C5 Corvette reliability - better info
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C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 9/7/2008 11:39:32 AM
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mkaresh
Posts: 20
Joined: 4/17/2008
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Because existing sources of auto reliability information left much to be desired, in late 2005 I started conducting my own reliability research at TrueDelta.com. TrueDelta reports absolute stats like "trips to the shop" that make the differences between cars much clearer. Results are updated four times a year, so any significant changes in a model''s reliability become apparent quickly.
Over 100 Corvette owners have signed up so far. A good start, but more are needed to include any year in the main survey. A few model years are about halfway to the minimum.
Participants simply report repairs the month after they occur on a one-page survey. When there are no repairs, they simply report an approximate odometer reading four times a year, at the end of each quarter.
To encourage participation, panel members receive full access to the results for free.
For the details, and to sign up to help out:
Vehicle reliability research
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TrueDelta.com
Vehicle fuel economy, reliability, and price comparison information
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RE: C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 9/7/2008 2:24:19 PM
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Dave01
Posts: 675
Joined: 9/24/2005
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I have found that a good "rule-of-thumb" when gauging reliability is to peruse Consumer Reports. Based upon my own experience, they have been spot-on with all the vehicles acquaintences and I have owned. Still, your survey will provide additional detail that is not possible in CR. Good luck and thanks!
Dave
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2001 MN6 Coupe, all options
Halltech Stinger-R intake w/cold air mod - see
www.conceptualpolymer.com (Corvette Corner)
BPP shifter w/glass elegance shift knob
Borla Stinger quad round exhaust
Goodyear GSD3s
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RE: C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 10/4/2008 11:56:24 AM
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mkaresh
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Joined: 4/17/2008
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Thanks for the supportive comment.
One thing many people do not realize about Consumer Reports: their results are always based on old data. Currently, their results are based on a survey conducted on the year that ended around April 2007. So, if you look at the reliability stats for a four-year-old car, you''re really seeing the results for those cars when they were rought 1.5 to 2.5 years old. As you''re probably aware, a year and a half in a car''s life can make a big difference, so fresh data is important.
On average, TrueDelta''s data is over ten months fresher than CR''s.
Also unlike them: we post the actual repair rates, and not just dots.
We''d like to do this for the Corvette, but enough owners haven''t yet signed up. Getting there.
Vehicle reliability research
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TrueDelta.com
Vehicle fuel economy, reliability, and price comparison information
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RE: C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 10/20/2008 8:25:14 PM
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Dave01
Posts: 675
Joined: 9/24/2005
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I guess when you have as much data as does CR, you are forced to limit the details. I do know that using CR''s reliability ratings is a great way to know in an instant whether a vehicle is likely to be trouble-prone. I have to laugh when a car magazine or newspaper review praises a car repeatedly, yet never mentions historically poor reliability. They DO conduct long-term testing of some (limited number) models, but even if a model (like the Volkswagen GTI, for example) needs to repaired way too often during the long term test, the magazine still ranks it among the best cars to buy! I''d take the Mazdaspeed 3 over the GTI, any day, specifically because of the GTI''s poor relibility showing.
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RE: C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 10/21/2008 8:55:50 AM
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mkaresh
Posts: 20
Joined: 4/17/2008
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More data actually should make it possible to provide more detail, not less. The reader is the limiting factorthey learned long ago that many readers want things oversimplified. Which also makes their job easier.
It wouldn''t be valid to infer reliability from a single long-term test car. Not that the magazine''s long-term test write-ups don''t encourage this.
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TrueDelta.com
Vehicle fuel economy, reliability, and price comparison information
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RE: C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 10/24/2008 10:39:51 PM
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Dave01
Posts: 675
Joined: 9/24/2005
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There certainly is nothing else quite like Consumer Reports. Many people believe that they are somehow biased toward Japanese vehicles, but I say they simply report what they find.
_____________________________
2001 MN6 Coupe, all options
Halltech Stinger-R intake w/cold air mod - see
www.conceptualpolymer.com (Corvette Corner)
BPP shifter w/glass elegance shift knob
Borla Stinger quad round exhaust
Goodyear GSD3s
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RE: C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 10/25/2008 7:06:58 AM
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mkaresh
Posts: 20
Joined: 4/17/2008
Status: offline
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I fully agree with you. If you read my critiques of Consumer Reports, you''ll find that I mention only one source of bias: the need to sell magazines. I do not believe their reliability survey results are biased by them in favor of any specific brand.
I say "reliability survey results" because their presentation of the results in recent years has been, if anything, in favor of the domestics. They''re concerned about their anti-domestic rep in some circles, and have been looking for a way to prove they''re not biased towards the Japanese. As a result, if you look at their recent auto issues and auto previews you''ll see a Ford Fusion on the cover and much emphasis placed on the results for the Ford Fusion inside. Similarly, when the new Malibu and CTS performed well in their track tests, they emphasized this.
So what''s not to like? Chiefly two things that have nothing to do with bias:
1. Their results are often based on old data. So, if you look up data on a four-year-old car next summer, you''ll actually be seeing how many repairs in required when it was between 1.5 and 2.5 years old and had roughly 18,000 fewer miles on it. 18,000 miles can make a big difference in reliability.
2. They don''t post the actual problem rates, only relative problem rates. So you can''t tell, for example, about how many more (or fewer) problems a Corvette will have than a Porsche Boxster in a given year. Two? Three? Four? Actually, in most cases the difference between two cars is well below one problem per car per year. But, when they only have black and red dots to work with, most people think the differences are far larger. This distorts their purchasing decisions.
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TrueDelta.com
Vehicle fuel economy, reliability, and price comparison information
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RE: C5 Corvette reliability - better info - 11/3/2008 10:46:48 PM
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Danger731
Posts: 19
Joined: 7/25/2008
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CR is a joke
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