Consumer Reports Finds Efficient Cars Also Most Reliable

Among its other findings, Consumer Reports' 2008 Annual Car Reliability Survey discovered a strong correlation between fuel-efficient cars and dependability. All told, cars with better fuel economy also tended to rank above average for predicted reliability for new cars.

Does this imply causation or simply correlation?

Most of the nine hybrid models rated above-average were Japanese, including the Toyota Prius, Toyota Camry Hybrid, Nissan Altima Hybrid, Honda Civic Hybrid and Lexus GS 450h.

However, Ford also scored high marks for the Ford Escape Hybrid and Mercury Mariner Hybrid. Non-hybrid fuel-sippers ranked decently as well: The Honda Fit, Scion xD, Smart ForTwo and Toyota Yaris all reported fewer problems than the competition.

The lesson here may still be that Japanese automakers continue to lead in dependability — they led in 15 of 16 Consumer Reports' categories — and they make more fuel-efficient cars, but Ford has all but caught up. The Fusion, Milan and Focus all ranked as some of the most reliable vehicles. 

As for the other legs of Detroit's ailing automotive triumvirate, GM had hits and misses, with its most notable winner being the highly praised Chevy Malibu. Meanwhile, Chrysler brought up the rear not only for Detroit, but for the entire industry. The predicted reliability score for the Chrysler Sebring convertible was the absolute lowest for any car, at 283% lower than average.

Consumer Reports: Cars That Save Gas Also Lead in Reliability (The Seattle Times)

Comments

[DL]

Selection bias must have influenced the results a lot -- people who go for "green" vehicles are not, I dare say, the type to floor it when the light turns green, etc.

guess what? when you drive gently, your car will thank you with relatively trouble-free miles.

However, whatever the reason, good results are good results. Besides, people used to worry about hybrid systems not lasting as long; at least it's not a worrisome factor.

DL,
I totally agree with you. I see all these Camry's and Corrollas being driven so daintily all the time (picking on them because there are so many of them and they are always in my way)- they are barely being used, why wouldn't it last forever. Point- Buick and pontiac. The lesabre and the grand prix shared engines and platforms for years, but the buick was always rated more reliable- Buick as an entire brand is rated higher. Duh- seniors are easier on their cars than the average person seeking "driving excitment" that the pontiac brand promises(ed).

But, that rant aside- good for these cars because the other side of that is that a lot of the cars on that list are cheap and probably hae young owners driving the hell out of them and are still on that list.

Broq

[Tony]

I think, I has a lot to do with weight and a package of that weight. Tighter boxes are sturdier. While the quality is still a major thing.
I know first hand, you can beat a Honda and it will still hold pretty well. Well. I don't know now but before it did. Lets say, 1990 Honda. Same year Toyota wouldn't withstand beating as well as Honda.

[Bloke]

Isn't there something to be said that Consumer Reports really measures perceived quality? If the customers are happy with their cars, they will give a good survey to consumer reports. So while things may fail, if a consumer is really happy that his or her car gets 40 mpg they may be able to forgive little problems that otherwise they wouldn't. While I don't doubt a lot of the cars on there belong on there, like the Fit, and the Scion, I wonder about the Fortwo as I have heard from more than a few that there are slight build issues. I guess you would really have to have a car that didn't make it in a hybrid form or with a big engine, and it makes it this year with the smaller engine or hybrid driveline to really prove the point. But I look at this with some skepticism as I think automakers still tend to cut costs more on the smaller cheaper models.

[ziggy]

Bloke
CR did a story on that a few years back. It was regarding Mercedes. They had received high satisfaction rates from consumers that bought the ML320 however the reliablity was less than average. Like I've said in previous posts - some people will consider their car reliable even though they've had to have a handful of repairs in the first year of ownership. Perception of quality and reliablity play a big part.

[Bloke]

Sorry for stealing your thunder ziggy.

[John Z]

CR proves what everyone with an education already knows. The Detroit 3 build inferior vehicles. They have poor management, lousy vehicles, and awful dealerships. The majority of buyers purchase from the Detroit 3 because they can't afford to buy Japanese. You still get what you pay for!

I can't wait to see GM and Chrysler file for bankruptcy. They finally are reaping what they sowed.

[Berk]

"The Detroit 3 build inferior vehicles."
Ummm... Did the article not just say that Ford ranked extremely high?

[Michael Karesh]

One thing to realize about CR's survey is that is asks people to only report problems they "considered serious." So, as people have suggested here, owners who like their cars are probably less likely to report problems on CR's survey.

Older owners are also probably less likely to report problems, because they've been around long enough to remember how awful the average cars used to be. In comparison, the problems today's cars tend to have--rattles, loose trim, airbag lights because a sensor is flakey--won't see serious.

The smart fortwo is a special case. It went on sale not long before CR's survey went out. So owners hadn't had these cars for long when they responded to the survey.

TrueDelta.com's latest results include another five months of data, and the fortwo hasn't been doing nearly as well as CR's result suggests. The most common problem: the shifter gets stuck in park, and requires replacement.

http://www.truedelta.com/latest_results.php

[DL]

as I have said before, treudelta.com has too paltry a sample size for meaningful statistics to be derived from them!

[ticino]

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[DL]

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[Red]

I was under the impression that CR's reliability data was not based on owner's perceptions but on hard numbers of problems that required attention. The ratings correspond directly to percentages of each model affected by the problems and they try to make the process as objective as possible. I've followed CR's recommendations on many vehicle purchases and my experiences reflected the ratings given by CR.

[Red]

More thoughts: people who own VWs and Audis really like their cars but were honest enough in years past to report their reliability problems and those two nameplates were near the bottom in CR's reliability ratings. In fairness, they've made huge improvements in recent years and selected VW and Audi vehicles are now above average in reliability and that's reflected in CR's ratings. CR also buys examples of each vehicle and reports their own experiences objectively.