175k on the clock and still going strong with original turbo. The car has been well maintained and is regularly serviced.
Yes, that is the key to keeping things in good condition, especially regular oil changes with the correct oil fitted.You neglect a BMW turbo diesel engine at your peril!
In some ways you make my point for me. When did an engine need camshaft and crankshaft sensors?
As I said originally, sensors for this and sensors for that. Whilst older cars may have had their problems one didn't need to be an electronics engineer, an I.T. technician and a psychic to suss out what was wrong.
Today's emission regulations mean engines have to burn the fuel more cleanly and so need injection systems and emission control systems all of which need computers to make them work properly.
The crank and cam sensors are needed to sense the position of the pistons and the camshaft to ensure constant correct timing.
There are sensors to tell the injection system when to work and how much fuel to send to the injectors, sensors for airflow to tell the engine how much air the engine needs tied in with oxygen sensors etc.
Yet my son's 10 year old Audi A4 Avant Tdi with 175k on the clock has been relatively trouble free, is in mint condition, and the engine is amazingly powerful and responsive. Audi and BMW manufacture damn good diesel engines.
My friends 12 year old A4 ( now sold ) which was serviced regularly had several problems, A/C compressor, EGR valve and an expensive DMF failure.
I also know someone else who got a used Audi A5 convertible and has nothing but issues with it. Seems to spend a lot of time in the Garage being fixed.
Our main customer is BMW so I have a lot of colleagues with new BMW company cars as we get them at a good discount rate and they are great cars ( especially the engines ) but have a surprising amount of niggles.
Audi and BMW certainly seem well built and the engines can be good and they can last a long time if well looked after and you're lucky but they are not as reliable as Honda or possibly Toyota, but Toyota aren't as good as they used to be.
An issue I have with BMW and Audi is you have to pay an arm and a leg to get options that are generally standard on Japanese cars.
Yes, that is the key to keeping things in good condition, especially regular oil changes with the correct oil fitted.You neglect a BMW turbo diesel engine at your peril!
Very true though the unexpected can and does sometimes happen. My campervan which is on a Transit 2.5TDi chassis is regularly serviced and in mint condition throughout. Just had to return back from a planned Europe tour due to fuel pump electrics which put the engine into Limp Mode. To make matters worse, the pump (Lucas Epic) is no longer made so am currently working around a Bosch conversion.
Very true though the unexpected can and does sometimes happen. My campervan which is on a Transit 2.5TDi chassis is regularly serviced and in mint condition throughout. Just had to return back from a planned Europe tour due to fuel pump electrics which put the engine into Limp Mode. To make matters worse, the pump (Lucas Epic) is no longer made so am currently working around a Bosch conversion.
Dreading the final bill!
Yes, unfortunately you can't do anything to maintain the pump, except to replace the filter in the fuel pipe (if it has one).
I assume you mean the high pressure pump?
That will be expensive....the high pressure pump failed on my sister's Audi A4 V6 TDi...£2,000!
First car I had was a Nissan Almera Tino (I am tall), and it was somewhat alright to drive, but when I went for its MoT, the guy told me to scrap it as it was a huge failure. I only paid 500 for it so took it as a lesson, but the car was basically rust and faults.
Then I got my latest one, a 11 year old Megan Scenic, got 110'000 miles on the clock and the last MoT cost me £6:50 for new wipers and that was it. Runs fine as well, 5th is a bit dodgy on rare occasions (has slipped out a few times, nothing major), but otherwise lacking in power but runs fine enough. £700 and lasted me a few years now and I drive quite a bit up and down the country (well, across it technically).
I think most cars have their issues, would be rare to find a perfect car that never has issues.
First car I had was a Nissan Almera Tino (I am tall), and it was somewhat alright to drive, but when I went for its MoT, the guy told me to scrap it as it was a huge failure. I only paid 500 for it so took it as a lesson, but the car was basically rust and faults.
Then I got my latest one, a 11 year old Megan Scenic, got 110'000 miles on the clock and the last MoT cost me £6:50 for new wipers and that was it. Runs fine as well, 5th is a bit dodgy on rare occasions (has slipped out a few times, nothing major), but otherwise lacking in power but runs fine enough. £700 and lasted me a few years now and I drive quite a bit up and down the country (well, across it technically).
