Consumer Reports released its 2024 Brand Reliability Report. The top five brands remain the same as last year, but Subaru now holds the number one spot as the single most reliable car brand, according to the survey. That's right, Toyota and its sub-brand Lexus are no longer the most reliable brands. The findings are based on more than 300,000 cars, trucks and SUVs sold between 2000 and 2025 by the nonprofit research, testing and advocacy organization.
The overall score in this reliability report is determined by the average of several criteria, including owner satisfaction, safety rating, expected reliability and road test results. These reliability rankings also assess issues and weaknesses that impact consumers immediately or long after they leave a car dealership.
It’s worth noting that the list doesn’t include any models from brands like Lincoln, Alfa-Romeo, Dodge and Land Rover. That's because it only considers companies that have "sufficient data" on at least two existing models. As a result, Fiat, Jaguar, Lucid, Maserati, Polestar and Ram are also absent from the report.
So, what makes Subaru so reliable? Is it the integration of new technology or the advancement of car design? The answer is quite the opposite. Because many Subaru vehicles use a large number of parts over multiple model years, the likelihood of new problems is reduced, according to Steven Elek, director of Consumer Reports' automotive data analysis program.
In the survey results, vehicle reliability is assessed using member survey responses regarding personal vehicle problems over the past 12 months. The study included 20 possible "problem areas," ranging from paint and trim issues to engine or transmission problems.
Reliability rankings are scored out of 100 and are calculated by combining the scores of the faulty areas and weighting them according to the severity of the problem. These statistics, along with Consumer Reports' owner satisfaction surveys and internal testing results, are considered in the overall model score.
Interestingly, there were more electric vehicles in this year's reliability results than ever before.
Six of Subaru's seven vehicles received average, above average, or well above average ratings in the survey, and all six were internal combustion engine vehicles. The only Subaru car that doesn't qualify is the Solterra electric car, which is produced in partnership with Toyota.
Subaru's average reliability score is 68 out of 100. Toyota's luxury car brand Lexus has an average reliability score of 65 points, while Toyota itself has an average reliability score of 62 points. Obviously, the Toyota Tacoma, Toyota Tundra and Toyota bZ4X all-electric SUVs all performed below average, which had a certain impact on Toyota's overall reliability score.
Meanwhile, Jeep (average reliability score: 33 points), GMC (33 points), Cadillac (27 points) and Rivian (14 points), the four least reliable automakers in the survey, are all domestic brands.
Among American brands this year, the Ford Mustang scored well above average, while the Chevrolet Trailblazer and Ford Escape also scored above average. Buick Enclave GX and Envision, Cadillac XT5, Chevrolet Cavalier, Silverado 2500 and Trax, and Chrysler Pacifica all received above-average scores; Ford Bronco, BroncoSport, Explorer, Maverick, Maverick Hybrid, and Mustang Mach-E; GMC Sierra 2500; Ram 2500; and Tesla Model 3 and Model Y all received average scores.
In an industry that's constantly chasing the next big thing, sometimes the real winners are those that stick with what works. In addition to being at the top of the reliability report, Subaru also topped the annual overall brand rankings report, knocking BMW off the top spot. Subaru overtook the likes of BMW, Porsche and Honda to round out the other top five brands.
Although brands such as Audi are still not in the top five, their ranking has risen from 12th to 6th. Similarly, Infiniti also rose 6 percentage points to rank 10th, which is no mean feat.