Consumer Reports

It seems like it was just a few years ago that car manufacturers used to laugh at us when we'd ask why a new model didn't get any better fuel economy than its outgoing predecessor. "Car buyers don't care about fuel economy," was the refrain, "They certainly won't pay for it." A few years of ...

Distracted driving has joined smoking, drinking, drug use, and unprotected sex on the list of behaviors that teens know are risky but engage in nonetheless. According to a national survey by Consumer Reports, half of all teens surveyed had used a handheld phone while driving in the past 30 days, ...

Whenever Consumer Reports weighs in on the automotive landscape, we're always eager to hear what its editors have to say. We value their opinions, not because we necessarily agree or disagree, but because CR plays it straight. And sometimes, amidst all the folderol spewed about new models in the ...

Our colleagues at Consumer Reports, when not professing their love for all things Toyota, have recently taken a real shine to Subarus. First they crowned the 2012 Impreza the top small sedan, while elevating the Subaru brand to the top of the 2012 CR ratings. Now comes this surprisingly ...

Consumer Reports has just wrapped up an evaluation of subcompact sedans, and the Kia Rio EX has rolled out ahead of the class. The four-door beat out its corporate clone, the Hyundai Accent and the Chevrolet Sonic to take the top spot. Evaluators pointed to the sharp handling and well-optioned ...

You can buy a bunch of information for $107,000. Consumer Reports is learning all sorts of things about the Fisker Karma now that it has purchased one for testing, only to have it die with less than 200 miles on the odometer. After 48 hours in the dealer's repair shop – under warranty ...

Send a $107,000 Fisker Karma to the dealer – after an incredibly public breakdown – and get a new battery pack in return. That's the lesson that Consumer Reports learned over the weekend and the repaired vehicle is now "operating fine at our test track" after 48 hours offline. All ...

Like pretty much any driver, we've had our share of car trouble over the years, both with vehicles loaned to us for review by automakers and our own private rides. What we haven't experienced is being the first media outlet to plunk down over $100,000 for a luxury plug-in hybrid, only to have it ...

Four Wheeler magazine named the Ram Power Wagon its 2012 Pickup Truck of the Year, and it's an award that celebrates features we associate with so-called "serious" pickups, like a two-speed transfer case, trail performance and vinyl flooring. But what if you want a Pickup Truck of the Year that's ...

Two years after Consumer Reports smacked Toyota by pulling its coveted Recommended label from the Japanese automaker's vehicles in the wake of safety concerns, the venerable consumer products testing magazine has slipped back into its comfortable role of being one of Toyota's biggest fans. In ...