I think most cars have their issues, would be rare to find a perfect car that never has issues.
The Tino and the Scenic are the same car except the Tino has the Nissan engine.
The Tino and the Scenic are the same car except the Tino has the Nissan engine.
Did not know that. Although both were bought cheap so I am guessing most of the feel and quality were down to the previous owners at that point. The Tino felt alright, whilst the Nissan feels like a ****ing death trap at times, I never trust it.
Yes, unfortunately you can't do anything to maintain the pump, except to replace the filter in the fuel pipe (if it has one). I assume you mean the high pressure pump?
That will be expensive....the high pressure pump failed on my sister's Audi A4 V6 TDi...£2,000!
Yes but the Lucas Epic as originally fitted is no longer made (no idea if they went out of business or what) so am currently in contact with someone locally who does a conversion on Bosch pumps to fit the 2.5TDi. I won't be doing the job as my 'engine tinkering' days are long behind me now. The problem has been the damn stupid electronics which, despite it being a Ford Transit, is full of 'fly by wire' stuff.
Yes but the Lucas Epic as originally fitted is no longer made (no idea if they went out of business or what) so am currently in contact with someone locally who does a conversion on Bosch pumps to fit the 2.5TDi. I won't be doing the job as my 'engine tinkering' days are long behind me now. The problem has been the damn stupid electronics which, despite it being a Ford Transit, is full of 'fly by wire' stuff.
Another vote for the Fiat Punto as being a truly unreliable car. I bought it at three years old with 26k on the clock and in the 5 years I drove it (adding only another 30k to the clock) I had to change the head gasket twice; rectify a very expensive problem with immobiliser and coding system; replace the exhaust twice, rectify a multitude of electrical problems, including the windows, and rear wiper as well problems with the suspension.
My most reliable has been my Nissan Almeria Tino - in the three years I drove it the only work it needed was a couple of tyre replacements. It was a sad day when I wrote it off.
I've been driving a Clio for 15 months now and, touch wood, no problems so far.
Yes, unfortunately you can't do anything to maintain the pump, except to replace the filter in the fuel pipe (if it has one).
I assume you mean the high pressure pump?
That will be expensive....the high pressure pump failed on my sister's Audi A4 V6 TDi...£2,000!
I'm picking one of those up this afternoon, the car that is, not the pump! I'm planning on replacing it when the warranty expires, not because it will be unreliable, but because one 'small' fault could be so expensive.
When first driving I always had 10 year + bangers that I sort of expected to go wrong - Ford Fiesta, Vauxhall Astra, and the worst of the lot, a Fiat Uno - terrible car. Rusted like crazy, head gasket went, then the engine blew, spurting oil everywhere. I sold it for scrap for £60.
I then bought a four year old Nissan Micra and that car was amazing - never let me down. I then part ex'd that for a five year old VW Beetle 2.0 sports model with all the bells and whistles, spoiler etc. It looked the part, but bloody ell, that car was unreliable. Everything electrical that could go wrong did - every 3 weeks. It was always in the garage so I got rid of it in the end. Worst was the electric windows just caving in and falling into the door on both doors. It's put me off VW - although my ex had a couple and they were always crap too - an old Golf and Passatt.
I'm now a happy owner of my second Toyota. Love them, and the dealership near me is very good too. I think I'd always stick with Japanese cars now.
Skodas are good. Had one from new for nearly three years and it has not had a fault so far. Well ok the aircon on the drivers side stopped working for a few miles once but that was it.
My Octavia is now over 9 years old and has been very very reliable.
Yet my son's 10 year old Audi A4 Avant Tdi with 175k on the clock has been relatively trouble free, is in mint condition, and the engine is amazingly powerful and responsive. Audi and BMW manufacture damn good diesel engines.
The problem with a lot of Audi and BMW's, if you aren't buying them new, is that a good proportion of those on sale are ex-company cars or rep-mobiles. These are typically abused quite badly because they are powerful, slick and not actually owned by the person driving it.
The problem with a lot of Audi and BMW's, if you aren't buying them new, is that a good proportion of those on sale are ex-company cars or rep-mobiles. These are typically abused quite badly because they are powerful, slick and not actually owned by the person driving it.
