Consumer Reports kicks Chrysler again

In its latest annual new car ratings, Consumer Reports again named Chrysler as the worst automaker. Chrysler vehicles were rated the worst values in six of the eight categories covered.

CR said Chrysler “is the only automaker to drop from last year in all measures. Most models from the manufacturer have noisy, inefficient, unrefined powertrains, subpar interiors and poor visibility.”

Doug Betts, Chrysler Vice President for Quality, said the company’s rankings will get better as new cars make it to dealers. He also said the company’s quality had not declined, but that Chrysler had dropped some vehicles that used to get higher marks, which brought down the overall ratings.

CR also overlooked the historical issues, in that the vehicles it tested were built under standards set in place by Cerberus Capital Management during the time it was gutting Chrysler of personnel and paying only lip service to improving quality.

Despite the fact it is recalling more vehicles than it produced last year, Toyota remained third in the quality rankings, behind Honda and Subaru. One of this year’s “best values” is the Toyota Prius, which itself is the subject of a recall. David Champion, senior director of CR‘s auto test division, said the Prius got the nod because the problem had been fixed.

At a press conference, Champion told reporters, “We really think recalls are a good thing. But Toyota, they still make the most reliable cars, according to our surveys, followed by Honda.”

Consumer Reports has suspended its recommendations for eight Toyota vehicles being recalled and says it now recommends less than half of the Toyota line.

Perhaps CR, since it likes recalls, doesn’t like Chrysler because, in recent years, it has had among the fewest of them of any major automaker.

The two categories Chrysler missed were Small Cars, which went to the Chevrolet Aveo5, and Luxury Sedans, given to the Mercedes-Benz S550.

CR did recommend the Ram 1500 pickup.

General Motors is in the cellar with Chrysler because its overall reliability “still lags behind most of the competition.”

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