Reliable Cars You Can Buy Luxury Isn’T What Want to Stay out of the Repair Shop? We Got 1 Million Responses to Our Survey—And It Used to Be

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ROAD REPORT

The Most—and Least— Reliable Cars You Can Buy Luxury Isn’t What Want to stay out of the repair shop? We got 1 million responses to our survey—and It Used to Be. found out which brands you can rely on … and which are time and budget drainers. (It’s Better) The saying went that highend lux ury cars were reliably unreliable. If WHEN YOU BUY a new car, the last thing model before taking the plunge. we look back at our surveys from you want is an unscheduled trip back to The fastest growing number of com a decade ago, the bottom of the pool the dealership to x some problem the plaints by far involve infotainment was littered with European auto automaker or dealer should have caught systems: audio, navigation, and incar makers: BMW, Jaguar, Lincoln, and before the car was sold. But every year, communications. Results from previous Mercedes, while Audi, Cadillac, and Volvo were midpack or worse. the Consumer Reports autoreliability surveys showed that problem areas most Conventional wisdom dictated survey tells us that some owners will often included unresponsive touch screens that because highend cars have return over and over again. or poorly functioning multifunction con more gadgets, they have more Our annual survey collects responses trollers, inability to sync smart phones things that can go wrong. Though on more than 1 million vehicles from Con with Bluetooth or the docking port, and that maxim was mostly true, the concept was contradicted by Lexus, sumer Reports subscribers, generating trouble in getting the voicecommand which had ironclad reliability. enough exclusive data to let us predict system to recognize verbal commands. The picture today is quite dier which new cars, trucks, and SUVs are likely The worst infotainment oender was ent. More gadgets don’t necessarily to be reliable and which are troublesome. It j^[d[m?d\_d_j_G+&i[ZWd¿i?dJekY^ equate to more problems, at least also can spot major problem trends among system, with more than one in ve own when the car is new. Tesla launched its hightech Model S with average certain carmakers and component areas. ers reporting a problem. Updates and reliability and has remained Y^Wd][ijeToyota leading the league to have xed a glitch with its HondaLink. In fact, Audi has emerged as one of the top brands. Moreover, in ad by a comfortable margin. One of the rea 7dZ9^hoib[h^Wi_hed[Zekjh[b_WX_b_jo dition to every Lexus and Acura, all sons Toyota achieves this level of reliabil wrinkles with updates to its easytouse Audis, Porsches, and Volvos are apt ity, we believe, is because it introduces KYedd[Yjioij[c$>em[l[h"9WZ_bbWY¿i to have average or better reliability. new technologies slowly and on proven Cue system remains a problem. BMW now has only one model that platforms. By contrast, manufacturers we predict will be subpar. such as Ford will sometimes launch a top Not that every luxury brand Scion xB has escalated: Infiniti fell sharply tobottom redesign with new technoloy this year, for the same reason in many areas of the car; it then takes that plagued the European luxury years to work the bugs out. brands—too many gadgets with J^[jef;khef[WdXhWdZmWi7kZ_" faulty components. which continued its reliability renais Meanwhile, the car market itself BEST WORST has evolved, with luxury marques sance after its thirdfrombottom show Cars Cars adding more small cars and invading _d]_dekh(&''ikhl[o$8k_YamWij^[edbo Scion xB Fiat 500L the compact SUV market. Zec[ij_YXhWdZjeXh[Waj^[jef'&$ Lexus CT 200h Ford Fiesta However, as luxury hightech J^ek]^iec[Wbb#d[mYWhiX[Wjj^[eZZi equipment—such as heated seats, Lexus ES 300h Mercedes-Benz rearview cameras, and complex with high marks right out of the box, Hybrid CLA 250 infotainment systems—has trickled ikY^Wij^[8CM*i[h_[iWdZA_W9W SUVs SUVs down to mainstream brands, the denza, many do not. Perhaps the most Mitsubishi Jeep Cherokee overall reliability of those vehicles important new vehicle with a lousy rst year Outlander Sport (4-cyl.) hasn’t necessarily suered. Reliable was the bigselling Chevrolet Silverado/ Toyota Nissan brands tend to stay that way, despite the addition of all of the toys. =C9I_[hhW'+&&i[h_[if_YakfjhkYab_d[i$ Highlander (V6) Pathfinder Lexus RX Jeep Grand One note: Avoiding gadgets The problems were spread over several Cherokee doesn’t avoid problems. Many Wh[Wi$EkhijWdZ_d]WZl_Y[0MW_jWo[Wh (diesel) “cheap and cheerful” budget cars or two after the introduction of a new performed poorly in the survey.