My son's Audi had been privately owned from new. His wife also has the same model Audi though much newer which is a company car. Averages 500 miles a month, never been driven on a motorway, Audi dealership serviced.....then she gets another brand new one after three years.
Someone somewhere get's a used low mileage Audi that's been molly coddled! It can pay to buy an ex-company car....particularly if it has a service record history.
Years ago it was common for cars to break down and rust away. I remember old vauxhalls such as the victor (my folks had an old one) and it was soooooo unreliable in that it would often refuse to start. I and my peer group had no desire to ever own cars made by rover group once the Japanese and Germans came along. We effectively killed rover! I also remember old volvos being much tougher than anything we made, that commercial showing a 340/360 being dropped on its nose and remaining mostly intact - if you did that with an Austin allegro it would have exploded into a million bits. Likewise the old 240 volvos were a bit dull but built like a planet.
In modern times, my most fun car which was 3 years old when I bought it, was also the most expensive to keep on the road. It was a money pit. Many people have owned modern Astras and have few probs, but my one seldom went more than a month without a major repair being needed! I think it was a Friday car or a lemon. The complete opposite with the economical diesel polo I had after it. Boring but much cheaper to own - not entirely fault free but close enough.
Not sure, but are boring cars more reliable?
I currently have a VW with dsg auto, which is mostly nice but there are plenty of customers who have had probs with the dsg transmission - so I am keeping my fingers crossed. I am thinking that next time I might choose a regular auto or cvt such as the micra or jazz or Hyundai i10 or new i20 just to avoid the complexity of the VW dsg robotised manual.
When first driving I always had 10 year + bangers that I sort of expected to go wrong - Ford Fiesta, Vauxhall Astra, and the worst of the lot, a Fiat Uno - terrible car. Rusted like crazy, head gasket went, then the engine blew, spurting oil everywhere. I sold it for scrap for £60.
I then bought a four year old Nissan Micra and that car was amazing - never let me down. I then part ex'd that for a five year old VW Beetle 2.0 sports model with all the bells and whistles, spoiler etc. It looked the part, but bloody ell, that car was unreliable. Everything electrical that could go wrong did - every 3 weeks. It was always in the garage so I got rid of it in the end. Worst was the electric windows just caving in and falling into the door on both doors. It's put me off VW - although my ex had a couple and they were always crap too - an old Golf and Passatt.
I'm now a happy owner of my second Toyota. Love them, and the dealership near me is very good too. I think I'd always stick with Japanese cars now.
My one and only experience in a Fiat Uno (diesel) was in a courtesy car many years back whilst my unreliable Renault 5 (another load of old crap) was on one of its many stays in the garage.
This Fiat was only a few months old, yet it failed to start numerous times (had to await the orange light going out on the dash before cranking the engine) finally conked out completely and was uplifted back to the dealership on the back of an AA low loader. An absolutely dreadful car, and colour. It was vomit coloured. A Toyota Starlet was provided in its place and proved very reliable.
Comments
Yes, that is the key to keeping things in good condition, especially regular oil changes with the correct oil fitted.You neglect a BMW turbo diesel engine at your peril!
Today's emission regulations mean engines have to burn the fuel more cleanly and so need injection systems and emission control systems all of which need computers to make them work properly.
The crank and cam sensors are needed to sense the position of the pistons and the camshaft to ensure constant correct timing.
There are sensors to tell the injection system when to work and how much fuel to send to the injectors, sensors for airflow to tell the engine how much air the engine needs tied in with oxygen sensors etc.
My friends 12 year old A4 ( now sold ) which was serviced regularly had several problems, A/C compressor, EGR valve and an expensive DMF failure.
I also know someone else who got a used Audi A5 convertible and has nothing but issues with it. Seems to spend a lot of time in the Garage being fixed.
Our main customer is BMW so I have a lot of colleagues with new BMW company cars as we get them at a good discount rate and they are great cars ( especially the engines ) but have a surprising amount of niggles.
Audi and BMW certainly seem well built and the engines can be good and they can last a long time if well looked after and you're lucky but they are not as reliable as Honda or possibly Toyota, but Toyota aren't as good as they used to be.
An issue I have with BMW and Audi is you have to pay an arm and a leg to get options that are generally standard on Japanese cars.
