Hybrids have 15% fewer problems than gas cars, while EVs and plug-in hybrids have about 80% more, Consumer Reports finds

Consumer Reports found that hybrid vehicles have 15% fewer problems on average than gas-only cars, while electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids have about 80% more. The nonprofit publisher reached the figures in its annual reliability survey, updated December 4, 2025, which draws on responses covering roughly 380,000 vehicles owned by its members. The survey is not new, but its powertrain comparison remains a direct published measure of how the technologies compare.

The powertrain result is one of the clearest lines in the survey, and it remains a useful guide for anyone comparing technology types rather than individual models, because powertrain type is the variable the survey isolates. The reasons behind it are less obvious than the numbers, and the survey contains an exception that complicates the story: the most reliable new electric vehicle it identified was a Tesla.

Behind the 15% and 80% figures

Consumer Reports collects owner reports on problems across model years 2000 to 2025, and then compares defect rates by powertrain. In the survey write-up, hybrids came out 15% ahead of gas-only cars, and the combined group of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids came out about 80% worse. The survey reports those two powertrains together, so the 80% figure is a pooled result for both, not a separate number for battery-only cars.

The gap is a relative measure of problems reported, not a count of breakdowns or a statement about safety. A vehicle can have a lot of complaints about infotainment glitches or trim and still be mechanically sound, so the figure says more about how often owners had something to report than about how often cars failed to run. That framing also explains why a newer technology can post a high problem rate while still being widely bought and liked by the people driving it.

Newer designs and proven brands

The magazine's auto testing team offered two explanations for the split. Jake Fisher, senior director of auto testing, said that “many of the problems with EVs and plug-in hybrids are because they are newer designs compared to gas technology, so some kinks still continue to be worked out.”

Steven Elek, the program leader for auto data analytics, described why hybrids sit at the other end of the ranking. “One major reason why hybrids tend to be more reliable is that they're mostly made by brands that make reliable cars, such as Honda, Lexus, and Toyota,” he said. In other words, the hybrid advantage partly reflects who builds hybrids, not only how the technology works, since long-established makers have refined those systems across several generations.

That brand effect is one reason a single powertrain average can mislead. The same survey named the Tesla Model Y as “the most reliable new EV” that a shopper could buy, so the electric category's poor average is pulled down by specific vehicles instead of applying evenly. J.D. Power's separate owner-satisfaction work, which put premium battery-electric owner satisfaction at 786 in 2026, up from 756, measures how owners feel rather than how many faults they log, and the two studies do not contradict each other.

The charging unit failures behind Hyundai, Kia and Genesis scores

Consumer Reports singled out Hyundai, Kia and Genesis electric vehicles as a drag on the category because of failures in the integrated charging control unit, or ICCU, which led to recalls. The unit charges the 12-volt battery that runs the car's accessories and its computers.

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's filing for recall 24V-868, dated November 18, 2024, covers 145,235 vehicles: 100,880 model-year 2022 to 2024 Ioniq 5s, 28,932 Ioniq 6s, 8,158 Genesis GV60s, 5,270 Genesis GV70s and 1,995 Genesis G80s. Hyundai reported that the unit can suffer an internal failure that leaves it unable to charge the 12-volt battery, and that a vehicle driven until that battery is depleted “will lose all motive power, potentially increasing the risk of a crash.” The fix is a software update and, where needed, a replacement unit at no charge to owners.

It was the second recall for the defect. An earlier action, 24V-204, covered the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6, and WardsAuto reported that the November models were part of a previous March recall of nearly 99,000 Ioniq and Genesis vehicles for the same ICCU issue.

The dispute has since moved into court. A class action filed September 23, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington alleges that owners saw repeat failures even after replacement units were installed, and Steve Berman of the firm Hagens Berman said in the firm's announcement that Hyundai and Kia have now recalled these vehicles twice while owners still report problems, and that swapping a defective part for an identical one is not a genuine repair. Those are allegations from the plaintiffs' lawyers, and the automakers have not been found liable.

What the survey cannot yet show is whether the newer designs will close the gap. Consumer Reports' own explanation is that kinks are still being worked out, which makes the 80% figure a measure of where the technology stood in the survey data, and leaves open whether the recalls and software fixes will pull the Hyundai, Kia and Genesis numbers back toward the average.

This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.

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