# Fuel economy vs reliability **URL:** \ **Category:** Power/Fuel\ **Tags:** gasoline\ **Created:** [February 6, 2011, 4:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973 "2011-02-06T16:53:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dale234](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9f8e36/32.png) [@dale234](https://community.cartalk.com/u/dale234)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2011, 4:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/1 "2011-02-06T16:53:52Z")
I am buying a used car and my choice is between a 2008 Nissan Altima 2.5S or a 2008 Volvo S60 2.5T. Do I buy for fuel economy or reliability? ---
**Author:** ![doubleclutch](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/doubleclutch/32/1281_2.png) [@doubleclutch](https://community.cartalk.com/u/doubleclutch)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2011, 5:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/2 "2011-02-06T17:32:17Z")
I’d buy the Nissan and get both! ---
**Author:** ![BustedKnuckles](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bustedknuckles/32/25_2.png) [@BustedKnuckles](https://community.cartalk.com/u/BustedKnuckles)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2011, 5:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/3 "2011-02-06T17:41:56Z")
The Volvo is expensive to maintain, especially with the turbo. The Nissan is reliable and fuel efficient, as well as cheaper to maintain. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2011, 5:48pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/4 "2011-02-06T17:48:09Z")
Maintenance and repairs will be more expensive for the Volvo because it is a luxury car. Both will provide reliable transportation. If you still prefer the Volvo after knowing this, enjoy it. ---
**Author:** ![missileman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/missileman/32/1366_2.png) [@missileman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/missileman)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2011, 7:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/5 "2011-02-06T19:11:52Z")
Choosing the Nissan is a no-brainer. It’s not a luxury car but it’s comfortable, reliable and fuel efficient. ---
**Author:** ![Bladecutter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@Bladecutter](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Bladecutter)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2011, 4:47pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/6 "2011-02-07T16:47:11Z")
I’m having trouble understanding why the Volvo is in the question. The Altima is both fuel efficient, and very reliable. The Volvo is neither. I have an '07 Altima 2.5S, with a manual transmission, and I average 29 mpg here in Denver, on my ~65 mile commuting day. 25 miles to work on highway 36 in the morning. About 10 miles running around during lunch, and 30 miles home along the edge of the mountains on Highway 93. I bought it brand new back in Dec '06, and have over 53k miles on it. Only things I’ve had to do were brake pads and rotors up front, plus tires. So, I can’t understand what you think the Volvo is, since the Altima is both reliable and efficient. BC. ---
**Author:** ![Docnick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Docnick](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Docnick)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2011, 8:40pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/7 "2011-02-07T20:40:06Z")
It’s the “Volvo Myth”. Sometime in the past Volvos were long lived and reliable, and their bodies were quite rust resistant. About 25 years ago the Japanese caught up to Volvo in all areas except safety. Volvo and a lot of penthouse environmentalists (with zero technical knowledge) kept the myth going. Japanese car makers have all surpassed Volvo, and the Koreans are next. In reality Volvo is now an unreliable, expensive to maintain, but safe, Chinese car. The Geely company, the new ownwers, will no doubt make it more reliable with Asian Electronics. Stick to the Altima, maintain it well, and many years of happy motoring. ---
**Author:** ![UncleTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9a140/32.png) [@UncleTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UncleTurbo)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2011, 9:03pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fuel-economy-vs-reliability/60973/8 "2011-02-07T21:03:05Z")
The Altima is the reliable car, Volvo NOT. I don’t think the Volvo is as fuel efficent as the Altima. So for fuel efficent - Altima. For reliable - Altima. The Volvo is neither.