Most of you have probably heard about the Consumer Reports fiasco that resulted in the termination of Samurai sales in the US.  The following video provides details worth knowing:
http://www.billswebspace.com/suzukivsconsumerreports.wmv

thats an amazing video everyone should watch this and all i have to say is those B__tards

Also available at Ack's FAQ:

http://www.acksfaq.com/videos/suzukivsconsumerreports.wmv

or by searching for consumer  at Ack's FAQ...

I didn't know that you had this, ack.  Ack's resources continue to surprise me.  If you haven't explored his site, you don't know what you're missing!

that is just another example of the media slanting information to prove there point,
I had seen this before, and even though it was deceptive the numbers speak for themselves, people only do what they are told.
and no matter what the outcome a retraction on page 6g never corrects the careless actions of individuals in influential positions.
consumer reports has brainwashed a generation, I know people who wont buy toliet paper with consulting them first. it is great to have a source of informaiton but to rely strictly on it, well that just makes us sheep, to scared to move on our own.
there are many things in this country headed down this road of force feeding both information and choices.
america has sold most of what it was for cheap electronics and from the looks of things a whole lot of lead based paint.
we have substituted value for price in this country, and if the consumer reports things shows anything, people can be influenced (not to say it was this way) who was consumer reports influence.
it is discourageing to see.
enjoy your unacceptable vehicles and dont be driven like no stunt driver.

 

hurray redbeard well said we live amongst the sheep bahhhhh

and to think i was born in the year of the sheep.

Hmmm, I have a different perspective on CR:

THANX to their slant on the Samurai, Suzuki offered a $1500 discount off a new 88.5 Samurai; which I promptly took advantage of (88.5 JA Champagne Gold HT for $6100 list + $1K for AC). At the same time, Samurais were selling for up to $10K+ in some markets (ie: Cali) by the time the dealer loaded on all the available Suzuki bling (ever see an OEM 88.5 accessories brochure?), low profile tires, wheels, lowered suspension, PINK paint & wild graphics. I'll NEVER forget the first Samurai I saw in the HOOD, er Ghetto, as it was called at the time.

The Wichita dealership was bought by Schofield Pontiac & soon you could expect a month's wait for such parts as touch-up paint, floor "buckets" and rear cocoa cargo mat (only 3 blings I ever bought). Suzuki knelt to GM  & shoved Trackers & Metros as fast as possible through GM dealers who didn't give a hoot, nor knew what they were selling. Believe the GTi was pretty much the only product you HAD to go to Suzuki for, IF you knew about it & could find a dealer.

I think Suzuki also cut their own throat. Must be some reason the Cowtown dealership changed hands 3 times; & Manhattan, Topeka, Dodge (or Garden?) City,  & Leavenworth closed. It's a good sign that the newer dealerships seem to be staying in business.

CR's tests were biased to expose rollover, as anyone could judge by watching their video. I can guess why they didn't go after the Bronco II, which had a higher avg. death rate at that time.

An observation on CR ratings:
Top rated items drop in ratings in the following years! Why? So many people bought & expected fantastic performance that anything less resulted in a large # of gripes from readers.

I prefer to think of people as cattle . . . . but then I live 2 blocks from the KSU ag farm's dairy herd, horsie pasture, feed lot, & swine facility; while the sheep pasture is more like a mile as the vulture flies. Next door neighbor (dairy mgr) fires his diesel up at 0500, while I never hear another next door neighbor (sheep prof) leave the house. 

thanks  for sharing   that was a great read with some very interesting points.

Welcome to KCZUKS, 4xoddic!

Thanks for the info, and feel free to post to our "Introductions" page, and tell us something about your Zuk:
http://www.kczuks.com/forum/index.php/board,17.0.html

I will try to provide the Reader's Digest version here...

I am going to address only what Consumers Union did here.

From the video and reading court papers (freely available for you to examine on the internet) I believe that Consumer's Union acted willfully and purposely to ruin the credibility of the Suzuki Samurai as a safe vehicle.  They did it for the purpose of increasing readership.  They did it because Suzuki was in less of a position to defend themselves in the press than the other vehicle makers in the same test group (including Ford and AMC).

Why did the suit ultimately get settled out of court?

If you read the court papers and commentary found elsewhere by legal experts and historians, this case put forth a challenge to a concept that is part of free speech as we know it in western civilization: 

If you allow people/organizations to sue publishers of information claiming that the information that was published was damaging to you/your organization then the potential liability of publishing anything becomes so great that free speech can be abridged by legal action.

While even I think this is a bit far-fetched (hey the Suzuki vs Consumer's Union lawsuit was handled by the most liberal - or whacky depending on your point of view - US circuit court in the US), the idea does give one pause.  If Suzuki had taken the matter to court and won, it would mean that if you have money, you could sue the pants off anyone who does not agree with you.  It doesn't matter if you win or not, it only matters that - once the threat of a suit exists - people stop expressing themselves in the face of serious costs for defending one's beliefs.

So the parties agreed to settle out of court instead of opening a potential can of worms that could have forever changed free speech as we know it.

Interesting to think about, yes?

Yes.

yeth !