And that's saying something, because the British car industry for the most part were diabolical. Imagine saying in the 1960's that you could get 200,000 trouble free miles out of a car; it just wasn't possible. Thank you Japan.
ow many 1960's Jap cars do you see around? Japan's quality issueds were addressed by an American - W Edwards Deming. He challenged their total methodology of manufacturing, using statistical analysis throughout the build process and the Japanese desire to improve systems.
Over time, much of the Japanese manufacturing methodology has been adapted and adopted worldwide to eliminate manufacturing tolerances and improve systems.
When we fitted a set of Holden pistons to my Volvo straight six, you wouldn't believe the manufacturing variations and the amount of metal that had to be removed from 5 of them to get them balanced.
British stuff as well as Japanese and even US stuff has improved over the years without a doubt, but it was an American that really pushed for the improved quality.
llortmt,
Nov 29, 6:19pm
Harmonic imbalance was also a problem on them and blamed for contributing the head gasket problems. Does anyone know where I can get the unrated ladder frame and bolt set from in NZ. (I know I can get it from Rimmer Bros in the UK but does anyone stock them in NZ?)
richardmayes,
Nov 30, 3:39pm
Yes.
Hence why I asked the question!
esprit,
Nov 30, 9:05pm
The bolts are designed to yield after the first heat cycle. The uprated oil rail was designed for use with the MLS type gasket, and we're supplied as a pair.
mm12345,
Dec 1, 6:49am
The fact that there are few 60s Japanese cars around these days is because there were very few on NZ roads in the '60s anyway. When I think back to all friends, relatives etc cars back in the late '60s, I can only think of one who had a japanese car - a large datsun something (Gloria I think) station wagon that they'd brought to NZ when they moved here. It wasn't until the early '70s that they became more a more common sight. That - rather than any inherent "quality" issue is why you see so few '60s japanese cars on the roads. I don't think you'll see any 2015 cars still in running order in 20 years time - let alone 50. Is that because the auto makers have continued to improve "quality"?
esprit,
Dec 1, 6:53am
The argument holds for 70s jap cars too. KE20/30 Corollas were everywhere when I was growing up, now there are almost none. The one car of that age you still see in decent numbers still trundling along from ANY country/manufacturer is the Triumph 2000/2500 MkII saloon.
mm12345,
Dec 1, 8:45am
I don't know if it really does hold up for jap cars. Plenty of late 70s corollas around, albeit lowered, painted lime green, driven by pimply short chaps peering between the dashboard and the great big huge shiny tach. That's the fate of some cars, they become rare not because of inherent quality problems, but because they appeal to people who wreck them. Yes - there are still quite a few Triumph 2000/2500s around. Pay to note that these were designed before the British car industry self-destructed in the '70s. They were also a "class above" regular fords/gm/holden/toyotas and a little expensive, though not totally out of reach - even NZ's modestly paid PM could afford to own one.
richardmayes,
Dec 1, 10:47am
And that is an absolute b******** miracle!
I've learned from bitter experience that the Triumph 2000 body is basically designed to collect and store rainwater, with fully welded-up double skin construction that provides plenty of places to pool and store water with no chance of escape, while having no bolt-on outer guards or other panels AT ALL that might have made it reasonably straightforward to get in and keep everything painted.
socram,
Dec 1, 2:45pm
Back to the topic. Fell over with laughter the other day. Newest family in the street, living almost opposite us, moved in 2 years ago. Their 3 vehicles were an older Range Rover (we had a Land Rover Freelander), a BMW Mini Cooper (we have a BMW Mini too) and an Aston Martin - which we don't have.
Last year, I bought a cheap, 1998 BRG MGF. Two weeks ago, the little used Aston Martin was sold (sob sob) and guess what has replaced it? Yup, a BRG MGF - probably just a little older than mine judging by the rego!
By the way, you don't see many older Jap cars in the UK either, as they rusted out even quicker than the locally produced stuff! Ironic that these days, Toyotas, Hondas and Nissans are not only built in the UK, but some are exported - to Japan.
Most cars were (accidentally) designed with rust traps before unitary construction methods were improved and galvanising or other forms of protection were standard. Certainly, our very early gutless 1500cc 1984 Toyota MR2 and the Honda Civic 'S' were both flicked on as rust was getting to be a problem.
bwg11,
Aug 11, 11:21am
Been a bit busy to get back to give my opinion on this. I have owned three Toyotas with the 4-AEG motor, the FWD FX-GT, the RWD mid-engined AW11 and the RWD AE86. I would suggest the mid-engined AW11, like the MGF would be the fastest through a corner of the 3 configurations.
I've been at track days where early in the day, the RWD AE86's are fastest, but as the day goes on and the FWD Corolla GT drivers learn the track and manage the understeer, the difference becomes drivers - both configurations are very competitive.
I think with equal power, the mid-engined AW11, would be the fastest, but would certainly requires a higher skill level not to end in tears. They can't be chucked around like the FWD and RWD examples. The following clip at around 50 seconds shows how chuckable the RWD AE86's are compared with the under-steering FWD Corolla GT's.
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