Consumer Reports Annual Car Reliability Survey Released for 2013 Models
Written by: Todd Lassa on October 29 2012 1:15 PM

DETROIT – Ford and
Lincoln quality ratings
plummeted on the
introduction of new models,continuing problems with
Focus and Fiesta
Powershift dual-clutch
automatics, and consumer
dissatisfaction with
MyFordTouch/MyLincoln
Touch, Consumer Reports
announced to the
Automotive Press
Association here Monday.
The non-profit magazine’s
annual report on predicted
reliability ranked Lincoln,
number 26, and Ford,
number 27, below Jeep,
number 19, Chrysler,
number 23, Dodge, number
24 and Ram, number 25 out of 28 brands measured by a
database of 1.2 million of
its readers.
Audi scored the best
improvement, up 18 spots to number 8, just below
number 6 Honda and
number 7 Acura.
“In the case of Audi, it’s
also how bad they were,”
says Consumer Reports
automotive test director,
Jake Fisher.
General Motors also scored well, with Cadillac up 14 spots to number 11, GMC up 10 to number 12, Chevrolet up two to number 15 and Buick up three to number
21. Consumer Reports
declined to recommend just two GM models for their predictive reliability; the Chevrolet Corvette and Buick LaCrosse, Fisher
says, adding that the
magazine likes the Corvette for its performance and
design.
Chevrolet’s best-ranked
model for reliability is the
Volt, and for Buick, it’s the
Enclave.
Scion is CR’s number-one
most reliable brand, with
the xB its “worst” model
for reliability, the slow-
selling xD the best. Toyota
is number 2, led by the
Prius C. Only 1 percent of
Prius C owners reported
problems, he says, while 20-percent of Ford Explorer
All-Wheel-Drive owners
reported problems.
“We don’t like the car at
all,” Fisher says of the
Prius C. “We don’t
recommend it for the way it performs. But our readers tell us it doesn’t break.”
Lexus ranks third in a
Toyota trifecta, with the
CT 200h its best model and the GX its worst. Mazda is fourth, with the CX-5 best and Mazda3 Skyactiv worst, and Subaru completes the top five( Impreza sedan best/
Legacy six-cylinder worst).
The last few years, Ford
and Lincoln consistently
scored among the highest
of domestic brands, so its
decline is particularly
troublesome. Fisher says
Ford has had a “mature”
product lineup for a long
time. The magazine
measures reader surveys
covering three model years, 2010 to 2012, and compare the latest data to that of the older model years. The Ford Mustang and Edge EcoBoost also are below average in the latest survey.
Chrysler has improved and
updated so many models,
Fisher says, that better
quality may show up in
coming years. Its V-6
versions of the Chrysler
300, Dodge Durango and
Jeep Grand Cherokee
scored reasonably well,
while the V-8s had poor
quality, in part because
Hemi-equipped models
typically are higher-content cars with more electronic infotainment options that can go wrong, he says. For this year’s survey, the magazine measured quality
of both the new, 3.6-liter
Pentastar V-6, plus the
older 3.5-liter engine the
Pentastar has replaced in
those models.
With a large fleet of new
and improved models,
Fisher says, Chrysler’s
results should start to
improve in coming years. He also points to improvements
BMW has made after
introducing its 3.0-liter
turbo six, a problem engine
at first that has gotten
better.
In the Consumer Reports
2012 Annual Auto
Reliability Survey, Jaguar is rated dead-last, though
there’s no ranking for its
Land Rover brand sibling,
indicating the magazine did
not get enough data on the
sport/utility brand to rank
it. Overall, Fisher says,
“Japanese automakers
continue to lead,” with
domestics rated just below,“but the Germans continue to catch up.”
Source: Consumer Reports