Consumer Reports 2011 Reliability Survey puts Lexus, Mazda, Honda on top
The Consumer Reports 2011 Annual Reliability Survey results have just been released based on 28 different carmakers, and the input from around 1.3 million motorists subscribed to Consumer Reports. Scion, Lexus, and Acura make up the top three, while Ford and its new models have seen the company drop from 10th position down to 20th.
It seems Japanese cars are the most reliable, according to these latest results, with nine Japanese carmakers in the top 10. Makers include, in order, Scion (Toyota), Lexus, Acura (Honda), Mazda, Honda, Toyota, Infiniti, Subaru and Nissan. Up to 87 per cent of specific Japanese models were rated at 'average' or higher, with 24 models ranked with top marks.
Car brands that dropped in the latest round of results included some surprises, including regular decent hitter Ford. Ford dropped 10 positions from 10 to 20 in the list. Consumer Reports says that the big drop seems to have been largely due to Ford's recently released Ford Fiesta, 2012 Ford Focus and new Ford Explorer. David Champion, director of auto testing at Consumer Reports, spoke about Ford's drop, saying,
"You are taking a risk buying a new redesigned or new model in its first year, as they tend to be less reliable."
David Champion also said one of the reasons ranking dropped was because of Ford's new MyFord Touch interface. He said,
"Even in our test cars, with MyFord Touch and MyLincoln Touch, we saw problems with the system. And our reliability data really shows that many other consumers did also."
As for surprising changes, Chrysler's brands rose this year, with Jeep placed as top US brand, sitting in 13th spot, ahead of last year's 20th. Chrysler also placed in 15th, up from 27th. Out of the 97 specific models included in the survey, 67 per cent were rated at 'average' or higher. Chevrolet rounded out the top 15.
Car brands that didn't shape up too well included, in order of least reliable, Jaguar, Porsche, Audi, Cadillac, Buick, and MINI. Out of the 58 European models in the survey, 64 per cent recorded 'average' or higher.
See below for a graph of the 28 models included in the survey, as well as the corresponding company's best and worst model. And don't forget to tell us what you think below, perhaps these results reflect experiences you've had with your car? Or perhaps they seem inaccurate?
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