truth about domestics

The video above describes an issue Consumer Reports found with the Fusion/Milan hyrids where the brakes could switch over to conventional brakes earlier than necessary, giving the perceived notion of braking loss, even though Ford says you still have braking control over the car.  Here’s to hoping that Ford, GM, Toyota, Honda and any other automaker with a severe recall or quality issue gets it fixed ASAP!

People seem to just love Consumer Reports.  I often feel alone in this world when I talk about my dislike for that magazine.  They have always appeared to be biased in my opinion.  Take their latest luxury car comparison for example.  They gave the Cadillac CTS the win by 4 points over its nearest competitor, and yet the car is still not recommended!  A CR recommendation is only given out to a car based on reliability, not on how good of a car it really is.  So the CTS is the best luxury car out there…yet its not reliable so they can’t recommend it?  If reliability is such a high mark for CR, why don’t they include that as part of their test?  Whatever, for more, head on over to Autoblog.

(Image source: GM)

The world’s most amazing and perfect automaker, Toyota, can’t seem to catch a break these days!  First came reports of customer trucks rusting so badly that their spare tire could fall off while driving!  Then came the story about a Lexus that had its accelerator peddle stick, causing an accident that killed the driver and his family.  More stories flooded in and Toyota was forced to recall 3.8 million vehicles.  Two more stories have hit the web, the first being on unintended acceleration and the other on Toyota vehicles stalling unexpectedly.

According to a Consumer Reports study, a whopping 41% of all unintended acceleration claims are on Toyota/Lexus vehicles.  This is a fairly large number when you consider that Toyota currently only has about a 16% market share here in the United States.  The second issue facing Toyota is reports of 2006 Matrix and Corolla vehicles stalling unexpectedly at intersections or while merging onto the freeway.

(Image source: Toyota)

Quite a bold statement, especially coming from an automaker who didn’t win any big awards from Consumer Reports or JD Power and Associates for their quality – or lack thereof.  Chrysler states that they are going to be fighting their poor quality reputation hard through a number of techniques.  The first involves increased staffing.  The original quality group had only around 200 people.  Through some new hires and some head reallocation, Chrysler plans to have around 1,700 in the quality group now.  It has also adopted Fiat’s “world class” manufacturing system.  Costs have already been cut this year in terms of warranty spend, and fixes are now taking place far quicker than in the past years.  For more details, head on over to Autoblog or The Detroit News.

(Image source: Chrysler)

In the most recent Consumer Reports annual reliability report, a full 90% of Ford’s models scored average or better reliability.  This is just another proof point for Ford in their turn around that they didn’t need government assistance, nor did they need to file for bankruptcy to do it.  Sadly the same high marks cannot be said for GM or Chrysler.  For the full story, head on over to Autoblog.

(Image source: MSN)

OK, so the title of this post is long, but I did it in the hopes of getting the attention of the many Domestic 3 bashers who think that making a hybrid is sooo easy and that the automakers should have been doing it for the past 40 years.  Wake up people!  They are extremely complex machines!  They have two powertrains, feature complex computers and electronics to make it all work, and take years to develop.  Don’t even get me started on the batteries!

Anyway, Mark Fields, in a recent interview with Consumer Reports implied that Ford doesn’t really make money on its hybrids.  They will continue to sell them for the time being, with the hopes of making more money on future models, when cost and economies of scale can help bring the cost down on the expensive components.  That doesn’t mean Ford isn’t totally behind hybrids for the time being though!  Don’t forget about the Ford Escape hybrid, the most fuel efficient SUV on the planet, and the Ford Fusion hybrid, the most fuel efficient mid-size sedan, earning 8 mpg more in the city than the Toyota Camry hybrid.  For more on the interview, head on over to CR.

(Image source: Edmunds)

Well color me green and call me Gumby!  I would never have guessed that 80% of the buying public is or would consider buying an American car.  You wouldn’t know it from all the Japanese, Korean and European cars I see driving on the roads every day, but apparently according to a Consumer Reports study, it is totally true.  Here’s to hoping it’s true, as confidence in Ford is up 17%, GM’s is up 6% but sadly Chrysler’s is down a massive 25%.  Head on over to Autoblog for more details.

(Image source: Pennsylvania Mountains of Attractions)

So, again, let me begin by stating that I think generally Consumer Reports is full of crap.  Their reviewers care more about how many cup holders a car has than anything else, which is a really stupid idea anyway.  Why does the Honda Odyssey win over other vans?  Well it’s got 45 cup holders, that’s why!  Doesn’t the vehicle only hold 8 people anyway, why would you need 45 cup holders?  Oh…uhmmm…in case you’re a heavy drinker?

I digress.  So, CR went on to say that basically the Ford Fusion hybrid is equal to the Toyota Camry hybrid, only sportier.  Really?  That’s it?  How about the fact that it looks better?  Or gets 8 miles per gallon better in the city than the Camry?  Or is available with SYNC technology?  Or that Ford is number one in initial quality?  Yea, if you ignore all of those facts, then the Ford Fusion hybrid is equal to the Toyota Camry hybrid.  However, once you include those facts…well, the Fusion leaves the Camry in a pile of leaves (get it, a green spin on the old saying.)  For more details, head on over to Autoblog.