Dreading the final bill!
Yes, unfortunately you can't do anything to maintain the pump, except to replace the filter in the fuel pipe (if it has one).
I assume you mean the high pressure pump?
That will be expensive....the high pressure pump failed on my sister's Audi A4 V6 TDi...£2,000!
He did, he is a wum.
http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2094837&page=3
Then I got my latest one, a 11 year old Megan Scenic, got 110'000 miles on the clock and the last MoT cost me £6:50 for new wipers and that was it. Runs fine as well, 5th is a bit dodgy on rare occasions (has slipped out a few times, nothing major), but otherwise lacking in power but runs fine enough. £700 and lasted me a few years now and I drive quite a bit up and down the country (well, across it technically).
I think most cars have their issues, would be rare to find a perfect car that never has issues.
The Tino and the Scenic are the same car except the Tino has the Nissan engine.
Did not know that. Although both were bought cheap so I am guessing most of the feel and quality were down to the previous owners at that point. The Tino felt alright, whilst the Nissan feels like a ****ing death trap at times, I never trust it.
Good luck with it, I hope you get it sorted soon.
Volvo S40 - was in the garage more than on the road - terrible car
BMW 3 series - almost as bad as the Volvo - worst dealers I've ever come across.
Best dealers - Saab (sadly no more)
My most reliable has been my Nissan Almeria Tino - in the three years I drove it the only work it needed was a couple of tyre replacements. It was a sad day when I wrote it off.
I've been driving a Clio for 15 months now and, touch wood, no problems so far.
If I could go back in time, the one piece of advice I would give my 17 year old self is never to touch a French or Italian car.
I'm a Peugeot specialist and own 3 Peugeot vehicles....they don't always go wrong!
I'm picking one of those up this afternoon, the car that is, not the pump! I'm planning on replacing it when the warranty expires, not because it will be unreliable, but because one 'small' fault could be so expensive.
I then bought a four year old Nissan Micra and that car was amazing - never let me down. I then part ex'd that for a five year old VW Beetle 2.0 sports model with all the bells and whistles, spoiler etc. It looked the part, but bloody ell, that car was unreliable. Everything electrical that could go wrong did - every 3 weeks. It was always in the garage so I got rid of it in the end. Worst was the electric windows just caving in and falling into the door on both doors. It's put me off VW - although my ex had a couple and they were always crap too - an old Golf and Passatt.
I'm now a happy owner of my second Toyota. Love them, and the dealership near me is very good too. I think I'd always stick with Japanese cars now.
My Octavia is now over 9 years old and has been very very reliable.
And yet the three puntos I've owned have *never* let me down.
I think there is such a thing as a "friday afternoon" car
The problem with a lot of Audi and BMW's, if you aren't buying them new, is that a good proportion of those on sale are ex-company cars or rep-mobiles. These are typically abused quite badly because they are powerful, slick and not actually owned by the person driving it.
Someone somewhere get's a used low mileage Audi that's been molly coddled! It can pay to buy an ex-company car....particularly if it has a service record history.
In modern times, my most fun car which was 3 years old when I bought it, was also the most expensive to keep on the road. It was a money pit. Many people have owned modern Astras and have few probs, but my one seldom went more than a month without a major repair being needed! I think it was a Friday car or a lemon. The complete opposite with the economical diesel polo I had after it. Boring but much cheaper to own - not entirely fault free but close enough.
Not sure, but are boring cars more reliable?
I currently have a VW with dsg auto, which is mostly nice but there are plenty of customers who have had probs with the dsg transmission - so I am keeping my fingers crossed. I am thinking that next time I might choose a regular auto or cvt such as the micra or jazz or Hyundai i10 or new i20 just to avoid the complexity of the VW dsg robotised manual.
My one and only experience in a Fiat Uno (diesel) was in a courtesy car many years back whilst my unreliable Renault 5 (another load of old crap) was on one of its many stays in the garage.
This Fiat was only a few months old, yet it failed to start numerous times (had to await the orange light going out on the dash before cranking the engine) finally conked out completely and was uplifted back to the dealership on the back of an AA low loader. An absolutely dreadful car, and colour. It was vomit coloured. A Toyota Starlet was provided in its place and proved very reliable.