According to Consumer Reports, Subaru’s strong predicted reliability and owner satisfaction marks drove it to the head of the pack.

Subaru rose from seventh in last year’s rankings. Among other Japanese brands, Toyota Motor Corp.’s Lexus luxury brand came fifth, Mazda Motor Corp. sixth and Toyota’s flagship brand ninth. The namesake brand of Honda Motor Co. was ranked 13th, while Nissan Motor Co. ranked 21st. South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co…