Already an issue - bad window seal

[Gus]

Consumer Reports has their agenda. Critical of the Ford Ranger/Mazda B series for their entire run because "the seats are too low"(?) while gushing over any Toyota, Honda, etc.

They absolutely have an agenda.

This was many years ago, but at one point Consumer Reports had the Honda Ridgeline as the top full sized pickup truck in America. Yes, the Ridgeline beat out the F150, Silverado, Ram 1500, Tundra, etc., for best full sized truck. Why? Mainly because it drives and handles more like a car.

For some reason they don't have "Truck Guys" review the trucks. Instead, they have the same guys who drive a Prius for a year straight, drive a Ranger for 15 minutes, and pan it for handling "Too truck-like."

This was the straw that broke the camels back for me, and I canceled my subscription.

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[abjbrtd]

Consumer Reports has their agenda. Critical of the Ford Ranger/Mazda B series for their entire run because "the seats are too low"(?) while gushing over any Toyota, Honda, etc.

Don't forget the Suzuki Samurai, check this video at the 6 minute mark

 

[Rob Cactus Gray]

They absolutely have an agenda.

This was many years ago, but at one point Consumer Reports had the Honda Ridgeline as the top full sized pickup truck in America. Yes, the Ridgeline beat out the F150, Silverado, Ram 1500, Tundra, etc., for best full sized truck. Why? Mainly because it drives and handles more like a car.

For some reason they don't have "Truck Guys" review the trucks. Instead, they have the same guys who drive a Prius for a year straight, drive a Ranger for 15 minutes, and pan it for handling "Too truck-like."

This was the straw that broke the camels back for me, and I canceled my subscription.

I drove a Prius for 5 years and rented a Ranger for a week. I loved it but I hate my Prius

 

[JamesHenry]

It appears to be tucked inside the window channel? Frustrating for sure but it is a super simple fix that will take seconds to correct.

 

[JASmith]

They absolutely have an agenda.

This was many years ago, but at one point Consumer Reports had the Honda Ridgeline as the top full sized pickup truck in America. Yes, the Ridgeline beat out the F150, Silverado, Ram 1500, Tundra, etc., for best full sized truck. Why? Mainly because it drives and handles more like a car.

I've only ever seen the Ridgeline listed in their smaller truck category, not a fullsize.

But still not an agenda IMO, its just the way they have setup their scoring system, and three big scores are how it performs on their road course for ride comfort, braking distance, emergency swerve, and the like and how it scores on safety equipment and how it scores on reliability. Objectively, it scored higher. They still like it too, although they actually rate the Jeep more reliable than the Honda but the Honda blew it away on their road course score which is no surprise its a better handling vehicle:

What other agenda could they have? An anti-Ford bias? Then why is the Ford Edge and Ford Mustang their top recommended in class? A Japanese bias? Then why is the Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, and Chrysler 300 rated so highly in top recommended status while they crap on the Genesis G70 and Acura TLX with low scores?

The only thing they don't really factor in is the emotional aspect of car buying, which is a huge component. A lot of people will buy a car that they know has a few faults if they just think it feels really cool and they turn their head to look back at it again in the parking garage in the morning after parking at work. Like here a lot of people wouldn't remotely consider a Santa Cruz even though they are rather similar vehicles in many ways because the SC doesn't feel "cool" to them image wise the way its styled. So that's a subjective score people just have to make for themselves, and its IMO a big reason too that Ram 1500s massively outsell Ridgelines.

 

[Edge Haley]

Don't forget the Suzuki Samurai, check this video at the 6 minute mark

Took the words out of my mind!!!!!
One of, no, the best vehicle I have ever owned...the Suzuki Samurai. All because Consumer Reports rigged a contraption to the Samurai and made it tip over....subscribed to CReport for years and cancelled my subscription when this article put Suzuki out of business in the USA....still miss my Suzuki.

Subscriptions to newspapers and magazines don't even pay for printing costs. Large Manufacturers, like automotive builders, have to pay Consumer Reports to evaluate their products...if they don't pay they don't get the positive reviews......

To this day Suzuki Samurai owners still rave about the quality of these vehicles and have continued to be sold to this day in all civilized countries in the world, except the USA. If Consumer Reports did a fair evaluation of the Samurai they would not have settled with Suzuki by paying them multiple millions in a settlement.

 

[Gus]

I've only ever seen the Ridgeline listed in their smaller truck category, not a fullsize.

But still not an agenda IMO, its just the way they have setup their scoring system, and three big scores are how it performs on their road course for ride comfort, braking distance, emergency swerve, and the like and how it scores on safety equipment and how it scores on reliability. Objectively, it scored higher. They still like it too, although they actually rate the Jeep more reliable than the Honda:

What other agenda could they have? An anti-Ford bias? Then why is the Ford Edge and Ford Mustang their top recommended in class? A Japanese bias? Then why is the Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, and Chrysler 300 rated so highly in top recommended status while they crap on the Genesis G70 and Acura TLX with low scores?

The only thing they don't really factor in is the emotional aspect of car buying, which is a huge component. A lot of people will buy a car that they know is rather impractical or has issues if they just think it feels really cool and they turn their head to look back at it again in the parking garage in the morning after parking at work. Like here a lot of people wouldn't remotely consider a Santa Cruz even though they are rather similar vehicles in many ways because the SC doesn't feel "cool" to them image wise the way its styled.

Read my post again. This has nothing to do with cars. Consumer Reports has always dogged pickup trucks going back 20 plus years. Minor issues in their beloved cars, get demonized as catastrophic issues in any truck.

To my recollection, they compared the 2006 & 2007 Ridgeline with full sized pickup trucks. This was when the Ridgeline first came out.

