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Asian brands dominate car reliability survey

29 October 2009 15:43 (UTC +04:00)

Baku. Nijat Mustafayev â€“ APA-Economics. The Honda Insight Hybrid was judged No. 1 among all vehicles as Asian brands continued to rule overall in Consumer Reports annual reliability survey.
Thirty-six Asian models were among 48 that received top reliability scores. Toyota accounted for 18; Honda, 8; Nissan, 4; and Hyundai/Kia and Subaru, three each.
Most Japanese vehicles have proven to be consistently good. All Honda and Acura products have average or above average reliability. Toyota, with its Lexus and Scion brands, has a broad range of models, but only the all-wheel-drive Lexus GS sport-utility vehicle showed below-average reliability.

Models from Nissan and its Infiniti luxury division have also proven to be reliable. The magazine noted that the Infiniti QX56 and Nissan Armada SUVs have improved to average reliability, as has the four-wheel-drive Nissan Titan pickup truck. The rear-wheel-drive version still has problems. The Nissan Versa hatchback has shown average reliability in the last two surveys, but the sedan has been far below average. The Nissan Quest minivan also remains troublesome, the magazine noted.
South Korean manufacturer Hyundai and its Kia partner continue to make reliable cars. The Hyundai Elantra sedan and Tucson SUV, and the Kia Sportage SUV got top marks. The new Hyundai Genesis sedan with a V-6 engine scored better than average and the V-8 powered version got an average rating. Only Kiaâ€™s Sedona minivan and Sorrento SUV score below average.
The survey, which covered 1.4 million vehicles, was based on responses from owners who subscribe to Consumer Reports or its web site, www.consumerreports.org.