There were several comments when the most recent Consumer Reports reliability ratings were released. At that time, all we had were the 10 best and 10 worst cars. People observed that the TL wasn't listed in the top 10 and concluded that was an indication of problems with the car. CR usually goes into more detail when they publish the ratings for individual cars. I've excerpted the section on upscale cars below. The ratings are % better than or worse than the average.

Lexus IS300 (2005) +66%
Acura TL +39%
Acura TSX +39%
Lexus ES330 +38%
Infiniti G35 +28%
Volvo S60 (FWD) +25%
Audi A4 sedan +5%
BMW 3 Series (2005) +1%
Saab 9-5 sedan -1%
Cadillac CTS -11%
Volvo S60 (AWD) -22%
Mercedes-Benz C-Class -34%
Jaguar X-Type -40%
Saab 9-3 -72%
Lincoln LS -108%

From this perspective, the TL comes out looking pretty good. Although not perfect, it's certainly better than most of its competitors.

p.s. If anyone's curious, I got the numerical values from looking at the names CR assigned to the gif files on their website. For example, the Lexus IS300 bar was named p66 while the Cadillac CTS bar was named n11.

 

I wonder what the problem was with the lincoln LS.
My wife had one for 2 years and not a single problem.
On the other hand, the passat was always broke.
Hate to see where that came in....

When I look at the consumer reports, I always look at where the problems are.
i dont care so much about fit and finish, and the other minor things,
but major mechanical/sensor failures, and electrical issues I want
to stay away from.

I expect German cars (and the Jaguars) to look great as they are broken down
on the side of the road, and Japanese cars to run like a swiss watch at 150,000
miles and LOOk like they have 150,000 miles on them when they have 30,000.

I rode in a 12 year old maxima the other day, it had 150,000 miles
on it and it seemed quite good in most respects, a surprise to me.

Brett

 

Thanks, in the past I've found CR problem area ratings to be close to my own experience. Interesting that the TL was between the ES330 and the IS300 in reliability. Was not surprised by the C-class or 3-series ratings, both nice cars but reliablity could use improvement.

 

I wonder how the Lincoln LS could be that bad. Hasn't that care been out for about 4 years? If they can't get it put together right by now, just give up!

 

Just a side note, they did do away with it. A new car is out this year 06, called the Zephyr. There is a sister model in the Ford lineup called the Fusion.
I am sure they both will not be up to speed to compare to the TL for both Value and performance etc.

 

Well and consumers also lists reliable used care by price category from 97 - 04 ..

The 3g is no where to be found..


$24,000-$28,000
Acura MDX ’01, RL ’02, TSX ‘04
BMW 3 Series ‘02
Honda Odyssey ’03, Pilot ‘03-04, S2000 ‘03
Infiniti QX4 ‘02
Lexus ES300 ’02, GS300/GS430 ’01, IS300 ’03,
LS400 ’00, LX470 ’99, RX300 ‘01
Nissan Murano ‘03-04
Saab 9-5 ‘04
Subaru Outback (6-cyl.) ‘04
Toyota 4Runner ‘03-04, Highlander ’04,
Land Cruiser ’00, Sequoia ‘01

$28,000 and up
Acura MDX ‘02-04, RL ‘04
BMW 5 Series ‘01-03
Infiniti FX ‘03-04, G35 ‘04
Lexus ES300 ’03, GS300/GS430 ‘02-04,
LS400/LS430 ‘01-04, LX470 ‘00-03,
RX300/RX330 ‘02-04, SC430 ‘02-03
Toyota Land Cruiser ‘01-03, Sequoia ’02, ‘04

 

I have not seen the lincoln version of those cars, the zepher is a mercury.

They also did away with the contenential, my wife liked those boats
for some reason....

I looked at the fusion/zepher, you can have a 4 cylinder with a manual trans,
or the crappy old duratech V6 with an automatic.
The ourside of the mercury does not look to bad, the insides look very poor
to me.
Built on an enlarged mazda 6 platform...

No thanks, besides all the style issues, I would not consider a ford till they
get past the 3.0 duratech engine. That thing has nothing going for it, its
not low emissions, not high efficiency, not powerful for its size, not smooth
or quiet.

Brett

 

Here's the reason the 3G TL wasn't listed.

The lists are compiled from overall reliability data covering 1997-2004 models. CR Good Bets and CR Bad Bets include only the models for which we have sufficient data for at least three model years. Models that were new in 2003 or 2004 do not appear. Problems with the engine, engine cooling, transmission, and drive system were weighted more heavily than other problems. The abbreviations 2WD, 4WD, and AWD stand for two-, four-, and all-wheel drive, respectively.

 

I saw them at the auto show. I think the lineage is:

Ford Fusion
Mercury Milan
Lincoln Zephyr

I could be wrong. It seemed to me that the Zephyr was larger than the Fusion / Milan.