We expect 200K because when you pay 65-90k for a truck you damn well expect to get AT LEAST 200k miles out of it with normal maintenance. We relate cost with build quality, unfortunately the manufacturers don't. Profits over pride in their products.
Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
I remember working at the dealer way back when. Upscale GMC Suburbans cost about $40K back then. Many's the time when I witnessed some angry customer throwing a fit out on the drive that went something like this: "How on earth could my 2 year old Suburban need a $XXXX.xx" repair at only (e.g) 40,000 miles! I paid over 40 grand for that car!!!" Followed up with threats of an attorney, etc.
The unspoken truth? He/She was psychologically conditioned to believe that a new vehicle was somehow impervious to major problems costing a lot of money just because they spent a fortune for their car. My thoughts tend to be about how a manufacturer gives a finite warranty on a product. This means that they know these mechanically complex vehicles WILL break. Otherwise, a warranty would be unnecessary.
There once was a time when Rolls-Royce warranted the customer, not the car. They would send a mobile mechanic anywhere in the world to repair the car for life. This was related to me WAY back over 40 years ago by my late mentor in the car repair business. He was a factory trained Rolls-Royce Master. Of course, those Coach built cars cost a lot of money, when adjusted for inflation germane to today, boggle the mind. Rolls actually possessed the hubris to claim that their cars didn't break down, according to my mentor.
There seems to be a certain misguided expectation in consumers' minds about the relation of how much they spend on any product in correlation with said product's reliability.
When the true forensic math is applied to buying a 60 thousand dollar depreciating liability pursuant to finance costs over time, combined with depreciation and wear and tear and cost of ownership (fuel, tires, batteries, overall upkeep and maintenance, insurance.... et. al.) THAT's when the light shines on why all the frustration. But Madison Avenue ad agencies want to appeal to one's aesthetic desires to boost Dopamine and keep one's eye diverted FROM pragmatism. Finance managers want you to believe you are "investing" when they upsell tire and wheel protection, Key loss insurance, glass breakage coverage, leather/upholstery protection, extended warranty, and a laundry list of other things designed to lighten one's savings.
There are many wake up calls to reality down the road beyond the pomp and circumstance of the excitement that fill the atmosphere when one is buying a brand new vehicle. As a former dealer tech, I witnessed "coupon book" psychological warranty issues at about 6 weeks post delivery date. The reality of having to service such huge indebtedness really hits home once that coupon book arrived in the mail. By this time, every itch in the interior, ding on the car, scratch, hiccup, etc. combined with the sobering reality of a long term debt sank in, so, naturally, people tended to nit-picked the car.
Every time I hear how a car is the second largest debt load other that a mortgage which a person will have to fathom in life, all of these dynamics go through my mind.