Consumer Reports Releases Its 2026 Automotive Brand Report Card, The Comprehensive Analysis of Vehicle Quality to Help Guide Car Shoppers Amid Steep Prices

Colchester, CT — The average price of a new car is over $50,000 for the first time ever, placing added pressure on car shoppers to ensure they’re making a smart choice on a model that will hold up well over the long term, perform to their expectations, and deliver a safe and satisfying ownership experience. Consumer Reports (CR), the nonprofit research, testing, and consumer advocacy organization, today announced its 2026 Annual Automotive Report Card, a comprehensive brand-level analysis of vehicle quality that will help car buyers make the best choice for their needs and budget. 

“Affordability continues to be a top concern for Americans, with prices rising on everything from groceries to cars,” says Phil Radford, president and CEO of Consumer Reports. “This Automotive Report Card is just one example of how CR leverages its cutting-edge testing, robust consumer data, and trusted experts to help people make the best choices with their hard-earned money.” 

For its 2026 Automotive Report Card, CR pored over its exclusive road test scores of more than 200 new vehicles, reviewed safety performance, and analyzed exhaustive reliability and owner satisfaction data from its member surveys—which this year yielded data on about 380,000 vehicles, a 27 percent increase over last year—to calculate overall car brand rankings. Visitors to CR.org/cars can view each brand to see where it ranks on new car reliability, used car reliability, owner satisfaction, road test score, and maintenance and repair  costs. They can also use AskCR to get answers to questions about their next car purchase, and more. In addition, CR members will be able to dive deeper into the data with access to CR’s full and newly enhanced ratings of cars, trucks, and SUVs, which make it simple and intuitive to compare and filter models based on the users’ individual preferences.

Subaru Remains Number One Overall Brand

Subaru is the top brand in CR’s 2026 Overall Brand Report Card Rankings for the second year in a row, and the third time in five years. BMW is once again the runner-up by less than a point, followed by Porsche, Honda, Toyota, Lexus, Lincoln, Hyundai, Acura, and Tesla, which round out the top 10.

The rankings are based on the average Overall Score, a combination of CR’s road-test scores, predicted reliability and owner satisfaction from survey data, and safety ratings for all tested models from each automaker. 

Lincoln, the highest-ranked domestic brand, made the biggest jump this year, climbing 17 positions to land in the number 7 spot due to its reliability scores. Audi dropped the most from last year, falling back 10 spots to number 16. 

Five of the top 10 overall brands are mainstream brands, meaning car shoppers don’t have to pay a luxury car price to get a high-quality vehicle. 

The bottom five brands remain largely unchanged from last year: Dodge, GMC, Land Rover, Rivian, and Jeep, which is dead last for the third year in a row due to below-average brand reliability, the lowest average road test score in CR’s testing, and the lowest scoring brand for owner satisfaction. 

Toyota Wins for Reliability in Strong Showing for Asian Brands

Toyota is the most reliable brand in CR’s latest Annual Auto Reliability Survey for the first time since 2022, narrowly edging out last year’s winner, Subaru. Improved reliability of the Camry, Tacoma, and Tundra, along with a solid initial showing for the redesigned 4Runner, combined to propel Toyota back to the top spot, according to CR’s analysts. Seven of the top 10 brands in CR’s reliability rankings are headquartered in Asia, with Subaru, Lexus, Honda, Nissan, Acura, and Kia joining Toyota.

“Our surveys continue to show that the slow and steady approach to vehicle redesigns pays dividends for reliability, while more aggressive changes and the introduction of new technologies often lead to setbacks,” says Jake Fisher, senior director of auto testing for Consumer Reports. “For reliability-conscious car shoppers, the best bet is to steer clear of newly-introduced or newly-redesigned vehicles in their initial model year, as that’s when they are almost always the most problematic.” 

CR’s survey findings were announced today at an online news conference hosted by the Detroit-based Automotive Press Association.

The news was not as rosy for Mazda, which fell out of the top 10 to 14th place this year. The brand continues to experience problems with both the conventional and PHEV versions of the CX-70 and CX-90 SUVs, with all models scoring below average or well-below-average. 

Genesis fared even worse, landing at number 21 and lacking a single model with an average or better score for reliability. 

Every year, CR asks its members about potential trouble areas they’ve had with their vehicles in the previous 12 months. This year’s survey covers up to 20 problem areas, including engine, electric motors, transmission, in-car electronics, and more. CR uses that feedback from consumers to predict reliability ratings for new cars from every major mainstream model. This year, CR gathered data on about 380,000 vehicles from the 2000  to 2025 model years, with a few newly introduced 2026 models.

