New ranking: The most and least reliable new cars

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When you buy a new car, you want to make sure it’s going to be reliable. A car is one of the biggest purchases most people ever make, and a new report will help you get the best bang for your buck!

The annual Consumer Reports auto reliability survey is the most extensive survey of automotive reliability — outlining details about the most and least reliable new cars, new technology and other important information you need to know in order to help you choose the best ride that will cost you the least amount of money during ownership.

The new report reveals predictions for new car models now on sale, based on a survey of Consumer Reports subscribers who collectively owned or leased more than 740,000 vehicles. The report is designed to help car-buyers identify which new models are likely to be a problem from the beginning and which ones are most likely to stay healthy for the long haul.

Read more: 5 things to know before buying a used car

What’s causing the most complaints

Consumer Reports found that one of the most frequent complaints car owners have is related to new cars’ infotainment systems — the ‘integrated bundle of audio, navigation, and communications systems, and their display screen.’ If the technology isn’t set up just right, it can be a constant trouble-maker for the car owner.

CR says since it can take a while to work out the kinks in these types of systems, car buyers should wait a year or more to buy a model after a brand new design is put in place.

Read more: What your car says about your credit score

The best brands

When it comes to the overall most reliable brand, Lexus is the winner! The car-maker had the most reliable models on the survey’s list. Toyota came in second for the most reliable models. And out of 28 brands included in the survey, Asian makers accounted for seven of the top 10. 

most and least reliable cars consumer reports

The best and worst new car models

These are the models that earned the highest and lowest predicted reliability ratings. The most reliable cars are recommended by Consumer Reports and also performed well in their testing (these are marked with a checkmark). And just to note, not all reliable cars are recommended by Consumer Reports (because they scored low in testing).

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most and least reliable cars consumer reports

most and least reliable cars consumer reports

To see the full results from the Consumer Reports survey, click here.

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