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EVERY year, Consumer Reports (CR), an American magazine, releases a detailed report on all new vehicles sold in the country. This report reveals the best and worst vehicles sold in the USA. It provides an honest judgment for car buyers to decide which vehicle is best for them when it comes to reliability.
Well, emotional appeal and the petrol-head car buyer will dismiss this report as they continue to buy and support less reliable vehicles as it fuels their hobby and desires more than their basic transportation needs.
It must be noted that there are still many buyers who want more than reliability in a car. They want some excitement and visual appeal with their vehicle. So, vehicles that fall in the last few places of this yearly report will still have buyers.
For the last year of tests comes a surprising new winner, Mazda taking a score of 80 out of 100 points, takes the No 1 Position. The Mazda MX-5 roadster emerged as the most reliable car among those tested, getting a score of 98 out of 100. Meanwhile, the CX-30, CX-3, and CX-5 SUVs all scored 85 or better.
This means Mazda with a total of 80 points has beaten premium brands like Audi, BMW, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lexus, Infiniti, Mercedes-Benz and even Bentley. Meanwhile, in second place with 78 points was BMW, Porsche and Subaru tied in third place with 76 points with Honda Motor in fifth place with a very close 75 points.
Historically, that top spot for reliability has been held by its much larger competitor Toyota and Lexus. The key to Mazda’s success is that its new models are technologically conservative. They have avoided introducing risky new powertrains and infotainment systems. The entire lineup benefits from many shared platforms and components, with only modest changes during redesigns.
The popular Tesla brand now sits nearer to the bottom (yes, it is in 16th place among all 26 ranked brands. It was pulled lower by the newly-introduced Model Y SUV, which has well below-average reliability and thus could not be recommended by CR.
The Model Y had some build quality issues with body hardware and paint. Many owners reported misaligned body panels that had to be fixed and mismatched paint. One owner reported dust, debris, and even human hair stuck in the paint. Only the Tesla Model 3 sedan is reliable and CR recommended. Tesla’s S dropped to below-average reliability and is no longer recommended, and the Model X remains subpar. Behind Tesla were Mini and Volkswagen.
Malaysia needs an impartial honest evaluation like this for our automotive industry, where new cars are purchased and evaluated by experienced retired automotive engineers and industry experts. However, with politics being involved in our automotive industry, do not expect this to happen in the coming decades. – The Vibes, February 23, 2021
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