These days car designers have to contend with a host of parameters that only got lip-service in the past. Safety has become paramount, for example. And the need to pander to the environmental lobby has added another component.
That said, I regard some modern design trends as being undesirable because they make motoring unnecessarily expensive.
In the ’50s and ’60s, when most components were mechanical, a motorist knew that if his/her car was serviced promptly and correctly, there was every chance that at least 160 000 km could be covered without any major expense.
The clutch perhaps would have needed some free play adjustment, the brakes would have needed a re-line, and some minor parts may have needed replacement, but these items were not very expensive and could be planned for.
The first backwards step was the major design change towards front-wheel drive. I know the change resulted in more interior space and very little final drive noise, but the first CV joints were not robust. I remember driving an 18-month old first-series Volkswagen Jetta slowly out of a parking bay, hearing a grinding noise, and then seeing CV-joint balls rolling across the road!
These days, CV joints last a lot longer, but they wear out often enough for a number of specialised workshops to rip-off motorists with “reconditioned” units or poor quality new ones from the Far East.
The introduction of a flexible belt to drive the camshaft was a disaster whose effects are still being felt by many motorists. I know it is more silent than a chain, and should be problemfree if replaced promptly and correctly.
Unfortunately, a lot of mechanics (please don’t call them technicians) do not know how to replace a belt and tensioner correctly, and owners often do not read the instruction manual with sufficient attention to know when to have the belt and tensioner changed.
In addition, a number of the latest engines are constructed in such a way that when the water pump fails the belt snaps, resulting in a wrecked engine. This often happens before the belt is due for replacement, so the poor owner has to pay for an engine overhaul even if it has been serviced correctly.
The good news is that some manufacturers have always used a chain to drive the camshafts. These normally last as long as the engine, and it’s worth noting that the majority of new engines that have appeared in the last three years have gone back to chain drive.
The final gripe, and by far the most serious, is the wholesale adoption of electronic engine controls. I know this is the only way to get the correct mixture control that will enable the catalytic converter to purify the exhaust gases, but what happens when these components fail? Unlike many mechanical parts, these electronic boxes seldom fail from neglect and usually cost anything between R10 000 and R30 000 to replace!
You can buy a perfectly good laptop, which contains far more components and is far more complicated than a control unit, for R5 000, so where does the money go to? It has to be a rip-off.
These units also tend to fail without warning at any mileage, and few manufacturers are prepared to help you if the failure occurs outside the warranty period.
The result is that a modern car is only worth owning while it is under warranty. It should be sold just before the warranty expires. Even then, you’ll find that the warranty only covers genuine factory mistakes – when the manufacturer is prepared to admit it. It covers very few wear and tear items, and then only for a very short period.
