The KISS principle (Keep It Simple, Stupid) seems to have been lost in the automobile engineering field.

This report out of the UK., which also applies to North American cars is interesting................

"Older cars are cheaper to fix and 10% less likely to break down than expensive new ones, a study out today reveals.
Dated versions of the ­ Ford Fiesta, BMW 3 Series and Audi A4 have been identified as “Peter Pan” cars
– as they do not show their age. Insurers Warranty Direct said the average repair bill for a Fiesta built between 2002
and 2008 was almost double that of a 1995-2002 model.
One in three 2005-2009 Audi A4s will have engine woes, as opposed to only one in 10 of 2000-2005 versions.
More recent BMW 3 Series models are around three times more likely to pick up braking system faults than earlier
vehicles.
Warranty Direct said: “Buying new may be the most desirable option when it comes to purchasing a car but it isn’t
always the most cost-effective route.
“Our analysis shows new doesn’t necessarily mean more reliable – not to mention the steeper repair costs.
So as well as paying over the odds for a new car, you may also be opening yourself up to additional, unwanted costs.”

It partially explains why the average age of a car in North America is reaching towards 11 years - personal economics
combined with the fact that these older cars can last longer. The difference with today's cars is mostly electronic gremlins
which multiply much faster in newer and vastly more complicated cars.

The irony today is that the less expensive a car is to buy, the more likely it is to survive inexpensively for a long time
and becomes a "best buy" second hand..

A client of mine has finally decided to trade in his 1999 Honda Accord and is very much aware of this reliability issue
with new cars.

Nevertheless, he is locked in on the idea of a vehicle with all wheel drive (AWD) rather than front wheel drive (FWD).

AWD is a far, far more complicated system then FWD it has:

250 pounds of extra weight.
Ten or eleven CV joints instead of just four.
A drive shaft from front to rear.
A transfer case.
And then, of course all the electronics that are added on to control the system.

AWD is something to consider if you are a dedicated skiing addict and drive long distances on two lane
country roads to reach your selected ski hill.
Or if you own a country house that is open in the winter.
Or if you are in a particular position where you have to be in a certain location at a certain time, no exceptions.

With the appearance of the Bridgestone Blizzak winter tire many years ago, and with the technology that all the
tire manufacturers have adopted for winter tires since, AWD is not necessary for us and does not constitute
a major increase in safety.

" An AWD vehicle just gets you stuck deeper and much further from home".

This fascination with AWD is ingrained, apparently. because I've been looking for a used Infiniti G35 or 37, but finding
one that doesn't have an "X" on the badge is quite difficult.

Infinitis with just FWD are hard to find.

A woman in the USA is suing Honda in small claims court because her Civic hybrid is not providing the fuel economy
that the Honda advertising promised.

Even though these ads always have a weasel clause that says: "individual results may vary", this action is sending shudders
down the spines of auto makers, because a successful judgement in small claims court would obviate the need for class
action suits and would cause the most time wasting and expensive nuisance actions in the history of the industry.

In another instance, Hyundai is in trouble because its' Elantra (voted car of the year in Detroit) allegedly doesn't produce
the promised 40 MPG on the highway.

All this just goes to show that fuel economy is a very difficult statistic to determine.

What can actually influence miles per gallon?

Ambient temperature
Humidity
Tire pressures
Aerodynamics
Wind speed
Number of cold starts
Short runs
Fuel used (alcohol is very bad for MPG)
Octane of fuel used
All the components that influence engine performance (e.g. air filters etc.)
Type of gallon used (US gallons are 10% smaller than Imperial gallons used everywhere else)

And last, but not least: YOUR RIGHT FOOT.

The most honest auto journalists in the world habituate a BBC show called Top Gear.

Never mind that much of the show is boring.

After all, how many half million dollar cars can you watch as they burn out  five thousand dollars worth of tires?

And how many obscure "celebrities" can you watch thrash their way in a clapped out Kia round a mickey mouse
circuit on an old airfield?

How many times can you watch the boys buy up really old cars then thrash them at top speed on the autoroute only to find
out later on that the cars are in very poor shape and positively dangerous to drive?

All this being said, nevertheless when these blokes come down to earth occasionally, they do some pretty good work.
And they are blunt in their criticism of anything not up to par.

Consequently, when they took two otherwise identical Citroens, one gasoline and one diesel for an econmy run on the M25,
London's ring road cum parking lot, I paid close attention.

Because this is the ONLY way to really assess one car against another for fuel economy. All of the factors listed above
become equal in value if the two cars run side by side through traffic jams and otherwise fluid traffic flows.

The results of this 72 (120 Km) mile jaunt gave 52 mpig for the Citroen gasoline engine and 72 mpig for the diesel.

Both of these true results are extraordinary and clearly illustrate how futile it is to spend a kings ransom on some battery
operated clone that will give no more and often much less, in the way of good fuel economy

A fuel economy that is very difficult to measure in the first place. Emotion doesn't qualify as a scientific technique.