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Consumer Reports says Toyota, Ford, Honda and Chevy are big winners in brand perception survey

According to Consumer Reports, the automotive brands that stand out in the minds of car buyers are, in order: Toyota, Ford, Honda and Chevrolet. This news comes after the magazine polled its readers, asking them to take into account vehicle quality, safety, performance, value, fuel economy, design/style, and technology/innovation - which are the factors that car shoppers are most influenced by.
It's important to note that this award is only about perception. In other words, it's perceived quality, not actual quality. "Often, perception can be a trailing indicator, reflecting years of good or bad performance in a category, and it can also be influenced by headlines in the media," said Jeff Bartlett, Consumer Reports deputy automotive editor.
The brand that made the biggest jump in perception amongst Consumer Reports readers is Tesla, which posted an impressive 47-point gain to finish in fifth place. Subaru is also notable for finishing in the top 10, despite being one of the smaller manufacturers doing business in the US. Scroll down below for all the details from Consumer Reports, if you're so inclined.

2015 24 Hours of Le Mans live race report

Check back regularly for more race updates every few hours. No, you don't need to stay up for the entire 24 Hours of Le Mans, but if you want to catch any of the action, Autoblog friend Reilly Brennan has a handy guide. And to keep you up to speed on the latest race events, we'll be posting live from Le Mans with regular race reports.Hour 1: Five laps in, Audi breaks up the three Porsches at the front, with the #19 919 Hybrid, driven by Nico Hulkenburg, passed by all three R18s. Hulkenburg eventually took back fifth position only to fall back again after the first pit stop. Meanwhile, clutch trouble kept the #23 Nissan GTR-LM in the pits until 15 minutes into the race. The other two Nissans were forced to start at the back of the grid after failing to the meet the 110 percent qualifying speed regulation. At the end of the first hour, just 7.5 seconds separated the first six cars. Then the factory team #92 Porsche GTE car caught fire, with the the #13 Rebellion P1 car taking frontal damage in the ensuing carnage. With the safety car out, the field is once again bunched up.Hour 2: The slugfest between Audi and Porsche continues, with neither side backing off. Halfway through the second hour the #7 R18 passes both leading Porsches for the top position. After another round of pits stops Porsche regains the lead until lap 30, when the Audi overtake once again and quickly pulls out a three-second gap. Nico Hulkenburg passes the other two Audis to join his Porsche teammates. At the beginning of the third hour it's Audi #7, Porsche #17, #18, and #19, followed by Audi #8 and #9. 33 seconds separates this group, with Toyota a minute back from the front car.Hour 3: On track the action refuses to stop. Although it's early, Audi is looking strong with the overall lead in the #7. What's more is that the Audis run four stints per set of tires, while the Porsche cars have to change rubber every third stop. But after a quick refueling, the lead R18 gets a tire puncture and comes back in 3 laps later, allowing Porsche to take over the top two spots. Then as the hour closes out a yellow flag causes traffic to bunch up and the #8 Audi gets stuck with nowhere to slow down. Driver Loic Duval dives for the side of the road but hits the guard rail and careens across the track, damaging the front and rear bodywork. The rest of the car is still intact, though, and once in the pits Audi replaces the entire front and rear of that in only three minutes.

Subaru ends orders for BRZ in Japan as production winds down

Production of the Subaru BRZ has ceased, marking the end of an eight-year run for the small enthusiast car. The final examples have rolled off of the assembly line ahead of what is expected to be a brief hiatus before the introduction of its successor.  The wind-down of the current BRZ and Toyota GT86 should come as no surprise; Subaru even announced a "Final Edition" BRZ for the German market earlier this year. British outlet Autocar reports that Subaru's production partner, Toyota, is still taking orders for its version of the jointly developed sports coupe, though an announcement regarding its wind-down is expected to be forthcoming.  The timing is especially tricky for potential buyers in Japan who may be looking to snag the rear-wheel-drive sports coupe, as they are limited to whatever remains in dealer inventories. According to Subaru's Japanese BRZ landing page, there may not be a ton of options for shoppers still in the market.  "We have finished accepting orders for build-to-order manufacturing of the models listed," the translated page says. "Due to stock availability at retailers, we may not be able to meet customer requests for body colors and options . Please contact your dealer for more information." We don't yet know for certain when Toyota and Subaru will announce their plans for the next-generation GT86 and BRZ, which were first introduced eight years ago. Rumors have suggested that they could be powered by a turbocharged four-cylinder producing approximately 250 horsepower, which would be a healthy bump from the existing cars' 197-horsepower outputs.  The next-generation car is expected to ride on a new joint platform, and may ditch the current generation's boxer engine in favor of a more traditional inline layout. Despite hints that Toyota wants its next GT86 to "surpass" the Supra, it's unlikely that an affordable sports coupe will infringe too drastically on the more-expensive halo car's performance turf.  Related Video: