Newer cars are junk- am I the only one who thinks this?

[DonRickles]

Originally Posted by superdog

She’s a beauty.

I'm with Seth! I remember these when they were new. My boss bought a new '76 IIRC. These models had a notorious weakness....?I can't remember now....

A car guy is a car guy! Right on brother!

[Blansky]

I've owned a lot of cars the first one being a 1946 Pontiac while I was going to school in 1967. I owned muscle cars, a Hearse, Jeeps, and a bunch of boring SUVs as well. Never owned a foreign car yet.

I love driving my 2005 Jeep, with the top off and no real computer options, no power windows etc. I love the feel of driving something that takes my attention I can feel the road and keeps me present in the driving experience. I don't want something that makes me feel like I'm driving my living room down the road.

That being said I also like driving my wife's 2019 SUV with too many options and computers as well.

As with the upcoming EV revolution I think an ideal garage should have a fun ride AND a current more practical one sitting side by side.

Since this may be something like what your kids will be riding in. https://newatlas.com/automotive/pini...bdff3-93122952

[whatsthetime?]

Originally Posted by pk552502

The things I dislike about new cars:

- They all look the same. I think it's because of all the government safety regulations- they all end up looking the same to accomodate the requirements.

- windows are all too small including front and back windshield. You can't rest your elbow out the window comfortably when driving because the frame is too high up. Years ago, there used to be a safety feature that the back windows wouldn't roll all the way down. No longer needed because now the window is just that much smaller.

- too many gadgets. I like buttons that I can feel for radio presets because I can keep my eyes on the road. Now they are all flat screens and you can't feel the buttons.

- too expensive for what you get.

- new trucks are the worst. The truck bed is so high off the ground you literally need to hop in the bed in order to get items out. In the 90's, you could just reach in from the side and grab what you need. They try to make them look too aggressive now and they're over-engineered. I don't think they will last in the long run.

- too many safety functions. I don't want the car to buzz when I change lanes or when a car passes by me or if I don't wear a seatbelt. It's not a relaxing driving experience.

- too much plastic and cheap construction.

They really took the fun out of things. My '05 car is about to retire and I'm wondering what I should get next for a daily driver and I'm struggling to find any car I actually like. To be practical I need to buy something modern. Maybe a new toyota camry, avalon or 4 runner. Those are in the lead so far. But part of me wants to buy a car from the 90s with low miles because I like them better. Like a 94 acura or lexus.

You forgot to mention all their suspension components are complete junk too, as well as hearing every ambient noise inside the cockpit. Complete garbage. You're on the right track in regards to buying something older. I'd even go older than the early "90s. Something you put in drive and go with minimal features & controls. Something to drive, not fuss around with.

[austinp]

I cant wait till the driverless car is everywhere. Nap city!


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[Knappo 1307]

Originally Posted by Cru Jones

The safer the better. The less polluting the better. Tomorrow’s electric cars will be cheaper to maintain. All good things IMO.

No one talks about this, what's going to happen to the millions and millions of batteries after they have run their course in an electric car? That is potentially going to be a huge issue. So as far as less pollution from an electric car in the short term yes, as far as the long run who knows.....

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by Knappo 1307

No one talks about this, what's going to happen to the millions and millions of batteries after they have run their course in an electric car? That is potentially going to be a huge issue. So as far as less pollution from an electric car in the short term yes, as far as the long run who knows.....

Actually it's been talked about a lot. Lots of people are working on it and it's going to be a challenge.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/e...?loggedin=true

https://www.wired.com/story/the-race...-its-too-late/

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/...cular-economy/

[sokoloka]

If you squint real hard can barely tell they're 45 years apart.

[kieselguhr]

Originally Posted by michaelodonnell123

So last night, we went out to dinner to a restaurant one hour away. My friend went in his 2021 Porsche 911 with a 500+hp engine, 20 inch wheels and every technological option known to man and I went in my 1975 Alfa Romeo with 125hp, 14 inch wheels with no options. We both easily drove the Palisades Parkway in New Jersey with a speed limit of 55MPH. His car blows the pants off mine with better cooling, efficient air flow, direct injection, superior suspensions, higher compression ratios, too many advancements to mention and that’s just performance without mention of safety, technology, and reduced emissions..blah blah blah. Yet we both arrived at the exact same time. Hmmm....

Would you have the same outcome on a track without set speed limits and traffic lights?

Many car enthusiasts participate in some form of sport or performance driving be it SCCA, NASA, FD, ARA.

