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Mumbai: Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus luxury brand once again stands alone atop an influential ranking on vehicle durability, marking Japan's continued domination over Detroit, according to a study published by JD Power and Associates.
The annual report, titled the `Vehicle Dependability Study', released today tracks quality over the first three years of ownership of a vehicle in a critical area weighed by American car buyers. Seven of the 14 brands with above-average rankings are owned by Japanese auto makers. Five domestic names, including Ford Motor Co.'s (F) vastly improved Ford brand, scored better than average, along with two European brands. General Motors Corp.'s (GM) premium Buick brand fell to sixth place from the first-place ranking it shared last year with Lexus, when it became the first brand in a dozen years to split the title with Lexus. In awards given to vehicles in each segment, Toyota easily bested its competitors: 11 of 20 individual awards went to Toyota or Lexus nameplates. Even as foreign brands overall beat Detroit-made cars and trucks, the Big Three's efforts to improve vehicle quality continued to pay off, with a number of important domestic players showing marked improvement. The study, which measures problems experienced by original owners of 3-year-old (2005 model year) vehicles, finds that, on average, customers report experiencing 75 per cent more problems in the third year of ownership than during the first 90 days. Those models with the largest increase in problem levels show the most pronounced declines in satisfaction and the likelihood of owners to recommend their vehicle model. In addition, while no model has fewer reported problems in the third year of ownership compared with the first three months, those models that average less than 35 per cent problem growth actually demonstrate improvement in overall satisfaction during the three-year period. "Understanding and minimising quality deterioration is critical for manufacturers, as it is a key driver of owner satisfaction and word of mouth recommendations," said David Sargent, vice president of automotive research at J.D. Power and Associates. "It is imperative that manufacturers design models that not only achieve high levels of initial quality but also attain high levels of longer-term dependability. Vehicle models that stand the test of time will help automaker profitability through superior owner satisfaction and recommendation rates." The study also finds that five of the top 10 problems reported industry-wide in the 2008 Vehicle Dependability Study were also among the top 10 most frequently reported problems in the 2005 Initial Quality Study, suggesting that the problems are identified by owners during the initial ownership period, but have not been rectified by automakers during the three-year ownership period. The problems include: 1. Excessive wind noise
2. Noisy brakes
3. Vehicle pulling to the left or right
4. Issues with the instrument panel/dashboard
5. Excessive window fogging "Although automakers have achieved tremendous gains in initial quality and dependability in recent years by specifically addressing customer concerns, these particular problems still prove challenging for manufacturers," said Sargent. "The fact that these problems have endured throughout the industry for many years suggests that additional focus on these issues prior to vehicle launch would benefit not only consumers, but also automakers through increased customer satisfaction." For a 14th consecutive year, Lexus ranks highest in vehicle dependability, improving by 25 problems per 100 vehicles since 2007 to achieve a score of 120 PP100. Following in the top five rankings are Mercury, Cadillac, Toyota and Acura, respectively. In addition, Lexus garners six segment awards - the most of any nameplate in 2008 - for the ES 330, GX 470, IS 300, LS 430, LX 470 and SC 430. Toyota follows with five segment awards for the Highlander, Prius, RAV4, Sequoia, and Tundra. Ford and Honda each capture two awards. Ford models receiving awards are the Crown Victoria and Ranger, while Honda earns awards for the Element and S2000. Models by Buick, Chevrolet, Hyundai, Mazda and Mercury each rank highest in one segment. SAAB is the most improved brand in the study, although it continues to rank below the industry average. SAAB improves by 65 PP100 since 2007. The study finds that long-term vehicle quality has improved by 5 per cent industry-wide in 2008 - with an overall decrease of 10 problems per 100 vehicles - compared with 2007. More than 60 per cent of the 38 nameplates included in the study improve in 2008, compared with 2007. Among the 19 segments included in the study, the midsize premium MAV segment demonstrates the most improvement in 2008 - 36 PP100 fewer than in 2007. The compact car and mid-size car segments also have much lower problem levels in 2008 than in 2007, and together account for more than one-half of the overall industry improvement. "The gains in dependability for compact and mid-size vehicles are good news for consumers who are downsizing their vehicles due to increasing fuel prices," said Sargent. "Consumers who purchase these smaller vehicles benefit not only from immediate gains in fuel economy, but also from improvements in long-term dependability, compared with previous years." The 2008 Vehicle Dependability Study is based on responses from more than 52,000 original owners of 2005 model-year vehicles. The study was fielded from January through April 2008. Westlake, California-based J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, training and customer satisfaction. Problems Per 100 Vehicles 2008 Nameplate VDS Ranking
Lexus 120
Mercury 151
Cadillac 55
Toyota 159
Acura 160
Buick 163
BMW 164
Lincoln 165
Honda 177
Jaguar 178
Porsche 193
Mitsubishi 197
Hyundai 200
Ford 204
Infiniti 204
Industry Average 206
Audi 207
Mercedes-Benz 215
Nissan 224
Pontiac 225
GMC 226
Mazda 228
Subaru 228
Chrysler 229
Dodge 230
MINI 233
Chevrolet 239
HUMMER 241
Scion 243
Volvo 244
Saturn 250
Jeep 253
Volkswagen 253
SAAB 254
Isuzu 274
Kia 278
Suzuki 302
Land Rover 344
Note: Maserati is included in the study but not ranked due to small sample size.
Top Three Models per Segment Sub-Compact Car
Highest Ranked: Hyundai Accent
Scion xA
Chevrolet Aveo Compact Car
Highest Ranked: Toyota Prius
Mitsubishi Lancer
Toyota Corolla Compact Sporty Car
Highest Ranked: Mazda Miata
Toyota Celica
Subaru Outback Sport Midsize Sporty Car
Highest Ranked: Chevrolet Monte Carlo
Toyota Camry Solara Coupe/Convertible
Mitsubishi Eclipse Midsize Car
Highest Ranked: Buick Century
Mercury Sable
Toyota Camry Sedan Large Car
Highest Ranked: Ford Crown Victoria
Mercury Grand Marquis
Buick Park Avenue Compact Premium Sporty Car
Highest Ranked: Honda S2000
BMW Z4 (tie)
Porsche Boxster (tie) Entry Premium Vehicle
Highest Ranked: Lexus IS 300/IS 300 SportCross
BMW 3 Series
BMW X3 Midsize Premium Car
Highest Ranked: Lexus ES 330
Lexus GS 300/GS 430
Acura RL Large Premium Car
Highest Ranked: Lexus LS 430
Lincoln Town Car
Cadillac DeVille Premium Sporty Car
Highest Ranked: Lexus SC 430
Ford Thunderbird
Porsche 911 Top Three Models per Segment
Truck / Multi-Activity Vehicle (MAV) Segments Compact MAV
Highest Ranked: Honda Element (tie)
Toyota RAV4 (tie)
Honda CR-V Midsize MAV
Highest Ranked: Toyota Highlander
Buick Rainier
Mercury Mountaineer Large MAV
Highest Ranked: Toyota Sequoia
Chevrolet Suburban
Ford Excursion Large Pickup
Highest Ranked: Toyota Tundra
Ford F-150 LD
Dodge Ram Pickup LD Midsize Pickup
Highest Ranked: Ford Ranger
Toyota Tacoma
Dodge Dakota Van
Highest Ranked: Mercury Monterey
Ford E-Series
GMC Savana Midsize Premium MAV
Highest Ranked: Lexus GX 470
Lexus RX 330
Volvo XC70 Large Premium MAV
Highest Ranked: Lexus LX 470
Cadillac Escalade EXT
Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV
SOURCE J.D. Power and Associates
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