I owned and operated an auto maintenance shop for 13 years. So take this for what it’s worth.

Honda, Toyota and Nissan are usually good options. When you narrow it down to 2 or 3, test drive each and run the car by a reputable fast oil change place. (Yes, there’s a few out there). Ask them to look it over for you. Check the oil and transmission fluids especially to see if it looks or smells burnt. Ask them to look the bottom side over for leaks. ESPECIALLY look for a rear main engine seal leak. Anything more than sweat here is a no go. Have check CV joints for torn rubber. That’s another bad sign. Tell them you’re considering buying it and ask their opinion. Most places will be happy to look it over quickly for free. I used to do this all the time. Only takes a few minutes.

Avoid Volvos, Saab’s, Chrysler’s, pre 2010 Jeeps, and NEVER, EVER buy a Volkswagen. Ever. Just don’t.

We would regularly see Honda’s, Toyota’s and Nissans come thru with 250k to 300k Miles that we’re still in good shape. When we saw American made cars come in with 250k miles they were almost always worn out, falling apart. Of res exceptions to every rule But as a whole this is what I saw time after time.

Volvo’s, Saab’s, Chrysler’s and pre 2010 Jeeps were usually always in poor shape at 150K miles or more. Chrysler’s suck.

Volkswagens were by far the worst. In a class of their own tbh. A serious pain in the ass to do anything too. Tons of cheap plastic under the hood. Engine oil leaks everywhere. Oil plugs on these would strip on a regular basis. We actually began asking customers to sign waivers on VWs that were over 100k miles regarding oil pan stripping out and the plastic covers breaking / stripping out. Engine air filter housings stripping and or breaking. I lost a few customers over the waiver but 90% had no issues signing. As we always done everything we could to fix any issues. I will never buy a VW ESPECIALLY when they reintroduced the Beetles. They were awful.

Primate @ 25/6/2018 20:11

We had a jeep. It was a piece of shit. Cheaply built, rode like a fucking tractor, nutless engine, slushy tranny, lots of repairs. Only cars I've had tgat were worse were the Ford Explorer and a dodge neon.

Neons were horrible. Dodge/Chrysler. Smh.

The newer Fords and Chevys are much better. The Dodge trucks are good now.

I seriously would not own a VW or an older Chrysler if someone tried to give me one.

Spin @ 25/6/2018 20:52

Havo @ 25/6/2018 20:56 I owned and operated an auto maintenance shop for 13 years. So take this for what it’s worth. Honda, Toyota and Nissan are usually good options. When you narrow it down to 2 or 3, test drive each and run the car by a reputable fast oil change place. (Yes, there’s a few out there). Ask them to look it over for you. Check the oil and transmission fluids especially to see if it looks or smells burnt. Ask them to look the bottom side over for leaks. ESPECIALLY look for a rear main engine seal leak. Anything more than sweat here is a no go. Have check CV joints for torn rubber. That’s another bad sign. Tell them you’re considering buying it and ask their opinion. Most places will be happy to look it over quickly for free. I used to do this all the time. Only takes a few minutes. Avoid Volvos, Saab’s, Chrysler’s, pre 2010 Jeeps, and NEVER, EVER buy a Volkswagen. Ever. Just don’t. I'll start this with: I'm sure you ran a great maintenance shop. That said, after being screwed over by 3 or 4 different fast oil change places in college, I refuse to go to one ever again. I get my maintenance done at the dealership, where I know the person working on it, and I know they'll do quality work (plus, they have a vested interest in keeping me happy, so I buy more cars from them in the future).

Yes I ran a great shop. But I was the owner and I was on the floor 80% of the time the doors were open. I didn’t turn it over to a manager and stop by once a week. I trained all my techs and my guys never worked on any kind of commission. We never sold a customer something they didn’t need. There was simply no incentive to do so.

But I know more than anyone the reputation of these kind of shops. You simply have to find a good one. There are some terrible ones and there are some good ones.

But I would highly recommend taking your vehicle to a place you are most comfortable.
I know a lot of dealerships that are just as bad if not worse than fast lube shops. But it’s your car and your dollar so yes, find a place you can trust.