Consumer Reports Ranks Honda Tops Among Automakers

Each year, Consumer Reports releases a list ranking each automaker according to how each vehicle performed in a set of tests. The rankings also measure each automaker’s reliability based on Annual Auto Surveys sent out to the magazine’s subscribers. Consumer Reports publishes an annual “report card” for all automakers and then publishes a recommended list from each company. This year, Consumer Reports tested over 300 vehicles from the 15 major automakers and once again found that Honda continues to build the best vehicle on the road when taking into account each car’s performance, reliability, fuel economy and comfort. Honda finished in the top spot for the third straight year followed by Subaru, Toyota and Mazda.

On a 100-point scale, Honda Motors topped the list with a 78, while Chrysler LLC sank further than last year with a 48. Of the eight Japanese automakers selling cars in the United States, a total of five were ranked in the top six, while all of Detroit’s Big 3 current struggles showed as they all placed in the bottom four spots. Although the Japanese automakers dominated this year’s list, the European companies showed the best improvement over recent years. One of the best improved automakers overall was Mercedes-Benz, which was also the top-performing European automaker of the bunch. Consumer Reports has rated the automaker below average in recent years and the company failed to have a single model on the recommended list, but this year Consumer Reports recommended two-thirds of Mercedes’ cars that it tested.

As far as recommendations go, Consumer Reports gives its approval to all of Subaru’s vehicles, while not a single Chrysler, Dodge or Jeep product appeared on the list. Although Honda and Toyota ranked high overall, Consumer Reports points out that Honda Element and Toyota Yaris were among these automakers’ vehicles that failed to garnish a recommendation. The biggest problems associated with Honda’s lineup are road noise, while not surprisingly Toyota’s biggest issue was the lack of agility and steering feel. Mitsubishi and Suzuki are the bottom two Japanese automakers with the biggest problems being overall quality issue.

Not all was bad for the domestic automakers as Consumer Reports says that Ford continues to improve in reliability and are just as good as its Japanese competition. The all-new Ford Flex and redesigned F-150 ranked at the top of their respective classes, and Consumer Reports is hopeful about the redesigned Ford Fusion, Ford Taurus and Mercury Milan. General Motors had a decent number of vehicles on the recommended list, but they proved to be such a small percentage of the automaker’s overall fleet, that Consumer Reports still rated GM vehicles as below average. GM has a total of 19 vehicles that get fuel economy of at least 30 miles per gallon on the highway. One bright spot for Chrysler LLC was the fact that the ratings mentioned Chrysler vehicles’ transmissions as smooth shifting which is a stark contrast from just a decade ago. Consumer Reports was quick to point out that the current credit conditions and the Big 3’s poor management in recent history is a part of the overall decline.

To make it easy for consumers to break down the data they are looking at, Consumer Reports breaks down each automaker by an overall score, an average vehicle test score, overall reliability ranking, the percentage of vehicles recommended and the highs and lows from each automaker’s lineup. Reliability is charted over the last three model years and compared with all of the other vehicles tested.