Not for nothing, but have you ever known anyone who tried to live with and drive an Italian automobile every day? Get the picture?

Shimano stuff is as bulletproof as it gets. Except for the shifter/brake lever for the rear derailleur (Dura Ace OR Ultegra). They seem to break every 15-20K miles or so (that means I get 3-4 seasons out of one). After nearly 100K miles on Dura Ace I can't ever recall anything else breaking - with the exception of one rear derailleur in all those miles/years. That's good enough for me.

You want that Italian stuff on your bike? Fine. I'll stick with Shimano.