Toyota Fanboys: New cars vs Old cars Toyota reliability

[MirageRally]

My friend is driving me to drink (Ironically for me because l don't drink anything but water lol) with his "Toyota are better than every car" mentality...when l worked as a entry level service tech, we saw all cars come in and get worked on, even Toyotas with blown engines and transmissions...l do agree that a Toyota can last longer than most, but like everything, it's a car-it will break eventually....argh...sorry, just wanted to get my rant over with....Now any car can last for only as long as you want to put into it....any advice l should give him?

[dspace9]

My friend is driving me to drink (Ironically for me because l don't drink anything but water lol) with his "Toyota are better than every car" mentality...when l worked as a entry level service tech, we saw all cars come in and get worked on, even Toyotas with blown engines and transmissions...l do agree that a Toyota can last longer than most, but like everything, it's a car-it will break eventually....argh...sorry, just wanted to get my rant over with....Now any car can last for only as long as you want to put into it....any advice l should give him?

I think Toyota makes good cars and heavy equipment. They have a reputation for quality, and I think it is fair to say it holds. Same goes for their Lexus luxury offshoot brand. So quiet you don't know they're running... which has led to a whole other issue.

Anyways, I think Mitsubishi is high quality too, just underappreciated. Maybe because some people think Dodge is bad quality and associate Mitsubishi with Dodge's of old days..(that reputation is not necessarily true, but they had some lemons for sure.. and neat products.. a lot like all car makers) so Mitsubishi "isn't" a Toyota in the mainstream consumer's mind.

Toyota has been made with GM, so really I think a lot of times, bias with brands isn't even logical. Think of the Toyota-Subaru's like the current 86, and the Toyota BMW Supra. And that's just right this second in the Toyota car lineup.

[MirageRally]

I think Toyota makes good cars and heavy equipment. They have a reputation for quality, and I think it is fair to say it holds. Same goes for their Lexus luxury offshoot brand. So quiet you don't know they're running... which has led to a whole other issue.

Anyways, I think Mitsubishi is high quality too, just underappreciated. Maybe because some people think Dodge is bad quality and associate Mitsubishi with Dodge's of old days..(that reputation is not necessarily true, but they had some lemons for sure.. and neat products.. a lot like all car makers) so Mitsubishi "isn't" a Toyota in the mainstream consumer's mind.

Toyota has been made with GM, so really I think a lot of times, bias with brands isn't even logical. Think of the Toyota-Subaru's like the current 86, and the Toyota BMW Supra. And that's just right this second in the Toyota car lineup.

Yeah, l just hate it when my friend acts like it'll never break...plus he always saying that if you don't drive a Toyota, you're basically stupid. At the time, l couldn't afford a new Toyota...25k+...that's crazy...l got my Mirage brand new...they wanted 15k but l negotiated it down to $13,500. Plus, l'm also a Kia guy and believe most cars can get over 200,000 miles with proper maintenance. l personally would never own another new car bc of all the safety systems on modern cars....yes it's easier to pinpoint the problem, but the problem could be a crash sensor that's bad and could be $200+ to fix. More sensors, more things to break in my opinion...if l wanted a car to last me and only need to do basic maintenance then l would get a older used Toyota. l knew that Mitsubishi makes good cars at an affordable price, plus this is the first and last new car l will buy, but l bought it bc l knew Mitsubishi has great quality like you said...and also bc it's a brand new car with no sensors or crash tech

[dspace9]

Yeah, l just hate it when my friend acts like it'll never break...plus he always saying that if you don't drive a Toyota, you're basically stupid. At the time, l couldn't afford a new Toyota...25k+...that's crazy...l got my Mirage brand new...they wanted 15k but l negotiated it down to $13,500. Plus, l'm also a Kia guy and believe most cars can get over 200,000 miles with proper maintenance. l personally would never own another new car bc of all the safety systems on modern cars....yes it's easier to pinpoint the problem, but the problem could be a crash sensor that's bad and could be $200+ to fix. More sensors, more things to break in my opinion...if l wanted a car to last me and only need to do basic maintenance then l would get a older used Toyota. l knew that Mitsubishi makes good cars at an affordable price, plus this is the first and last new car l will buy, but l bought it bc l knew Mitsubishi has great quality like you said...and also bc it's a brand new car with no sensors or crash tech

The more gizmos a car has, the more stuff to possibly break for sure. I think it's what gives newer Cadillacs a poor reputation. Keep it simple like you say. I like my Mirage more for the fact it has roll down windows in the back, no AC even. No frills. Backup camera would have been an option I would have liked, and I could rig up my own 2014 with camera if I want.

