J.D. Power Study Shows Quality Tide Lifts Virtually All Brands; Porsche Takes Top Spot - Again
June 04, 2008

By Michelle Krebs

And the winners are: American car buyers.

The quality of vehicles built for American consumers has improved virtually across the board, according to J. D. Power and Associate's just-released 2008 Initial Quality Study, which measures quality in the first 90 days of ownership. In turn, initial quality is a good predictor of long-term durability. The study, released Wednesday, showed substantial initial quality gains made by three-quarters of the 36 ranked nameplates.

Individual winners were:
· Porsche took first place among all 36 nameplates in initial quality for the third consecutive year. Its 911 had the fewest quality problems in the industry.
· Honda captured three segment awards - more than any other nameplate in the study -- for the Civic, CR-V and Fit.
· Chevrolet (Malibu and Silverado LD), Infiniti (EX- and M-Series), Lexus  (LS and RX) and Mercedes-Benz (CLK- and E-Class) took two segment awards each.
· Other segment award winners were the Ford E-Series, Lincoln Navigator, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Pontiac Grand Prix sedan and Toyota Sequoia.

Auto Industry Makes the Grade

The study showed that overall vehicle quality in 2008 models improved 6 percent over 2007 models to 118 problems per 100 vehicles, down from 125 problems per 100 vehicles a year ago. The study captures problems experienced by buyers in the early days of ownership in two major categories - quality of design as well as defects and malfunctions.

"This is good news for the industry," David Sargent J. D. Power's vice president of automotive research, told members of Detroit's Automotive Press Association at a briefing on the study Tuesday. Of the 36 brands ranked, 26 showed quality improvement. Two stayed the same, seven dropped and one -- Mini -- was not on the 2007 list for comparison.

"This gain is driven not only by strong advances from many of the high-volume brands such as Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota, but also by very significant improvements by many other automakers," said Sargent.

The study found that 86 percent of the overall improvement is due to advances in eliminating defects and malfunctions. Sargent said the next frontier is design quality, which will become increasingly important in the future.

Consumers answer 228 questions about their vehicle's quality; those questions fall into eight categories. Sargent said automakers across the board showed improvement in seven of the eight categories. The only one in which they did not improve was the audio, entertainment and navigation section

Winning Nameplates

Porsche took the top spot among nameplates for the third consecutive year, even improving on last year's performance by averaging only 87 problems per 100 vehicles, down from 91 in 2007.

"Porsche continues its steady improvement and has succeeded in distancing itself from the second-ranked nameplate to a greater degree in 2008 - a gap of 11 problems per 100 vehicles - compared with three in 2007," Sargent noted.

Rounding out the top five spots in order were: Infiniti, Lexus and Mercedes-Benz tying with Toyota.

Infiniti, Audi and Cadillac made the most significant gains. Infiniti moved to second place from last year's ninth; Audi and Cadillac tied for 10th spot, with Audi moving from 26th and Cadillac coming from last year's 25th place. Sargent said significantly improved quality for the A4 and A5 boosted Audi; Cadillac got bumps from all of its models, including the newly launched CTS. Pontiac, buoyed by the G6, climbed to 13th from 21st place. Chevrolet had 12 of its 16 models improve, with Tahoe, Malibu and Silverado among them.

Ford improved better than the industry pace with 11 of its 14 models, including the Escape, Explorer and Fusion, showing quality improvements. However, Lincoln dropped from third to 15th. Sargent said he would not comment specifically on why Lincoln, which is in the process of reinventing itself and introducing new models, dropped in the rankings.

While still below industry average, Mazda (22nd from 34th), Volkswagen (31st to 24th)  and Hummer (25th from 33rd) also moved up the quality ladder. Mazda got a lift from its high-quality Mazda3, which accounts for about half of its sales. Hummer's boost came from the H3's quality enhancements. VW models improved across the line.

Heading in the wrong direction were: Scion (27th from 11th), Saab (31st from 21st) and Saturn (33rd from 19.) However, Sargent noted the three brands, all of which introduced new models of late, will reverse direction within the next year or two. He pointed out that Saturn has in very short order completely revamped its entire line, adding new models and vastly redesigning existing ones. Launches of new and extensively redesigned ones often lead to teething pains, he said.

Chrysler's quality performance was subpar, in part, because of a number of new model launches. Dodge ranked 28th, up from 30th; Chrysler fell to spots to 29th, and Jeep ranked dead last. Under ownership by Cerberus, Chrysler has said it is making quality a top priority and has appointed the industry's own quality officer, one with experience at Nissan and Toyota.

Individual Grades

Sargent noted that "the democratization of quality" based on the vast array of nameplates in its segment awards. The 18 first-place awards went to 11 brands with no company receiving more than three.

Honda models captured three segment awards - more than any other nameplate in the 2008 study - for the Civic, CR-V and Fit.

Garnering two segment awards each were: Chevrolet for the just-launched Malibu and Silverado LD; Dodge for the Dakota and Durango; Infiniti for the all-new EX and M-Series; Lexus for the LS and RX; and Mercedes-Benz for the CLK and E-Class. Toyota, which often takes home several awards, took only one -- for the Sequoia.

The Porsche 911 had the fewest quality problems in the industry with just 67 problems per 100 vehicles.

