What makes a new car reliable? Generally, the longer a model has been sold without a major update, the more time the manufacturer has had to identify problems and make adjustments to address them.
For example, the Ford Bronco Sport experienced issues with its braking system in its first few years, which showed up in our data. Ford told us that they subsequently made improvements to the braking system, which was reflected in our 2024 and subsequent survey data. These running improvements allowed us to recommend the Bronco Sport starting with the 2024 model year.
CR gathers auto reliability data through online questionnaires sent to our members. We ask about any problems members may have had in the previous 12 months with 20 aspects of their vehicles, including the engine, transmission, EV battery, and EV charging, as well as issues with body hardware, and paint and trim. Within each of these 20 potential trouble areas, respondents can provide feedback on more specific issues that cause a problem, helping us understand where a vehicle might have needed repairs. We use these insights to predict the likelihood that the same or similar models will experience these same issues.
We weigh the severity of each type of problem to determine an overall reliability verdict score for each make, model, and year, from 1 to 100. To be considered for this list, a vehicle must have at least two model years of survey data to accurately calculate a predicted reliability score. For this year’s survey, vehicles had to have data for at least two models, from a minimum of two of the 2023, 2024, 2025, or early 2026 model years. That reliability score is then combined with data collected from our track testing, owner satisfaction survey results, and safety data to calculate each test vehicle’s Overall Score.
Based on that analysis, these models are the most reliable overall. They are presented in rank order, starting with the highest-rated. We also list the strengths of each model based on CR’s testing.
For more details on the models’ reliability predictions and history, click through to their model pages.
