Subaru Automobiles

[Slowpoke Slim]

All that said, perhaps there is a person here who bought a brand new 2006 Toyota, still has it and NEVER has had a problem with the car other than average maintence.

My wife still has her '07 4Runner. I can't say it's NEVER had an issue, but the few it's had have all been self inflicted. She's on her THIRD rack and pinion assembly in that car, which I find incredibly outrageous, but she's never seen a pot hole, curb, or concrete parking curb that she didn't like.

It's never had a power train issue other than when it got towed from an accident, the tow truck driver towed it with front wheels down and wheel lifted the rears. Even though I specifically requested a flatbed tow truck. A few months later 4wd low range stopped working entirely, and you have to fiddle with it to get it to engage 4wd Hi range. Of course tow company did their best "dumb looks" impression when confronted with it. Toyota dealer wanted $3500 to fix (almost all labor, but trans and transfer case have to come down). Hi range still works, and that's what it needs most in winter, so it's still as is.

Engine (V-6) and transmission have been rock solid. It's on it's 3rd set of shocks (see above vs. "pot holes", etc), and I think it's 2nd set of brakes.

Car has 160K on it now (I think, I don't drive it).

 

[Hay Dude]

If by CR you mean Consumer Reports, I can tell you for a fact that the information they provide is very unreliable at least when it comes to heating and air conditioning equipment.

For example and easy to understand, years ago they had Rheem ranked at the top in one category and Ruud ranked at the very bottom in the same catagory (I believe you have a Ruud now in your own new home). Here is the thing, Rheem and Ruud are the EXACT same equipment, the only thing that is different is the name badge, and when you get to a higher cost equipment with more "features and benifits", Rheem starts their model with a "R" and Ruud starts their model with a "U". SAME EQUIPMENT DOWN TO THE SCREW (at least on the heat pump side).

I know for a fact that some HVAC manufacturers have tried going directly to consumer reports to find out exactly how they gather their information, and they all have been told to pound sound by consumer reports.

If this is how Consumer Reports handles HVAC equipment, I honestly don't see them doing anything different with vehicles.

When you have third party people making money by providing "statistics" on products sold, beware.

Is Lennox better than most? I have Lennox HVAC equipment on my first and second floor (dual systems) and they lasted 20 years With minimal upkeep.

 

[Sigarms]

Is Lennox better than most? I have Lennox HVAC equipment on my first and second floor (dual systems) and they lasted 20 years With minimal upkeep.

How far am I off in assuming those two Lennox's are 10 or 13 SEER?

My dad's golfing buddie up in Pa owned a home in NC by our place. He gives me a call last year. Lennox 18 SEER plus system had a communicating t-stat he had to have replaced out of warranty. Contractor wanted $1,600 to replace that tstat. I got it done for him at $900 at a "good friend deal" (that tstat was WAY more than half the cost of that bill by the way). Told him NEVER to buy a HVAC system that uses a proprietary communicating tstat ever again.

Lennox along with a total of 30 other "brands" are pretty much all the same IMO. The difference is good installation practices and the company installing it IMO. I finally replaced my no name brand that lasted 18 years only because the outdoor TXV went bad and I got a deal I couldn't pass up on an employee discount.

You name the equipment, I can give you a list of people who would never buy that brand again due to their bad experiences, including Lennox.

Ironically enough, you would be amazed at how many miles your HVAC system would have on it if it were a car.