Won’t knock your Alfa as it’s a great classic car and would even handle nicely in a classic car division, but would never come close to modern cars if it tried to compete in production class. Well unless the driver behind the modern car is a newbie. In which case the driver is the factor, not the car.

[Speedbird-1]

Cheap, new cars, can be 'junk', but then.......they, always have been!

[Speedbird-1]

Originally Posted by sokoloka

If you squint real hard can barely tell they're 45 years apart.

Always fancied driving something like that, but I don't like wearing a baseball cap.

[Mendota]

Originally Posted by Doug5551

02 Honda Accord. 4 cylinder, 5 speed manual. 19+ years old. 135k miles. Exactly one part has failed...the Idle Control Module about 11 years ago. Other than that, just brakes, oil changes and air filter.

My daily is a 1999 Saab 9-3 convertible which I bought with only 10K miles on it. I office from home and I don't put many miles on my cars, so it only has 96k miles on the odometer now. Last summer I sold my 2000 Saab 9-5 Aero wagon, which I used as my winter car.

The direct ignition cassette failed once on this, and early on it had a leak in the head gasket, which was fixed under warranty, but until recently it has been a real trooper. The mechanism for the manual heater control and air direction control were very poorly designed using cheap plastic parts, deep inside the heart of the car, which <of course> break and cannot be fixed without fashioning your own DIY contraptions, so rather than spend a grand to replace the whole heater box on a car that I am going to trade in someday, I have a cable sticking out of my dash that I can push in to move the blend door closed for cold air and pull it out to open the blend door for heat. The air direction is manually pushed into the defrost/floor setting and cannot be changed without pulling the whole thing apart and adjusting it again.

[mountainjogger]

Originally Posted by Speedbird-1

Always fancied driving something like that, but I don't like wearing a baseball cap.

justkiddi

No worries. It is perfectly acceptable to put your gimme cap on the dash or fold the bill and put it in your back pocket.

[M45]

New cars don’t dissolve into rust after the first year.
You will actually survive most car accidents in a new car without being horribly disfigured or paralyzed. Literally the only people getting horribly injured these days are those too stupid to put on a seatbelt.
New cars are reliable to a level that was unheard of 20 years ago.
They are also ridiculously fast, average family cars can outrun performance cars from the 80s.

[Langnam]

Originally Posted by airchitect

New drivetrains are composed of mostly small displacement, high pressure, turbo engines running high boost backed up by battery packs and electric motors……I think the days of 200-300k miles on a new car are over.


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Agree with this. Sticking with my 400 HP NA V8 2014 Porsche Cayenne S.

Just about 131k on the odometer, and not one single problem. Looks new. Greatest dang car I ‘ve ever owned. Will not part with until it goes kaput.


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[Rashid.bk]

Originally Posted by superdog

If ever there was a thread to get me banned….this is the one.

Hard to believe how divisive our species actually is. And superior, even over the era of vehicle build preference.

yessiree....it's like those people that say, a super car is useless, a Deepsea is useless...because you you can't ever use it on public roads or go that deep.
then you have a person with a boat parked on a trailer in his back yard, now that must be a real dumbass.

Originally Posted by michaelodonnell123

Nope, that is nothing like what I said. He couldn't leave me in the dust because both of us have to obey the same red lights, stop signs and the speed limit. Oh' and he just told me that his check engine light came on- again. What a joke.

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication ― Leonardo da Vinci

First, I agree with GB and I do think your friend was being polite to another enthusiast, and not calling you a liar but I find it difficult to believe his cel came on again on a 2021 911. Even the GT cars which seem to be very reliable today. If his light is coming on that much, it's either a lemon or he tampered with the tuning.

Also, if you arrived at the same time, must be a route through neighborhoods and school zones, with speed bumps and stop signs. Make it a cross country trip on the autobahn, then tell me you arrived at the same time, the 911 will have plenty of time at the other end waiting for you to wonder why he's there so so far in advance "hmmmm"...

Originally Posted by superdog

To be fair, I took it the same way as GB.

And I think your friend was just being nice.

It's common sense, me and my friend both went for a ride, he had his Ducati V4 and I had my Trek mountain bike and we both arrived at Walmart at the same tame, and I didn't even use gas....lolssss, come on.

[Stud Screw]

“I don't even like old cars. I'd rather have a goddam horse. A horse is at least human, for God's sake.”

― J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye

[golftime]

Totally disagree. Today's cars are far and away the best in history. They are more comfortable, faster, handle better, are safer, get better gas mileage, require much, much less maintenance, and are infinitely more reliable than cars made even a decade ago. Not sure what else you could measure but it isn't even close.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by golftime

Not sure what else you could measure but it isn't even close.

