Ford's three nameplates - Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury - lead the domestic automakers and continue to pull away from the rest of Detroit. Except for some truck-based vehicles, almost all Ford products are now average or better. Excluding those, Ford's reliability is now on par with good Japanese automakers. The Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan continued to rank among the most reliable family cars. The freshened Ford Focus sedan rated above average, a vast improvement from when the new model debuted in 2000 with below-average reliability.
European automakers, particularly Mercedes-Benz, showed signs of a comeback. Six Mercedes models, including the redesigned C-Class and E-Class (V6) sedans and the ML350 SUV have improved to average reliability and are now recommended. Last year, no Mercedes models had average or better reliability and so could not be recommended by Consumer Reports.
Still, Japanese cars are the most reliable overall, leading 15 of 16 categories in Consumer Reports' predicted reliability ratings. The Scion xD has the best predicted reliability score for all new cars with about 80% fewer problems than the average model.
European, Japanese Brands Rebound; Korean Brands Excel; Chrysler Struggles
Though Mercedes-Benz has shown improvement, a third of its models still have reliability problems, and no models scored above average. Overall, the brand moved up five places, from last year's 32 to this year's 27, in Consumer Reports survey. Audi and BMW also continue to improve. Two-thirds of Audi's lineup scored average or better, while most versions of the BMW 3 Series and some 5 Series are average or better. Volvo also improved leaving only the redesigned XC70 wagon rated below average in reliability.
Last year Consumer Reports called out three Toyota models that slipped to below average: the Camry V6, Tundra V8 4WD, and the Lexus GS AWD. But Toyota seems to have rectified some of the problems since all 42 of the Toyota, Lexus, and Scion models in the survey scored average or better. The three models noted above scored average.
Nissan showed striking improvements, with the troublesome Armada SUV, Titan pickup, and Infiniti QX56 SUV finally gaining average reliability. The new Nissan Rogue and Infiniti EX have started out above average. Nissan moved up in the Makes Rankings six places to fourteenth, while Infiniti moved up one spot, to sixth place when compared to last year's results.
The two closely related South Korean nameplates, Hyundai and Kia, rank right up there with the better Japanese makers. Most models scored above average or better.
General Motors is a mixed bag. Among the bright spots is the redesigned Chevrolet Malibu with above-average reliability for the 4-cylinder model and average for the V6. The Buick Lucerne V8 and four-cylinder Pontiac G6 are both above average. The Chevrolet Avalanche is now average. But a quarter of GM models are still well below average. Newer designs that did well in our testing, like the highly rated Cadillac CTS and Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia, and Saturn Outlook SUV triplets, were below average in reliability.
Chrysler trails the pack. Though the Dodge Caliber hatchback and Jeep Patriot SUV are above average, almost two-thirds of its products rate below average. The new Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan minivans earned low scores, as did the Chrysler Sebring V6 and Dodge Avenger sedans and Jeep Liberty SUV. The Sebring convertible had the worst predicted reliability score: 283% worse than average.
