Last week's mention that a survey of 47,000 drivers by UK consumer group Which? found the most unreliable auto is the Volvo XC 90 unleashed a deluge of three emails and one letter.
So, why should we use unreliability and its sister, reliability, to judge the best and worst? Well, because very few drivers care about anything else. Look, all cars are an emotional purchase or we'd all being driving manual Kia Picantos ($14,690, seven-year unlimited warranty, intelligent connectivity, an engine and four wheels). We buy cars because of the way they make us feel and what we think, or the automakers tell us, they say about us.
You buy a Citroen because you're a Gauloises-smoking, duffel coat and brothel creeper shoe-wearing architect. You buy an Alfa because you fancy yourself as a mixture of Giorgio Armani and Monica Bellucci, you always walk into the McCafe at Rooty Hill and say "Buongiorno, un caffè per favore", you're good on the tools and you have a zillion friends on the Alfa how-to-fix-it-yourself blog.
No one emails us here with a withering diatribe about their Feezer taking 3.9 seconds to get to 100km/h rather than the advertised 2.9 seconds. No, all we get are literally thousands of emails, texts, letters, faxes and phone calls about your car breaking down in the middle of the freeway in peak hour.
Look, all manufacturers and all families sometimes produce lemons. The US government says: "A car is a 'lemon' when it's determined that the vehicle is defective beyond repair."
OK, so what are the most reliable cars? Which? readers ranked Lexus, Toyota and Suzuki as the best over eight years. US Consumer Reports research highlighted the soon-to-be-superseded Subaru Liberty, the Subaru Impreza and the BMW 2 series Gran Coupe.
Of the 32 brands tracked by automotive customer satisfaction rankings company J.D. Power, this year's Genesis — the luxury brand sold by Hyundai — topped the list of highest-quality brands. It was followed, in order, by Lexus, Buick, Porsche and Toyota.
For what it's worth, putting my money where my mouth is, I have bought new two Subarus — the Impreza ($25,000) and the XV ($31,000). Both are knockouts. As well, I have a Toyota LandCruiser (love it) and a Porker (trying to forget the price). I would buy a Lexus, a WRX, a Supra and a Hyundai I 30N.