The automobile has probably got the worst environment for electronics. They’re very dry, very dusty; or very hot and humid; or very cold and wet.

Rust has virtually gone away.

This is a normal diesel engine in this Jetta. What we’ve done is in the rear of the vehicle we’ve put a separate fuel tank that holds the french fry oil. That is transported to...

The progress that some of the manufacturers have been making seems to have stalled.

Safety is our primary theme. Basically, cars are getting much, much better. At one time, one or two cars stood out in the pack. Now we’re seeing in most categories that there are three or...

I think it’s desperately time for a change.

It goes as far on a gallon of french-fry oil as it does on a gallon of diesel. But, of course, the french-fry oil is a lot cheaper.

Everyone can see you’re driving a hybrid.

Once GM gets to average reliability on our scores, they seem to take the emphasis off continual improvement. We see other manufacturers that are mortified by an average score. It’s a different mind-set.

It’s an unrealistic sales and marketing tool that they are actually using. They are saying you’re going to get 35 miles per gallon and you’re really only going to get 21.

It’s better than nothing, but not by much.

The Japanese seem to have great attention to detail. Everything is well thought out. Their cars are extremely reliable, but also, really quite simple in in terms of the engineering that’s gone into them.

With the backing of Ford, and the money and engineering expertise (Ford provides), they also get the buying power to purchase parts from suppliers that Ford already has deals with; and all of that makes...

You can make probably 50 percent difference in your gas mileage just by how you drive.

The Japanese manufacturers have great attention to detail, they make cars people want to buy. Their cars have great reliability.

And as we back up, it actually shows you where you’re going to go.

Domestic vehicles have made substantial advances, Ford is doing better than GM and Chrysler, but new model launches are not as good. We are seeing many more electronic features, and that’s the biggest trouble area...

You don’t really need to forego practicality to have sports car performance.

The electrical and electronic features tend to be problematic, so they could be causing a leveling off of reliability even though the rest of the car is getting more reliable.

Just one in ten of the vehicles we tested achieved fuel economies as good as or better than EPA estimates.

I don’t think people get the full perspective of how in-depth we go into cars from the small amount of press that we get. We try to allay some of the fears that people have....

It’s a bit of a wake-up call for Nissan. I’m sure they are working extremely hard to improve these vehicles. They really need to put all those problems to bed.

Diesel fuel stinks compared to gasoline.

If the car skids out of control it brings the car back into line.

I don’t think parents really realize the potential danger of power windows.

The redesigned Honda Civic is a major improvement over the previous generation. The 2006 Civic is refined and economical, with fairly nimble handling and relatively comfortable ride.

When cars are launched, we see the first year of a redesigned model as less reliable than later years. First-year blues, we call it.

It all depends on how you drive the vehicle. We run them the way people really drive in the city.

Current EPA figures are definitely misleading and ultimately expensive for consumers.

It’s nearly always electrical and power equipment.

It’s a bit of a wakeup call for Nissan. I’m sure they are working extremely hard to improve these vehicles. They really need to put all those problems to bed.

The E.P.A. test was developed in the 1970’s and is not reflective of the way cars are driven today.

All the big electronics companies are based in Japan. So when you start putting a lot of electronics and electrical systems in, I think they probably have the best infrastructure to make the sub-assemblies.

I think they’ve lost their competitive edge in terms of reliability.

Blowouts occur on all manufactures of tires.