13 Most Unreliable Car Brands on Today’s Market

Consumer Reports compiles an annual list of the most and least reliable cars based on data from 300,000+ vehicles and 17 trouble areas.

We’ve gathered the 13 least reliable brands on that list, and many of them are known for their expensive luxury models that come stuffed to the rafters with innovative tech.

Whether it’s due to frequent breakdowns, excessive recalls, or something else entirely, these brands can make you pull your hair out in frustration.

Chrysler

Chrysler has really suffered in reliability ratings in recent years. The American carmaker came dead last in Consumer Reports’s predicted reliability rankings, with a score of just 18/100.

Some owners will say Chrysler is in the middle of the pack regarding reliability, but even J.D. Power’s 2024 Vehicle Dependability Study places it at the bottom, with 310 problems per 100 vehicles. We’re sure there are reliable Chryslers out there, but they’ll have to do something to improve sooner rather than later.

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz is one of the world’s most famous luxury brands, but you wouldn’t know it if you looked at Consumer Reports’ predicted reliability score. M-B scored an appalling 23/100.

To be fair, luxury vehicles get a poor reliability score mainly because they tend to be packed with new technology, which means that a lot more can go wrong. That doesn’t explain why they’re scoring so much worse than the other German brands, though. Mercedes-Benz ownership can also be a costly affair, as the average annual repair costs are around $908.

Rivian

Electric truck and SUV maker Rivian didn’t score very high on reliability either. Rivian doesn’t have as many recalls as some others on this list, but with an average vehicle price of $85,000, owners should worry that the brand only has a 24/100 predicted reliability score.

Owners have made posts about several severe problems on the Rivian forums, including “Critical Battery Issue,” batteries draining, various warnings, airbag problems, etc. One owner seemingly gave up on Rivian ownership after one year of continuous issues.

Volkswagen (Tie)

Volkswagen, like other German car manufacturers, has had more than its fair share of reliability issues over the last 30 years. Consumer Reports has given VW a predicted reliability score of 26/100 for 2024.

Volkswagens can be great cars, but some models have suffered more problems and recalls than others, lowering the brand’s reliability ratings.

Jeep (Tie)

Stellantis really suffered in the 2024 Consumer Reports reliability rating, even when problematic brands such as Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati were left out due to insufficient data.

Jeep, makers of some of the best off-road vehicles on the market, only scored 26/100 for predicted reliability. It should be noted that many of the common Jeep issues won’t appear for the first few years, but 43% of those who owned a slightly older Jeep experienced multiple problems in one year.

Volvo

Volvo used to be famous for making the safest and some of the most reliable vehicles. In fact, the car with the highest recorded mileage is a Volvo P1800S with an incredible 3,250,257 miles on the odometer.

However, those days are long gone as Volvos have suffered from reliability issues for several years already. The Swedish carmaker has a predicted reliability score of 28/100. While overall reliability is below average, the smaller models seem to suffer fewer issues than the SUVs.

GMC

Seeing as GMC and Chevrolet build almost identical vehicles on the same assembly lines, it’s weird that GMC has a lower predicted reliability score than its Bow Tie sibling.

We suspect it’s because GMC is slightly more luxurious, which could mean some tech gremlins are rearing their ugly heads. Overall, GMC has a 36/100 predicted reliability score and suffers from some well-documented issues.

Lincoln

Some claim Lincoln suffers more from a perception problem than reliability problems, but it still only managed a predicted reliability score of 38/100. That’s just a couple of points behind Ford, so once again, it could be the extra tech that’s causing it to perform worse than the Blue Oval.

One Lincoln mechanic on Reddit said most of the brand’s cars are fine, but the Aviator mid-size luxury SUV suffers from a whole host of issues.

Ford

Gearheads used to joke that Ford stands for Fix Or Repair Daily, and maybe there’s something to that, as it’s the ninth least reliable car brand in 2024.

Consumer Reports gave Ford a predicted reliability score of 40/100, which is fair, considering their cars have been plagued by multiple issues in recent years. Several models have suffered transmission problems. Electrical gremlins and engine failures are also on the list of complaints.

Dodge

Dodge is the last FCA/Stellantis brand on this list, as Ram managed to sneak into the top 15. RepairPal gave Dodge a 3.5/5 score and placed it 19th out of 32 brands, and Consumer Reports gave Dodge a predicted reliability score of 42/100 — 20th out of 30 brands.

Overall, owners seem to agree that the Charger and Challenger were okay, and Consumer Reports says those models are average compared to other cars. Other models, such as the Dodge Hornet, are not so favorably rated by many owners, with some calling it the worst car out there.

Chevrolet (Tie)

J.D. Power says Chevrolets have 174 problems per 100 cars, and Consumer Reports gives the Bow Tie brand a predicted reliability score of 43/100. At this point, we’re certainly moving into the lower end of average reliability territory.

According to NHTSA, Chevrolet has fewer recalls than most brands in the American market. GM, as a whole, only has 14 recalls so far in 2024. Still, they have their work cut out if they want to catch up to Lexus and Toyota.

Audi (Tie)

Audi is the last German brand we’ll cover, coming in 19th place on Consumer Reports’ reliability rankings. The next one would be BMW, and in 9th, that’s quite the leap.

Audi ties with Chevy and gets a predicted reliability score of 43/100. However, according to J.D. Power, Audis have 275 problems per 100 cars, which puts them in second to last place. With such huge variations in the scores, it can be challenging to make a well-informed decision, but Audi enthusiasts swear that they can be reliable when properly maintained.

Genesis

Genesis is the only Korean brand on the list, and seeing as both Hyundai and Kia did well, we suspect it’s that dreaded luxury factor again.

Genesis has recalled over 40,000 vehicles from the 2022 and 2023 model years because they may stall while driving, which could cause a crash. The brand still managed to secure a Consumer Reports reliability score of 44/100.