In my (37 years and counting) time owning cars, trucks, bikes....I can say from first-hand experience that Japanese cars are, by far, the most reliable and American cars/trucks, by far, are the least reliable. German comes in somewhere in-between.
Examples:
Subaru GL-10 wagon...I put 280,000 miles on one
, I think it was a 1984. The only thing I ever replaced was brake pads, tires and the timing belt twice). But it was a heap o' rust when I gave it to me nephew for college...he put another 50,000 miles on it
By far the slowest car I've ever owned.
1991 Mazda Navajo 4WD (Ford Explorer Sport). This is an American truck with a Mazda badge. 3 sets of rotors replaced in 135,000 miles (I'm easy on brakes, too). 1 water pump. 1 fuel pump. Sunroof leaked. Matte black paint on certain exterior items wore off at about 50,000 miles. 1 alternator replaced.
1978 Ford Fiesta (Ford of Germany) I owned three of these, one was raced. Fantastic cars, no problems noted at all. Total miles driven (All 3) about 200,000. It really needed a 5-speed, but I could stil smoke the GTI's
1968 Buick Skylark - 3 water pumps, 1 alternator, 1 fuel pump, many electrical bits replaced in 89,000 miles. A piece of **** with the crappiest 350 V8 that GM ever made.
1999 Mercedez-Benz ML320 - 1 crankshaft timing sensor, 1 steering rack, 140,000 miles. I still own it. The paint is still flawless. No rust.
1996 Subaru Legacy Outback Wagon - 120,000 problem-free miles. One electrical issueemerged at 120000, but I traded it in and have no idea what it was.
1999 Ford Expedition. - Nothing has ever broken in this engine. Can't say the same for the rest of the vehicle. 3 sets of front rotors, 2 alternators, 1 starter motor, various suspension bits, many more, too many problems to list. 10 mpg. Doors are rusting, rear fender wells are rusting. It has 135,000 miles on it. The last Ford I will ever own.
1996 Toyota Camry - our "station car" and the car we drive and park anywhere - we don't have to worry about it getting stolen. It only has 73,000 miles on it and has never had anything break except a window motor. A bring but fantastic car. 28mpg from a 4-cylinder.
1974 Mazda RX-3 - bought new, raced briefly, a real sleeper car..I remember smoking an Olds 442 off the line, the driver was pissed! The apex seals gave out at about 40,000 miles and the engine had to be rebuilt. I also destroyed the shift forks by beating the snot out of them at stoplight burnouts.
1974 Mazda Rotary Pickup Truck - Bought new. Craziest rig I've ever driven. Stupid lightweight, not much weight in the rear, truck gearing. You could smoke the tires for 20 feet at stoplights and scare the crap out of old ladies, muscle car drivers, and children. Apex seals again, and I think I blew up the differential. Everything is hazy due to enhanced drug use back in the day.
1984 Alfa Romeo GTV-6. Modded, catalyst deleted, Ansa exhaust, racing cam, tuned headers. The head gaskets blew at 37000 miles, exactly 1000 miles after warranty expiration. Apparently they all did, as the gaskets were redesigned for the Milano. 3-plate clutch gave out at 50,000 miles. Rust apparent at 50000 miles. Interior parts would just fall off. Paint issues. A freaking money pit. And a ton of fun.