Asian carmakers take top ranks for reliability

DETROIT — Asian automakers still make the most reliable cars and trucks and the Detroit Three continue to struggle in the eyes of the Consumer Reports subscribers, according to the influential magazine’s annual automotive survey.

Lexus, Toyota and Acura were top-ranked in this year’s survey, while GMC was the only domestic brand to crack the top 10. Seven of the 10 top brands were Japanese.

BMW’s Mini ranked last out of 28 brands ranked.

With some exceptions, Chrysler finished below average, while Ford and Lincoln finished close to last for the second year in a row.

Of 31 Ford models in the survey, the F-150 pickup with the 3.7-liter V-6 was the only model to score above average, Consumer Reports said.

Dissatisfaction with the MyFord Touch and MyLincoln Touch infotainment systems and issues with EcoBoost engines pulled the Dearborn, Mich., automaker’s scores down.

The survey is based on questionnaires completed by 1.1 million of the magazine’s subscribers. The results were announced Monday in Detroit.

The survey revealed mixed results for Chrysler’s brands, with Chrysler and Ram finishing 18th and 19th respectively, while Jeep and Dodge ranked 23rd and 24th respectively.

“Chrysler is still below par overall, but a bright spot is the very nice Chrysler 300 C which scores above average — last year it was the company’s most troublesome vehicle,” Consumer Reports said.

General Motors’ brands performed better than its domestic competitors. GMC was ranked ninth, and Buick finished in the 12th spot.

“All Buicks except the V-6 LaCrosse were average or better. The only dark spots for Chevrolet are the Camaro and Cruze, both of which earned below-average reliability,” Consumer Reports said.

Asian automakers received top scores because nameplates produced by Toyota and Honda consistently received high scores.

Ten of the highest-scoring vehicles were Toyotas. All Lexus and Acura models earned an above-average reliability score while all Infiniti, Mazda, and Toyota models earned an average or better reliability score.

Only Nissan, which fell nine spots compared with last year, suffered.

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