Airbags Are 11% of All Car Complaints. Check Yours.
Airbags generate 11% of every complaint filed with NHTSA. The models topping the list share one specific reason — and it gets more dangerous with time.
Six Cars Have Been on Sale Every Year Since 1981
I sorted our catalogue by how many consecutive model years each nameplate has recorded. Six have never missed one since 1981 — and the list is stranger than a survival-of-the-fittest story. A sports car outlasted almost every sedan that laughed at it.
The Worst Year for Depreciation Isn't the First One
Everyone knows a new car loses money driving off the lot. The data says the first year is the gentlest, and the real cliff comes later.
Four-Wheel Drive Costs 61% More Used. Do You Need It?
Four-wheel drive is the option people talk themselves into: two snowy weeks a year and suddenly it's essential. I matched the cars to see what it really costs.
The Average Engine Lost a Cylinder and Half a Litre
Engines shrank by half a litre in thirty years while the cars they push around gained a thousand pounds. That combination should not work, and the way manufacturers made it work is the reason modern used cars fail differently than old ones.
Manual Cars Are 5% of the Market — And They Cost More
Everyone agrees the manual is dying — dealers won't stock them, models keep dropping the option. So why does a used one cost more than the automatic?
The Gas Guzzler Tax Is Almost Entirely a German Problem
There is a federal tax on thirsty cars, it has existed since 1978, and almost nobody who owns a thirsty car pays it. I went through 2,848 taxed records to find out who does — and the answer is a very specific pair of countries.
A Two-Seater Costs More to Fuel Than a Full-Size SUV
Sports cars and full-size SUVs get almost identical fuel economy — 19.0 against 18.9 mpg. The sports car still costs more to run every year, and the reason has nothing to do with the engine.
Electric Range Peaked in 2019 and Nobody Noticed
I expected a straight line up. Average EPA range for electric cars rose fast until 2019, then flattened and slightly fell — while the number of models on sale went from 75 to nearly 400. The engineering did not stall. The strategy changed.
The Most-Reported Car Problem Isn't the Engine
Ask what breaks on a car and nobody says wiring. Across 1.3 million owner complaints, the electrical system is the single most-reported category.
A Five-Star Safety Rating Means Less Than You Think
Five stars is on every listing and every brochure. It means far less than it did ten years ago — and the numbers show exactly how much less.
The Altima Is $2,200 Cheaper. Half as Many Reach 200,000 Miles.
Two sedans, same age, same segment, $2,200 apart. I checked how many of each are still being sold with more than 200,000 miles on them, because that is the only test of whether the cheaper one was actually cheaper.