Gains in Quality Survey
By JEFF BENNETT and NEAL E. BOUDETTE
June 5, 2008; Page B3
Three auto makers often vaunted for their quality -- Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus brand, Honda Motor Co. and BMW AG -- all suffered setbacks in a closely watched study, while Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. again narrowed the gap with their rivals.
In other results, all three brands owned by Chrysler LLC scored below the industry average, and its Jeep brand was last -- underscoring the challenge facing Cerberus Capital Management LP, the private-equity group that bought a controlling stake in the auto maker last year.
The J.D. Power & Associates annual Initial Quality Study, which was released Wednesday, often influences the perceptions of consumers. High rankings give auto makers grounds for boasts in advertising and marketing.
The survey provides a snapshot of troubles new-car buyers encounter in the first 90 days of ownership. Problems can range from wind noise to transmission failures.
For the third year in a row, sports-car maker Porsche AG won the top spot, registering 87 complaints for every 100 vehicles. The study surveys thousands of users on their experiences in the first three months they own new cars.
Nissan Motor Co.'s Infiniti brand leapt to No. 2 from No. 9 in 2007. That pushed luxury-car maker Lexus to a No. 3 ranking. Lexus had held the top spot for five years before finishing second to Porsche in 2006 and 2007. Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz and Toyota tied for fourth.
Ford's Mercury, at sixth, was the top-ranked American brand, followed by Honda, which fell to the seventh-best score from fourth a year ago.
Still, Honda, with 110 customer issues per 100 vehicles, scored well above the industry average of 118. Others that beat the industry average included Ford and its Lincoln brand, Jaguar, Audi, and GM's Cadillac, Chevrolet, Pontiac and Buick nameplates.
One make that was below average: BMW, the German luxury brand that had ranked near the top in previous J.D. Power studies. BMW's customer complaints increased to 126 per 100 vehicles, from 120 in 2007. BMW's Mini brand didn't fare well, either. It was second to last after Jeep.
Except for Chrysler, domestic makes largely showed further improvement. Seven Ford and GM makes were above average; two years ago they had four.
It can take a while for improved scores to change consumer perceptions. Despite improvements in vehicle-quality ratings in recent years, the U.S. auto makers continue struggling to overcome the assumption among many American buyers that foreign companies produce better products.
Chrysler's Jeep brand had 167 problems per 100 vehicles, six more than last year. Chrysler's Dodge brand was 28th, with 141 problems, followed by the Chrysler brand, with 142. The industry average was 118 problems.
For GM, the GMC, Hummer, Saab and Saturn brands all finished below the industry average. Saturn, which has gone through a significant product revamp in recent years, was the lowest-ranking GM brand, with 157 problems per 100 vehicles.
--Steve Wisnefski contributed to this article.
Write to Jeff Bennett at [email protected]1 and Neal E. Boudette at [email protected]2
Originally Posted by SFA4
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