When you purchase a new car you expect it to be reliable. But new ratings are out that show some new vehicles are much more likely to end up in the shop than others.
Consumer Reports just released reliability ratings that cover more than 300 models. This year the winners are the Lexus CT 200H and Toyota Prius, both hybrids.
The worst was the Cadillac Escalade. Its trouble spots include the transmission, power equipment, and infotainment system.
"We survey Consumer Reports subscribers and we have data on 500,000 vehicles and we use that information to determine which cars are going to be more reliable and which are going to give you more problems," said Jake Fisher, director of Consumer Reports auto testing.
Ford came in at the bottom in two categories: The Ford Focus is the least reliable compact car and the Ford Fiesta is the least reliable among subcompacts.
The compact Honda Civic, once a very reliable car, also took a tumble with this year’s redesign. This is the biggest redesign the Civic has had in many years. And as Consumer Reports often sees with redesigns, when a lot of things are changed, sometimes there are a lot of problems, too.
The most reliable new compact car is the Chevy Cruze and the Toyota Corolla.
In the popular compact SUV category, Consumer Reports shows the Jeep Cherokee at the bottom. On top is the Toyota RAV4.
Among pickup trucks, the Ford F-150 reliability score dropped to the point where Consumer Reports no longer recommends it. The most reliable pickup is the Toyota Tundra.
