German Car Zone

SAFETY

Among the seven factors in the survey, safety stood out as the most important when shopping for a new vehicle. It was rated No. 1 by 25 percent of respondents. Women were twice as likely to mention safety as the most important attribute to them, while men listed quality as the leading factor by a significant margin.

Consumers consider Volvo to be the leading brand in safety. No other brand in any category can boast such a commanding lead over the second-ranked brand. But in last year’s survey, Volvo scored even higher, with 77 percent of respondents mentioning it as the leading brand, versus 71 percent this year.

While consumers listed most of the same brands as last year among safety leaders, Subaru fell from the top five, while Mercedes-Benz joined the ranks.

Driven by market competition and increasingly tough safety standards, automakers in general have been making improvements to vehicle structures, air bags, and safety systems over time. But not all cars provide comparable protection. It is important for shoppers to look beyond a list of features to see how they perform. Consumer Reports’ safety ratings combine our accident-avoidance tests and crash-test results from the government and insurance industry.

Brand...... Percent
Volvo............71%
Ford..............19
Honda............18
Toyota...........16
Mercedes-Benz.15



QUALITY

Twenty-one percent of the respondents cited quality as a most significant factor in choosing a new vehicle. The quality of a vehicle speaks to not just its initial fit-and-finish impression, but to how well the model will hold up over time. Given that about half of the respondents said that they have owned their current model longer than initially planned, that longevity might be more important to them than ever.

Toyota and Honda are again perceived to lead in quality, which is supported by the latest Consumer Reports Annual Car Reliability Survey. For predicted reliability, we calculate an overall reliability score based on analysis of up to three previous model years, and we have found our methods to be an excellent forecast of future performance. Our predicted reliability for 2009 models ranks Scion tops, followed by Acura, Honda, Toyota, and Lexus.

In brand perception, Mercedes-Benz and Cadillac made the top-five list. But neither brand does particularly well in our reliability rankings among brands.


Brand........Percent
Toyota......32%
Honda.......24
Mercedes-Benz 23
Lexus........20
Cadillac.....17


Full Article/Complete Survey: Consumer Reports - Top five in Brand Perception by Category


Some of the results are most surprising.


M

Surprising results is the norm to CR

I mean, who would have thaught that Cadillac would be amongst the first brands people think of when someone screams "innovations!"...

That would be true for Cadillac........40 years ago!

M

The economic crisis has OBVIOUSLY made American consumers delirious! Lexus #1 for design and style? Toyota #1 for Innovation? Ford, Honda at Toyota ahead of MB for safety? WHATEVER.

Wacky as hell isn't it???...lol!!! I just had to post it.


M

That was a good laugh

Volvo's marketing department has done a good job tricking people into believing that Volvo cars are super safe. The reality is that they are no safer than any other manufacturers cars. Back in the 70-80 they were good but these days safety is taking very serious by every single manufacturer.

And they actually far behind MB in safety tech and solutions,naive people

I would have to totally disagree with this. True anyone can build a car to pass government safety standards, even the Koreans do that but Volvo like Mercedes builds their cars to a higher standard. One of the few cars designed (body and seats) to withstand a severe rear impact is Volvo, along with some a other German brands. There is no way I'd want to be an a Hyundai or Toyota in a crash that isn't covered by lab tests, which is where the "safety" engineering stops for most car companies. If Volvo is no safer than any other car then neither is Mercedes, Audi, Saab or any of the French makes. Volvo has been obsessing over safety for as long as Mercedes-Benz has and all of that hasn't gone for naught. Volvo may not have all the fancy gadgets (adaptive cruise etc.) that Mercedes has but their body structures are designed to withstand much more than usual lab tests that get cars like a Hyundai "5-stars" in lab crash tests.

You have to look at the death and injury rates to get a better picture about who builds a safe car, the data is out there. The last time I saw one of these studies, Volvo, Mercedes, Saab, and Audi were on top of the list. Also car companies that recover their cars after a severe accident tend to learn more about how their cars perform in the real world, Volvo again being one of those companies. Ask yourself, if you had to be a severe crash which car would you rather be in, a Korean or Japanese brands like Mitsubishi or Suzuki (with their 5-star ratings) or a Volvo?


M

while i agree on Volvo being safer than some Asian and American brands,it does fall short when compared to MB,a quick look at the history of MB;s innovations and current solutions offered in current cars says a lot.