60 DECEMBER 2014 ROAD REPORT

Lexus CT 200h Fiat 500L Most Improved Cars … and Biggest Losers BRANDS THAT GAINED THE MOST: Reliability: How the Brands Stack Up s-JODPMO This table shows how the brands rank based on the average of their models’ s)ZVOEBJ predictedreliability scores. A measure of the brand’s consistency can be seen in the span s,JB of their scores, crossreferenced by how many dierent models they produce. This year, Lincoln moved up The bars illustrate a brand’s consistency by showing the reliability range between its most 12 spots, finishing in 15th place, and least reliable models. The numerals indicate the number of models included. with four models scoring average To score a brand, we need suicient data on at least two models. That led us to and only two below average. exclude Jaguar, Land Rover, Mini, Mitsubishi and Tesla. Hyundai moved up eight places, finishing 13th. Kia moved up to 10th place, with all models having average or better scores.

BRANDS THAT FELL THE MOST: s*OGJOJUJ TOP NOTCH s.FSDFEFT#FO[ Lexus and s(.$ Toyota lead for Infiniti dropped 14 steps this second year. year to 20th, clobbered by poor showings for its QX60 SUV and Q50 sedan. Mercedes dropped LEADING 11 places, dragged down by DOMESTIC a dreadful CLA debut. GMC MIXED BAG All Buicks dropped 10 places, finishing Older Nissans are average 19th, largely because of the are reliable; or better. Sierra 1500 pickup. newer ones are troubleprone. MODELS THAT GAINED THE MOST: s)POEB"DDPSE$PVQF 7 s$BEJMMBD"54 7 s'PSE5BVSVT 7 s'PSE&YQMPSFS 7 &DP#PPTU s)POEB"DDPSE$PVQF DZM BELOW PAR s-JODPMO.,9 Mercedes was The Cadillac ATS V6 graduated dragged down by from below average to above the new CLA and average, while the others all SClass. Range for improved from much worse than the brand average to average or better. A big reason was revisions to

Mean the infotainment systems.

% Above average MODELS THAT FELL THE MOST: Average range s+FFQ$PNQBTT % Below average s3BNBOEEJFTFM

-200 -160 -120 -80 -40 0 40 80 s/JTTBO4FOUSB s*OGJOJUJ29 s$BEJMMBD"54 UVSCP s.FSDFEFT#FO[(-$MBTT All of these vehicles fell from average or better last year to much Number of worse than average this year. The vehicles in our survey Compass rating went south for a number of little problems. The 1,078,364 Cadillac ATS (turbo) did not share the success of its sibling.

