impression that this was yet another great month. Global sales are up  7.8 percent in May. Things don’t look so rosy when you analyze the numbers a bit further. (Read More…)

There are certain types of vehicles that we will likely never drive between now and forever.

As an American stuck in the bureaucratic mess that is federal safety regulations, I will likely never have a kei car or an Ariel Atom in my garage. Europeans, in turn, may never enjoy the wonders of the last generation Ford Taurus X, or the non-pedestrian friendly Lincoln Town Car with its bulbous instead of flattish bumper.

Then we have those motorized chariots that many believe should be wiped off the face of the Earth. Environmentalists are stereotypically considered to be hateful of SUV’s. Young folks can often times hate the full-sized boats of the modern day. Elderly folks are considered to have an aversion towards hard riding sports cars. And though plenty of convertibles are available in today’s market, precious few folks ever put one anywhere close to their shopping list.

Sometimes it’s hate. Other times it’s a practical concern. Then there are those market segments that have been crossed off our list due to innumerable years of torturous experiences.

So let me ask you, what market segment could you live without?

Note: For those who have asked other writers and editors at TTAC, I can be reached directly at steve.lang@thetruthaboutcars.com . 

With a 250-horse 4-liter version of Cadillac’s Northstar V8 and lines that owed nothing to the nonagenarian-aimed designs of a decade earlier, the Aurora seemed poised to revive the nose-diving fortunes of the oldest of GM’s divisions. That didn’t quite happen, and Oldsmobile— no doubt doomed by the first three letters of the marque’s name— was sent before The General’s Death Panel before another decade had passed. Where have all the Auroras gone? Here’s one that I found at a Denver wrecking yard earlier this week. (Read More…)

The Lexus ES has been the best-selling Lexus sedan for decades, outselling every Lexus model except for the RX. While the ES was originally designed as the Japanese luxury brand’s entry-level vehicle in America, it is slowly becoming one of Lexus’ flagship products. To prove to us that Lexus has what it takes to reign […]

When we last left off with Project G-Body in March, Joey was about to pull the trigger on a Grand National. Three months later, the Grand National is home, and nearly in showroom condition.

(Read More…)