The latest Consumer Reports rankings are out, and they managed to skip pretty much all former Chrysler, current Stellantis brands, using this disclaimer:
Criticisms of Consumer Reports’ “feedback loop” seem to have support in how few owners are willing to splash out on any vehicle from FCA US; more niche brands such as Acura and even Tesla did make the list.
Ram had two models included, with a near-average score of 42. Jeep had five models, with an average score of 30, in the “below average” zone along with Tesla, Chevrolet, GMC, Volkswagen, and Mercedes.
The only above average brands were Toyota, Lexus, BMW, Mazda, and Honda. Toyota and Lexus topped the rankings while Mercedes was at the very bottom. Just buying a Toyota is no guarantee, though: the least reliable Toyota got a score of 39 while the most reliable Toyota hit 96. Likewise, Jeeps ranged from 21 to a better-than-average 53. The two Rams each scored 42.
The best American brands, Lincoln and Buick, averaged 54. Buick was very consistent, ranging from 52-55 across three models. Lincoln’s range went from a stunning 8 to 82 across three models.
The accuracy of Consumer Reports rankings has been the subject of some discussion in the past. They are not consistent with other sources, such as J.D. Power, and some of their methods appear to inspire more subjectivity than one would desire. However, a good ranking does tend to sell cars; many people do follow their advice closely.
It’s not just how many of a given model are sold, it’s how many are sold to CU subscribers, right?
I would guess that CU’s demographic skews heavily towards Toyota, Honda, VW, Lexus, Tesla – I’m guessing not many Dodge Chargers or Challengers are sold to CU subscribers. And not many Chryslers are sold in total anyway. Hence, it’s in the realm of probability that CU really doesn’t have much data on the big Mopars (except Ram).
I have a aversion to this publication from something they did to Omni and horizon during my career at Chrysler. Long memory!
They tend NOT to be objective
I think the criticism of CR is spot on. They’re arbitrary at best, capricious at worst in assigning their rankings. Choosing to not include mainstream brands like Dodge, Infiniti, and Mitsubishi not only ignores a significant part of the market, it also tends to skew the scores in the direction of what they do include. I don’t subscribe to the magazine and never will.