Most autos in Consumer Reports' Top 10 emit deadly tailpipe emissions, kill people

DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN: Although the Tesla Model 3 is shown leading the pack on the cover of Consumer Reports' annual Auto Issue, the editors don't pick the upscale all-electric sedan or any other vehicle as the best of the best. 

Editors again ignore impact on climate,

pollution, 58,000 premature deaths a year

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- To Beth Gardiner, an environmental journalist writing in The New York Times, "the acceleration of climate change" is "frightening."

But in this year's Auto Issue from Consumer Reports, the only concern is how fast cars, SUVs and pickup trucks accelerate.

As a longtime subscriber, I'm shocked by how the editors of the leading consumer publication in America continue to ignore the impact of Big Oil and millions of gas-engine vehicles on the environment.

Nor do they ever acknowledge that tailpipe emissions cause 58,000 premature deaths annually in the United States alone.

This year's Top 10 picks include only one zero-emissions vehicle -- Tesla's Model 3 -- and no preference is expressed for gas-electric versions of two others on the coveted list, Toyota's  Camry and Avalon, over the conventional gas versions.

First EV in 2018

The first all-electric car that made the magazine's Top 10 list was the Chevy Bolt in the 2018 Auto Issue.

But in 2019, Consumer Reports editors reversed course, trashing Tesla and listing only three gas-electric hybrids in the Top 10 list.

Two years earlier, a 20-plus-year subscriber took the editors to task for ignoring the environment:

"I am writing ... about something troubling that I just realized," Charles Dunn of Fairfield, Conn., said in a 2017 letter.
"Nowhere in the past 10 years have I read anything in CR about climate change and the effects that the products reviewed ..., namely automobiles, among others, have on the environment.
"This bothers me even more because while mileage ratings have gone up in some classes of vehicles, they are still very poor for SUVs and pickups, which a majority of consumer are buying.
"If CR cares about our global climate future, it's imperative that CR hold manufacturers accountable for improving mileage standards and offering more hybrid-electric vehicles."

Climate deniers

Today -- three Auto Issues later -- the editors are campaigning for better gas mileage, but don't mention the environment, the climate crisis or air pollution as their chief concerns.

"A Trump administration plan to lower automotive mileage targets for future model years ... would result in hundreds of dollars in added costs for consumers, according to a new U.S. Senate analysis," CR's Jeff Plungis wrote in January.

On the welcome page of the April 2020 Auto Issue, the editors cite only their "preoccupation with safety and quality," not the environment.

Of course, when you ignore a vehicle's impact on climate, any warmed-over crap with a smelly internal-combustion engine can shine.

OVERALL SCORES: The Tesla Model 3 gets an overall score of 80, but Consumer Reports gives higher marks to other Top 10 picks, notably the Toyota Avalon, a large sedan (93); Kia Telluride, a 3-row SUV (92) that gets only 21 mpg; the Subaru Legacy, a midsize sedan (87); and the Subaru Forester, a small SUV (84).

'Safety and quality' 

The editors call their Top 10 Picks "the most exceptional new cars on the road today," but one look at the gas- mileage figures will have a Prius owner or a EV enthusiast like me howling with laughter at the suckers who fall for CR's hype.

Only 2 out of 10 gas-engine cars get more than 30 mpg: The Toyota Corolla (33 mpg) and Toyota Prius, a hybrid (52 mpg).

Toyota's Avalon, a large sedan, is listed at 42 mpg, but that's for the hybrid version mentioned in the text. 

The editors don't even urge readers to buy the Avalon hybrid over the gas-engine version.

Subaru obsession

Long-time readers of Consumer Reports know how obsessed the editors are with all-wheel-drive Subarus, despite noisy engines, poor gas mileage and the lack of a gas-electric hybrid in the model lineup until recently.

The 2020 Top 10 list includes the Subaru Forester, a small SUV; and the Subaru Legacy, a midsize sedan, both of which get a pathetic 28 mpg.

On the editors' Best + Worst Lists, the best 3 are Porsche, a small manufacturer of very expensive, gas-guzzling sports cars, sports sedans and SUVs; Genesis, a luxury model from Hyundai; and Subaru.

Tesla is listed in 11th place, an 8-place improvement from the 2019 Best + Worst Lists.

The bottom 8 of 33 brands listed are: GMC, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar, Cadillac, Land Rover, Jeep, Mitsubishi and Fiat.

Under Best Owner Satisfaction, Tesla's Model 3 leads all sedans for $45,000 to $55,000. 

The Tesla Model S leads sedans over $55,000, and the Tesla Model X is 5th on the list of SUVs over $55,000. 

Marketing and hype

In the editors' welcome to the 99-page issue, they write:

"Marketing claims abound, but CR is uniquely qualified to advise you because we never accept advertising, and we anonymously buy every vehicle we test, to the tune of $2 million each year.

"We've also made changes to address the fact that the world is in the midst of an automotive safety revolution," a reference to advance driver-assistance systems that can "automatically brake to avoid hitting another car or a pedestrian."

But when Consumer Reports ignores the tremendous impact of cars, SUVs and pickup trucks on the environment, air pollution and premature deaths, the nonprofit fails readers and makes a mockery of its investigative tradition.

CR is no different than Motor Trend, Car & Driver and other fan-boy magazines or YouTube channels like Redline Reviews, all influenced by free car loans, junkets to exotic locations to see new models and other forms of bribery.

Read: The coziness of auto writers,

 manufacturers and car dealers

Read: Can writers be objective

 when they get a free ride?

