Consumer Reports is a tough a cookie. The publication is regarded and trusted by millions of consumers, and has long played a part in shaping buying decisions, especially in the automotive industry. That’s why it becomes an honor, and a battle, to place well on the Top 10 best brands list each year.
Unfortunately for General Motors, only one of its main brands placed this time around, but it’s very fortunate for Buick, which has been building momentum since the Enclave full-size CUV arrived on the scene.
The Buick brand placed seventh in a list of 30 automakers, beating out mammoth brands such as Toyota, Honda and even Ford. Chevrolet tumbled down the list at number 20, while GMC and Cadillac held the number 23 and 24 spots.
CR broke down its rankings by overall score, road-test score and percent of recommended test models. Buick arrived in seventh with a 74-76-80 scorecard.
Buick isn’t holding back either. The all-new 2017 Buick LaCrosse will arrive this summer, and the unveiling of a refreshed 2017 Buick Encore is weeks away at the 2016 New York International Auto Show.
Comments
Amazing that Buick ranks higher than the much more expensive and luxurious Cadillac. Due to the links between Buick and Opel, one must assume that the European brand is also highly reliable. This is key to Opel taking share from both VW and Ford.
Something to realize about Consumer Reports is that their reliability rankings are based on self reporting from subscribers (disclosure- I am a CR subscriber). This can, in my opinion, lead to considerable bias in “reliability” tabulation. People who don’t care about their cars will not be likely to check off any problems when they get the surveys, while those who are more auto-centric may report every little issue, thus dragging down a brand somewhat unfairly.
Having said all that- I have owned a 2016 Regal AWD for a month, with just over 600 miles. Overall, great car, but there are already 2 minor issues that will have to be addressed: a small, nickel sized ridge cast into the plastic back bumper and something loose in the left rear door that “thunks” quite loudly during many turns and over bumps. Minor issues, but I’ll admit to being very particular about build quality. I’ll be interested to see how this plays out over the 8-10+ years I keep the car.
2016 is new car, covered by factory warranty, so your dealer should fix this kind of things for free.
As for me, I have 2010 2nd gen LaCrosse CXL 3.0 V6 (plus some options on top) with around 70 000 miles on it now (111000 kms), which I bought more than a year ago within GM certified-pre-owned program, and my one seems to be a reliable vehicle so far – pretty much nothing breaks, and everything is working so far; just the maintenance.
As for the unpopular LF1 3.0 V6 engine in it, its performance is not lame or something like that like people use to think; it’s actually more powerful (hp/torque) and drives faster than any naturally aspirated I4 up to date; the performance is just between I4 (like Ecotec 2.4, 2.5 etc) and bigger 3.6 V6s like LLT, LFX and now LGX. This LF1 3.0 is just thirsty on gas like bigger V6s (it’s like paying additional, say, $20-30 on gas monthly over the sedan with I4). That’s its drawback and the reason it was dropped throughout GM lineup, I think. But it’s technically not a bad engine by itself – it does not fail prematurely, there are no systemic failure patterns with it or something like that, AFAIK.
“This can, in my opinion, lead to considerable bias in “reliability” tabulation. People who don’t care about their cars will not be likely to check off any problems when they get the surveys, while those who are more auto-centric may report every little issue, thus dragging down a brand somewhat unfairly.”
So what?
You’ve only listed two types of buyers within EVERY brand. I don’t understand how your point creates any bias to or from any specific brands. Not to mention the best rated brands are really pricey cars — where enthusiasts thrive.
Buick is on a roll.
And, if Buick builds the Avista, it’s ratings will be even higher!
Yes, this Avista is gorgeous, so it would be awesome on the road. It would be a real head-turner.
IMHO, GM, recalling their heritage and history, can actually call Avista a Riviera and put an “R” on it as a logo – as a Riviera “sub-brand”.
(The last Buick Riviera coupe with this “R” logo ended production in 1999 – i see one of these, supercharged 3.8 L V6 version, in my neighborhood from time to time – still rolls, can still probably do 0-60 mph in about 7 sec, and still looks interesting.)