Glashub

Please note that cars starting with an "A" or"B" are missing. I'm surprised RL is listed since only 23 have been sold over the past year. After it's all said and done Acura does something right. Link to article below.

Upscale Cars
Lexus ES
The ES has long been a strong contender in this category. It has had outstanding reliability over the past 10 model years and is quiet and comfortable. ESC became standard with the redesigned 2007 model, which included a bigger engine and a six-speed automatic transmission.

Other good choices:
Lexus IS sedan
Toyota Avalon
Acura TL
Acura TSX
Infiniti G35, G37
Infiniti I30, I35
Volvo S60 (FWD)
Lincoln MKZ, Zephyr (FWD)

Luxury Cars
Acura RL
While the RL isn't the sportiest car, it has had excellent reliability wrapped in a comfortable and refined package. The 2005 redesign brought standard all-wheel drive but complicated controls. The Infiniti M35 is sportier and the much-larger Lexus LS is more luxurious.

Other good choices:
Lexus LS
Lexus GS (RWD)
Infiniti M35
Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan (V6, RWD)

http://editorial.autos.msn.com/lista...0558&GT1=22021

I meant "A" other than Acura...just to be clear.

jjsC5

There are some cars on that list that really don't make sense to me. I don't have the facts to back up my intuition, but I've always been very good at estimating true resale value, and I'm not agreeing with there list.

Lincoln Zephyr (now the MKX btw)???? hard to believe.
I30/35? Those cars have been gone for several years - how far back are they going?
RL? If they can't give them away new, then how can they hold up in resale?

Glashub

2001...I think.

Worst of the worst

These models, listed alphabetically, have multiple years of reliability that's much worse than average among 2001 to 2010 models.
Audi A6 (2.7T, 3.0T)GMC Acadia (AWD)BMW 535i (AWD)GMC Canyon (4WD)BMW X5GMC S-15 Sonoma (4WD)Cadillac SRX (AWD)GMC SafariChevrolet AstroHummer H3Chevrolet AveoJaguar S-Type, XFChevrolet BlazerKia SedonaChevrolet Colorado (4WD)Mercedes-Benz R-ClassChevrolet Impala (V8)Mini Cooper ConvertibleChevrolet S-10 Pickup (4WD)Pontiac G6 Coupe & ConvertibleChevrolet UplanderSaturn Outlook (FWD)Chrysler PT Cruiser (turbo)Saturn RelayChrysler Town & CountryVolkswagen New Beetle ConvertibleDodge CaravanVolkswagen Passat (V6, FWD)Dodge Grand Caravan

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/c...EXTKEY=AMSCA52

dallison

The usuals

neuronbob

Don't be dissing the 2G RL. There are multiple 100k + owners in the 2G RL forum. There's one guy who's well north of 300k miles on his 2005 RL and all he's had done is an axle replaced at over 200k miles and transmission repair at, I believe, over 250k miles.

It is, hands down, the BEST used luxury car for the money. In addition, other than a few minor issues (AC compressor on 2005s, propeller shaft, and door handles--get a CPO or extended warranty for those) it is dead reliable. I still wish I'd been financially able to keep my RL AND own my CTS-V simultaneously. In fact, I am waiting for prices on used RLs to decline further so I can snag a 2006 or 2007 (the best years of the 2G IMHO).

After all these years of CR dissing on the RL, NOW they say it's good. And it is.

Oh, and by the way, with an A-Spec suspension and sticky tires, it CAN be sporty. I owned an RL and I can confirm.

TechnoCat

The Lincoln (MkZ) is an amazing car. Look back about a year in the TL 4G forum here for my experience driving it for a month while my 2010 TL SH-AWD 6MT was in the shop. Don't let your prejudice get in the way!

One trouble with these "reports" is that the best car for you may not be the most reliable, for several reasons:

1. Even "much worse than average" reliability trumps the best reliability 30 years ago, when we were okay-happy. So it's comparitive but not really absolute.
2. No matter how reliable a slow ugly minivan is (for example), I'd rather have a fun sporty car. Think 1980s Italian vs Pontiac Aztec. And then apply that in finer grain; I'd rather have an Audi S4 than a Honda Civic... and as I discovered, I'd rather have the S4's inferior reliability (which is mostly theoretical, in that I've had many Audis and no reliability challenges) with my perception of the better interior, features, etc. than the TL's superior reliability and checklist-equivalent (same-only-different) feature implementations.

Legend2TL

Nothing too surprising except for the Volvo and though CR would make a mention of TL's only past 2004 (?) when the 5AT was redesigned for the countershaft. I know a few recent E-class owners and all have been fairly reliable and the owners happy with them.

Glashub

I think a take away is that Audi, BMW and Mercedes owners don't care if the car is reliable beyond 3 years as it may be that they plan to trade in their cars frequently whereas Acura owners tend to or plan to keep thier cars longer. Just speculating.