There are a lot of car stereotypes out there, like that Toyota builds dull appliances. While true on many fronts, the Japanese automaker does also make exciting sporty cars like the Scion FR-S, and Lexus LFA, both praised for their exhilarating rides, edgy styling and pulse-raising performance. But there’s another stereotype that needs to be...
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Price, looks and size… these are the few factors that used to decide what vehicle you’d park in your driveway. Looking for a cheap and small car? A Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic will do. Need something bigger, perhaps a mid-size Hyundai Sonata or an SUV. Things used to be pretty easy. With increasingly high...
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The Kia Rio EX got top honors in Consumer Reports’ latest tests in the sub-compact sedan category, besting the Hyundai Accent and the Chevrolet Sonic. Consumer Reports found the Kia Rio a solid and well-equipped car with nimble handling, simple controls and plenty of features for the price. Their test vehicle was a Kia Rio...
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The infamous Fisker Karma that shut down during Consumer Reports‘ testing performed exactly as it was meant to, according to Tom LaSorda, the company’s new CEO. Apparently the luxury EV is meant to shut down in the event of a failure to prevent collateral damage that might otherwise result. LaSorda sent a letter to customers apologizing...
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The Consumer Reports Fisker Karma test vehicle which broke down on them last week has now been returned to the fleet after spending 48 hours at a Fisker dealerhsip. During a routine speedometer test the Karma began to flash a warning light and a chime to alert the driver that something was amiss. Once the...
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Well this is just embarrassing. American electric automaker Fisker has had some pretty bad months recently, starting with a recall back in December, to reports of the company running out of funds, that has lead to the delay of Project Nina and then possible reports that the Karma could brick. The automaker was probably hoping some good press would come with...
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Consumer Reports released its Top Picks for 2012, with Toyota claiming five of the 10 spots — the first time since 2003 that a company held so many. Consumer Reports chooses the “best all-around models” in each category by conducting road tests, reading thousands of customer surveys about reliability and examining crash test ratings on...
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Have you ever thought about cleaning your headlights? If not, you should. There are plenty of headlight cleaning kits out there, and according to Consumer Reports, even the most inexpensive or poorest quality ones can make a difference. Since drivers are keeping their cars longer, it becomes more important to maintain this older fleet. And...
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Volkswagen, which is making a huge push to become a dominant player in the volume segment in the US, has seen its purchase intent double in the last few years, though it’s still low, rated at just under two percent, meaning that for many consumers, VW simply isn’t on the radar when it comes to...
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The survey, which was conducted among 2000 adults with at least one vehicle in their household last December, illustrated that the most well-known brands kept their lead, with Toyota, Ford, Honda and Chevrolet rounding out the top four in terms of overall scores, yet other brands edged closer.
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During its evaluation of finding the year’s best value vehicles, Consumer Reports, tested cars, SUVs and trucks from a total of 11 different categories. Scores were determined based on a five-year ownership cost of each vehicle, including depreciation, insurance premiums, fuel costs, interest on financing, repairs and maintenance and sales taxes.
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The news is no doubt welcomed by Toyota, for since 2007, Consumer Reports has been keeping closer scrutiny on the automaker’s products following issues it discovered on the Toyota Tundra full-size pickup, the previous generation V6 powered Camry and Lexus GS luxury sedan.
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Just as Honda announced it’ll be refreshing the Civic for next year, hoping everyone will quickly forget about the 2012 model, Consumer Reports goes and gives the 2012 Honda Civic Si a “Recommended” rating in its latest report. Now let’s keep in mind that Consumer Reports were one of the first outlets to give the...
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This probably doesn’t come to as a surprise to many – since we’re all guilty of it – but Consumer Reports has taken a poll that reveals 40-percent of American car owners will delay the maintenance of their vehicle due to finances. More eye-opening is the fact that younger drivers, 18-34 years of age, tend...
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Consumer Reports recently compared four luxury sedans in the January issue of the magazine, pitting the Audi A6 against the Infiniti M35h, Mercedes-Benz E350 BlueTec and Saab 9-5, with the refreshed A6 receiving an overall test score of 93, tying Infiniti’s M37 at the top of the charts. The previous generation A6 had scored a...
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Consumer Reports has made allegations against Volkswagen that the company provided press vehicles that were built to a higher standard than versions sold to consumers. Stories of “ringer” press vehicles are legend in the automotive world – most recently, Ferrari was accused of providing press cars that performed far better than customer cars. Now, the venerable consumer...
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And despite teething troubles, Mulally remains convinced that the technology is the way forward; currently, Ford is working on plans to make it standard in all Lincoln vehicles and incorporated in some 80 percent of Ford branded products by 2014.
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Chrysler spokesman, Vince Muniga, said that despite the gearbox currently being offered in Europe, the company was “concerned about the refinement and how the American customers might perceive the transmission.”
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Although Honda is now ramping Civic production back up again, including adding a second shift at it’s Greensburg, Indiana plant, it’s also taken to heart some of the criticism leveled at the new car. As a result, originally planned mid-cycle updates are scheduled to take place sooner, rather than later.
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Being the savvy multinational corporation Honda is, it has to take its knocks with some tact. And with its reputation marred by Consumer Reports’ dragging of the 2012 Honda Civic through the muck, it’s no surprise that Honda has issued a statement claiming that they “fundamentally disagree” with the magazine’s review. Both Honda and Consumer...
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The models rated as the most significantly improved, were the re-designed seven-passenger Dodge Durango SUV and the 2011 Charger full-size sedan, both of which received ‘very good’ ratings during CR road tests.
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According to Eric Nobel, of the Orange, California based consulting firm The Car Lab, both Honda and Toyota are losing ground because their products haven’t been competitive in crucial market segments since the first half of the last decade.
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With the recent recession and high fuel prices, car buyers are placing a higher priority on fuel efficiency. To save at the pump, buyers are willing to sacrifice purchase, price, amenities and size but not safety, according to the Consumer Reports National Research Center. 1,764 random adult car owners were interviewed between April 28-May 2,...
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Car enthusiasts may have lamented its switch from a truck to a car platform, and magazines like Motor Trend and Consumer Reports have slammed it, but consumers have really taken to the Ford Explorer. While sales figures weren’t available at the time of publication, Ford reports that 43.5 percent of Explorer sales are conquests, and...
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