Segment Award Winners

J. D. Power calls out the top three models for initial quality in two major categories for awards based on initial quality ratings: car and trucks/multi-activity vehicles (MAV), also known as SUVs or crossovers, with each category having subsegments. The winners, in order of their rankings, are:

Subcompact car: Honda Fit, Kia Rio, Hyundai Accent

Compact Car: Honda Civic, Toyota Prius, Hyundai Elantra sedan

Compact Sporty Car: Mazda MX-5 Miata, Subaru Impreza, Pontiac Solstice

Compact Premium Sporty Car: Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class, Porsche Cayman, Volvo C70

Entry Premium Vehicle: Infiniti EX-Series; Infiniti G-Series, tie between Acura TSX and Volvo S40

Midsize Premium Car: Infiniti M-Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class (tie for first); Audi A6 and Lexus ES350 (tie for second)

Large Premium Car: Lexus LS, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Cadillac DTS

Midsize Car: Chevrolet Malibu, Mitsubishi Galant, Ford Fusion

Large Car: Pontiac Grand Prix sedan, Mercury Sable, Mercury Grand Marquis

Compact MAV: Honda CR-V, Chrysler PT Cruiser, Ford Escape

Midsize MAV: Dodge Durango, Hyundai Santa Fe, Toyota Highlander

Large MAV: Toyota Sequoia, Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon

Midsize Premium MAV: Lexus RX, Lexus GS 470, Porsche Cayenne

Large Premium MAV: Lincoln Navigator, Infiniti QX56, Cadillac Escalade

Large Pickup: Chevrolet Silverado LD, Toyota Tundra, Chevrolet Avalanche

Midsize Pickup: Dodge Dakota, Ford Ranger, Toyota Tacoma

Van: Ford E-Series, Nissan Quest, Chevrolet Express

New Launches: Victories for Chevy Malibu, Infiniti EX

J. D. Power's Sargent noted that often vehicles take a hit on initial quality when they are all new or vastly redesigned. He said manufacturer launches, an arena for intense competition among makers, are improving. Two models not only bucked the trend but won awards in their segments: the completely redesigned 2008 Chevrolet Malibu and the all-new Infiniti EX.

"In past years, automakers have frequently struggled to achieve very high initial quality with new models," said Sargent. "With product launches and redesigns often being problematic for manufacturers from a quality standpoint, so it is particularly impressive that the Chevrolet Malibu and Infiniti EX-Series achieve such high levels of quality that they receive awards in their launch year."

Continued Challenge: High Tech

J. D. Power noted that minimizing design problems remains a major challenge for the industry, particularly since new technology, such as navigation and entertainment devices, is becoming increasingly common in today's new vehicles.

"As consumer demand for new and more advanced wireless communication, navigation and audio technology continues to grow, manufacturers face challenges related to how well these systems are integrated into their vehicles," said Sargent.

In particular, he noted, issues with difficult-to-use audio and entertainment controls and voice command recognition failure are among the top 10 problems most frequently reported by customers. "Since hands-free communication for drivers will become a mandate in more and more areas throughout the U.S., this will need to be an area of continued focus for automakers," he said.

Downsizing Trend

J. D. Power's 2008 IQS study reinforces recent sales figures, Edmunds.com's shopping consideration data and May sales numbers released by manufacturers only Tuesday: consumers are rapidly shifting away from the large models to smaller ones due to rising fuel prices.

"The good news for consumers in this difficult environment is that they can downsize with confidence as there are many models with high initial quality in the smaller-vehicle segments," said Sargent.

J. D. Power forecasts that 28 new compact vehicle models will launch by 2010. "And it will be particularly important for manufacturers to ensure high initial quality in these launches," said Sargent.

Assembly Plant Winners

J. D. Power's Initial Quality Study also takes note of assembly plants turning out superior quality by presenting one platinum award to the best plant in the world as well as gold, silver and bronze awards to plants by regions. The awards go to plants that produce vehicles yielding the fewest defects and malfunctions. This year's winners are:

Platinum: Mercedes-Benz assembly plant in Sindelfingen, Germany, which produces the CL-Class, CLS-Class, S-Class and E-Class sedan and wagon. The plant averaged just 33 problems per 100 vehicles produced.

North and South America: Gold to Toyota's Baja California Mexico plant that produces the Tacoma; Silver to Toyota's San Antonio, Texas, plant that builds the Toyota Tundra; Bronze - General Motors' Fairfax, Kansas, plant that builds the Chevrolet Malibu and Saturn Aura. The three plants were extremely close in problems per 100 vehicles produced - within the margin of error: 42 for Toyota's Mexico plant, 43 for Toyota's Texas plant and 45 for GM's Kansas plant.

Asia-Pacific: Gold to Toyota's Fujimatsu, Japan, plant that builds the Toyota Prius; Silver to Nissan's Tochigi, Japan plant that builds the Infiniti EX, G35 sedan, G37 coupe, M35, M45 as well as Nissans 350-Z; Bronze to Toyota's Tahara, Japan, plant that builds the Lexus GS 350, GS 460, GS 450h, GX 470, IS 250, IS 350, IS-F, LS 460, LS 600h as well as the Toyota 4Runner, Land Cruiser and RAV4. The average problems per 100 vehicles ranged from 38 to 44.

Europe: Silver to Porsche's Stuttgart, Germany plant that builds the Porsche 911, cabriolet and coupe, averaging 37 problems per 100 vehicles; and Bronze to BMW's Regensburg, Germany, plant that assembles the BMW 30Series convertible, coupe and sedan, averaging 39 problems per 100 vehicles.

Study Details

The 2008 IQS is based on responses from more than 81,500 purchasers and lessees of new 2008 model-year cars and trucks surveyed after 90 days of ownership. The study is based on a 228-question study fielded between February and April 2008 for consumers who bought or leased 2008 model year vehicles between November 2007 and January 2008.

 

 

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