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Consumer Reports no longer recommends Honda Civic

Consumer Reports annual Car Reliability Survey is out, and yes, there are some big surprises. First and foremost? The venerable publication no longer recommends the Honda Civic. In fact, aside from the walking-dead CR-Z and limited-release Clarity fuel-cell car, the Civic is the only Honda to miss out on CR's prestigious nod. At the opposite end there's a surprise as well – Toyota and Lexus remain the most reliable brands on the market, but Buick cracked the top three. That's up from seventh last year, and the first time for an American brand to stand on the Consumer Reports podium. Mazda's entire lineup earned Recommended checks as well. Consumer Reports dinged the Civic for its "infuriating" touch-screen radio, lack of driver lumbar adjustability, the limited selection of cars on dealer lots fitted with Honda's popular Sensing system, and the company's decision to offer LaneWatch instead of a full-tilt blind-spot monitoring system. Its score? A lowly 58. The Civic isn't the only surprise drop from CR's Recommended ranks. The Audi A3, Ford F-150, Subaru WRX/STI, and Volkswagen Jetta, GTI, and Passat all lost the Consumer Reports' checkmark. On the flipside, a number of popular vehicles graduated to the Recommended ranks, including the BMW X5, Chevrolet Camaro, Corvette, and Cruze, Hyundai Santa Fe, Porsche Macan, and Tesla Model S. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the hilariously recall-prone Ford Escape getting a Recommended check – considering the popularity of Ford's small crossover, this is likely a coup for the brand, as it puts the Escape on a level playing field with the Recommended Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, and Nissan Rogue. While Ford is probably happy to see CR promote the Escape, the list wasn't as kind for every brand. For example, of the entire Fiat Chrysler Automobiles catalog, the ancient Chrysler 300 was the only car to score a check – there wasn't a single Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Maserati, or Ram on the list. That hurts. FCA isn't alone at the low end, either. GMC, Jaguar Land Rover, Mini, and Mitsubishi don't have a vehicle on CR's list between them, while brands like Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Nissan, Lincoln, Infiniti, and Cadillac only have a few models each. You can check out Consumer Reports entire reliability roundup, even without a subscription, here.

270,000 Ram pickups in ‘salt belt’ recalled to fix sagging fuel tanks

Drive a Ram 1500? Maybe it's time to give your fuel tanks a look. FCA is issuing a voluntary recall of over 270,000 Ram 1500 pickups to prevent their fuel tanks from sagging. A corrosion-related problem, the issue can be identified either visually by looking at the undercarriage, or by listening to any scraping noises, as the brackets for the fuel tanks straps corrode and can cause the tanks to hang low. FCA says in its statement that the recall is limited to 270,254 model year 2009-2012 Ram 1500 pickups that have been registered in states belonging to what is called the "salt belt," that is, the District of Columbia and the following states: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin and West Virginia. Some 27,000 trucks will also be recalled in Canada, a thousand in Mexico and some 5,300 others. The tanks themselves are made of high-density polyethylene, and as such do not rust out: The problem is related to their fixings. The tanks won't be detached, as if a bracket fails, the remaining structural components will still hold the tanks. FCA also says no related incidents or injuries have been reported, nor have there been any fires — but the brackets are definitely worth getting fixed. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Genesis, Hyundai, Ram win North American Car, Utility, Truck of the Year at NAIAS

DETROIT — The Hyundai Genesis G70, Hyundai Kona/Kona Electric and the Ram pickup have received North American car, sport utility and truck of the year awards. The awards were announced Monday at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. This year's car finalists also included the Honda Insight and Volvo S60/V60. Truck finalists included the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500. SUV finalists also included the Acura RDX and the Jaguar I-Pace. Last year's winners were the Honda Accord, Lincoln Navigator and the Volvo XC60. About 55 automotive journalists serve as judges. Eligible vehicles must be new or substantially changed. Organizers accept no advertising, though automakers try to capitalize on the marketing value of the awards, which are now in their 25th year. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.