6 ms·
Repairable because they usually didn't last more than 3 years
by Daz1 2y ago
Repairable because they usually didn't last more than 3 years
- eru 2y agoYes. People love to complain that modern cars aren't repairable, but they typically do last much longer than those of decades ago.
- SkyPuncher 2y agoCara barely use to last to 100k miles. Now, most people expect nearly 200k. More if you do proper maintenance (namely preventing rusting)
- Daz1 2y agoThere's a reason odometers have 6 digits now.
- bravetraveler 2y ago... and there are reasons for the rollover odometer meme too. Is the supposition that they didn't need the digit until recently? I doubt that was a concern - if any, more financial/cosmetic than engineering. The older cars didn't fail spectacularly. The used car market is made mostly of these repairable cars. Again, they lasted long enough for the odometer rollover... but also for Toyota trucks to become an icon. These 'junkers' (said lovingly) are how 'everyone' in the Midwest learns to drive and gets to their first job, too. I'll close with my own crazy assertion! Leases are for people so bored with their work, they need financial commitments to spice things up
- eru 2y ago> The older cars didn't fail spectacularly. The used car market is made mostly of these repairable cars. Well, we need to specify which ages of car we are talking about. The used car market is probably mostly made of cars built in the last twenty years. I also had even older times in mind, all the way from Model T to today.
- bravetraveler 2y agoHah, totally fair. On a long enough timeline... survival drops to zero. I was pretty firmly in that past 20-30 years era indeed. Anything older is legally defined as a classic, to my knowledge. Most of those are either proper junk or collectibles. Not what I'm talking about.
- eru 2y agoI was sort-of talking about the cars driven by your typical sitcom dad who's always tinkering and repairing that damn thing. Perhaps 1960-1980s or so?
- SkyPuncher 2y agoIt was entirely because people didn’t expect those cars to make it to 100k miles. The engineering and tolerances on an 80’s/90’s car just isn’t as good as a modern car. That lead to a lot of premature failures on major components.
- analog31 2y agoHondas and Toyotas from that era easily surpassed 100k miles. I owned one.
- bravetraveler 2y agoModern cars certainly have improvements in those areas; I'm not dismissing that. Just... the engineering and tolerances didn't 'have' to be as good. The performance numbers weren't nearly as good - that afforded a lot. They were primitive, and if the manufacturer chose it to be, robust as a result. The alternative was cheap. Like the Death Star meme, every mechanical thing has a weak point. Well-designed cars put the stuff that breaks in cheap consumable parts in an easy to reach place. That last piece can have more impact on the price of a repair than the part itself
- bravetraveler 2y agoA consumer that doesn't want something to both last and be repairable is misguided, pretending both can't be achieved serves the one selling garbage
- eru 2y agoPrice is another important variable. In any case, I'm not an expert in cars or what people need from their car. I would assume that the people who buy cars know what they want.
- bravetraveler 2y agoYou're absolutely right though, price would be the difference. That's actually the crux of my ire. To sell more... things are made more cheaply. I know all too well how much money it costs to be poor. Now that I have means, I'd rather buy one good version than many not good ones. The thing is, the good options are disappearing because incentives suck. People are happy to buy disposable garbage, they enjoy consuming. I don't.
- eru 2y agoDifferent people have different preferences. There's still lots of high-quality expensive options available in many product categories.
- gonzo41 2y agoI have never had to worry about cam timing in my modern car. For that alone I am happy. People idealize the past too much.
- mgarfias 2y agoThe ast was prettier. And got 8mpg
- surfingdino 2y agoNot the latest lot that replaced physical instruments and switches with LED screens. It's going to be hard to find replacements for those in the near future. While you can 3d-scan and machine a physical part you cannot fab displays once the production stops.
- eru 2y agoI meant that modern cars last longer even without repairs. You are right that lots of those components will be hard to find as replacement in the future.