I'm not mechanically inclined so I can't speak to the simplicity of maintenance, but it does seem that mile for mile most of todays cars are pretty reliable. What bugs me the most? They all look the same to me! They all seem to look like the result of the same wind tunnel test for aerodynamic efficiency....no individual style whatsoever. And most cars these days seem to have made up names that don't relate to anything ...they just sound exotic...or foreign. There used to be Tempests, Mustangs, Stingrays, Barracudas, Wildcats, Cougars....now we have...Elantras? Or letters and numbers.