Which Car Brands Are Worth Your Money
Which car brands make the best and worst rated new vehicles? That’s what we’re going to find out.
I’m gonna share which car brands were ranked for making the best and worst vehicles based on their reliability.
Owner satisfaction rating, safety and road test score from consumer reports with supplemental data from Car Edge, we’ll start things off with the bottom 10 car brands that were ranked as the absolute worst, which Consumer reports didn’t have a single recommended model for.
10 Worst Car Brands
Dodge: Struggles with Reliability and High Maintenance Costs
And the first of those brands that came in the number 10 spot is Dodge. Dodge received an overall score of only 61 points out of 100.
Their vehicles received an average score for reliability and owner satisfaction and there really wasn’t any area where Dodge excelled according to Car Edge data
It turns out that Dodge is also at the very bottom of car brands when it comes to maintenance and repair costs, which are among the very highest.
So it does help to explain these poor results.
Volkswagen: Quality Issues Drag Down the Iconic Brand
The next car brand, which comes in the number nine spot is Volkswagen.
Volkswagen received an overall score of 60 points out of 100 and they were ranked below average for their reliability and owner satisfaction.
Volkswagen has been having a lot of quality issues for years now and these issues seem to have caught up with the brand hurting its ranking.
Maserati
And it’s a similar story for the next car brand, which comes in the number eight spot and that is Maserati.
Who is really surprised to see this brand ranks so low.
Maserati received an overall score of only 56 points out of 100 with a below average score for reliability and an average score for owner satisfaction.
I’ve driven the majority of the Maseratis in the current lineup and I have to say they are all pretty underwhelming and just do not live up to their really high price tags.
And on top of that, they do have a lot of quality issues and they depreciate extremely rapidly making them a terrible buy.
Alfa Romeo: High Owner Satisfaction, But Reliability Lags
But the car brand that came in the number seven spot is really not much better and that is Alpha Romeo, Alpha tied Maserati with a score of 56 out of 100 and a below average rating for reliability.
Interestingly though, alpha owners report their owner satisfaction as being above average, which means that most owners are generally pleased with them.
Well to that I say just give them some time until the warranty expires and then all of the issues start to pile up and I bet many of them are going to quickly change their tune.
Mercedes-Benz: Luxury Brand with Consistent Quality Complaints
Next up in the number six spot is Mercedes-Benz. Mercedes received an overall score of 55 out of 100 below average four.
Reliability and average for owner satisfaction.
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Mercedes is another brand where quality is surprisingly poor and complaints from owners are fairly common.
They are a pain to fix and very expensive when they do break and they have consistently been the lowest ranked German brand for years now.
Rivian: Early Struggles for the New Electric Vehicle Manufacturer
And moving on to the brand that we have in the number five spa, we have something brand new and that is Rivian like Mercedes.
Rivian received a score of 55 outta 100 with below average rankings for its reliability.
They are a new company that has been struggling with a lot of early quality issues, which to be fair is to be expected from a new startup manufacturer.
Despite this, however many Rivian owners are extremely happy with them and they rank their overall owner satisfaction is being well above average.
Their vehicles are quite nice and I guess buyers know the risks and know what they’re getting into by gambling on a brand new brand.
GMC: Big Trucks, Big Problems
Next up, the car brand that we have in the number four spot is GMC.
GMC received an overall score of 54 out of 100 below average In reliability and average for owner satisfaction, GM has been suffering from a lot of issues with their SUVs and trucks, especially the larger models with the V eight engines which have had a high number of complaints.
Jaguar
And now getting into the top three worst brands, the one that we have in the number three spot is Jaguar.
Jaguar received an overall score of 53 outta 100 and were ranked below average for both reliability and owner satisfaction.
Sadly, Jaguar has become a bit of a forgotten brand and the few models that they still make have become really dated terrible values and just a pile of issues waiting to happen.
I wouldn’t even look in the direction of this brand anymore and would not even bother.
Land Rover: High Costs and Low Reliability
Next brand that we have in the number two spot is another one that’s no surprise and that is Land Rover.
Land Rover has a terrible overall score of only 52 out of 100 and were ranked below average for both reliability and owner satisfaction.
Land Rover has suffered from quality issues for years, which have tainted the ownership experience for many buyers.
Even Car Edge ranks them at the very bottom among luxury brands having the highest ownership cost and the worst appreciation over a 10 year and seven year period.
