Leading from the previous story where 6 of the top 10 worst cars on sale were from Detroit, the influential Consumer Reports magazine has found that the domestics are lagging the Japanese in numerous comparison tests, as reported by The Detroit News. The domestics fail mainly on the reliability front, but Detroit’s latest model redesigns have gained crucial points in the reliability stakes when compared with prior-model-year vehicles.

This bodes well for Ford and GM’s next generation products that will share the same platforms, as each new model gains significant ground over the last. A prime example is GMs upcoming redesigned full-sized SUVs based on the platform that’s currently used by the Tahoe. The survey also found that the Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr midsized cars also rated highly for reliability.

Toyota and Honda still leading the pack by a significant margin, with the hybrid Prius coming out as the most satisfying vehicle for the third year in a row. Overall the results match those found in recent surveys from J.D. Power and Associates and Strategic Vision, with 39 Japanese vehicles in the 47 top-rated vehicles for reliability.