Electric/Hybrid cars

[evilwebby]

If its anything like Formula E then I say go for it...

 

[Rook]

Hi mate. I knew that Nissan have had a few issues with some of their CVT units.

However I think that generally Nissan’s reliability is not what it once was and I wonder if that’s a consequence of their relationship with Renault.

Toyota have recalled some of their units, particularly in Corolla cars but I’ve it heard of issues with the CVT units on the hybrids.

I’m surprised that they would refuse to cover a repair on a two year old vehicle though, as the warranty should cover the transmission for three years? I could be wrong, but I wonder how many of those owners have had their vehicles serviced outside the main dealer network. If an independent garage are not aware of the specific needs of a specific CVT unit then they could cause issues....such as topping up or replacing the fluid with ATF instead of the particular CVT oil that the transmission to hand actually requires.

I raise this as my old merc is 17 years old and hadn’t been to a Mercedes dealer or even a Mercedes specialist since she was around five years old. I’ve had to sort out transmission faults and other bits and pieces simply as a result of previous owners taking her to independent garages who have no idea what this car actually needs and think that a full service is just an oil change with air and cabin filters thrown in for good measure.

Similarly, the Honda we recently bought for my wife (so I now use her ageing Prius as a daily runabout) had a full dealer history up until late 2017. The independent dealer we bought it from said that they gave it a service so the history was up to date.

Unfortunately all they did was an oil change. When I rang Honda they pointed out that the 72 month service (which is what it should have had this year) is the most major service that this vehicle has....full service with plugs and transmission oil also replaced. I booked it in and had that done, but how many owners would just have left things and been happy with an independent garage changing the oil once a year and being completely oblivious to major additional jobs that weren’t being done, before then complaining to Honda when the transmission fails?

The old Prius has always been serviced by main dealers and personally I think that’s important to ensure that all required maintenance is actually carried out when it falls due. Maybe that’s why it’s never let us down yet.

This is just my personal experience of course, I’m sure that there are some very good independent garages out there, and at times I’ve used a very good old fashioned mechanic I know to trace faults on other vehicles where main dealers couldn’t find the issue. However, in the long list of cars I’ve owned over the years, the least reliable ones have been non Japanese vehicles and particularly ones not previously maintained fully by main dealers.

I have a 2011 Nissan sentra (don't doxx me it wasn't my choice). Nissans are "reliable" but they do what a lot of Japanese compaines do. Everything under the hood is bulletproof, there's lots of space inside and they cut corners everywhere else. Hard plastic everywhere, bargain basement electronics, the struts died at 60K miles, little things break like the gas door, its uncomfortable, kind of loud, horrible to drive and has the turning radius of a bus. Its a massive piece of @#%# but it will start and not break down.

I also have a 1st gen Chevy Sonic, which only cost 4K less w/ a warranty, and while absolutely no one's idea of luxury is just as reliable. Plus even a Chevy Sonic is so much more refined and so much more fun to drive.

 

[DualityNSNO]

Ha, yes I can well believe that about the German cars. I heard recently that BMW had come bottom of a reliability survey, and I can believe that. My only BMW to date suffered numerous problems...nothing that stopped it running...but still costly electrical issues (CD changer failed, sat nav DVD drive failed, seat motor switches failed, xenon headlight issues etc).

I’ve never owned anything from the VAG stable yet and probably won’t until they get better in terms of reliability. I have been in some though and they are often nice vehicles to be in with well designed and comfortable interiors.

I’ve always wanted a pick up. Not had one yet but it’s on the bucket list so to speak. Either a Navara or a Mitsubishi L200 I guess.

Go for the L200 mate, even an older gen. I drive a Jeep and am in contact with offroad people, in terms of reliability, the L200 is miles ahead.

And yeah, the M5's (E60) from 2015 onwards are amazing to drive... when they drive, until the engine explodes...

Here to talk cars via PM so that we don't bore the people on here to tears tbh. Hit me up lol

 

[Armel]

In the UK, cars in the VHI tax class (Vehicles of Historic Interest over 40 years old) are exempt from road tax and congestion charges.

I don't think your exemptions will last forever. Over here quite a few of the cities have low-emission zones (with Euro-norms). And starting next year; some cities will be allowed to introduce ultra-low emission zones for the most densely populated areas (solely for zero-emission vehicles). Even now in the low emission zones; you can only get an exemption for 40 year + vehicles and you have to proof their historical value to the community.

 

[Chewbacca]

It’s a toy. It does 500 miles a year so even at 10 mpg probably puts out less pollution than a hybrid doing average mileage.

And increases the happiness of pretty much everyone who sees it.

 

[Armel]

It’s a toy. It does 500 miles a year so even at 10 mpg probably puts out less pollution than a hybrid doing average mileage.

And increases the happiness of pretty much everyone who sees it.

The ultra-low emission zones will be for pure electric, hydrogen and only the top of the range hybrid vehicles (never seen an H2 one irl mind you).

I have an older Wrangler YJ, works on both LPG and gasoline (when it works). I won't be able to use it any more in most cities in the not so distant future - (it's not really an issue because it's not a daily driver bit like yours). My other one is an issue though; I can still use it for 1.5 years but then I will really need to change it, otherwise I won't be able to go in a whole range of cities. Already now, there are cities where I have to pay 35 € for a day-pass (e.g: Antwerp).

 

[mmmmsnouts]

I bought a used plug-in Prius a couple years ago. Its battery range isn’t nearly as good as the current models (10ish miles compared to 30-40) but it gets me to and from the errands in my town on a single charge. My commute is almost all highway driving so it is basically a regular hybrid the rest of the time. Depending on the temperature I usually get between 60-70 mpg per tank.

Couple things that bother me in winter: The battery isn’t as efficient when it’s cold, and also the excess heat the battery generates is vented into the cab so the windows fog up more often than on a regular car.