Is Consumer Reports Biased on cars?

Question

A Toyota Sequoia getting 4 on reliability but a 2005 Jeep GC getting 1? I had the exact opposite. Everyone I know says that they have a car that CR called a best value or recommended have had it more in the shop than on the road. They seem especially biased towards German cars, and I know that a BMW 745i or Benz S500 is better than a Kia....

Answer 1

I would say they are pretty fair overall. Reliabilty trends are compiled off of surveys sent out to their readers. Ask about any mechanic that is not attached to a dealership, and you will find they are pretty accurate overall.

They typically do not like domestic cars because they flat out are not as good. They tend to be bland and good 5+ years behind the curve on technology. American cars were, and still are built by bean counters and board members, not people that actually know what it is like to drive them and work on them. Chrysler in particular has been turning out some garbage as of late.

As far as them loving Japanese cars, that is not true. They flat out hated the Yaris, noting it as one of the biggest disappoints of the year. They did not like the Scion Xa and Xb all that much, nor the Honda Element. And these are popular cars among the younger drivers. Reliability has also been trending down on Camry's and the Honda Odyssey had some issues. Things are looking better as Ford and GM are finally turning out some decent products. The Fusion and Focus are good cars. The Acadia Cadillacs are also competitive in their respective classes.

They really do not test a lot of German cars. When they do, they note the excellent dynamics and good fit and finish. They tend to fare well, but are not reliable at all. They tend to have overly complicated controls, and are real expensive to fix. Ask anyone that has a Touareg how many times it has been in the shop. Same is true for the BMW and Mercedes you mentioned. They are of course vastly superior to a Kia, but you will to take out a second mortgage to pay for the repairs.

Consumer Reports also test the cars like real drivers would use them. Car and Driver and like magazines have to brake torque or drop the clutch at 6000 rpms to get those acceleration times. The driving loop they use is also a much better indicator of real world mpg, whereas EPA estimates are wildly optimistic (and to be revised for 2008).

Consumer Reports is the only magazine I have seen that reports on reliability and resale trends. 2 areas that are very important overall, and often overlooked because the car looks real "perty". For the lay-person, Consumer Reports is your best bet.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Consumer Reports is an opinion not a fact. Some times they are right. Sometimes I do not know what are they talking about. They say Lexis is the best brand. They say Toyota has the lowest maintenance cost. Ok. But why Tesla is the best car overal? Have they tried to drive it through Manhattan? Where am I supppose to fill its tank? What so great about spending 70k on a car? How do they know it is reliable? Why prius c and yaris are bed?

Answer 4

I do NOT hold one ounce of faith in Consumer Reports anymore. CR says all infant baby slings are unsafe and should be avoided. Interestingly, only ONE DESIGN (the duffel bag style) has led to infant deaths. (the couple of other deaths were user errors) So instead of trashing this one bad design, they trash all slings and carriers as 'unsafe'. That is comparable as rating a car up to a SUV. Apples to oranges. CR also ignores the fact that THOUSANDS of babies injured and some killed while being lugged around in infant car seats. And FYI: NEVER NEVER place the infant car seat in top of the shopping cart like you see all the time at grocery stores. Graco and Evenflo will even tell you not to do this on their websites. And done with my rant: the best travel system is one that meets your needs. Remember, some infant car seats fit baby for as little as 6 months, that is alot of money to pay for such little use. Plus, many 'travel system' strollers are quite bulky or have short handles. Try them out in the store, toss some weight in the stroller and see how it works for you. You don't have to buy a system, for example: you can use a Graco seat with Graco strollers. You might find a stroller that works for you, and you can add the seat. We went straight for a convertible car seat from day one and a reclining flat stroller (Graco Quattro). good luck on your lil one!

Answer 5

Consumer reports uses a lot of data from consumers. Many consumers are biased toward their brand or the country of origin. I personally wouldn't look at consumer reports for a buying decision, most new cars are very good as far as reliability, the differences nowadays are goodies, ride, handling, build quality, etc.

Answer 6

Dan in nearly 98% of many opinions CR is way too biased not only in european cars but asian as well,they surely don't favor USA cars at all,american cars were last built in the USA before the mid eighties began,Most US cars were or are being built in Canada.But even now american cars are international including the parts too.

Answer 7

Absolutely. CR is heavily biased against American automobiles.

Answer 8

no. look into the mechanics of a vehicle and to answer the second part do your home work on vehicle safety standards and who meets up to them