Ways to Know How Reliable a Car Brand is
- Read Reliability Reports
The best sites to read about reliability reports are Consumer Reports, J.D Power Dependability Survey, Edmunds, Kelly Blue Book, Motor Trend, and Nada Guides. These sites offer an in-depth explanation and top-notch survey answers to vehicle inquiries we never knew we would be asking.
Sites like these get their information from surveys sent to them every year. For them to know how reliable the car is, they would ask the members to identify what serious issues they have with their vehicle that happened in the past 12 months. The issues that the members had to identify were parts that were covered by warranty and not the ones that stemmed from vehicular accidents or recalls.
- Read Reviews Online
The great thing when it comes to the internet is the wide range of information you’re going to acquire. You get raw knowledge and first-hand information from other people’s experiences since no one can regulate the information that goes into the internet.
You’ll get honest reviews from people all around the country without any difficulty.
- Ask Around
People have always based their decisions on information and what better way to get facts is from friends and from people you already know. If your friends already own the brand of car that you’re eyeing, make questions on the certain issues they have had with their car.
You can also ask your local mechanic about the different types of cars that they’ve service and the kind of major repairs they had to fix. This way, you get better information straight from a reliable source.
Most Reliable Brands
Because there are a lot of great vehicles in the market right now, it can be very difficult to choose which one is the best. So to help you out with that dilemma, we’ve listed 5 of the most reliable brands in no particular order.
- Toyota
While other automakers battle against who can introduce new features the fastest, Toyota takes their time. Not because they’re lazy in thinking of innovations but because they want to make sure that every feature they engineer in their cars would work perfectly and that they are safe.
Japanese automakers see to it that before the car leaves the production plant, the new feature functions successfully. They are detail-oriented and thus if they have doubts about the performance, they’ll do more research.
- Buick
Buick is the only American brand that’s included in the foreign-dominated top list of reliable vehicles. Although an American brand, the popularity of the car is far from reaching its foreign competitors this doesn’t mean that it’s the least reliable car.
One great aspect of a Buick is its safety technology features. This includes Automatic Emergency Braking, Following Distance Indicator, Forward Collision Alert, IntelliBeam Headlamps, Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, and Front Pedestrian Braking. Although their safety features are impeccable, driving safely is still the owner’s responsibility.
- Lexus
Lexus was listed as one of the most reliable cars in Consumer Reports and has been on J.D. Power’s list for 8 years. So what makes Lexus vehicles reliable? For one, they listen to their customers and immediately make changes based on feedback. Customer feedback is an integral part of their constant endeavor to improve.
Aside from customer feedback, they also see to it that their staff can work exactly to what is specifically required. New members undergo intense training before they’re sent to their manufacturing plant.
- Honda
Known for its engine reliability, Honda is often rated as one of the most reliable cars. Honda is popularly synonymous with being well built and great for driving that’s why you’ll see a lot of Honda cars on the road.
One of the reasons why Honda cars are so dependable is that they don’t cost a lot of money when it comes to repairs and it doesn’t take these cars very long to be on the road again. Another point for Honda is the simple technology embedded in the vehicles.
- Mazda
Consumer Reports gave Mazda one of the top spots in reliability and dependability. Unlike other automakers, Mazda is one of the brands that are careful with their model redesigns. They know that their existing features work well that’s why they only make modest changes so as not to compromise the car’s performance.