Consumer Reports annual Top Picks list is out. In this episode we clarify what the Top Picks is and how vehicles get awarded this highly regarded designation. Our experts discuss the 10 cars that made it to the top of the list, trends we're noticing in the automotive industry, and explain what a Brand Report Card is. We also debate which would be the ultimate food delivery vehicle, the Toyota Prius or the Corolla Hybrid.
More info on the 10 Top Picks of 2024 here:
Ratings and test results on every car CR purchases and tests:
SHOW NOTES
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00:00 – Introduction
00:17 – What is the Top Picks List
01:29 – Auto Market Shift
03:52 – Car Categories in Top Picks
05:13 – Question #1: When looking at CR’s reliability rating, why are hybrids are among the most reliable vehicles, but plug-in hybrids are among the least?
11:10 – 10 Top Picks of 2024
11:34 – EVs
12:48 – Plug-in Hybrids
16:07 – Hybrids
18:48 – Gas Powered Vehicles
22:54 – Brand Report Card
25:46 – Question #2: Which car is the ultimate food delivery vehicle: the Toyota Corolla Hybrid or the Prius AWD?
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Best Cars of the Year: 10 Top Picks of 2024
Which Car Brands Make the Best Vehicles
Hybrids/EV Buying Guide
Mazda3
Subaru Crosstrek
Subaru Forester
Toyota Camry Hybrid
Toyota Prius/Prius Prime
Ford Maverick/Maverick Hybrid
Toyota RAV4 Prime
Toyota Highlander Hybrid
BMW X5/X5 PHEV
Tesla Model Y
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This was a good episode. Can’t stand it when Talking Cars goes woke😅 this was not one of those episodes
“Goes WOKE”? .. What does that mean? … This WOKE nonsense is passee. .. What is Hip – Tower of Power -1973
“What is Hip today just might become passee” .. TOP. .. Cheers, Vail, Colorado
@@michaelschneider- you know what it means gamma.
@@michaelschneider- Sorry, didn’t realize you quoted Tower of Power. Now no one can argue with your logic. Please slap yourself so no one else has to.
They can’t help it, they’re a non-profit LOL
I’d love to see Mazda & Subaru offer a hybrid version of their fleets in the US soon
Considering Subaru’s relationship and cooperation with Toyota, it amazes me that they do not already offer them. They say hybrids are coming, but they said that years ago as well. They did offer a hybrid Crosstrek, but it did not save any appreciable amount of fuel and was not a good seller.
They have literally no money for development
A manufacturers duration (years even decades) producing a product such as a hybrid or variant is part and partial of ownership experiance. .. The US dealership networks technical chops is another. .. The dealership Tech often is phoning the manufacturer for guidence. .. The MB service operation knows very little. ..
I.E. 2023 E-450 wagon, ordered new. .. Full spec.
Toyota is the gold standard of vehicle/owner service. .. Bar none. .. Cheers, Vail, Colorado
Congrats Alex for hosting. It is commonly believed in business that copying your boss is a path to success, but it is OK to have longer hair than Jake. 🙂
+1.. Too funny. .. Herr Jake is a good egg!
It’s time for electric cars.
The time for hybrids has passed. With a hybrid, you get an electric car plus the cost and complexity of a gas engine.
I have an EV that I plug in at home. I start everyday with over 250 miles of range. I only need more than 250 miles in a day for those few road trips I take during the year.
It’s not worth the added expense and long term maintenance costs of an ICE vehicle.
That’s great your able to plug in at home and it works good for you, although a good majority of the population doesn’t have the option of plugging in an EV at home for various reasons, that’s why the Hybrid and ICE vehicles will be necessary at least for the near future!
dumb comment. What about people in cities? How do they plug in at home? Also, that’s where the population density is the highest.
Maverick is not the only domestic manufacturer on the list. TESLA is made in America.
James wanted an efficient gas-powered car with an opening moonroof. I don’t think either the Corolla Hybrid nor the new Prius have that option. I think the new Prius has a glass roof option, but I don’t think it opens. My last-gen Prius (the ugly one) does have an opening moonroof as an option. He may be able to find a used Prius with an opening moonroof and have a somewhat easier time getting in and out of the car.
Whenever I think of PHEV I think of what Sandy Munro said about them. You get the strength and weaknesses of both ICE and EV vehicles.
I’m getting a hybrid next. The only reason I’m not getting a plug-in is price
With all their feel good charts and graphs, there was no mention of EV’s massive carbon footprint.
Toyota hybrids were reliable RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX with their 2001 Toyota Prius. So it’s not about experience. It’s about COMMITMENT to reliability.