I beg to differ here.I don't think that reliability has worsened because things are more complicated. I believe reliability has gotten worse due to cost cutting, for whatever reason. Your new VCR is not constructed as well as older ones are. Older ones used more sturdier, metal parts. Newer ones use more plastic. Electronically, component tolerances are being stressed out to the max because not only do we have the means to do it with advanced electronics design tools and VLSI to integrate discrete components, and simulators to choose components that are just right and leave little margin for error, but there's a lot of motivation to make things cheaper.We had a color TV that lasted 20 years with a few minor repairs before it gave out. The minor repairs were a fried horizontal output transistor and cleaning the channel selector contacts. This happened I think after 10 years. We abandoned it at year 20 and gave it to my aunt when the voltage multiplier for the second anode gave out (it had a discrete voltage multiplier instead of it being built in to the flyback transformer). I fixed it for her by cannibalizing another broken set and also replaced a ton of dried out capacitors with caps from my junk box. I think she used it for four years after that before the multiplier died again and she tossed it in the trash.The one that replaced it failed in the first 3 years. It was an easy fix - wirewound resistor as part of the low voltage power supply. But later on it gave a ton of problems, with the flyback transformer dying after year 5.It was the same brand (Sharp), but this one was more complicated, being stereo, remote, OSD etc. However, the basic design of a standard definition CRT television has not changed in decades. It's basically the same thing with many of the same components. And when it failed, it failed with basically the same problem, much sooner. Coincidence? I think not. This set was made cheaper and as a result didn't last as long.The old set had a ton of discrete components. This one had a LOT of custom LSI chips. They made everything smaller and cheaper. The horizontal output transistor in the new set had a plastic case. The old one was metal, and most likely overrated for its duty. They cut quality way down, because they knew people will just throw it in the trash and buy another one.Manufacturers have been throwing quality out the window for YEARS in the name of profit. They have to keep us in tow and consumers are now conditioned to buying disposable products and keeping them for a few years versus keeping a product for a darn long time.Anyway, I digress...I personally think that it's unusual for a product to have a common problem and fail after two years. Something is definitely amiss. And I think Honda is wrong for ignoring what is becoming a widespread and pretty common problem.And comparing this to safety problems isn't fair. Safety problems KILL people. A broken radio doesn't. Killing people is worse publicity than annoying people without a display on their radios. That is why Honda or anyone won't place as much importance on a broken radio as they do for a malfunctioning airbag.Anyway, I think that Honda should do more than just the few goodwill repairs here and there. It needs to be addressed better than that.
