Consumer Reports delcares Tundra and Sequoia most reliable for 2009

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While it’s true that Consumer Reports uses an awkward and fundamentally flawed metric (vehicle owner surveys + historical data) to determine their reliability scores, it’s always nice to see some good press for the Tundra…especially when all the recent talk has been about Tundra frame rust concerns.
Consumer Reports has said that the Tundra and the Sequoia are the most reliable vehicles in their respective classes. Of course, Consumer Reports’ acknowledgment of the Tundra comes with a caveat – they’re only recommending the V6 Tundra as most reliable…the 4×4 V8 Tundra is actually cited as the “least reliable Toyota model.”
Doesn’t it seem a little impossible for one version of the Tundra to be the most reliable pickup in it’s class when another version of the Tundra is Toyota’s least reliable model?
Ya – we think so too. Here’s what Consumer Reports has to say under the heading “Asian Brands Still Dominate”:
“Toyota…had just one vehicle that was below average in reliability, the Lexus GS AWD”
Contrast this info against the Tundra’s status as “least reliable” vehicle and it sounds like Consumer Reports needs to put an asterisk on that designation. The Tundra V8 4wd models have average reliability… just not quite as far above average as the rest of the Toyota lineup.
This seems like an important distinction, doesn’t it?
We’ve been critical of Consumer Reports in the past – specifically for announcing that they weren’t going to automatically recommend the Tundra in 2007. Evidently, Consumer Reports automatically recommends new models sometimes without gathering any data…and they decided not to do that with the Tundra back in 2007. Then they made an announcement saying they “couldn’t recommend the Tundra.”
Seems like they shouldn’t ever automatically recommend a vehicle.
Frankly, Consumer Reports seems to be ran by a bunch of people who don’t understand pickups. For example, their recommended full-size pickup is anything but a “full-size,” yet Consumer Reports has the audacity to say this particular truck “rewrites the book on pickups” and compliments this vehicles’ sedan like ride.
Excuse me? Sedan like ride? Sedan like ride doesn’t usually haul the boat to the lake. By the way, we can’t name this vehicle to you because you have to subscribe to CR to find out what it is, but we’ll give you a hint: you’re not going to be hauling much with this “truck.” Try thousands of pounds less than all of it’s competitors.
In any case, thanks Consumer Reports for illustrating so clearly how screwed up your rankings can be. According to C.R.:

The Tundra is both the most reliable pickup of 2009 and the least reliable Toyota model
The top recommended “full-size truck” doesn’t offer a V8
2 years ago CR announced they couldn’t automatically recommend the Tundra

Put another way, recognition from Consumer Reports is dubious.