The reliability predictions for 2026 models are based on each model’s overall reliability for the past three years, provided that the model hasn’t been redesigned during that time. If there is insufficient data on a model in any given model year, CR uses the brand reliability score to supplement that model’s new car prediction. 

Ford, Tesla Make Big Gains While Stellantis, Other Domestic Brands Struggle

CR’s 2026 Auto Reliability Survey findings are mixed for U.S.-based manufacturers. Buick, as usual, ranks highest among them, coming in at 8th overall. Only the Enclave has below-average reliability.

Tesla is in 9th place, its highest ever charting in CR’s rankings, thanks to improved reliability performance across its lineup. Only the Cybertruck has a below-average score. Tesla appears to be resolving its build quality issues, while its powertrain reliability remains a standout among EVs.

Ford is the 11th-ranked brand, its best showing in fifteen years. The F-150, F-150 Hybrid, and F-150 Lightning have improved from below-average to average for reliability. 

Chevrolet (17th) and Cadillac (18th) are midpack, with the Chevrolet Equinox scoring well below average and the Cadillac Lyriq scoring below average.

Lincoln (20th), Chrysler (22nd), GMC (23rd), Jeep (24th), Ram (25th), and last-place Rivian are all in the bottom third of the rankings. The Lincoln Corsair PHEV, Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, GMC Acadia, Jeep Grand Cherokee PHEV, Ram 1500, and Rivian R1T are all among the least reliable vehicles in this year’s survey. 

BMW Stands Out Among European Brands

BMW is this year’s most reliable European brand, ranking fifth overall. All of its models have average or better predicted reliability scores. 

Audi landed in the 13th spot. The Q4 E-Tron has declining reliability. Owners reported problems with the climate system, electrical accessories, in-car electronics, and some EV battery malfunctions and charging issues. 

Volvo is in 15th place. The XC60 PHEV  has a below-average reliability score, with owners citing problems with the EV battery, electric motor, drive system, climate system, electrical accessories, and in-car electronics. 

Volkswagen ranks 16th. Both the Taos and Jetta are the least-reliable models in their respective categories. 

Mercedes-Benz is the lowest-ranked European brand, ranking 19th. The E-Class and GLS are at the bottom of their respective categories for reliability. 

Due to insufficient data, CR does not rank Alfa Romeo, Dodge, Fiat, Infiniti, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lucid, Maserati, Mini, Mitsubishi, and Porsche.

Hybrids are Most Reliable Amid Continued Growing Pains for Plug-ins and EVs

When it comes to the reliability of electrified powertrains, hybrids continue to stand out. On average, hybrids have about 15 percent fewer problems than internal combustion engine (ICE) cars, a significant boon to the growing number of Americans who are buying hybrids. A record 1.6 million were sold last year, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. 

Of the approximately 30 hybrids for which CR has sufficient data, only the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, Lincoln Nautilus Hybrid, and Mazda CX-50 Hybrid have below-average predicted reliability scores.

CR’s survey shows both EVs and PHEVs continue to experience growing pains. On average, they have about 80 percent more problems than ICE cars. For half the brands in this year’s rankings, the least reliable car is a plug-in hybrid or fully electric vehicle. Seven of the 10 least reliable cars are either PHEVs or EVs, with issues related to EV battery, charging, and drive systems being among the commonly reported problems. 

“With so many newly introduced EVs and PHEVs, along with the still relative newness of the technology, these growing pains were inevitable,” Fisher said. “However, we are seeing evidence in our survey that some EVs are improving as they age, and there are some reliable models available.” 

More than a dozen EVs have an average or better score for predicted reliability, including models from Tesla, Ford, Toyota, Lexus, Subaru, and Hyundai. The Tesla Model Y is the most reliable EV. The Rivian R1T is the least reliable.

For more information on CR’s 2026 Automotive Report Card findings, visit CR.org/cars or follow us on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter), and Instagram @consumerreports.

About Consumer Reports Annual Auto Reliability Surveys

The latest Consumer Reports Annual Auto Reliability Surveys gathered information from car owners on about 380,000 vehicles from model years  2000 to 2025 and early 2026. CR’s reliability predictions are based on overall reliability for the past three model years, provided the vehicle has not undergone a redesign. One or two years of data will be used if the model was redesigned in 2025 or 2024. CR bases its reliability predictions on data gathered from car owners each year about problems they had with their vehicles in the past 12 months. CR’s team of statisticians, researchers, and testers then analyzed trouble areas and created an overall reliability score for each model and year. Serious problem areas that can lead to expensive repairs are more heavily weighted. More information can be found at www.CR.org.