I think what people are missing is does the car have "soul".

Any many people find that new cars don't.

People feel that way about digital vs analog music. About independent watches compared to mass produced ones. About mechanical watches compared to battery operated ones.

About musical instruments over other musical instruments. Hand crafted furniture over mass produced furniture.

Etc etc

Some people get it and other's don't. Which is fine.

[pickettt]

Two different animals.

[East Bay Rider]

Although new cars and trucks are supposedly superior in nearly every way I too prefer the analog feeling of older vehicles (trucks mostly). I could never exclusively drive a car daily. I simply crave the rougher drive of the truck, analog guages, dial type heater controls, stuff like that. In fact I really don't lust after anything new except maybe a new 4Runner or Ram diesel and even then I'm not sure.
While other enthusiasts are discussing media screens and stereo options I'm just hoping the next truck fits the dog comfortably and has enough cup holders. Heated seats would be nice too.

[pickettt]

Originally Posted by Blansky

I think what people are missing is does the car have "soul".

Any many people find that new cars don't.

People feel that way about digital vs analog music. About independent watches compared to mass produced ones. About mechanical watches compared to battery operated ones.

About musical instruments over other musical instruments. Hand crafted furniture over mass produced furniture.

Etc etc

Some people get it and other's don't. Which is fine.

Right. The same criteria being used to argue for new cars, technically should have them arguing for quartz watches. Personally, I enjoy both old and new cars.

[Kyle3130]

I agree with you OP! The passion is gone and most modern designs are just plain ugly.

[twitch54]

Originally Posted by Doug5551

02 Honda Accord. 4 cylinder, 5 speed manual. 19+ years old. 135k miles. Exactly one part has failed...the Idle Control Module about 11 years ago. Other than that, just brakes, oil changes and air filter.

what, no tires ??

[Doug5551]

Originally Posted by twitch54

what, no tires ??

Lol. Good catch. Just got new tires at Costco so I'm good for many years! Maybe 3 or 4 sets over 19 years isn't too bad.

[Aquaholic_user]

If your getting any new car from a dealer after 2020 make it a lease, trade in 2-3 years, and repeat. With the insane electronics and auto eyes, everything will be more expensive then the car is worth to replace after a few years of ownership. Some of these features are now mandatory after 2021. The days of a good old car is gone unless your buying used and pre 95'. The environment will soon introduce eveyone to electric vehicles.

Sent from my balloon knot

[Boothroyd]

My wife and I have only recently moved from stick shift to automatic, after driving nothing but sticks our entire lives. I miss the soul of older cars prior to computerization, but I can't for a minute argue that older models were better made than newer models.

It just isn't the case. The driving experience may have been abstracted too much recently, but the quality of the build is much better, with higher tolerances. Not to say both eras haven't had some real lemons as individual models.

I am so glad my first real car was a 1983 5-speed VW GTI. I loved that thing.

[Larry302]

Originally Posted by Aquaholic_user

If your getting any new car from a dealer after 2020 make it a lease, trade in 2-3 years, and repeat. With the insane electronics and auto eyes, everything will be more expensive then the car is worth to replace after a few years of ownership. Some of these features are now mandatory after 2021. The days of a good old car is gone unless your buying used and pre 95'. The environment will soon introduce eveyone to electric vehicles.

Sent from my balloon knot

Our daughter was in a slight chain reaction crash in her Toyota. The car was drivable after, if I stood in front of the car by the license plate you couldn’t see any damage , the rear was the bumper cover ,trunk lid and one tail light . It was 2 or 3 years old and they almost totaled it .

All the cameras and sensors really add to the repair cost .

[East Bay Rider]

Originally Posted by sokoloka

I like this a lot. Probably more than is reasonable.
Perfect daily driver.

[Rock]

Originally Posted by East Bay Rider

I like this a lot. Probably more than is reasonable.
Perfect daily driver.

Yes, I have been saying this for decades. You get respect in a vehicle like this.
Solid, simple, immune to "park-by-ear" idiots and morons who tailgate you and cut you off. They do so at their peril.
If I could persuade the spouse to tolerate another vehicle it would be one of these - in rust-preventative red or grey - or both.

[Jb1264]

WAY too many gadgets/tech for my liking.
Long term they break and age like an tv episode of ‘Bullseye’
As one British journalist remarked:
“Gadgets add weight, cost and complication.
Do you want to drive a car or play with it?”