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After nearly 20 years at Consumer Reports, Jon Linkov is an expert among automotive experts. The Deputy Auto Editor, Linkov is our guest this week on The Weekly Driver Podcast to discuss one of the publication’s most popular features — its annual most reliable cars list.
Join co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia as we discuss with Linkov the “Top 10 Most Reliable Cars For 2022.”
“What we do is survey our members, our millions of members, and ask about their experiences with the cars they own or have owned,” said Linkov of the most reliable cars list. “We just don’t look at current vehicles, we look at used cars, the ones they’ve had for years. We have data going back 20 years.”
Table of Contents
2022 Most Reliable Cars
The current most reliable cars list involves a database of information for about 320,000 vehicles. The publication’s analysts calculate the list on their prediction of which new car models will give car owners the fewest number of problems covering 17 trouble areas. The criteria range from ranging minor nuisances to expensive repairs.
“We have data for all different years of vehicles,” Linkov said of this year’s most reliable cars list. “But we also have robust data that allows us to predict for the new model year.”
Three Toyota models, two vehicles from Mazda and one car each from Cadillac, Honda, Kia, Lexus and Subaru are also on the list
“We’ve been around for more than 70 years; We certainly have evolved over time in the sense of our relationships with manufacturers,” said Linkov of Consumer Reports’ enduring reputation. “We still hold them accountable. I’ve been there almost 20 years and early in my career and before I was even there, there might have been a little bit of an adverbial relationship.”
Most Reliable Cars 2022: Three Toyotas
“They didn’t really understand us and we really wanted to have a closed-off wall from communicating with them. Now it’s different. We don’t take advertising. We pay the rent of the getting a press car from them. But we do have a better sharing of data and a better rapport. In the end, that makes a vehicle for a consumer.”
The 2022 Lexus GX, a luxury midsized sedan, is Consumer Reports’ most reliable vehicle for 2022. It has a price range of $56,125 to $65,365. It’s rated at 12 miles per gallon in city driving and 24 mpg on the highway.
Here’s the top-10 list:
1. Lexus GX
Price Range: $56,125 – $65,635
CR MPG: Overall 17 / City 12 / Hwy 24 mpg
2. Kia Niro Electric
Price Range: $39,090 – $44,650
CR MPGE: Overall 112 / City 123 / Hwy 102 mpge
3. Toyota Prius Prime
Price Range: $28,670 – $34,450
CR MPG: Overall 69 / City 56 / Hwy 81 mpg
4. Toyota Prius
Price Range: $25,075 – $33,370
CR MPG: Overall 52 / City 43 / Hwy 59 mpg
5. Cadillac XT5
Price Range: $43,995 – $55,895
CR MPG: Overall 20 / City 13 / Hwy 30 mpg
6. Mazda MX-5 Miata
Price Range: $27,650 – $38,550
CR MPG: Overall 34 / City 25 / Hwy 42 mpg
7. Honda Insight
Price Range: $25,760 – $29,790
CR MPG: Overall 54 / City 44 / Hwy 62 mpg
8. Toyota Highlander
Price Range: $35,855 – $51,460
CR MPG: Overall 22 / City 14 / Hwy 32 mpg
9. Subaru Crosstrek
Price Range: $23,145 – $36,345
CR MPG: Overall 29 / City 20 / Hwy 39 mpg
10. Mazda CX-9
Price Range: $35,630 – $47,560
CR MPG: Overall 22 / City 15 / Hwy 32 mpg
For additional details of the Consumer Reports’ most dependable car for list for 2022 as well as the publication’s diverse content, visit. www.consumerreports.org.
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Article Last Updated: August 7, 2023.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to this site, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and a monthly auto review column for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, James has co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast since 2017.
