Consumer reports - do you care how they rate your car?

[Anonymous]

I was looking at new explorer and 4Runner- but consumer reports has them rated really low.
How are they so popular if they get bad to average reviews everywhere I read?

[Anonymous]

CR's audience is people 60 and over. They'll rate a Corvette down because it's difficult to get into (it's a low-slung sportscar, what do you expect?), and they have a special negative notation for any vehicle with active driver assistance features like emergency braking or lane-keeping. They are worried it will confuse the (older) driver.

I think one year they downranked a Mazda Miata because it only had room for 2 people -- that's the point!

[Anonymous]

I don’t look at consumer reports, but i did purchase a Volvo and car seats based on the results of IIPS, (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:CR's audience is people 60 and over. They'll rate a Corvette down because it's difficult to get into (it's a low-slung sportscar, what do you expect?), and they have a special negative notation for any vehicle with active driver assistance features like emergency braking or lane-keeping. They are worried it will confuse the (older) driver.

I think one year they downranked a Mazda Miata because it only had room for 2 people -- that's the point!

People in car sales are not big fans of consumer education. And what’s the best way to turn off a young person from a resource? Tell them it’s for old people, haha.

[Anonymous]

I look at the reliability ratings. I don't understand why anybody would buy a car that's consistently rated unreliable unless they like throwing money down the drain!

[Anonymous]

Who has the most reliable car buying data?

[Anonymous]

Consumer reports are not as independent as people think, they follow the money. They rate Honda’s and Toyota’s high, because they are paid to.

The original Honda Passport was an Isuzu Rodeo with nothing more than a Honda logo on the grill (Honda did not make trucks then). They rated the Honda high, and the Isuzu low. I guess the plastic H made it ride better?

[Anonymous]

They are doing a redesign on the 2020 explorer and its currently being shipped. Not sure if anyone has it in stock yet as I was waiting for it. I would not get the 2018 as they got really bad ratings. I'd consider a 19 if the price was good enough. Otherwise I look closely at what the ratings are based off of as some just don't make sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Consumer reports are not as independent as people think, they follow the money. They rate Honda’s and Toyota’s high, because they are paid to.

The original Honda Passport was an Isuzu Rodeo with nothing more than a Honda logo on the grill (Honda did not make trucks then). They rated the Honda high, and the Isuzu low. I guess the plastic H made it ride better?

Yup, I agree, you'll never find CR not recommend any high volume cars......that goes for most of the automobile journalistics, they'll only downrate Mitsubishi and other smaller brands whose $$$ they're not relying on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Consumer reports are not as independent as people think, they follow the money. They rate Honda’s and Toyota’s high, because they are paid to.

The original Honda Passport was an Isuzu Rodeo with nothing more than a Honda logo on the grill (Honda did not make trucks then). They rated the Honda high, and the Isuzu low. I guess the plastic H made it ride better?

Yup, I agree, you'll never find CR not recommend any high volume cars......that goes for most of the automobile journalistics, they'll only downrate Mitsubishi and other smaller brands whose $$$ they're not relying on.

Uh, look at the op.

Explorer and 4Runner are very popular but have low CR ratings.

I do not buy follow the money - people buy those two cars because they are stylish.

That simple.

Humans are vain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Consumer reports are not as independent as people think, they follow the money. They rate Honda’s and Toyota’s high, because they are paid to.

The original Honda Passport was an Isuzu Rodeo with nothing more than a Honda logo on the grill (Honda did not make trucks then). They rated the Honda high, and the Isuzu low. I guess the plastic H made it ride better?

Before moving to DC I worked there for several years. Not in auto testing but still I new the company very well. They are absolutely not paid ... the lengths they go to in order to remain unbiased are actually problematic in terms of quick turn around and being current. I am not saying they always get it right or have the very best testing protocols but there is no following the money. And I'd bet good money you have no knowledge of the company other than to be mad they rating something you like poorly.

[Anonymous]

*knew

[Anonymous]

DH had a 15 year old 4Runner and he recently needed a new car when his got totaled. He badly wanted to replace it with a new 4runner, but it lacked the new safety features available on almost every other SUV, so he ended up getting a different car. The 4Runner hasn’t had a major overhaul in about 10 years and apparently is still selling really well, so Toyota has no incentive to do the update (this is based on our research when we were comparing options before our new purchase). I wonder if the antiquated safety features (and probably also the terrible gas mileage) are some of the reasons the 4Runner is poorly rated by CR. The 4Runner does have a pretty loyal following, and is so reliable. I suspect we could have gotten at least a few more years out of ours had it to not been for the texting driver who totaled ours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Consumer reports are not as independent as people think, they follow the money. They rate Honda’s and Toyota’s high, because they are paid to.

The original Honda Passport was an Isuzu Rodeo with nothing more than a Honda logo on the grill (Honda did not make trucks then). They rated the Honda high, and the Isuzu low. I guess the plastic H made it ride better?

Before moving to DC I worked there for several years. Not in auto testing but still I new the company very well. They are absolutely not paid ... the lengths they go to in order to remain unbiased are actually problematic in terms of quick turn around and being current. I am not saying they always get it right or have the very best testing protocols but there is no following the money. And I'd bet good money you have no knowledge of the company other than to be mad they rating something you like poorly.

Then how can a Pontiac Vibe be horrible, but a Toyota Matrix be great? They are the same car, built in the same place. The only difference is the plastic name on the back. There are plenty of examples.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:CR's audience is people 60 and over. They'll rate a Corvette down because it's difficult to get into (it's a low-slung sportscar, what do you expect?), and they have a special negative notation for any vehicle with active driver assistance features like emergency braking or lane-keeping. They are worried it will confuse the (older) driver.

I think one year they downranked a Mazda Miata because it only had room for 2 people -- that's the point!

That's truly dumb and not accurate. Other than that, your post is fine.