Are European cars (Audi, BMW, Volkswagen) as reliable as a Toyota, Honda or Mazda?

Just curious.
What's your experience with European cars as opposed to Japanese manufactured cars?

Probably not. Additionally the parts for European cars are very expensive, thus making them more expensive to own. Toyota Corolla, worlds most popular car-and partially made in America.

To start off, I own both a Civic and a C Class Mercedes so this is true experience.

With proper care, German cars are as reliable. The only reason why people have issues is because they cut corners and use cheap fluids such as Valvoline, not the ones recommended by the manufacturer. My 12 year old C Class never had any major issues, it spent a huge chunk of it's life on the interstates as i mainly use it for long trips, and i drove the thing to the east coast, south, west coast and Canada. Only issues it had was a worn out differential seal at the rear and a worn out stabilizer link, all of which was a minor fix. It broke than far less than the American cars I had. It runs on recommended fluids and every feature on it works.

However, I have to give the edge to Japanese cars. You may wonder why I said Jap cars have the edge after blabbing about how reliable the Merc is, and that is because the maintenance is cheaper

If you speak the language and take the time to find the right parts sources and help, but if you neglect it you can become a slave to seeking your info, and parts. Don't be in a hurry. Remember, most cars wouldn't run if it was not for the things developed on the german cars years ago and ongoing.
Japanese cars are much more user friendly and easier to fix, require fewer special tools and don't have import fees raising the prices. Either way you go, you have to select the high quality part each time, this can be difficult without caring knowledgeable help.