CONSUMER REPORTS 61 ROAD REPORT: RELIABILITY

Toyota Yaris Audi A5 Lexus IS 350

Subcompact Cars Coupes and Convertibles Luxury Compact Cars

MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Toyota Yaris* Audi A5 Lexus IS 350 Sedan* Kia Rio* Honda Accord Coupe (V6) Acura ILX Hyundai Accent BMW 4 Series* Buick Verano Nissan Versa Sedan* Honda Accord Coupe Infiniti Q40 (4cyl.) (G sedan, RWD) Nissan Versa Note* Volkswagen Eos Buick Regal Hyundai Veloster Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cadillac ATS (V6)* Coupe and Convertible Chevrolet Sonic -44 Infiniti Q60 Volvo S60 (5 & 6cyl.) Fiat 500 -73 Audi S5* Audi A4 Ford Fiesta (162%) -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 BMW 328d (diesel)* -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Lexus IS 250 Sedan* BMW 320i, 328i (AWD) Lexus CT 200h BMW 335i Volkswagen Passat BMW 320i, 328i (RWD) Volkswagen CC Hybrid/Electric Cars Cadillac ATS (turbo)* (85%) Midsized Cars MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Infiniti Q50* (127%) Lexus CT 200h Mercedes-Benz CLA 250* MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER (145%) Lexus ES 300h Hybrid Volkswagen Passat (1.8T)* -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Toyota Prius C Mazda6* Toyota Camry Hybrid Kia Cadenza Toyota Camry (4cyl.) Toyota Prius Honda Accord Sedan (4cyl.) Toyota Prius V Toyota Prius Plugin Hybrid Large Cars Toyota Camry (V6) Toyota Avalon Hybrid Ford Fusion MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Honda Accord Hybrid* (1.5L EcoBoost)* Kia Cadenza* Honda Accord Sedan (V6) Honda Civic Hybrid Nissan Leaf Nissan Maxima Kia Optima (4cyl.) Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Hyundai Azera Chevrolet Malibu Ford Fusion Energi* Buick LaCrosse (4cyl.) Kia Optima (turbo) Ford Fusion Hybrid Chevrolet Impala (V6)* Ford Fusion Tesla Model S (2.0L EcoBoost) Ford Taurus (V6, FWD) Lincoln MKZ Hybrid Ford Fusion (2.5L) Chevrolet Volt Toyota Avalon Volkswagen Passat TDI Kia Optima Hybrid* Buick LaCrosse (V6) Nissan Altima (4cyl.) Ford C-MAX Energi* Ford Taurus (AWD)* Nissan Altima (V6)* Ford C-MAX Hybrid (81%) Chrysler 300 -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Dodge Charger Chevrolet Impala (4cyl.)* (81%)

-80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 How to Use the Charts The predictedreliability scores on these pages are derived from the results of an annual i_]d_ƏYWdjbo$Fh[Z_Yj_ediXWi[ZedWi_d]b[o[Wh¿iZWjWWh[cWha[Zm_j^WdWij[h_ia $ Consumer Reports survey of our magazine and online subscribers, who tell us about J^[Y^Whji¿l[hj_YWbb_d[Wjp[heh[fh[i[djij^[Wl[hW][\ehWbbYWhi$7d¼Wl[hW][½ fheXb[cij^[o¿l[[nf[h_[dY[Zm_j^j^[_hemdYWhi_dj^[fh[l_eki'(cedjî$ HWj_d]]e[ijeYWhiiYeh_d]m_j^_d(&f[hY[djW][fe_djie\j^Wjb_d[$7XWhm_j^WXh[Wa This reliability survey is the largest of its kind, spanning nearly 1.1 million ve indicates a score that fell outside the range of the chart. ^_Yb[iWdZ_Z[dj_\o_d]'-jhekXb[Wh[WiYel[h_d]WYWh¿iYecfed[djiWdZioij[ci$ One caveat: Our reliability Ratings and the roadtest scores you see elsewhere in Respondents identify problems they consider serious, by reason of safety, failure, Consumer Reports are not related. Roadtest Ratings come from cars we have purchased Yeij"ehj_c[ekje\i[hl_Y[$;l[dWc_deh_iik[YekdjiWii[h_eki_\_jc[WdiWd and tested. Reliability information comes solely from our subscribers. Those scores, unscheduled visit to the dealership. along with crashtest results, determine which cars we recommend. J^[h[b_WX_b_joHWj_d]ie\ceh[j^Wd(&&d[mYWhiiêmm^[j^[hWl[^_Yb[_i[nf[Yj[Z Iejêk]^j^[C_jikX_i^_EkjbWdZ[hIfehj^Wi[nY[bb[djh[b_WX_b_jo"_jmWid¿jh[Yec to have a trouble rate better or worse than average. The predictions are based on the c[dZ[Z_dekhheWZj[iji$9edl[hi[bo"j^[9^[lheb[jI_bl[hWZeWdZC[hY[Z[iIɚ9bWii \h[gk[dYoe\fheXb[ci\ehj^[fWijj^h[[ceZ[bo[Whi"fhel_Z[Zj^[l[^_Yb[^Wid¿jY^Wd][Z tested well but showed subpar reliability in our survey.

