this post was submitted on 27 Feb 2024
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Sure, the Versa is a crummy, low trim model. But look at what you get in the Versa compared to the Pontiac despite that:
The list goes on I'm sure. It costs more because you get so much more stuff, a lot of which is for safety.
Yeah, these older cars went slower and were death traps. The passenger cabin was the "crumple zone". People went flying through the windshield in a crash that would be easily survivable by the 80s.
At least it was safety glass (mandated in 1937). Yeah old cars are terrifying. Cool but terrifying.
On top of that, the odometer only went to 99,999 before resetting. Implying they didn't intend the vehicles to last much longer than 100k miles.
And you had to do more service more often such as tune ups for adjusting points ignition. And I think in some engines, adjusting valve lash since hydraulic lifters didn't become ubiquitous until later?
Yup, and king pins, suspension joints and pretty much every other moving part needed greasing constantly since sealed rubber boots, and tough plastics hadn’t been invented yet (let alone ball/spherical joints).
On the plus side, if you or kept up maintenance the joints would last a longer time, but back then the engines weren’t usually as reliable, and relied on leased gas to prevent detonation and valve wear. Now if a ball joint or wheel bearings fail, you just realize the whole assembly. So more waste, but less maintenance.
Many engines even up to the mid 2000's also needed valve adjustments. Honda F-series engines are notorious for it. The only difference is improvements in metallurgy mean the valve seats no longer recess nearly as much, and thing like the Honda F22's only need the adjustment every 60k or so rather than every 10.
Interesting. I thought I vaguely recalled some modern vehicle needing it. Every 60k isn't too bad though. I think my 60s Datsun needed it more often.
The Nissan is indeed an objectively "Better" car, but compared to it's market (as the Pontiac is comparing itself to it's own market) it is still a crummy car.
The fact is that all those (legally mandated) improvements do make them more expensive overall.