Consumer Reports Readers Heart Japan

by Frank Williams

Updated: March 10th, 2008 Published: December 3rd, 2007

Surprise! The Detroit News reports that nearly half the vehicles listed in Consumer Reports' "most satisfying" list are manufactured by Japanese brands. And a quarter of the models listed were Toyotas. Only seven American brands showed up on the list. The Ford Fusion and Saturn Aura won high marks in the family car segment. While making up less than 10 percent of the market in the U.S., European models accounted for almost a third of the winners. The Toyota Prius was the overall most satisfying vehicle, followed by the BMW 335i and the Porsche Boxster. Domestic models dominated the "least satisfying" list, which consisted mainly of trucks and SUVs. Four of TTAC's Ten Worst winners are Consumer Reports bottom feeders: the Saturn Ion, Chevy Aveo, Chevrolet Uplander, Chevy Trailblazer/GMC Envoy.

Frank Williams

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Geeber on Dec 03, 2007
Gottleib: Consumer Reports also recommended the Rambler in the 1950’s and 1960’s as one of its recommended models. What does that tell you? As the 1960s wore on, the magazine gave AMC products lower ratings. The invasion of Rambler's turf by the Big Three was the main culprit. If I recall correctly, the magazine even gave the 1967 AMC Ambassador an "unacceptable" rating because of one major problem (which escapes me at the moment). Consumer Reports preferred Dodges and Plymouths in the compact and intermediate class, and Fords in the full-size class, if I recall correctly. Interestingly, Rambler's fall from grace with Consumer Reports was mirrored in the sales charts. It's also interesting to note that after 1965, testers at other auto magazines routinely noted quality control problems with Ramblers.

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Kevin Kluttz on Dec 03, 2007

Tells me that in the 50's and 60's Ramblers were pretty good cars.

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CeeDragon on Dec 04, 2007

What this tells me is that the demographics of the people who read CR and who would actually fill out a CR survey have said that the Prius, 335i, and Boxster are the most satisfying cars to them. Somehow, I doubt the folks who read "Off-Road" would say the same. One thing I like about CR is that they are consistant. You may not agree with their conclusions, but they have high visibility with their methodologies, priorities, and "biases". I can look at a year-old review for a RAV4 and feel comfortable in comparing it to a current CR-V review. Hard to do with, say, Car and Driver or Motor Trend. ::shudder::

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Gottleib on Dec 04, 2007

Whoops.....my bias is showing. I have to admit sometime I let my right brain take over and leave my left brain on hold. I will confess that my opinion of Ramblers was formed when I become aware of cars and well before the age when I could drive them. No doubt in todays market the Japanese cars have become what Rambler stood for in the 60's, a practical and reliable car and one that would place high in an objective review of cars. When I engage my left brain I go for the Consumer Reports Buyers Guide. Do they have a drug to help with this chemical imbalance?

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