Consumer Reports Survey: Ford Shines, Chrysler Struggles

YONKERS, New York — It's report-card time for the global automakers from one of the toughest consumer watchdogs. Ford gets high marks in the 2009 Consumer Reports reliability survey, singled out for being "the only Detroit automaker with world-class reliability." But the report slammed Chrysler, which is ranked dead last out of 33 automakers.

Consumer Reports says that one-third of Chrysler's products through the 2009 model year are "much worse than average."

The Dodge Journey was singled for particular scorn in the survey. The redesigned Dodge Ram 1500 pickup was a notable exception for Chrysler. "It did well in CR road tests and rates average in reliability," said Consumer Reports.

Few global automakers escaped the careful eye of Consumer Reports, which based its findings on responses from more than 1.4 million vehicles owned or leased by its subscribers.

Porsche was patted on the head for "doing quite well in our survey of late," said the consumer watchdog. But the German automaker was spanked for the performance of the Porsche Boxster, which "drops to below average, which strikes it from Consumer Reports' Recommended list," the publication said.

Asian automakers, from Toyota to Hyundai/Kia dominated with top reliability scores.

Of the 48 models with the highest marks, 36 are Asian. "With only a few exceptions, Japanese vehicles are consistently good," said Consumer Reports in a statement. The Lexus GS AWD was the only Toyota model with below-average reliability. Other Japanese vehicles that were criticized in the report include the Nissan Versa sedan and the Subaru Impreza WRX. They were described as "among the least reliable vehicles in their respective classes."

The Volkswagen Touareg was described as the "least reliable vehicle." The Touareg "is 27 times more likely to have a problem than the most reliable car, the Honda Insight," said Consumer Reports.

However, the Volkswagen Rabbit (Golf) and CC earned top scores in the study.

Despite Ford's overall good scores — about 90 percent of Ford, Mercury and Lincoln products were found to have average or better reliability — the Lincoln division had mixed results. "All-wheel-drive versions of the Lincoln MKS, MKX and MKZ, essentially high-end versions of the Ford Taurus, Edge and Fusion, respectively, are all below average," said Consumer Reports.

Alt-fuel vehicles are shaping up to be winners, says the survey. Five of the eight most reliable family cars are hybrids, including the Ford Fusion Hybrid, Mercury Milan Hybrid, Nissan Altima Hybrid, Toyota Camry Hybrid and Prius.

General Motors fared well in the study. "Overall, 20 of the 48 GM models Consumer Reports surveyed have average reliability scores," the study said. The Chevrolet Malibu V6 had better-than-average scores.

Inside Line says: Some invaluable information for consumers as the recession eases and the wallets begin to open up. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent