Consumer Reports’ 2012 Top Picks served up American style

Following annual tradition, it’s time again for our American Top Picks list spotlighting the top-scoring domestic-branded models in Consumer Reports testing. An alternative compilation to our official 2012 Top Picks, here we show the buyer who favors buying an “American” car the many strong choices that have stood out in our tests.

Here are the rules: To qualify as a Top Pick, a car must rank at or near the top of its category in overall test score. Reliability must be average or better, based on problems reported by Consumer Reports subscribers in the latest Annual Auto Survey. And Top Picks must perform well (if tested) overall in government or industry crash and rollover tests.

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It is clear that this competitive marketplace offers more impressive product than ever before. Though, as the auto industry becomes truly global, it can be difficult to discern what is truly an American car. In creating this list, we focused on the traditional domestic automakers: Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors. Although these companies build many vehicles in other countries, many foreign-nameplate brands build here in America. For those who want a domestic car that’s assembled in the United States, note that the Chevrolet Equinox/GMC Terrain twins are actually built in Ontario, Canada, and the Ford Fusion is built in Mexico.

Without further adieu, we present this year’s list of winners, shown alongside the official Top Picks. Note that the Chevrolet Avalanche and Ford Mustang appear on both lists.

Small car: This is a frustrating one. The year has brought a lot of improvement in this segment for the domestics, but they each fall short of winning the prize. The Ford Focus is a nice car that is a joy to drive, but it hasn’t been reliable in its first year. Same goes for the Ford Fiesta. The Chevrolet Cruze is also unreliable. The Dodge Dart has potential, but we haven’t tested it yet. We don’t have reliability for the decent, new Chevrolet Sonic yet. So nothing qualifies here. Maybe next year.

Family sedan: With 34 mpg overall in our tests, the Ford Fusion Hybrid can’t touch the 38 mpg overall from the revised Toyota Camry Hybrid, or the Camry’s roomier rear seat. But Fusion is enjoyable to drive and has a quiet cabin. Reliability and owner satisfaction have been excellent.