Build Quality

[NH Dan]

Ok, this isnt about Honda in specific or the Civic in specific but through recent threads, there have been lots of comments about build quality relating to where certain things are built, such as 'its built in spain so what would you expect' etc.

My (tongue in cheek) question is thus (and on two levels);

Where is the best place to have your car built and why??

What Model/Brand do you consider to be a well built/good quality car and why??

[jaydh]

Where is the best place to have your car built and why??
Germany because of their precision/efficiency in building things

What do you consider to be a well built/good quality car??
a quality car to me is one that has a good solid noise when you shut the door. from my experience cars that have this are generally good quality. also, while your driving along put your hand out the window on the groove between the door line and the roof line, if there is little flex/movement i think it shows a good car.

[NH Dan]

Be a bit more precise with the second question, which specific cars? Not so much bentleys etc but day to day cars.

[jaydh]

Originally Posted by NH Dan

which specific cars? Not so much bentleys etc but day to day cars.

my parents have an avensis and i think its a superb car for the money, its under rated and almost equals the lexus on quality i think but cos of the badge, its cheaper. like the polo/fabia effect.

[Kremmen]

One the first point I would rate Japan above Germany. Of late the user reviews have been very anti-German with quality issues.

On the second point I would use rattles and niggles as a starting point. Followed by everything being of a good design and fit.

[gjackson]

A2. When the salesperson sells the positives of their product rather than slagging off the competition

[jaydh]

i think japan are very close behind germany, but rattles of sorts have occured and do occur in jap cars ive driven. maybe they are as good as each other...

[NH Dan]

Ok, the post isnt going in the direction i was pointing, what i'm aiming at is peoples pre-conceptions of brands/cars, i.e. someone posted earlier about not knowing the Civic was a UK built car and had he known, he wouldnt have bought it, he'd assumed it was Jap built.

So, where geographically is a good place to have a car built and why?

and

What is a good car (model/brand) and why??

[COB]

If you were talking about maybe 10-15 years ago it was without a doubt Germany, the quality of the older Mercedes etc. was legendary, however as with anything these days this quality and pride in work has taken a back seat to economics - i.e. the accountants have much more of a say now.

Today I would say Japan is building better quality.

[Jack The Lad.]

I will go with Japan,as I have too many friends with German cars giving them trouble.

Failing that, in my own Garage, so I can keep an eye on the b-ggers.

[angie4m]

I had a BMW Mini, built in Oxford UK.....infact I try and stick to cars built in the UK as i'm a bit mental that way, plus its good for the economy.

I have to say that the first built Mini's like the one I had was a much better build quality of the ones they started churning out as the demand grew. One example being it had a solid plastic handle to move the seat forward and change the back position which was then changed for a flimsy bit of plastic.

I don't think it matters where your car is built, there will always be good and bad. I have to say that I have no issues with the quality of my Honda. I find it great as do my mates and my Family and they drive BM's and Mercs.

Just before I got the CTR me and my Dad bumped into an old friend of his, who like him only stuck to BMW's and when my Dad asked him what you driving now, he said a 350Z, as Japanese was the way to go. My Dad then said if he says that then they must be good.

I don't think I would buy a German Car as JTL says I know of too many issues with them......both me and my family are on first name terms with the folk at BMW HQ & VW due to issues we've had with cars

[Charley Farley]

Hi N H Dan

I would say that the Japanese have caught up with Germany to some degree but not entirely. I think the Germans are still the best coachbuilders. I recently had a Mercedes A Class for seven years and there was not any rust and minimal stone chips on the bonnet. My new Civic has a myriad of chips on bonnet after one year.

If I had to sell my Civic at the moment I would return to Mercedes Benz. The quality of the product was very good and the aftersales was second to none. They really went the extra mile in customer services and goodwill gestures. The car would probably be a A class or C class. However having said that, the Japanese are still the best at building componentry. The germans still are along way from component longevity.

[GHGH]

Maybe the new Impreza now when they managed to build a VSA into it?
Quite thirsty due to the 4WD, but premium quality. What you see is what you get.

[jaydh]

Originally Posted by angie4m

Japanese is the way to go.

i completely agree, although give the koreans another 5 years or so and they will be worth more of a consideration

[jay_s]

when looking for a new car - i start on the basis of: no french cars, no alpha romeos;
and that is purely down to bad experiences with build quality.

[pjr]

I still have the preconceived idea that German built is good, although the prices sometimes reflect this.

I looked at the VW Golf, of a similar price to the Type S Civic I bought, and it had much less equipment than the Civic had. Seemed quite solidly built though. The dealer's attitude put me off the car more than the car itself.

2 cars ago, I had a Ford Puma, which I think was built in Germany. Only had 1 problem with it - one of the engine mounts failed (within warranty). Only other things that needed replaced were tyres & brakes

Last car was a Mazda 3 - Japanese built. Lots of faults with it, 4 alloys replaced twice in 3 years, airbag crash sensor failed, xenon lights auto height adjustment failed just within warranty period, tyres wore prematurely etc etc.

Haven't had any real issues with the Civic, and I was happy to buy British. I like the styling, the handling, the performance and the economy.

[NH Dan]

Originally Posted by jaydh

i completely agree, although give the koreans another 5 years or so and they will be worth more of a consideration

so, lets go with this one to see if i can get my badly disguised point across. Which japanese cars?? not just brand, model specific.

the same with the guys that are saying german.

(my quote there was meant to include the comments about Japanese cars)

[jaydh]

i cant really pick any particular because most jap cars are well priced, most german cars are over priced and have firmer rides, french cars and like sitting in a couch which is on a cloud.

i would say for me the suzuki swift is a good supermini, civic is a good small family, avensis is a good medium family and lexus 450 is a good luxury

[beepee]

Does anyone know which "German" cars are actually built in Germany?

[NH Dan]

Originally Posted by beepee

Does anyone know which "German" cars are actually built in Germany?

Bingo!! just the point i was getting at. Take a look at some of these 'jap' or 'german' cars and see where they are built. Quite an eye opener when linked to the reputation and assumptions that the marketplace has.

The Civic and CR-V are built here, Half of VW's production is from no-where near Germany and on and on. For instance, 'German' build quality is actually now Mexican or Brazilian.