Toyota, Honda Top Consumer Reports Reliability Ratings

Toyota and Honda took the blue ribbons in the annual Consumer Reports reliability survey, but Ford and General Motors turned in improved performances from previous years, with Ford taking top honors in the family car segment.

The highest-ranked brand overall was the Scion, a relatively new entrant from Toyota. The Porsche Boxster had the best score of any specific model. The Ford Fusion hybrid and V6 models were the magazine's top family car picks, edging out the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord. GM scored well with its Chevrolet Equinox compact sport utility.

Chrysler and many high-priced European brands turned in less than stellar showings. The CR reviewers said the Chrysler brand suffered from an aging lineup while BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi suffered from fuel pump problems and other deficiencies.

The magazine found that 83 percent of Chevrolet models had average or better scores, up from 50 percent last year but Chevy is "still a way from the top," said David Champion, senior director of the Consumer Reports Auto Test Center. He said Ford and GM have taken "different paths to improving reliability."

"Some of GM's redesigned vehicles have scored well. The company has also dropped many of its below-average models. Ford has put its emphasis on fine-tuning existing platforms and limiting the number of new-model introductions," Champion said

The Ford brand now tops Mazda and Nissan, ranking just below Lexus.