Consumer Reports' Top 5 All-Around Car Brands
Wondering which car brands are the all-around best? According to the Automaker Report Cards published in Consumer Reports', Annual Auto Issue, 4 of the top 5 brands are Japanese, with no US car makers making the list — even though there was a 4-way tie for 5th place. Ouch.
Consumer Reports' Top 5 All-Around Car Brands
- Honda
- Subaru
- Toyota
- Mazda
- (tie) Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Volkswagen, and BMW
While it may be somewhat disheartening not to see at least one US car-maker on the list, CR says that the lack of American brands doesn't mean that there aren't any quality American cars. For example, new models like the Ford Flex, F-150, Chevrolet Malibu, and Cadillac CTS have done well in CR's tests and rank near the top of their classes in its ratings.
Overall, though, the worst overall car manufacturer is Chrysler. "The company's poor performing products and sinking reliability results have kept all Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep badged vehicles off CR's Recommended list."
If you want to check out the full rankings, they're are available in the article "Who makes the best cars?" in the magazine on sale March 3 and at www.ConsumerReports.org (subscription). Consumer Reports is published by Consumers Union, which also publishes Consumerist. (Yay!)
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Comments:
Amazing how Porsche out performs VW and Mercedes, but is neglected from the list.
Where does my Yugo fall?
No kidding. My mom has had VW's for as long as I can remember and when things would break they would cost at least twice as much as a problem with a domestic car. $800 alternator repair, anyone?
@wgrune: HAHA, just had my alternator replaced for about 750, so yea. Not to mention every vehicle from 97-03 was CURSED with engine/electrical problems. Though audi is included in that assessment, so that might skew VW's numbers a bit.
I swear by my Mitsubishi Outlander. Mitsubishi deserves more attention.
How can the Mercedes tie with Nissan? My Mercedes has had a lot of breakdowns over the years. So many that I finally signed up for AAA (it has already paid itself off many times over) My Nissan has never had a single breakdown yet, which is really amazing.
Either Mercedes has gotten more reliable over the years or Nissan has stood still.
Im sorry, CR is one of the most suspect mags out there in terms of ratings for cars. I have had to spend a arm and a leg on my wifes Honda FIT (not counting the two recalls I had to take time out of to do) which they rated highly, while my Cobalt cost me 200+oil changes the 4 years I had it no recalls before I bought a Aura.
@Blueskylaw: If you had a 90's Merc, reliability is usually a problem. But since then, Merc has tried to improve reliability again.
what about Scion? are they just under Toyota?
@Jim Topoleski: You are making an assumption based on your one personal experience, they are basing their ratings on thousands of consumer experiences.
@JohnAllison: I think you're confusing the axis on the chart. The vertical axis represents the cars ability in a road test. The horizontal axis represents the reliability. The top 5 list was only a top 5 reliability.
So... the further it is to the right, the more durable/reliable, the closer to the top, the better it handles during driving.
@Jim Topoleski: I drive an '07 honda fit, and the recalls sucked but I have had zero issues with it whatsoever. Just a few oil changes to date.
I am on my second Mazda3... absolutely love them! Just turned in my 2004 for a 2009
I'm surprised Volvo is rated so low, even Consumer Reports said last year that they have one of the best safety and reliability records.
My town is filled with Subaru vehicles and everyone I've talked to swears by them.
@JohnAllison: In the subscription attached article, neither Porsche, Saab, nor Land Rover get evaluations. I'm not seeing an explanation of why not, but I'm guessing that it means none of them were countable in the final list for some reason. Anybody know?
@WiglyWorm: My bad, I misread the chart actually, lol. My description is correct, but your note that porshes score higher on reliability is as well. ^_^
I gotta say, I was a GM man since my first car, but I love my little Hyundai :D
I'm glad to see VW on the list, but they are hit and miss. If you get a Mexican-made Jetta or Beetle, you are screwed. However, if you get a model made in Germany (like my Rabbit) the build quality is phenomenal. They must not be running a good operation in Mexico.
@scootinger: You do understand how the read the chart right? It is based on two things: 1) How well the car tested and 2) How reliable they were over time. Volkswagens test very well in every magazine on earth, but they have had reliability problems, for cars made outside of Germany anyway. Look at the models made in Germany (GTI, Tiguan, Eos, Passat) and they rate near the top in reliability, look at cars made in Mexico and Brazil (Jetta, Rabbit, and Beetle), well, not so much. However over the last 5 years they have improved greatly after correcting the bad cost saving methods put in place in the early part of the decade.
@scootinger: It is a measure of performance + reliability. Honestly I love driving my VW Golf and I get crazy mileage (it's a diesel). I've had some nasty repair bills but I still miss my car every time I get a rental on vacation.
I hope we have enough space for everyone to post their statistically insignificant anecdotal evidence that totally refutes these ratings.
