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City News

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If you drive a Buick, (seen at left) a Lexus, a Cadillac, a Mercury or a Honda, congratulations - you're behind the wheel of the most dependable cars on the market. But if you're in a Land Rover, prepare to head to the mechanic. Those are the decisions from influential automotive research firm J.D. Power and Associates, which annually ranks the best and worst performing cars on the road.

Experts looked at stats from 53,000 people driving 2004 model year cars, and measured how many times original owners of the vehicles have had problems over that three year stretch. The top picks: Buick and Lexus, which only caused 145 trips to the shop per 100 vehicles. Land Rovers fared the worst. Owners of those large cars experienced an average 398 problems over three years, enduring the hassles of taking them back to get something fixed. The most improved brands were Hummers, the Volvo XC90 and the Audi A6.

Where does your car rank?

The group claims the fact that Buicks made the top of the list this year shows you don't have to be rich to get a reliable model. "People don't have to necessarily spend premium money to get equal value," assures Power analyst Neal Oddes. "That's good news for people."

So what were the biggest repair reasons? Most aren't that serious. Wind noise tops the list, followed by squeaky brakes, seat belts that don't retract, poor handling, uneven tire wear and seats and interior problems. Most drivers understood the maintenance needs of replacing things like brake pads, but the survey notes that expensive overhauls - like transmissions - or a constant need to change small but still costly parts would not only cause owners to get rid of their cars sooner, but refuse to buy the same brand again.

While some wonder whether the list is completely accurate, it does have its influence and it's worth its weight in gold. J.D. Power's powerful rankings are regularly cited in ads and studies show that cars ranked as being more dependable retain up to 15 percent more of their value over three years, a bonus when it comes to reselling the vehicle.

J.D. Power And Associates Most Reliable Cars
(Ranked by number of problems per 100 vehicles reported over 3 yr. period)

1) Buick: 145
1) Lexus: 145 (tie)
2) Cadillac: 162
3) Mercury: 168
4) Honda: 169
5) Toyota: 178
6) BMW: 182
7) Lincoln: 182
8) Subaru: 192
9) Oldsmobile: 196
10) Jaguar: 197

11) Acura: 207
12) Mercedes-Benz: 212
13) Infiniti: 215
14) Jeep: 219
15) Pontiac: 220
15) Scion: 220 (tie)
16) Ford: 221
17) GMC: 222
18) Chevrolet: 226
19) Hyundai: 228
19) Mitsubishi: 228 (tie)
20) Volvo: 230

21) Audi: 234
22) Dodge: 236
23) Hummer: 242
24) Mini: 247
25) Chrysler: 249
26) Porsche: 252
27) Nissan: 274
27) Saturn: 274 (tie)
28) Kia: 288
29) Mazda: 289
30) Volkswagen: 298

31) Saab: 319
32) Isuzu : 322
33) Suzuki: 324
34) Land Rover: 398

Source: J.D. Power and Associates

 
Rep Power: 662

hmmm BUICK? other cars seem pretty neutral in terms of ppl who drive'them
but buick could be "the most dependable" possibly because the people
who drive them tend to drive them very gently?
I'm not a hater but i'm surprised buick made the top

 
Rep Power: 746

i don;t beleive that data, out of how many poeple in this test actually have done scheduled maintence and preventative maintence as they should.

 
Rep Power: 802

Buick isat the top, because most people that own them are over 90, and never drive them anywhere.

 
Rep Power: 735

Buicks are good cars... damn haters