What the French?!

[Mity2]

4 out of 4 cars I'm considering for my next car just scored lowest by the consumer report!!!

I'm thinking about one of these car as my next daily cars for a while (Jeep Liberty sport, Wrangler limited, Toyota FJ cruiser, and Trailblazer), and all 4 of them were in "11 Worst Cars" by Consumer Reports!!
http://finance.yahoo.com/loans/artic...nsumer-Reports

I guess I have to think of something else....

[Longshot]

I really dont give to much credability to comsumer reports when it comes to vehicles. If you like something than buy it. The only thing I really look out for is if other people have had mechanical problems with the vehicle that I am considering. But in the end it all depends on what you want and what you can live with. You cant expect a vehicle that costs 35k to ride like a car that costs 100k. Just go with what you like, what works for others does not always work for you. Just to put this in perspective, I had a Lotus Elise, it got a terrible rateing for comfort, people and magazines would say its comfort was terrible however, I personally found the car to be one of the most comfortable cars I have driven, go figure... Point is, dont let other people tell you what you wan't, go try them out for yourself and make you own conclusions.

Just my .02

[Duck]

Personally I don't listen to the Consumer Reports when buying a vehicle. My advice is to talk to people that have them and see if you can test drive theirs and see what's been going on with theirs. As for the Liberty I can tell you, it deserves better than what it got for a score. I have the 04 Sport. The gas milage is 15-16 in town in stop and go traffic. On the open road you're looking at 18 mpg. However, no SUV is going to get great gas milage and this about the avg for them. If you go to the RAV 4 or CRV they're all wheel drive and get a little better (as in around 20 on the hwy). If you're looking at towing anything the Liberty can tow 5000 lb, and the RAV 4 and CRV are down at 1500 lbs. In the four yrs I've had it, other than routine maintance I haven't had to take it in for anything. If you do want to off road with it, get skid plates installed on it. I didn't and therefore I have one of my cats dented. Even with a dented cat, still does good. As far as comfort goes, I don't like a vehicle that feels like I'm sitting in a recliner due to me wanting to fall asleep. The Liberty is comfy but not too comfy so that you want to fall asleep.

[RandomTask]

Back when I drove SAABs, Consumer reports always gave them crap ratings.
The problem then (and probably still is) that Consumer Reports counted all problems as equal. For instance, to them, a broken turn signal socket is the same as a leaky head gasket.
The other problem I had with that magazine is that they only compared the most popular models (or the ones they thought people were likely to buy) and never the full lineup of anything (cars, dishwashers, cameras, etc).
I basically feel that Consumer Reports is for people too lazy to take an interest in their major purchases, and those are the same people who pay full retail at places like Best Buy, Circuit City, etc.

[sluggie24]

Back when I drove SAABs, Consumer reports always gave them crap ratings.
The problem then (and probably still is) that Consumer Reports counted all problems as equal. For instance, to them, a broken turn signal socket is the same as a leaky head gasket.
The other problem I had with that magazine is that they only compared the most popular models (or the ones they thought people were likely to buy) and never the full lineup of anything (cars, dishwashers, cameras, etc).
I basically feel that Consumer Reports is for people too lazy to take an interest in their major purchases, and those are the same people who pay full retail at places like Best Buy, Circuit City, etc.

Oh no not a SAAB!

IMHO they deserved a bad rating. I can't decide wether the SAAB or the VW are the worst but they are both some of the biggest pieces of crap to ever have 4 wheels slapped on them.

Sorry but that is just my professional opinion after working on cars for 14 years.

Mity2....my advise would be to go out and look at as many vehicles you can. Drive them, look underneath, under the hood, inside. These days it's hard to say what will be good over time since so many cars are new designs these days. After you get a handfull that you like do some research online to find out the average anual upkeep costs. Ballance that against the waranty that you will get and independant customer satisfaction records such as JD Powers or the like. This could help you eliminate some of the junk. If you are friends with someone (that you trust) that works in the auto repair industry (like me) ask them which ones they have seen less trouble with. Then it just comes down to personal preference.

[LorDiego01]

Consumer Report is excellent. When its time to buy a car, thats the place where I start my research, and I haven't gone wrong yet.

Also, go on Google and type "Jeep Liberty review" (for example).

[Kempo]

I've never put much faith in Consumer Reports auto reports. Over the years I've had several cars they said were bad, but I had no problems with them. One exception was the 1997 Monte Carlo Z-34. Second worst vehicle I ever owned, and Consumer Reports pretty much said they were junk. But they've always been down on Chevrolet S-10's and I had three of them all together and no problems with any of them.

I bought an '07 Silverado last year, it is recommended by Consumer Reports, and I just love it.

[RandomTask]

Oh no not a SAAB!

IMHO they deserved a bad rating. I can't decide wether the SAAB or the VW are the worst but they are both some of the biggest pieces of crap to ever have 4 wheels slapped on them.

Sorry but that is just my professional opinion after working on cars for 14 years.

We're talking older SAABs here (1975-1989), not the GM junk.
I've owned a total of 'em over a 14 year period (several at the same time).
They were all extremely reliable, fun to drive, and a joy to work on.

[Mity2]

We're talking older SAABs here (1975-1989), not the GM junk.
I've owned a total of 'em over a 14 year period (several at the same time).
They were all extremely reliable, fun to drive, and a joy to work on.

If you like those super long stroked truck like shifter!
And some of their odd quality, like ignition keyhole in floor

Oh and turbo lag!

Friend of mine had Saab 900 turbo(before they went to areodynamic headlight). Although it was fast, going fast was like multi step process:

1 - Grip the steering wheel firmly,
2 - Lean over and grab the shifter, which is in 5th gear, proceed to shift in to 3rd gear which is located on 2 blocks away,
3 - Step on the gas pedal to the floor, and wait.
4 - And wait..
5 - If you listen carefuly, you may be able to hear Saab is talking to you... "Please be patient while your boost is building up. Your patient is important to us. Your boost will be with you shortly"
6 - Still waiting?
7 - After waiting what seems an eternity, you'll suddenly feel the huge rush of power coming on.
8 - Thank you for your patients. Please enjoy the surge of accelleration available to you...



LOL it wasn't THAT bad, but there were certainly a noticable turbolag on those older 900 turbo..

[sluggie24]

We're talking older SAABs here (1975-1989), not the GM junk.
I've owned a total of 'em over a 14 year period (several at the same time).
They were all extremely reliable, fun to drive, and a joy to work on.

You may be right then. I don't have much experience with the old SAABs. But the old (all) VWs and the newer SAABs are still crap!