@Jim Topoleski: So because you had a different experience with your two cars, that means all of CR's findings are suspect? You're suggesting that your single personal experience with car satisfaction invalidates the mountains of data they collect from thousands upon thousands of people who buy cars? I don't think CR has ever, ever said that "if you buy a Honda, there will never be a single thing wrong with it for the life of the car" or "If you buy a Chevy, you're doomed to a life of recalls and poor performance." No car maker has 100% good product result, nor 100% poor results. There's certainly variability between models, and there are such things as "lemons," even in the most reliable models/brands.
In research, single case studies hardly pass the rigor of generalizability.
@AngrySicilian: I have the 2007 "newer" revision. I wish Mitsubishi would get the credit they deserve. They make a great product./
Atta boy, Chrysler.
I am so sick of people who say, "how the hell can _______ be on that list, my _______ is piece of crap." Guess what? You are one of hundreds of thousands. I am sure there is one guy who has a Toyota Camry that well pipe up soon, and say mine has been in the shop 8 times in the five months I have had it. These ratings are based on millions of cars not one full call to some guy named Al in Topeka to see what his experience was.
Evidently, they've never tried to repair a Volkswagen themselves. They are by far, the most difficult vehicle I have ever tried to repair.
@Darrone:
My mom had a 92 Jetta that she swore was possessed by Satan. She had the engine replaced twice while still under warranty. She ended up selling it to minister and he never had one problem with it. True story.
Why wasn't Saab associated with GM on the chart? Suzuki's are technically GM's too, being rebadged Daewoo's and all.
@JohnAllison: It may because Porsche and Audi are owned by VW and are probably included in their overall rating. Just guessing.
@floraposte: I might have found the reason. They say they prepared report cards for every automaker for which they have tested at least four vehicles. They may have put manufacturers on the graph if they had data for them but not sufficient data to do the actual report card.
I personally don't think they should have been on the graph then either, but I do think they could have made this a lot clearer either way.
@Blueskylaw: you need to look at the chart. how far right they are on the chart ranks reliablity. nissan is ranked over 60, while mercedes is below 40, which is a pretty substantial difference. the up/down ranking is for performance, which you'd expect mercedes to do well at, and it did. the overall rankings take both into account, wand i guess mercedes' better perfomance and nissan's better reliability seem to result in a tie
@MrPibbistheGreatestSodaEver: I have a feeling a lot of offended Saab drivers are about to tell you! :D
@ThickSkinned: The ability to easily do repairs is not part of any car review I have ever been a ware of. I dare say that any modern vehicle is a pain in the ass to repair yourself. Just saying. I change my own oil and filters, but I am not about to drop a transmission and replace it myself.
@lonestarbl: My Protege5 has bad body rust, despite being garage stored its whole life. Had 2 engine issues taken care of under warranty (bought the 100K), but the dealerships are the worst. Love driving the car, though. Goes good and handles great.
Maybe your wife drives your Fit poorly, and doesn't maintain it properly. No matter where you get your info, the Fit is ranked much higher than the poorly made Cobalt.
@Collie: Consumer Reports requires a minimum of 100 samples for each model to even rate reliability. However, my question is over what period of time does that graph cover? According to the CR website: "CR's survey asks about subscribers' experiences with their vehicles over the course of the previous 12 months and, starting with 2006, CR's survey now covers 10 model years-from brand-new models to models that are 10 years old, providing a more complete profile of the life of a model." If they are including all 10 years on that graph, it is going to look a heckuva lot different than if it is just the past three years, especially for domestic manufacturers.
@backbroken: My neighbor's Porsche is a really cool-looking red color. I'm surprised Porsche didn't make the top of the list .
@deadandy: I think it has improved. I had the same reaction about my 2004, but it performed beautifully. My '09 wagon is now in the shop, but it was performing beautifully too until the drunk driver rear-ended us.
That said, the build of the car was a significant reason why my passenger and I walked away from the accident.
@ThickSkinned: Which is too bad, because older VW designs were quite easy to service. The A1 chassis cars (original Rabbit, Scirocco, etc.) were really nicely laid out, with almost all of the service items on the front side of the engine. (The air filter was the biggest sore point.)
@MrPibbistheGreatestSodaEver: Huh. Usually one lumping Saab in with GM is enough for the Saab drivers in the room to cleft the offender's skull with a Norse axe.
Live and learn...
@Collie: It does make a difference, though, even if you don't do your own work. If your car is difficult to service you're going to be paying more in labor to your mechanic.
@Collie: I had a German made Passat for almost ten years. When I sold it, I did the math and realized I had paid almost 50% of the purchase price in repairs over the years.
And I do minor stuff myself- oil changes, brake pad replacements, window regulator replacements, whatever. The big repairs I had to take the car in for included failed control modules (engine and transmission, plus a mythical "idle controller problem" that disappeared when I replaced the spark plugs and ran a can of techron through it), snapped tie rods, and a cracked oil intercooler (overheating from the legendary K03 turbo).
Long story short, I now own a Civic. My only expenses? Oil changes and new tires.
Ford, you sold Land Rover too soon! I bet if you still had another crappy brand in your group, it would help convince Congress that you need more of my tax money!
Volkswagen? What the fuck are they smoking?