Cars have always been a passion of mine. My tastes have always leaned to the faster, sometime even exotic cars when I would rattle off a list of cars I wished I owned or drove.
Recently I have been looking at the Lamborghini Countach, a wicked piece of engineering from the “independent” days of Lamborghini. Cars like this came with a price above and beyond the sticker price; it was the cost to keep these cars going, as they weren’t terribly reliable. I love reading the “for sale” listings for these cars that include lines like, “…new clutch…” or “…complete service including all belts…” and the car has less than 5000 miles.
Things have changed since Audi took over at Lamborghini; we have seen advancements in quality and reliability turning a once questionable driving experience into one that can be taken with confidence knowing the car will get you to where you are going and back without incident.
Or have they…
As I prepared to leave the house for a meeting several weeks ago, I was greeted with a horrible sound when I attempted to start my 2008 BMW M3.
A sickly sounding noise greeted me. I again attempted to start the car, and the same sound accompanied by a whirling of electric noises. If the third time is the charm, for me it at least allowed the car to turn over, but it was smoking. The display on the iDrive screen displayed “Engine Malfunction” while a red exclamation point flashed on the instrument cluster. There was no need to stop the car as it stalled by itself, and the strong odor of a fuel rich exhaust filled the garage.
I promptly called the dealer who advised me not to drive the car, but have it towed. They requested I call BMW roadside assistance to arrange the tow truck, and stated they would have a loaner vehicle for me upon arrival at the dealer.
To make a long story short, the M3 spent over a week at the dealer while they waited and eventually installed an idle sensor that had gone bad. The service advisor was genuinely concerned about this situation calling almost daily to update me on the progress. The biggest hurdle they had was the part was not in stock in the USA, instead having to wait for it to come from Germany.
After a week, I picked up the car and within minutes of leaving the dealership, the check engine light came on and stayed on resulting in a second trip to the dealership to have them clear the codes and bring my M3 back to 100%.
I was impressed by the way in which the dealership handled this situation. BMW roadside assistance was great as well dispatching a tow truck to my house within 30 minutes of the initial phone call. Aside from the inconvenience of not having my car, the experience was fine.
Which got me thinking…
News of the Nissan GT-R and various service related issues have been prominent on AutoSpies.com in recent weeks. Earlier this year there were several stories surrounding the DCT transmission in 2008 BMW M3’s.
The very thing that made the Lamborghini Countach unreliable as a daily driver is the thing we celebrate with our new cars.
Technology coupled with reliability.
But that technology can certainly work against us as well. When I purchased the M3 in March, the salesman made a big deal about the break-in period. He admonished running the engine above 5500 RPM for the first 1000 miles stating that he had seen both M3 and M5/M6 with engines that had been damaged or destroyed during the initial period, and that BMW would not replace them under warranty if the break-in had not been completed. The engine computer (a.k.a. the black box) would be the witness to actual driving behavior, so there would be no deniability should something catastrophic happens.
But BMW is not the only party at play here; Nissan is selling cars that the computer knowingly allows to destroy itself via the launch control systems. In other words you can have one of the fastest cars in the land, but to be able to prove it, you will need to place the car in to “self-destruct” mode.
And owners are not happy. Nissan is using the “black box” of the GT-R to evaluate the driving habits of the owners to determine eligibility for warranty claims.
Like a bad 80’s movie where the villain always had a self-destruct button, the GT-R is built to be fast, but at what cost. Owners are being asked to fork over big bucks to keep their super cars on the road.
All the bragging rights, just make sure you read the fine print in the GT-R owner’s manual.
I don’t know about you, but stories like these would certainly make me think twice about purchasing cars that will knowingly allow you to destroy them while trying to extract the performance the manufacturers like to brag about.
Sure, Nissan has graciously offered Porsche driving lessons at the Nurburgring, but for how many laps before the GT-R needs a new transmission or other major components.
So in the end, for as well as I was treated during the down time with my M3, I know for a fact I would not be happy having to write a check to cover a new transmission, engine or other major component.
Tell me I am wrong, but I think that if you were going to buy a car like the GT-R, I would expect it to last for a very long time, even if every start is done using the launch control system to extract maximum performance. You don’t hear about Porsche owners dealing with issues like this.
So tell us, wouldn’t you expect your super car to last for more than a few maximum performance launches?