Porsche slipped to second after holding the title for three years in the market research firm's Initial Quality Study, released today. Ford improved to 102 reported problems per 100 vehicles and Chevrolet to 103, just behind Toyota's sixth place score of 101. That put the three top-selling brands in the United States in the same league when it comes to complaints during the first 90 days of ownership.
"There is no statistical difference between a 101 and a 102 or, for that matter, between a 101 and a 103," said David Sargent, J.D. Power's vice president of automotive research, in a presentation to the Automotive Press Association.
Overall industry quality improved to its best level in the study's 23 years, and domestic brands continued to close the gap between their performance and the industry average. That average was 108 reported problems per 100 vehicles, down from 118 in 2008. Owners of domestic brands recorded an average of 112 problems per 100 vehicles. A year earlier, the domestics had 124 reported problems, or six more than the average.
| 2009 IQS Nameplate Ranking | |
| Problems per 100 vehicles | |
| Lexus | 84 |
| Porsche | 90 |
| Cadillac | 91 |
| Hyundai | 95 |
| Honda | 99 |
| Mercedes-Benz | 101 |
| Toyota | 101 |
| Ford | 102 |
| Chevrolet | 103 |
| Suzuki | 103 |
| Infiniti | 106 |
| Mercury | 106 |
| Industry Average | 108 |
| Nissan | 110 |
| Acura | 111 |
| BMW | 112 |
| Kia | 112 |
| Volkswagen | 112 |
| GMC | 116 |
| Buick | 117 |
| Audi | 118 |
| Pontiac | 118 |
| Scion | 118 |
| Volvo | 118 |
| Saturn | 120 |
| Mazda | 123 |
| Lincoln | 129 |
| Subaru | 130 |
| Dodge | 134 |
| Jaguar | 134 |
| Mitsubishi | 135 |
| Chrysler | 136 |
| HUMMER | 136 |
| Jeep | 137 |
| Saab | 138 |
| smart | 138 |
| Land Rover | 150 |
| MINI | 165 |
Cadillac rises, Lincoln falls
Cadillac continued its rebound and Lincoln plunged. Cadillac ranked No. 3, up from 10th in 2008 and 25th in 2007. Lincoln fell to 26th, its lowest finish in the study's history. It ranked 15th last year and third the year before.
The nearly equal scores of Ford, Toyota, and Chevrolet indicate they "will be closely bunched together" in three years for J.D. Power's Vehicle Dependability Study, which studies three-year-old models, Sargent said. Ford last year had 112 reported problems per vehicle, Chevrolet 113 and Toyota 104.
The study ranked 37 brands based on problems detected in the first 90 days of ownership of 2009 model-year vehicles.
Toyota Motor took in 10 awards for having the highest-quality vehicles (Toyota, Lexus, Scion) in individual segments. Ford Motor had four, while Honda Motor Co., Nissan Motor Co. and GM had two each.
Cadillac's improvement and Chevrolet's second straight above-average ranking may stem from efforts that have reduced dealer warranty claims 45 percent in the past three years, said Jamie Hresko, GM's vice president for global quality.
"We're going to continue to rid ourselves of recall and warranty, and I think the rest of this stuff will take care of itself," Hresko said.
Cadillac's score was boosted by dramatic improvements in the CTS sedan's second year, Sargent said.
Lexus back on top
Toyota's Lexus brand had 84 problems per 100 vehicles in reclaiming its title. Porsche had 90 and Cadillac, 91.
Hyundai -- which through May had seen U.S. light-vehicle sales decline 7.9 percent, compared with the industry's 36.5 percent drop -- improved from 13th last year to fourth this year. It was the best showing for the Korean brand since its third-place finish in 2006. Honda completed this year's top five, followed by Toyota and Mercedes-Benz in a tie for sixth.
The Ford brand ranked eighth in the study for the second straight year and above the industry average for the third straight.
As for Lincoln's fall to No. 26, Ford Motor will "just work the basic processes that we had," said Bennie Fowler, group vice president for global quality. "I think that they've proved reliable."
Lincoln's plunge was due primarily to problems linked to the launch of the MKS sedan last June, Sargent said.
For the 2009 study, J.D. Power asked more than 80,900 purchasers and lessees 228 questions about their first three months of ownership. Power conducted the study from February through May.
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