If you’re in the market for a reliable electric vehicle, you should probably skip Tesla. At least according to the latest reliability report from Consumer Reports. The American automaker ranked 27th out of 28 brands, only beating out Lincoln, which scored a shockingly low 18 out of 100.
That said, electric crossovers did pretty badly as a whole, with only the Ford Mustang Mach E earning an above-average reliability score:
[A]ll-electric SUVs are the lowest-ranking category, with an overall reliability of below average. A popular belief is that because electric models have fewer drive components there is less that can go wrong. However, automakers continue to add new technology to these advanced models, beyond the powertrains, particularly the luxury models such as the Audi E-Tron and Tesla Model X. Members often report more problems with their in-car electronics and power equipment than with the electric drivetrain.
It’s also important to note that CR chose not to rank Alfa Romeo, Dodge, Fiat, Jaguar, Land Rover, Maserati, Mitsubishi and Polestar because they either don’t offer enough models, or it wasn’t able to collect enough data.
According to Reuters, Jake Fisher, CR’s director of vehicle testing, talked more about Tesla’s reliability issues during a presentation to the Detroit Automotive Press Association. The Model 3 actually has an average reliability score, but the rest of the lineup is all below average.
Fisher went on to point out that the Model X’s gullwing doors continue to be a problem, as does the deceptively named and bug-riddled “Full Self Driving” software. As SFGate reports, air conditioning, heat pumps and misaligned body panels caused additional reliability issues for Tesla. The Model X also had the lowest reliability score among individual models that CR ranked, earning a 5 out of 100.
The biggest disappointment, however, might be that Alfa Romeo wasn’t ranked on this year’s list. Much like Tesla, it’s also a notoriously unreliable brand that owners continue to be passionate about driving. In fact, you could even make the argument that Tesla is America’s Alfa Romeo.
But is Tesla even less reliable? Hopefully, next year, we’ll get that answer. Until then, Tesla owners can at least take comfort that Lincoln fared even worse in CR’s reliability rankings. Unless they drive a Model X.