DECEMBER 2014 ROAD REPORT: RELIABILITY

Honda Civic Si Lexus LS Mitsubishi Outlander Sport

Sporty Cars Luxury Midsized/Large Cars Small SUVs

MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER

Honda Civic Si Lexus LS Mitsubishi Outlander Sport * Mazda MX-5 Miata Lexus ES (V6) Subaru Forester (nonturbo)* Audi A6 (4cyl.) Porsche Cayman* Subaru XV Crosstrek Lexus GS Audi S4* Mazda CX-5 (2.5L)* Hyundai Equus* Porsche Boxster* Toyota RAV4 Cadillac CTS (V6)* Chevrolet Camaro Mazda CX-5 (2.0L) Infiniti Q70 Porsche 911* Honda CR-V Dodge Challenger Mercedes-Benz E-Class Sedan (V6) Subaru Forester (turbo)* Chevrolet Corvette Stingray* BMW 528i Kia Sportage Hyundai Genesis Coupe* Lincoln MKZ (V6)* Hyundai Tucson Ford Focus ST* Audi A6 (V6) Nissan Rogue* Scion FR-S* BMW 535i Nissan Juke Subaru BRZ* Audi A6 (diesel)* Volkswagen Tiguan

-80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Audi A7 (diesel)* Jeep Patriot Audi A7 (nondiesel) Ford Escape (2.0L EcoBoost) Scion xB Lincoln MKZ (4cyl., EcoBoost)* Mini Countryman Acura RLX* Ford Escape (4cyl., nonturbo) BMW 7 Series* Compact Cars Jeep Compass* Lincoln MKS* Jeep Cherokee (V6)* (96%) MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Cadillac XTS Ford Escape Scion xB (81%) Mercedes-Benz S-Class* (1.6L EcoBoost) (121%) Honda Civic Coupe (127%) Jeep Cherokee (4cyl.)* (176%) -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Honda Civic Sedan -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Mazda3 (2.0L)*

Subaru Impreza Audi Q5

Hyundai Elantra Sedan Kia Soul* Luxury Compact SUVs IF AT FIRST YOU Toyota Corolla* DON’T SUCCEED ... Hyundai Elantra GT* MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Mazda3 (2.5L)* Audi Q5 (V6) Kia Forte* Audi Q5 (diesel)* 10% Mercedes-Benz GLK Complaint rate for 2011 Dodge Dart (2.0L)* (diesel)* Ford Explorer infotainment Volkswagen Jetta TDI Mercedes-Benz GLK (V6) system when new

Chevrolet Cruze (1.8L) Buick Encore

Volkswagen Beetle TDI* Audi Q5 (4cyl.) 28% Peak complaint rate Volkswagen Jetta (1.8T)* BMW X3 (28i) for 2011 Ford Explorer since Nissan Sentra* (87%) BMW X1 vehicle launch Ford Focus (95%) i_]d_ƏYWdjbo$Fh[Z_Yj_ediXWi[ZedWi_d]b[o[Wh¿iZWjWWh[cWha[Zm_j^WdWij[h_ia $ Acura RDX J^[Y^Whji¿l[hj_YWbb_d[Wjp[heh[fh[i[djij^[Wl[hW][\ehWbbYWhi$7d¼Wl[hW][½ Dodge Dart (1.4T)* (140%) BMW X3 (35i) 3% HWj_d]]e[ijeYWhiiYeh_d]m_j^_d(&f[hY[djW][fe_djie\j^Wjb_d[$7XWhm_j^WXh[Wa Chevrolet Cruze (1.4T) Complaint rate (143%) Cadillac SRX for 2014 Ford Explorer’s Fiat 500L* (219%) Volvo XC60 (6cyl.) -5 revised system

