ORIGINAL: airfueleddie
Take all this in with a "grain of salt" most americans are lazy and stupid when it comes to preventive maintenance. Not picking on anyone just stated fact. I was at the Dodge dealership today and a man had purchased a new 1500 Dodge Ram Hemi. He put a huge snow plow on the front of his truck and proceeded to melt his hemi in a pile of molten goo! I saw the results. This is what happens when you are ignorant. The man was told NOT to put the plow on until WINTER it was The middle of AUGUST and 105 degrees outside! He of course blames Dodge and said he was gonna buy a real truck a chevy. I told him he should have done that in the first place! Another example, The other day a lady had her 2000 Dodge Caravan in and asked about synthetic oil, We told her yeah its the best but a little pricey. She said she still has the original oil in it!!!!I walked away!!
Agreed! In fact I'd suggest an amount of salt the size of Mt. Everest, but that still wouldn't be enough for CR's ratings! I'm sorry but CR is one of the most slanted magazines out there. The thing that amazes me is the Fusion and Milan are on the most reliable list and here's why. The 6-speed transmission in the Fusion/Milan is the exact same transmission used in the Camry and Avalon which has been found to have quite a bit of relibility issues. The V6 engine is nothing other than a Duratech with VVT added to it by Mazda. The Duratech has never been known as a benchmarker in terms of quality.
If you notice how the Chrysler 300C V8 model is listed as one of the most unreliable, the funny thing is if you look up the Magnum they list the V8 as being more reliable than the V6 model. Also I have done my own research and I haven't been hearing about any problems with the 300s.
Also another problem I'm having with these ratings are the Prius and death traps (other Hybrids) have been noted for having problems in CR's magazine as having the engines refuse to restart and having some break problems. Now if anything should be counted against a new car as being unreliable, that should be the number one thing, being stranded or in danger of being such.
Also if you look at their engine ratings for Chrysler minivans, you'll see that they give them a negative rating for the 3.3L & 3.8L. Both of those engines are bulletproof. I am yet to see a consistent problem with them. Other engines such as the 1997-2001 Toyota 3.0L that were known for having oil sludge problems, get a above average or excellent rating. That is full of it. I could go on all day about their inconsistences and inaccuracies. CR is good for one thing, lighting the fireplace on Thanksgiving!
