Why Do Today’s Cars Have So Many Problems? (Explained)

A study sample reported the opinion and perspectives of over 80,000 car buyers to get to know how they were enjoying their new vehicles.

It was shown that owners facing several issues with their vehicles rose to a higher percentage and approximately, an average of 180 problems showed up per every 100 vehicles tested within 90 days of ownership.

It is an obvious fact that cars produced today are becoming less reliable and only more expensive. Let’s find out why.

Complex Features of Modern Cars

This is one of the biggest reasons modern cars develop so many problems today.

As automakers continue to produce cars with more technological intricacies and complexity, the more components in a vehicle, the higher the problem that springs up with them.

Today, almost all modern cars have numerous electric units in them.

From the stereos to the infotainment screen, driver assist features, cameras, sensors, etc. you will rarely see a recent vehicle that doesn’t come with these features as standard.

The push for technological advancement has caused automobiles company to cram as much wiring into their vehicles, making repairs even more difficult.

For older vehicles or classics, this was not an issue, because the whole vehicle system was pretty straightforward and most car owners at that time knew how to do the basic repairs and maintenance for their vehicles.

It gets harder for modern-day owners, as many of them, due to the complexity of the vehicle, cannot handle the most basic fix and maintenance for their vehicles.

Most DIY methods, unless done by a knowledgeable person, could result in more damage than imagined. To make matters worse, there is a shortage of critical components to support this technological advancement in the automobile industry.

It was reported that companies have been producing unfinished models in an attempt to keep dealers supplied.

Then they ask stores to install these missing components before selling them to owners.

This, of course, is not something to be proud of as it results in more electrical malfunction when these missing chips are installed, sometimes poorly.

The presence of power steering in most new cars today is an example of modern features being standardized.

Usage of Sub-standard Materials 

Most classic cars were produced with steel, although they were heavier and it affected fuel economy, they were more durable and could stand the test of time.

Nowadays, steel is far too expensive to be used in cars today and so usage was stopped as far back as 1973 because many consumers needed vehicles with a good mpg rating.

Thus, the birth of aluminum materials and lighter steel sheets to manufacture cars. This led to the rise of using subpar sheets for the vehicle’s covering. These layers were so fragile and thin and it made the car lightweight.

They also incorporated the use of plastics and cheap electric wiring where they could fit just to cut down costs.  Of course, with the lower cost of production, manufacturers were able to make more cars and so their profit margin went up.

However, this apparently took its toll on the durability of vehicles today as manufacturers were making more money at the expense of the quality of the vehicle.

Increased and Sub-standard Repairs

How? The majority of dealerships come from respective automobile brands and the company generates revenue when people come to their service centers.

Sometimes, in a bid to make customers come back for their services, the repairs are not so thorough and even if they were, the general body parts of the vehicle are not durable enough to last long.

Eventually, in a short while, customers come back to these dealerships.

Companies Aim At Optimizing Performance at the Expense of the Health of the Engine.

Most, if not all, modern vehicles today have revving engines because manufacturers make their cars run at a higher rpm to get more torque.

Rpm stands for revolution per minute and it is used to measure how fast your engine’s crankshaft is rotating per minute.

Optimizing a car to get a high torque isn’t a problem in its entirety as many consumers and car owners desire that their cars run at a ridiculous speed, but this speed means that your engine will wear much faster than usual.

Take, for instance, the new Dodge demon. The vehicle claims 808 horsepower and 770 lb-ft of torque.

This vehicle should ordinarily come with a manual V8 transmission, as it is a general fact that manual transmission gives more remote control over the vehicle than an automatic transmission.

However, the Demon replaced its manual transmission with an 8- speed automatic transmission with a paddle shifter.

This means that the engine of this vehicle will have to work so hard to push out that amount of torque while still maintaining the same speed.

To make matters worse, the vehicle has no manual transmission and therefore the driver has low control of the car and cannot drive the engine with the number of revs they like.

Older cars rarely had this type of problem because they ran at fewer revolutions and did not generate the same amount of torque and horsepower. Hence, their engines lasted longer.

Also, find out if all new cars have ABS braking systems today.

Manufacturers No Longer Sell a Car but the Ideal Conception of It.

Many commercials today settle their focus on the perfect outlook of the vehicle and not on the intricacies of the car itself.

Little wonder why you would most likely see a car in the middle of a wide road with a celebrity in the driver’s seat.

In fact, some vehicles like Dodge, Buick, Cadillac Ford, etc are being categorized as cars driven by affluent Americans.

These advertisements are centered mainly on comfort, luxury, speed, outward look, and drivability.

Of course, this is not entirely bad. Still, the efficiency of the car should be looked into as well such as the gas mileage, range of the battery, affordability, reliability of the engine and other body parts, etc.

Only a few automobile companies can still boast and take pride in producing quality vehicles. Some evergreen companies include Lexus, Toyota, Honda, Mazda, BMW, etc.

Many other companies are engineered towards the selling of most cars as soon as possible and increasing their profit margins 

Supply Issues and Economic Problems

Trouble plagued the automobile industry, especially during the pandemic, as they had a shortage of labor and supply chain problems.

For labor, there were not enough hands on deck to meet the need to build up the efficiency of these vehicles.

Especially that many employees are resigning from their workplaces for reasons best known to them and in order to prevent them from going, manufacturers have to increase their pay and benefits because the cost of bringing in a new employee can be pricey.

Inflation of prices and raw materials has also categorically eaten deep into the reliability of cars today.

It was stated by the Annual AlixPartners Global Automotive Outlook, that raw materials needed to produce electric vehicles have gone up to $8,225 from $ 3,381 and this happened in a short period from March 2020 to May 2022.

This hike has apparently put manufacturers under very serious pressure. You should also find out if all new cars have GPS tracking today.

Common Problems That Plague Modern Cars Today.

Below is the list of general problems found in modern cars today.

• Dead battery 
• Sputtering Engine
• Squeaking brakes
• Poor fuel economy
• Flat tires
• Alternator failure
• Fuel leaks
• Sensor problems
• infotainment malfunction
• Leakage in the transmission
• Wearing brake pads

Source

Why Are New Cars Less Reliable Than Classics | Clasiq

J.D. Power Claims Vehicles Are Becoming Less Reliable | The Truth About Cars

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