We all know visits to the dealerships are pain in the butt. They waste time, money and effort. Even a simple visit for warranty work will cost you time if not money.
Now a lot of our readers jump on the reliability bandwagon and tout just how much more reliable their rides are than those other seemingly less fortunate souls. This is fine if it is your way of filling that need to be superior, but some of this is based on fact but more often than not, most is based on perception. After all a reliable car, is a safe one, right?
The reality is that the best average dependability scores of 2009 at 122 (both Buick and Jaguar) and the worst at 266 (Suzuki) equates to 2 more unscheduled visits for such issues on average over 3 years. Now this is important, but the fact remains that it is pretty easy to own a Buick that ended up in dealership 3 times in 3 years, while your next door neighbor's Suzuki ran flawlessly for the same time period. It is all about chances.
Reliability benchmarks have their place, but those figures really need to be considered as part of the purchase process not as the sole criteria for choosing a brand. My reasoning is simple, not every car is a winner when it comes to reliability. Some models have significant issues, while others stroll along without an incident. In other words do your homework.
Now we all know the public in general is becoming hypersensitive to recalls. The tides have changed, and brand awareness now is at an all time high, not for reliability, but for the possibility of a recall safety is the key issue here.
If you have owned any vehicle for several years your chance of being affected by a recall is pretty darn good. By looking at the figures, it is easy to some brands out theremay be experiencing 2 unscheduled visits to the dealerships for reliability issues, but if you look deeper, they are also at risk 2 to 3 visits in the same time frame for a recall as well.
This is only going to get worse as the NHTSA tries to cleanup their act over the next few years, and at the same time automakers will scurry to cover their legal risks. Be reminded that recalls are for safety defects and therefore are extremely important.
With all of this being said. When you make your next purchase, are you going to weight in the likelihood of a recall in your purchase decision or just let the chips fall as they may?
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