Good deal you got with your Mirage, chew them down some. Mine were firm with 12,500 or whatever it was.

Overall my Mirage has been good. Besides a few sour spots like the dealer sucks overall, and I had a few first-year build Mirage issues. 6+ years and drives straight and gets me 45 to 50 mpg so there I go... and good in the winter driving conditions, I feel.

I also feel Mitsubishi interior and exteriors look better than Toyotas and WAY better than Hondas. Maybe mitsu Mirages and their other cars besides the Eclipse Cross are a little dated now...

[MirageRally]

The more gizmos a car has, the more stuff to possibly break for sure. I think it's what gives newer Cadillacs a poor reputation. Keep it simple like you say. I like my Mirage more for the fact it has roll down windows in the back, no AC even. No frills. Backup camera would have been an option I would have liked, and I could rig up my own 2014 with camera if I want.

Good deal you got with your Mirage, chew them down some. Mine were firm with 12,500 or whatever it was.

Overall my Mirage has been good. Besides a few sour spots like the dealer sucks overall, and I had a few first-year build Mirage issues. 6+ years and drives straight and gets me 45 to 50 mpg so there I go... and good in the winter driving conditions, I feel.

I also feel Mitsubishi interior and exteriors look better than Toyotas and WAY better than Hondas. Maybe mitsu Mirages and their other cars besides the Eclipse Cross are a little dated now...

Wait, you don't have A/C? I thought all cars came standard with A/C? My Saturn didn't but that was bc l bypassed the compressor.

[dspace9]

Wait, you don't have A/C? I thought all cars came standard with A/C? My Saturn didn't but that was bc l bypassed the compressor.

I have no A/C in my Mirage. It's true lol. I bought the absolute cheapest new 2014 Mirage I could..the bare-bones ES manual.

No A/C could be a Canadian/non-US market thing...

The other thing that distinguishes my base Mirage is that I have power windows up front, roll-down windows in the rear.

Kinda strange, a real conversation piece there.

[javensbukan]

Wait, you don't have A/C? I thought all cars came standard with A/C? My Saturn didn't but that was bc l bypassed the compressor.

That's correct. The base model Mirages in Canada didn't have AC until 2018-19 MY I believe? It was pretty standard practice here in Canada for cheap cars... up until just very recently.

Main reason? It's just too frigging cold most of the year to have it. Even in southern Canada, it's only really *hot* for maaaaybe 3-4 weeks of the year.

It does get sticky though... so so humid.

[Mark]

Wait, you don't have A/C? I thought all cars came standard with A/C? My Saturn didn't but that was bc l bypassed the compressor.

Base model in Canada didn't have A/C from 2014-19.

[Mark]

My friend is driving me to drink (Ironically for me because l don't drink anything but water lol) with his "Toyota are better than every car" mentality...when l worked as a entry level service tech, we saw all cars come in and get worked on, even Toyotas with blown engines and transmissions...l do agree that a Toyota can last longer than most, but like everything, it's a car-it will break eventually....argh...sorry, just wanted to get my rant over with....Now any car can last for only as long as you want to put into it....any advice l should give him?

I don't understand the issue here? If your friend believes Toyota is the best, who cares? Who is he hurting by believing this? Lots of people have brand loyalty. This is nothing new, & goes way beyond cars. Tractor brands, pickup trucks, firearm manufacturers, archery bow companies, Apple/Android/Windows, etc.....

Very few people I know would be interested in my Mirage, & I really don't care. That's why I hang here with all of you!

[Eggman]

I don't understand the issue here?

Some folks are less likely to follow their own inclinations and instead follow others, and are easily influenced?

For example, we judge others and ourselves by what car we drive.

It was pointed out here on the forum some time ago in a comment made about a Mirage owner: There's someone with nothing to prove.