NEW YORK – Consumer Reports has done an extensive survey of which cars from the year 2000 are the most reliable.
In a survey with feedback on almost a half million cars, owners rated their mechanical problems with the engine, transmission, brakes, suspension, cooling and electrical system of their vehicles.
Among the most reliable model year 2000 cars were many Japanese cars, including the Acura R-L, Honda CR-V, Mazda Miata, Lexus ES300, Honda Civic and Toyota Camry.
Those with the worst records were the Mercedes-Benz M-Class, Ford Focus, Volkswagen Jetta, Golf and New Beetle.
The Chevrolet Corvette and Astro/GMC Safari also made the list of unreliable cars. So did some Cadillacs.
The good news is that overall, cars seem to be getting more reliable.
The 2002 model cars in the survey had fewer problems than newer 2001 models. In addition, older cars had fewer problems than they did in previous surveys.
Car insurance go up? Check your credit
NEW YORK – Lots of drivers are seeing their car insurance premiums go up.
But in many cases, it’s not because they’ve had an accident or a ticket – it’s because the insurance companies are relying more on credit scores in their premium pricing plans.
With more and more insurance companies incorporating a customer’s credit score into the price of car insurance, some drivers are seeing their premiums rise as much as fifty percent.
The insurers argue that statistics show that people who pay their bills on time tend to file insurance claims less frequently.
But some consumer advocates say the practice of using credit scores in pricing insurance policies is unfair, claiming that good credit doesn’t necessarily make a person a good driver.
In addition, consumers point to the high percentage of inaccurate credit scores as further reason to abandon the practice of hiking prices for people with negative activity on their credit rating.
In some cases, drivers with stellar credit histories reported skyrocketing premiums after they closed certain credit accounts and opened new ones.
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