There’s no denying, you’ve heard it a thousand, maybe a million times: “German cars are the most reliable on the market.” Sure, they might’ve been back in the 1980s and 1990s, but they no longer are; They’re not even close to being as reliable as Japanese cars, and that’s a truth that the Lebanese just can’t seem to absorb.
Truth is, most people can’t tell the difference between “engineering” and “reliability”. The Germans, especially Mercedes and BMW, produce some of the most potent engines; nevertheless, that does not make their engines reliable or “invincible”. There is no doubt that their engineering is top notch, but their reliability isn’t, and there’s plenty of proof.
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I’ve seen a lot of broken down cars in my life, and I’m not joking, more than half of them were either from BMW or Mercedes-Benz, but that’s no proof, that’s just a personal observation.
Here’s the real proof: reliability rankings, throughout the years, have put companies like Toyota and Honda on top, while the Germans sometimes struggled to even make into the Top 10.
In Consumer Reports’ 2014 reliability study, Audi was the fifth most reliable manufacturer, and Porsche ninth. However, BMW, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz were down in #14, #17 and #24 respectively.
Entry-level 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA250 is among the least reliable cars in the latest Consumer Reports reliability survey. CR says: “A raft of problems, including squeaks and rattles; engine issues, bad audio and electrical problems.”
If we go back to the 2009 survey, we’ll see that the Germans fared even worse, with Porsche ninth, Volkswagen in spot #21, Mercedes-Benz #23, Audi #24 and BMW #26.
German automakers have improved their reliability in recent years, especially Audi, but they are still lagging behind other brands, most notably the Japanese who have been dominating for years. Car manufacturers like BMW produce some of the most sophisticated engines, but that sophistication comes at a big price, and that price is reliability.
The “buy a German car, it’s the most reliable” advice has become obsolete, not to say a lie. When you recommend German, you’re either recommending quality/luxury or performance, NOT reliability. I’m not saying that a car from Germany will give you a hard time, but it will definitely give you a slightly harder time than a car from Japan.
In the end, it’s all up to the consumer: would you like a powerful and sophisticated car that might let you down often, or would you prefer something more simple yet less “fragile”?