They make nicely designed vehicles but they are just way too difficult to recommend.
Jeep: Disappointing Across the Board
And finally, that brings us to the number one worst ranked brand by Consumer Reports and that brand is Jeep.
Jeep received a dismal overall score of only 46 out of 100 and were ranked below average for both reliability and owner satisfaction.
Every category for this brand was a disappointment and the complaints were high.
Again, Car Edge ranks Jeep at the very bottom among brands with the highest ownership costs, aside from a few exceptions and buying scenarios.
For the most part, I consider most Jeeps now to be a complete waste of money and not worth considering.
10 Best Car Brands: Top Performers
Hyundai: Strong Road Test Scores, Average Reliability
Now let’s get into the top-rated car brands and the one that came in the number 10 spot is Hyundai.
According to Consumer Reports, Hyundai received an overall score of 76 out of 100 with the majority of its high ranking due to very strong road test scores and good safety ratings.
I can understand that Hyundais do drive very well and they have very impressive designs and technology, but they are only average when it comes to their reliability and owner satisfaction, which is why they came in the 10 spot.
Kia: Similar Strengths to Hyundai
And next up, the car brands that came in the number nine, eight and seven spot were all a complete tie.
And the first of these is Kia, which received more or less the same rating as Hyundai with a slightly higher overall score of 77 out of 100, which makes sense given that Kia and Hyundai are both part of the same group.
Toyota: Reliability and Safety at the Forefront
Next is Toyota, which again received an overall score of 77 out of 100 with the bulk of the high score coming from its above average rating for reliability, excellent safety scores and high road test scores.
Car Edge definitely agrees on this one ranking Toyota as number one for popular car brands with the best reliability and low operating costs.
Where Toyota lost some points is an average score for owner satisfaction, which I do find a little peculiar because if a car is really reliable and is saving you a lot of money in the long run, I’d find it pretty hard to complain.
But there you go.
Mazda: Excellent Road Test Scores and Reliability
In any case, the next car brand that we have on the consumer reports list is Mazda.
Again, Mazda earned an overall score of 77 outta 100 like Toyota.
Their strengths are very strong road test scores, excellent safety and above average reliability.
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They are held back a little bit by an average score, further owner satisfaction.
But speaking for myself, given that I own a 1-year-old Mazdas three and have been completely happy with it, I am happy to see that Mazdas made the top 10 list for the number six, number five and number four spots.
Mini: Surprisingly High Marks Across the Board
Again, it was a tie between three different brands and the first of those brands is Mini, which received an overall score of 78 outta 100.
I was rather surprised to see mini ranks so high because I don’t see them as being a great value and their reputation for reliability is spotty at best.
Lexus
But according to Consumer Reports, they did receive top marks in almost every area. And after many we have Lexus again with a score of 78 out of 100.
Lexus achieved a high ranking largely due to its road test scores and exceptional reliability ranking above average, not a surprise really and tied with Lexus,
Honda: Consistency in Performance and Reliability
we have Honda at number four achieving the same overall score.
Subaru & Porsche : Balanced Excellence in Every Category
And now getting into the top three highest ranked brands, these ones were a surprise to me and the ones that came at number three and number two were a tie between Subaru and Porsche, which both received an overall score of 80 out of 100, both brands received above average scores in almost every area driving performance, comfort, safety, reliability, and owner satisfaction.
Now I would caution anyone about Porsche regarding its operating costs, although they are well made maintenance is extremely expensive on them even by luxury standards, which is why Car Edge ranks them at very last for maintenance and repair costs.
BMW
So be mindful of that And that brings us to the number one car brand which Consumer Reports ranked at number one and that brand is BMW.
This one I have to take issue with as well. On the one hand, BMW did receive above average scores in every area, performance, road test scores, safety, owner satisfaction, and even reliability.
And it is true that their reliability, particularly the models that have the inline six cylinder engine have improved by quite a bit.
But like Porsche, that satisfaction often fades with age and BMWs often become unreasonably expensive to maintain and repair as they age, which is why Car Edge ranked them very low similar to Porsche in that area.
Now I think for the most part, consumer reports got most of their picks correct, but it still goes to show you that you can’t always rely on just one source of information before you draw conclusions.
And that’s why I often like to reference a number of different sources and even consider anecdotal evidence from mechanics before I make any recommendations.