IMO cars peaked in the 1990s in design for durability and reliability.
As the emissions legislation & fuel prices increased. the design perameters changed to accommodate that, IMO.
Just look at a Mercedes Benz from the mid 1990s and the current equivalent model build. , there is no comparison. durability has been sacrificed for fuel economy & emissions resulting in cars being scrapped 10 years earlier simply because the R&M costs of ownership are not economically viable.
Just visit your local independant repairer and he/she will tell you what's good & what's not and how quality stacks up with with previous makes/models.
For example VW & BMW were good cars in the 1990s and they quickly deteriorated with a bunch of electronic gismos added to make then an emotive buy rather than being a quality product based on past brand reputation.
Even Toyota which was in the past renowned for its engineering and build quality succumbing to the plastic fantastic and electronics that fail more often requiring a tow truck than the hard mechanical components.
Look at the quality of components and build of the Lexus brand of 20 years ago vs the gee whizz bling electronic everything models of today. I'm keenly aware that most owners look at paint/bling, upholstery and fiddle around with electronics and very few look underneath; that is until they get a $2k bill for a standard service and a few spare parts replacement.
About 70% of cars are bought by Government or corporations who as first owners usually give them the flick at the end of the warranty period or earlier.
But of course the size of the used car market is at least 250% bigger than the new car market and this is where the real cost of car ownership is felt by the average Aussie.where a 100K service can cost up to $2,500 !
