DETROIT — Buick is the first U.S.-based automotive brand to crack the top 10 in Consumer Reports magazine’s annual brand report cards.

U.S. automakers also placed three vehicles on the magazine’s list of “top picks” for vehicles, the first time that’s happened in 17 years. The rankings were unveiled Tuesday in the magazine’s annual auto issue.

Buick, made by General Motors, placed seventh in the brand rankings. But the brand rankings and top picks still were dominated by Japanese and German manufacturers, with Lexus, Mazda, Toyota, Audi and Subaru taking the top five brand spots.

The magazine calculates each brand’s overall score with a composite of its vehicles’ road-test scores and reliability scores for each model.

Porsche placed just ahead of Buick at No. 6, while Honda, Kia and BMW rounded out the top 10 brands. Mercedes-Benz, Acura and Infiniti all suffered declines in their rankings due to unreliable new models or poor road test scores. Mercedes fell out of the top 10 to 21st, while Acura dropped from No. 2 to 11 with an unimpressive test of the new RLX sedan.

In the model rankings, the top overall finisher was California-based Tesla’s Model S electric car, for the second year in a row. The Model S, which cost the magazine $89,650, finished first due to its performance and technical innovations. Buick’s Regal midsize car beat the BMW 328i as the top sports sedan, and the Chevrolet Impala was named the top large car.

The model rankings are closely watched in the auto industry, since many car shoppers rely on Consumer Reports.

Other top picks included the Subaru Impreza in the compact car category, Subaru Legacy in midsize cars, Toyota Prius as the best green car, Audi A6 luxury car, Subaru Forester small SUV, Toyota Highlander midsize SUV and the Honda Odyssey minivan.

Japanese vehicles won six of 10 top pick categories, but that was the smallest number in the 19-year history of Consumer Reports top picks.

Other U.S.-based automakers still had problems among the 28 brands ranked. Chrysler finished 23rd, followed by Ford, Dodge, Mini, Jeep and Fiat.

Consumer Reports buys vehicles anonymously and performs more than 50 tests on them.