Ford 'In Dead Heat' With Toyota In Top Consumer Perception Survey

A day after the influential Consumer Reports dented Ford Motor Company with its findings that the automaker's new MyTouch on-board electronics system was balky and distracting, it said that its readers ranked the U.S. automaker as equal with with Japanese automaker Toyota in how positively they perceive the brands.

Toyota scored 147 points in CR's 2011 Car Brand Perception Survey, while Ford received 144 points, a margin the magazine called a "statistical dead heat" given the margin of error in surveys. The magazine, which is widely read by car buyers, said Ford had made strides in safety, quality and value, three key parts of the survey.