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Best and Worst Cars By Brand
March 15, 2012
Consumer Reports recently released their Annual Auto Issue where they ranked over 270 vehicles in terms of reliability and performance.
They had a lot of facts and figures, but until now, they hadn't offered a simple guide to the best and worst models by brand.
The list below shows the models that are ranked best and worst from each manufacturer. To qualify, each brand had to have at least 3 different models tested.
| Brand | Best | Worst |
|---|---|---|
| Acura | MDX | RL |
| Audi | A6 3.0 Premium Plus Quattro | Q7 Premium Plus (V6) |
| BMW | 135i | 325xi (wagon) |
| Buick | Regal CXL (turbo) | LaCrosse Touring (V6) |
| Cadillac | CTS Premium (3.6) | Escalade (base) |
| Chevrolet | Corvette Z06 | Colorado (5-cyl.) |
| Chrysler | 300 C | 200 Limited (V6) |
| Dodge | Grand Caravan R/T | Avenger SXT (4-cyl.) |
| Ford | Flex Limited (EcoBoost) | Fiesta SE (sedan) |
| GMC | Acadia SLT2 | Canyon (5-cyl.) |
| Honda | Accord EX-L (V6) | Insight EX |
| Hyundai | Genesis 3.8 | Accent GLS (sedan) |
| Infiniti | G37 Journey (sedan) | QX 56 |
| Jaguar | XJL | XF (base) |
| Jeep | Grand Cherokee Laredo (V6) | Wrangler Unlimited Sahara |
| Kia | Optima SX (2.0T) | Soul Plus |
| Land Rover | LR4 | LR2 SE |
| Lexus | LS 460L | GX 460 |
| Lincoln | MKZ | MKX (3.7) |
| Mazda | MX-5 Miata Grand Touring | Mazda2 Touring |
| Mercedes-Benz | E350 BlueTec | GLK350 |
| Mini | Cooper (base, hatchback) | Cooper Clubman |
| Mitsubishi | Lancer Evolution GSR | Galant ES (4-cyl.) |
| Nissan | Altima 3.5 SR (V6) | Versa SV (sedan) |
| Scion | xB | xD |
| Subaru | Impreza WRX STi | Tribeca Limited |
| Suzuki | Kizashi SE | Grand Vitara Premium (4-cyl.) |
| Toyota | Camry Hybrid XLE | FJ Cruiser |
| Volkswagen | Golf TDI (manual) | Jetta SE (2.5) |
| Volvo | S60 T5 | C70 T5 |
3 Steps Every Car Buyer Needs to Take to Save Maximum Money
The key to getting the best deal is to gather price or lease bids from as many local dealers as possible. Then shop that best price around until no one can beat it. Here are the steps:Step 1 Get Prices From My Trusted Network
Select the vehicle you're interested in to see if there are local dealers in my network who will provide you with their best upfront price. You will get direct access to an internet sales manager who you can further negotiate with online (no need to visit dealership).Select Vehicle to Get Local Pricing
Step 2 Get Prices From TrueCar / CarsDirect
TrueCar, and CarsDirect are my top 2 online price quote recommendations. These services show you pre-negotiated prices from dealers closest to you - and the deals are usually pretty decent. But remember, you can still negotiate further.Step 3 Complete my Checklist
Follow this up with my checklist to make sure you squeeze out every last bit of savings.- Gregg Fidan
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About The Author
Gregg Fidan is the founder of RealCarTips. After being ripped off on his first car purchase, he devoted several years to figuring out the best ways to avoid scams and negotiate
the best car deals. He has written hundreds of articles on the subject of car buying and taught thousands of car shoppers how to get the best deals.
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