Gaining over the European models but not the Asian models.

"A Consumer Reports' survey of 675,000 car owners shows new American models have fewer problems and spend less time in repair shops than their higher-priced European competitors."

"U.S. carmakers, though, still trail Japanese manufacturers by a wide margin when it comes to reliability. On average, a 7-year-old Lexus or Honda has about the same number of problems as a 3-year-old car from Detroit."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/...in604651.shtml

 

That's really nice to here...Finally.

Those Germans need to get their act together on quality.
If they don't it's going to start catching up with them.

 

CONSUMER REPORTS, April 2004

How cars are holding up

Our latest survey of subscribers' experiences with their cars shows that vehicles from Detroit's Big Three automakers are now slightly more reliable, on average, than those from European makers. They also tend to hold up better than the European makes as time passes. It's the first time in decades that U.S. cars have done so well.

The survey, the largest of its kind to gauge automotive reliability, yielded information on the serious problems our subscribers have faced with some 675,000 privately owned or leased cars, trucks, minivans, and sport-utility vehicles. It shows that among cars less than a year old, the average problem rate for European cars and trucks was 20 per 100 cars. For domestic vehicles, it was 18 per 100. In our 2002 subscriber survey, U.S. and European automakers were tied at about 21 problems per 100. The graph below shows the trend for vehicles up to eight years old.

Overall, the most reliable vehicles continue to be those from Asian automakers. The problem rate for the newest models among all Japanese and Korean vehicles is holding steady at 12 per 100.

As the comparison tables show, Acura, Honda, Infiniti, Lexus, Mazda, and Toyota have been the most reliable makes over the past five model years, based on the average problem rates. (Those averages can mask a wide range of problem rates among individual models; reliability varies from model to model for most makes.)

As the problem rate for domestic vehicles improved slightly, the quality gap between U.S. and Asian makes narrowed slightly. Still, the average 2003 U.S. model still has 50 percent more problems than the average Japanese model.



Here's the rest of the article: http://www.consumerreports.org/static/0404rel0.html

 

It already has. Mercedes, especially, has become a disaster.

The Asian makes actually have a mixed record. Toyota/Honda/Nissan reliability is well-known, and Mazdas and Subarus,, with a couple of exceptions, have also been generally better than average. But Mitsubishi, Isuzu, and Suzuki have generally been average or below. Mitsubishis, especially, tend to get engine problems as they age. The two Korean makes....Hyundai and Kia....are now generally average, and steadily improving.

Dodge/Chrysler probably varies most of all. They have domestic products that vary from much-better-than average to others that are pure junk.