Car warranty changes over the years

[Jim Joyce]

Yes, I remember that joke and I was a bit hesitant to buy a 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe, but that was a fantastic vehicle until I totaled it in an accident. We replaced it with a 2016 Kia Sorento, which has also been great so far. The Santa Fe replaced a '98 Mustang, which we didn't love, and the Sorento replaced a 2002 Toyota Highlander, which we loved. I replaced the wrecked Santa Fe with a '17 Tacoma.

From what I understand, Hyundai/Kia weren't great until they brought in the two German designers, Peter Schreyer and Albert Biermann. Those guys totally revamped the cars, from the ground up, and sales took off from there. Biermann reportedly fine tuned the engine, chassis, and general drivability by taking the cars onto Germany's famous race track, the Nurburgring.

[Ed P]

Yes, smart people know what they don't know and find people that do.

The guy that started the company quit school after the 6th grade to work on the family farm. Worked later as an auto mechanic and built up from there. Had a contract with Ford at one time.

The word Hyundai is Korean for Modern.

[rbowman]

fwiw, this is the last year for the Stinger. It was an uphill struggle in a market where many think of the Rio or the Soul when you say Kia. Hyundai did well when they spun of the Genesis for the upscale offerings.

The Daewoo fiasco didn't do any Korean manufacturer any favors.

It takes time. A friend borrowed a first gen Honda Civic when her Saab was in the shop. She characterized the experience like driving two motorcycles loosely strapped together. Ten years later I went into a Honda showroom and got the impression they were wondering if I was worthy to but a Honda. I didn't.

Many more years later I was interested in the Fit but the dealer didn't have any. That's another model that was phased out. People do love their SUVs.

[Clare Snyder]

My used cars have almost all been virtually trouble free through the "warranty period" - and I keep them for about 12 years, usually (so they are about 22 when they go)

[Scott Lurndal]

Which reminds me of the old joke that goes something like:

A Japanese automobile company was looking for a new name and called up the head of VW and asked for advice. The VW CEO asked how soon the new name was needed; the reply was within three days; the VW CEO replied "Dat soon"?

I've had four cars (81 Datsun 810 Maxima, 89 Mazda 929, 98 Nissan I30, 2012 Nissan M37).

The M37 is currently 11 years old, has 52,000 miles and I expect it to last another decade before replacement. It is both fun and comfortable to drive.

[Clare Snyder]

None of the "experienced" cars I have ever owned was purchased with less than 52000 miles on it !!!

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There are videos like this one that discuss Japanese car names, meaning and pronunciation. I did not look at complete video but saw one that differentiated between English and Japanese pronunciation

[Ed P]

I've had plenty of experienced cars. Best value was on I paid $150 for. drove it a year and they lady I bought it from missed it so she gave me the 150 back.

I'm happy that in more recent years I'm able to contribute to the selection you have to choose from.

Experience varies. My friend snagged an Audi A8L with only 8,000 miles. New sticker is 100k but she paid tens of thousands less.

[Wade Garrett]

I owned a 1998 or 1999 model F-150-- maybe one click down from the top of the line.

It had a bit of a rough idle during the initial test drive but the sales weasel assured me the current big block V8s all did that but smoothed out after between 500 and a thousand miles.

By three or four thousand miles, it was even rougher and several dealer service complaints were blown off with a diagnosis of "normal functioning."

Unsuccessful escalation over a period of months led me to write a short, descriptive, polite complaint letter to Hank The Deuce, then CEO of his namesake company.

His (or his letter writer's) reply blew me away-- something to the effect that a little engine roughness was OK and I was being too picky!

My last Ford!