
The results are based on feedback from vehicle owners, and updated annually to reflect reported issues and complaints. The lower the average score across the two companies' annual reports, the more reliable the featured brands' cars have been reported to be. To determine which ten automotive brands are deemed most dependable, we calculated the average ranking from the two leading authorities in this area: Consumer Reports and J.D. Electric vehicles are becoming more common, too, so their reduced maintenance costs can be a huge benefit for some buyers. The good news is that new cars are more dependable than ever before, as automakers focus on build quality and longevity. Predicted reliability can help you understand how much you’ll spend on maintenance and may help you get a feel for whether-or how often-you’ll be left stranded on the side of the road. On the flip side, both Hyundai and Kia moved up another 1-2 spots this year after both moving up 4 spots last year, earning a solid spot together in the Top 8 “More Reliable” brands.New car reliability ratings should be near the top of your research list when shopping for a new vehicle. On an absolute basis, Honda now has the same reliability score as BMW, whose cars have more fancy features and a history of average reliability. They dropped 4 spots last year and another 2 spots this year. In terms of trends as compared to last year’s 2015 survey, I was disappointed to see Honda slip a bit again in the reliability rankings. If you don’t see your brand listed, it is probably due to a lack of data points.

Of course, you’ll need full print or digital access to get those numbers. Some brands like Toyota and Lexus are reliable across the brand, but others like Ford have a wide range of rankings by model.

In this public-viewable article, CR shares the full 2017 reliability rankings by brand and the relative change from 2016. The December 2016 issue of Consumer Reports magazine includes the results from their 2016 Car Reliability Survey with over a half million data points.