LONGEST EV RANGE: Teslas top the list of 2019 and 2020 models.

Consumer Reports trashes Tesla, Model 3, other EVs; and a new reason to hate SUVs

The Subaru Ascent SUV leads Consumer Report's list of Top 10 vehicles in 2019, even though a competing model, the Toyota Highlander, is more friendly to the environment. The Highlander, available with a gas-electric drivetrain, gets better mileage.

Environmental impact of cars 

missing in magazine's 2019 Auto Issue

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Consumer Reports' 2019 Auto Issue completely ignores the environmental impact of the 260 new vehicles that are rated and reviewed, just like the first such issue in 1948.

Not a single all-electric, zero-emissions vehicle makes the magazine's "10 Top Picks" this year, although the list includes three gas-electric hybrids from Toyota.

Topping the Top 10 is the 22-mpg Subaru Ascent, a 3-row midsize SUV, even though the Japanese automaker's Crosstrek is available as a plug-in gas-electric hybrid that gets far better gas mileage.

Shocking omission

Given climate change, global warming or whatever you want to call the heating up of the atmosphere from burning fossil fuels, the refusal of the magazine's testers to give vehicles an environmental grade is shocking.

When he unveiled the Model 3 in March 2016, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he hoped the mainstream sedan would accelerate the transition to "sustainable transportation."

And he noted electric vehicles are more important than ever in view of 58,000 premature deaths every year in the United States from tailpipe emissions.

The automotive media, including Consumer Reports (CR), ignored him then just as they are doing know.

Tesla and other automakers should get points for the number of zero-emissions and gas-electric hybrids in their lineup, just as CR knocks itself out praising them for "impressive fuel economy" (19 mpg in the Ford F-150, for example).

Instead, in a March 15 report sent to readers, CR asks, "As Tesla unveils Model Y crossover, should consumers buy into drama-filled company?"

The piece was by Jeff Plungis, identified as CR's lead "automotive investigative reporter."

2019 Auto Issue

In a section on "How the Brands Stack Up" (defined as companies offering "consumers strong-performing and problem-free vehicles") EV maker Tesla dropped 11 places to 19th among 33 brands (behind Buick, but ahead of Ford, Nissan and Chrysler).

On the "Best + Worst Lists," Tesla's Model 3 is "no longer recommended" because of "declining reliability," along with the Acura RDX, Chrysler 300, BMW 5 series, Dodge Charger and Volkswagen Tiguan.

The Model 3 problems described by readers were cosmetic, and don't affect its high safety rating.

No category for EVs

In another section, "New Car Ratings," EVs do not appear in their own categories.

Under "Cars: Compact Electric and Hybrids," two Toyota gas-electric hybrids are rated higher than the Chevrolet Bolt EV Premier, and the Honda Insight EX is tied with the Bolt.

That's bewildering in view of the improved Bolt -- a fast, quiet, tight four-door hatchback you can drive with one pedal: 

Lift off the gas and the battery electric car comes to a stop at a crosswalk, stop sign or traffic light.

And CR dropped the Bolt from its Top 10 list this year.

Teslas finish 4th

Tesla's Model 3 is listed 4th among "Cars: Luxury Compact" after the Acura TLX, Infiniti Q50 and Kia Stinger.

The Tesla Model S -- the first car to achieve an overall score of 100 points from CR -- also finished 4th among "Cars: Ultraluxury." 

Ahead of the Model S were three gas-thirsty cars the Tesla outsells by far: 

Mercedes-Benz S550, BMW 750i (xDrive) and Genesis G90.

Electric Jag?

I could not find any mention in the 2019 Auto Issue of the all-electric 2019 Jaguar I-Pace, which is being advertised on TV in the New York-New Jersey area.

Subaru's Crosstrek, a plug-in hybrid, merits only a few words under "New Car Profiles."

The section on "New Cars Worth Waiting For" lists only 8 vehicles, including 6 gas-guzzling SUVs, 1 sedan and 1 sports car.

Among the 6 so-called sport utility vehicles is the monstrous Lincoln Aviator, to be available with 400- and 450-horsepower engines.

That abomination from Lincoln flunks every environmental test.

Read: Years late, CR puts an EV on Top 10 list

The Toyota Supra, above, a 2-seater that will go on sale this summer, is being built in partnership with BMW and is based on the German automaker's Z4 roadster, according to Consumer Reports' April 2019 Auto Issue.

SUVs are deadlier

Consumer Reports continues to ignore the menace of big SUVs, which use more gasoline and pollute more than other vehicles, and make traffic congestion worse because they take up so much more space than other vehicles.

Not to mention how aggressively they are driven.

Yet, in a section of the 2019 Auto Issue called "Making the World Safer for Pedestrians," the magazine notes "the unforgiving structure of SUVs, when compared with the lower profile of cars, is adding to the [pedestrian] death toll," according to research by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

"Higher-riding SUVs and other light trucks -- which now account for almost 70 percent of U.S. vehicle sales, up from nearly 50 percent a decade ago -- mean that pedestrians are more likely to be hit in the abdomen or head than at the legs, which leads to more serious injuries and fatalities."

CR says vehicles with pedestrian-detection systems and automatic emergency braking are one way to slow the rising number of pedestrians killed in the past decade.

The magazine said  that in 2017, 5,977 pedestrians were fatally hit by vehicles -- a 45 percent increase from 4,109 such deaths in 2009, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

So, it's hard to understand how CR can then turn around and recommend any SUV to readers, who could find as much room, all-wheel drive and even a hybrid drivetrain in a minivan.