Regarding Consumer Reports: I suspect that the readership of that magazine, human nature with good or bad experiences, and the “Asian car myth” has a lot to do with how the results of their surveys turn out. It seems that owners of Honda and Toyota vehicles are very eager to sing the praises to the manufacturer than, say, GM or Ford owners. The Asian car owners are less likely to discard the survey card if they don’t have something horrible to complain about and may even write a positive review even if they have had to make fairly significant repairs. On the other hand, owners of other brands are less likely to fill out a survey card if they have nothing to complain about. Just a theory, but does also remind me of an anecdote I heard a few years ago. A fellow was talking about cars he had owned. Current car at the time was a Honda Odyssey bought four or five years ago, on its third transmission. The Odyssey replaced a Ford Taurus he had owned for 14 years, during which the Taurus required some $700 worth of repairs. He loved that Odyssey and complained endlessly about the lack of reliability and poor quality of that Taurus.
Dagosa, I Guess You’re Just Joking, But You Did Misquote Me.
That Comma You Added (Between Doing And Everyday) To My Statement Changed The Meaning. Of Course I Meant That I Am Operating The Vehicles Every Day. I Didn’t Mean That People Take Exception Every Day. Neighbors, Although Distant, Are Friendly Here.
CSA
Mark9207, I Agree With What You’re Saying. I’ve Often Wondered How The Returned Surveys Compare In Volume From One Manufacturer To Another. I Also Wondered Too If They Factor In Recall Repairs, Etcetera. There Are Many, Many Questions Unanswered.
Also, look at the variety items that comprise some of the different “Trouble Spots.” Some items are critical things to reliability and some are just nuisance things or annoyances. They do break some down to major and minor spots, but on many of them. Some problems get remedied for free while the car is under warranty and goes in for an oil change. Other problems are part of the car forever engineered into it. Lots of variables, too many to imagine.
Every year I get surveys and every year I don’t send them. Does that skew the reliability ratings a tiny bit ? Maybe I’m one the thousands of people who are making the surveys nearly useless to people like me. As I’ve said, they just don’t match with my reality when it comes to cars and I won’t bother with it.
Don’t get me wrong. I like the myths. They make for some super deals on used cars. Also, I still read the magazines when they arrive. Mr. Coffee continues to be a good buy.
CSA
“Asian car myth” referral has to be taken with a grain of salt. Toyota truck owners are not especially eager to go out and buy a Suzuki pick up truck which is a GM, not because it’s a GM, but it is poor. The standard 5 cyl motor gives you the power of a 4 and the mileage go a 6 cyl. How we can generalize how some one will fill out a surey card is well, surprising. Human character is measured by the brand of car they own ? We don’t judge you by the brand of car you drive…
As far as mid size trucks are concerned, park a GM, Ranger, Tacoma and Frontier side by side and crawl underneath and compare. If you then still think it’s a myth, you have eyesight problems. People who use trucks off road know the difference. You don’t want o be miles from the nearest paved road or any road and depend on a myth. Now, GM offers more options and better service on trucks used for plowing and a wonderful GM / Isuzu motor. They are preferred around here over the Tundra for plowing. So, we don’t depend on myths, we depend on facts !
Toyota truck owners do often spend more but encourage others to buy other products to help keep the prices down. So please, keep believing it’s a myth, it saves me money negotiating prices on my Toyota trucks…have had 7 compact and never been disappointed . I have never owned a Toyota mid size car,frankly fom what I have seen and heard from owners, I might a least check out a Buick.
Maybe the myth is changing…But as with dagosa…My last GM truck experience was a nightmare. After 120k miles my S-15 was JUNK. I’ve known at least 20 people who owned a S-10/S-15 of that era…and not one had a good thing to say about them.
My Nissans and Toyota’s have given me great service even after 300k miles with minimal repairs. The total repairs on my 2 pathfinders (each over 300k miles) was FAR LESS then my 1 GMC pickup with less then 120k miles.
So it’s a myth after all. The thousands of surveys, decades of data, summaries showing year by year, model by model, a significant difference between the best and the worst is just the result of some mass hypnosis, some great conspiracy, and can all be tossed in the trash. VW and Audi are no different than Toyota or Honda.
Good to know…
I’ve had good luck overall with GM vehicles so I’m staying out of that particular debate.
As for the original OP’s question; the particular Honda model - Pilot - has been a very reliable and long lived model. It shares a lot of parts with the Honda Ridgeline truck which has also been a very good vehicle. Not all Honda models have done so well (aka Odessey), but the Element, Ridgeline, and Pilot are virtually never discussed on this forum which is just small evidence that they hold up well over time.
As for Buick, some models have done better than others. The Enclave isn’t one of Buick’s more trouble free models. In this case there is a significant age difference in the two vehicles the OP is considering, and a big price difference. I’d go with the Pilot, but I’d want to verify that the price is a fair one, it seemed high to me for the age of the car.
I am a firm believer in buyer relativity. If all you know is one thing, many just won’t change. Some people think
It 's normal to have the problems they do.
I am a firm believer in buyer relativity. If all you know is one thing, many just won't change. Some people think It 's normal to have the problems they do.
I was that way. I was a die-hard GM fan. I laughed at my friend who about a Toyota Corolla. Didn’t know how much better it was built then several of the GM vehicles I’ve owned over the years. Then when I bought my first Asian vehicle…I was astonished at how few warranty repairs I needed (actually Zero repairs)…and how few times it ever left me stranded (Again NONE).
Mike…But, you have to “know when to fold em, know when to walk away” and not push it.
A couple whose friendship we value, asked me my opinion on buying a new truck. Knowing he was a big GM fan, I just said, “they all have something special to offer. Getting a good deal from a dealer you’re happy with is just as important”. I just said things too like, “we all buy what we are comfortable with” and “there is a dealer nearby who treats me right” when asked what I thought about Toyotas.
When they got their new Canyon, I gushed all over it like a new born grandchild. Friendship is more important then " I told you so". What was I going to say…they know I’ve only had Toyota Trucks for over 30 years.
CSA…I guess you’re just joking
@CSA, there are very few times when I’m not. It’s always safe not to take me too seriously.
I’d question the mileage on the Pilot. 3,000 miles per year? Something seems amiss. Can this be independently confirmed?
If the Honda’s mileage can be confirmed – that is, there are only 30,000 miles on the car and it is in the original condition – no engine/transmission major rebuilds – then I’d go with the Honda. It seems like a good buy if it is truly as represented.
Yep,I would have an Impala or Cruze,CSA dont see a thing wrong with them-just not too crazy about our local dealer.
Mark there are bad models in everything, the Odyssey never appealed to me,my former conservative bosses were GM lovers and never bothered to complain when they had a major failure on thier diesels and whatever(I wouldnt own a diesel just to tool around in)-Kevin
The further you project the life of a car, the less sure you can be of a correct answer.
I would doubt you’d get 10+ years out of either of these cars. Be realistic.