I have a '02 dakota that has been pretty bullet proof for 140K miles. It is starting to exhibit standard wear and tear issues though. Xfer case has started a low whine and the power steering pump needs to be replaced. Gonna keep it and fix it.

Very nice! The Viper is literally the only "Chrysler" product that I won't talk crap about. They are durable as hell and very sexy! Your JK? Well. Just you keep it long enough ;) No love for anything except the Viper from me, and that's mainly because the driveline is brick ****-house tough, and it's an All American icon in my book! I often wish I had bought a Viper instead of a Z06 a few years ago, but I had to pick one, and the 'vette offered near identical performance for $20K less.

My 370Z was a PITA.

Loud whining and different steering feel after hitting the corners (aeration issues of the power steering fluid is my guess, yes, it was checked multiple times. Nissan North America said "Normal, deal with it).

Horrible vibration from warped rotors caused by not gently torquing the lug nuts (never had a car warp rotors in the shop before multiple times. Even tore up some Z1 slotted rotors). Dealership performed all work. THere was a HUGE thread I started a few years ago about it.

NAV screen would randomly go black instead of "coming back" after the reverse-camera image went away.

Transmission was hell to shift in rainy weather. Yes, rain made it hard to shift. I don't know why. Yes, I was running Redline MT-85. It would also grind for a shift or two in cold weather. Never had a manual do that before when it wasn't my fault, but this one did. Clutch to the fire-wall, too. Not a user error. I would almost bend the shifter trying to go into first on rainy days. It was a pain the arse.

My CSC never failed.

My Berk CBE fit for crap, was always hanging down because the hangers would slide out of the rubber hanger things. Berk customer service was non-existent. Not Nissan's fault, just screw Berk. Don't buy their junk. I called multiple times about the issue, and even paid them via credit card (or at least gave them the #) for a new set of rubber hanger grommets, and they told me they would fab me a hanger that would work with their exhaust. I never got the grommets, or the hanger. I didn't check to see if I was charged the $20'ish, either, so they may have not charged me, but their product was always a pain. Sounded good though and I felt more seat of the pants from it.

So yeah, I can see why Nissan ranked low, considering the 370Z is named one of their more reliable models.

All that said, dammit, the Jeep was so much worse!

Yup....Every person I know with a Beemer won't ever buy one again.
If you just must drink the Koolaid, don't own it past the end of the warranty.
OTOH, a couple of friends own KIAs.....bulletproof.

104

BMW is like Jeep and Nissan. Some of them last. FOREVER! And some of them...die and die and die! I went to school with a girl who had around 200K on an older 3-series. I think a flat tire was the only problem she ever had with it. I also knew a Dr who bought a brand new E46 M3 back in the early 2000's. It was ALWAYS in the shop, would randomly die after a cold start, etc. Total POS.

Kia...I have literally NEVER heard of one dying. Of any cause, for any reason. Supreme Leader would be proud!

Cars fail and break or they last forever. My GTi needed a motor due to an ignition misfire/broken igniter off the spark plug - oh and that was NGK. So much for faultlless Japanese parts eh? The car itself never had an issue but that problem with the plug ate cyl 4 and needed new motor.

My M235i so far is bullet proof and it gets driven hard here in Germany. Rain, shine snow sun and fast and furious on the Autobahn, lots of boost and lots braking. Small roads in the Alps to city traffic and pain. My 370Z was treated the same and it was perfect.

Its a roll of the dice on cars. No brand is perfect and all you can do is drive and fix as needed. Its cars and car life.

I agree, but some brands are more perfect than others...

Well... MOPAR does stand for "Mostly Old Parts And Rust"... :inoutroflpuke: :stirthepot:

Just an update. I am getting around 23-25mpg in daily use. I live only 3-4 miles from work, and it's a hilly drive. VERY pleased for an AWD SUV doing that! It's not the fastest, but I've yet to be in a bad situation with it. 0-60 in 7.8 seconds isn't shabby really for its intended purpose. A full second faster than the CR-V, Forester 2.5i, or RAV 4. So far, all is well.

By this time, I had already had to replace the front LCA's on my Jeep, and was worrying about the N23 recall, which did indeed affect me.

300 mile road trip through the hills of NWA to Tulsa,OK, drove around Tulsa, came back. Averaged 28mpg. Paid $31 to fill it back up with ethanol-free 87 octane (Could have gotten away with $26ish or so using the 10% stuff).

I really wanted to get a jeep wrangler...

If you can afford to keep it running, go ahead. It's a pay-to-play vehicle.

The wrangler has so little to break, it's an entirely different animal.


I've got probably 100k miles on wranglers (tj+jku) and close to 600k across the Cherokees I've owned. buying the right model and handling preventative maintenance, I've had nothing but great experiences. Certain models are nothing but issues, though.

Literally every single Jeep in the parking lot where I live is leaking some fluid or another. The Grand Cherokee is leaking green. The Cherokee for $1500 for sale is leaking something dark. The other one, I have not walked past enough to determine, lol Mine was leaking red.

The more I read about the wrangler, the more I don't want it. The jku you have, how many miles have you put on it and what problems have you ran into?