How are predicted reliability rates determined?

How are predicted reliability rates determined?

James Bell (Publisher, Auto Reviewer) gives expert video advice on: How can I find the predicted reliability rating for the vehicle I want? and more...

Reliability ratings are difficult to ascertain because sometimes you don't know how the person has used the vehicle. If you are speaking to an owner about how reliable the vehicle has been, potentially they haven't been following the <a href="http://www.videojug.com/interview/general-car-maintenance-2">car maintenance</a> schedule very closely so the vehicle has been responding accordingly. Reliability ratings are a very imprecise science when you're just talking to owners, because you don't know how they feel about the car in general, and therefore their feelings about the vehicle could be causing some impact or seasoning their results when they are discussing the vehicle's reliability.