Tesla Tops Reliability Charts in Consumer Reports Survey
Tesla vehicles have climbed to ninth place in Consumer Reports’ annual reliability rankings, marking the brand’s strongest performance to date among 26 evaluated automakers. The improvement, driven by refinements in electric drive systems and assembly processes, positions Tesla ahead of established players like Chevrolet and Volkswagen. This surge reflects data from 380,000 vehicles surveyed in late 2025, highlighting fewer reported issues in powertrains and infotainment compared to prior years.
Consumer Reports assessed reliability across 20 trouble areas, including engine, transmission, and climate systems, using member-submitted data from 2022 through 2025 models. Tesla’s electric motors and battery packs earned top scores, with zero major failures noted in drivetrain components for models like the ‘Model 3’ and ‘Model Y’. The brand’s consistent manufacturing at facilities in Fremont, California, and Austin, Texas, contributed to stable quality for aging lineups, though the newest ‘Cybertruck’ scored below average due to early suspension glitches. Overall, Tesla jumped from 17th in 2024 and a dismal 27th in 2022.
Subaru claimed the top reliability spot for the first time since 2022, followed by Lexus and Toyota, based on the same dataset. Electric vehicles as a category outperformed gas-powered counterparts, with 79 percent scoring average or better versus 62 percent for internal combustion models. Tesla’s gains align with over-the-air software updates addressing 15 percent of reported infotainment bugs since mid-2024. The survey underscores a narrowing gap between legacy automakers and newcomers, as battery degradation rates fell to under 2 percent annually for Tesla packs after 50,000 miles.
Industry analysts attribute Tesla’s ascent to iterative hardware tweaks, such as reinforced door mechanisms that resolved 40 percent of prior electrically controlled access complaints. The ‘Model S’, unchanged since late 2011, benefits from matured production, logging 95 percent uptime in owner reports. Consumer Reports’ automotive report card, factoring road tests, safety, and satisfaction, ranked Tesla 10th out of 31 brands, up from 17th last year. This holistic score incorporates National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash data showing Tesla’s active safety features reducing collision rates by 28 percent.
The findings counter earlier criticisms of Tesla’s fit and finish, with body hardware issues dropping 22 percent year-over-year. As electric vehicle adoption reaches 12 percent of U.S. sales in 2025, per Cox Automotive, reliability emerges as a key purchase driver, with 68 percent of surveyed buyers prioritizing it over range. Tesla’s trajectory suggests potential market share growth to 25 percent by 2027, bolstered by these metrics. Automakers like Ford, mired at 22nd, face pressure to match EV-specific durability amid shifting consumer expectations.
