They are trusted because that is all they do, review products. Generally the well established, well known names are the way to go when it comes to reading any type of review.
Trusting information about something as pricey as a vehicle requires good sourcing, sound facts, and unbiased advice.
Targeted help
Consumer Reports goes one step further by offering information about new vehicles and used vehicles.
Under the new category they provide:
Conversely, under the used category they provide:
Handy unbiased advice
Consumer reports prides themselves on the fact that they accept no advertising, or free samples and that they purchase each car, which they test above and beyond to provide a real in-depth review.
They also provide a handy best-in-class list broken down by the following categories:
Tools make research easy
Consumer Reports offers a whole array of tools aimed at people researching a car for both buying and selling purposes. The website is easy to navigate and smartly organized to lead every user right to the information they seek.
The home page is proficient and full of tools. One of the best tools provides links to video clips of crash testing for a wide array of different makes and models.
Visual proof of how your car would react should the unthinkable happen.
An expensive drawback
Although we find Consumer Reports to be a most helpful source of information, it comes at a price. The website is well maintained and truly intuitively organized. These small luxuries alone allow the site big points in the credibility department.
However it depends how much money you are willing to spend for convenience.
Six dollars a month isn’t much for one who does heavy research, but we’re willing to bet most people don’t use the site six dollars worth in a year, much less a month.
Although we must admit to our own subscription.