-80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Iej^ek]^j^[C_jikX_i^_EkjbWdZ[hIfehj^Wi[nY[bb[djh[b_WX_b_jo"_jmWid¿jh[Yec c[dZ[Z_dekhheWZj[iji$9edl[hi[bo"j^[9^[lheb[jI_bl[hWZeWdZC[hY[Z[iIɚ9bWii

CONSUMER REPORTS ROAD REPORT: RELIABILITY

Toyota Highlander Chevrolet Traverse Toyota Tundra

Midsized SUVs Large SUVs Full-Sized Pickups

MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Toyota Highlander (V6)* Chevrolet Traverse Toyota Tundra (V8, 2WD) Toyota 4Runner Toyota Sequoia Toyota Tundra (V8, 4WD) Chevrolet Equinox (4cyl.) Chevrolet Tahoe* Ford F-250 & F-350 GMC Terrain (4cyl.) GMC Yukon* Ford F-250 & F-350 (diesel) Chevrolet Equinox (V6) Ford Flex (V6) Ram 1500 (V8, 4WD) GMC Terrain (V6) Dodge Durango* Ram 1500 (V8, 2WD) Mazda CX-9 GMC Acadia Ram 1500 (V6) Nissan Xterra Ford Flex EcoBoost* Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Honda Pilot -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 (V8, 2WD)* Ford Explorer GMC Sierra 1500 (V6, EcoBoost)* (V8, 2WD)* Lexus RX Kia Sorento (V6)* Chevrolet Silverado 1500 (V6)* Kia Sorento (4cyl.)* GMC Sierra 1500 (V6)* Hyundai Santa Fe (V6) Luxury Midsized/Large SUVs Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Ford Edge (V6) (V8, 4WD)* (97%) Hyundai Santa Fe Sport MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER GMC Sierra 1500 (4cyl.) (V8, 4WD)* (97%) Lexus RX Ford Explorer (V6) Ram 2500 & 3500 (diesel) (152%) Hyundai Santa Fe Sport Lexus RX Hybrid (turbo) Lexus GX -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Dodge Journey Infiniti QX80* Ford Edge (4cyl.) Audi Allroad Porsche Cayenne Jeep Wrangler (2door) Buick Enclave Jeep Grand Cherokee (V6)* Audi Q7 Wagons Jeep Wrangler (4door) Acura MDX* Jeep Grand Cherokee (V8)* MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Lincoln MKX Jeep Grand Cherokee Audi Allroad* (diesel)* (134%) BMW X5 (35i)* Toyota Venza (V6) Nissan Pathfinder (154%) Volkswagen Touareg Toyota Venza (4cyl.) -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Mercedes-Benz M-Class (nondiesel) Mazda5 Mercedes-Benz M-Class (diesel)* Volvo XC70 Lincoln MKT EcoBoost* Honda Crosstour* Mercedes-Benz GL-Class (102%) -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 TOP AND BOTTOM Infiniti QX60 (113%) 248 -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 Toyota Sienna Number of models Toyota Tacoma in the Ratings Minivans 38 Compact Pickups MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER Toyota Sienna (FWD) Number of MAKE & MODEL % WORSE AVG. % BETTER best-scoring Toyota Sienna (AWD) models Toyota Tacoma (V6, 2WD) Nissan Quest 47 Toyota Tacoma (4cyl.) Honda Odyssey Toyota Tacoma Chrysler Town & Country Number of worst- (V6, 4WD) scoring models Nissan Frontier Dodge Grand Caravan

-80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80 -80 -45 -20 0 20 45 80

DECEMBER 2014