 

[JASmith]

Consumer Reports has always dogged pickup trucks going back 20 plus years.

I understand, I'm just saying its because of their objective scoring system that doesn't weight cool factor of sitting really high, rugged looks, offroad capabilities, tow rating, etc. Is it reliable, is it safe, does it handle well is basically how they sum things up and the big-3 pickups tended to be rather mediocre when it comes to standard safety features, reliability, and handling.

That's just a limitation of not having a category specific rating. This should actually be good for the Maverick, because the Maverick much like the Ridgeline is more crossover than truck in that its a unibody crossover platform and not a truck ladder frame and so doesn't suffer from the pitfalls of traditional trucks such as poor ingress/egress issues (one of the main reasons we're selling our Ram 1500).

 

[WesM]

I understand, I'm just saying its because of their objective scoring system that doesn't weight cool factor of sitting really high, rugged looks, offroad capabilities, tow rating, etc. Is it reliable, is it safe, does it handle well is basically how they sum things up and the big-3 pickups tended to be rather mediocre when it comes to standard safety features, reliability, and handling.

That's just a limitation of not having a category specific rating. This should actually be good for the Maverick, because the Maverick much like the Ridgeline is more crossover than truck in that its a unibody crossover platform and not a truck ladder frame and so doesn't suffer from the pitfalls of traditional trucks such as poor ingress/egress issues (one of the main reasons we're selling our Ram 1500).

They test trucks like they test cars, two fundamentally different types of vehicles designed for very different tasks. That is a failure of testing methodology.

Something that can tow 10k lbs is simply not going to have the driving characteristics of a M3, but that M3 will fold in half if you make it tow 10k lbs. Its like reviewing a pair of scissors and saying its not as good at shaving as a straight razor.

Having said that, I do use consumer reports, but I don't really rely on their reviews. The data they collect can be useful if understood/utilized correctly though.

As for the window seal, hopefully thats an easy fix, seems like it should be.

 

[Nightowl]

I understand, I'm just saying its because of their objective scoring system that doesn't weight cool factor of sitting really high, rugged looks, offroad capabilities, tow rating, etc. Is it reliable, is it safe, does it handle well is basically how they sum things up and the big-3 pickups tended to be rather mediocre when it comes to standard safety features, reliability, and handling.

That's just a limitation of not having a category specific rating. This should actually be good for the Maverick, because the Maverick much like the Ridgeline is more crossover than truck in that its a unibody crossover platform and not a truck ladder frame and so doesn't suffer from the pitfalls of traditional trucks such as poor ingress/egress issues (one of the main reasons we're selling our Ram 1500).

Thanks for defending Consumer Reports with admirable grace.

Consumer Reports is one publication I read when researching vehicles. My other favorite magazine for auto reviews is Car and Driver. The publications often praise and nitpick over different attributes on any particular car. For instance, the redesigned Honda Civic just walloped the other small sedans in a comparison test in Car and Driver's October issue; beating out the Mazda 3, the Jetta, the Elantra, the Sentra and the Corolla. They praise the Civic's chassis tuning, acceleration and interior quality.

Consumer Reports also reviewed the Civic in their November issue. They like the handling, braking and fuel economy but take points off for cabin noise and an uncomfortable ride. They rank the Civic behind the Sentra, Corolla, Impreza, Mazda 3 and Elantra. (CR tested a lower trim Civic then Car and Driver's but then compared it to similarly spec'd vehicles from the other automakers).

For me, Consumer Reports provides valuable information on automobiles. Their shameful treatment of Suzuki not withstanding, I feel they strive for unbiased and honest reviews. But they also let certain features that I care little about alter their scores like seating position, noise isolation, ride comfort, and a bunch of safety features. Car and Driver may comment on the same quibbles Consumer Reports points out, but don't let these "secondary" attributes affect their scores much because they focus on how well the vehicle drives. I guess my point is that I don't let any one thing I read, hear, or view, form my opinion. I get a lot of information on cars from Consumer Reports, even if I don't agree with how they weight their road test and overall scores. Okay, I've clearly lost the plot a bit. This isn't the Honda Civic forum?

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

Truck buzzes at 50 mph and over from the wind. It's a bad window seal/weatherstrip.

A window screen roller would tuck that back in nicely , but I would let the dealership deal with it first.

 

[Cubsfan24]

Also, any paint chips yet on that beautiful white @Cubsfan24 ?

Cactus gray

 

[ReddWulf]

Don't forget the Suzuki Samurai, check this video at the 6 minute mark

Thanks for that video!! I had one of those for 3 years (called an SJ410 in Guam) and LOVED it. It was an off-road mini-monster. Ran circles around the local Jeeps and American 4x4s (but then again, all the local trails were made by the SJ's). Barely adequate power on-road....but you could almost climb a tree in 4L any day. Easy maintenance too. You could literally climb under it, unbolt the transmission, drop it down on your chest, roll it over and change the clutch out and then put it back in the same way (using a broomstick to line it up). I'd love to have one of those again.

 

[Yardtruck]

Consumer Reports has their agenda. Critical of the Ford Ranger/Mazda B series for their entire run because "the seats are too low"(?) while gushing over any Toyota, Honda, etc.

Really? Anyone who thinks the Toyota Tacoma has good seats is delusional. The Tacoma has had the worst drivers' seat for years. And it is pointed out in many reviews.
I owned a Tacoma for a short while in 2012...should have driven it longer before buying. The seated position gave me leg pain after 20 minutes...

 

[FloodingdowninTX]

I was referring to their Ford Ranger reviews as I recall them from that era. Stopped looking at CS long ago.

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