Last month, J.D. Power and Associates, a global market research firm based in Westlake Village, California, released a report which examined the responses provided by some 47,620 owners of three-year old vehicles (2003 models). The survey measured the number of problems experienced by these car owners in such categories as ride, handling, braking and transmission, and ranked the brands from best to worst in "dependability," based on the number of reported incidents.
Surprisingly, the top 10 dependable brands included a number of "non-luxury" lines:
1) LexusThe least dependable brands ranked as follows:
2) Mercury
3) Buick
4) Cadillac
5) Toyota
6) Acura
7) Honda
8) Jaguar
9) BMW
10) Infiniti
1) Land RoverAs far as the actual models are concerned, Lexus, Toyota and Honda rule. Here are the top-ranking models in each car category:
2) Saab
3) Suzuki
4) Kia
5) HUMMER
6) Volkswagon
7) Saturn
8) Isuzu
9) MINI
10) Audi
Sub-Compact Car
Toyota EchoCompact Car
Honda CivicCompact Sporty Car
Mazda MiataMidsize Sporty Car
Chevrolet Monte CarloMidsize Car
Buick CenturyLarge Car
Mercury Grand MarquisCompact Premium Sporty Car
Honda S2000Entry Premium Car
Acura CLMidsize Premium Car
Lexus GS 300/GS 430Light Premium Car
Lexus LS 430Large Premium Car
Lexus LS 430Premium Sporty Car
Lexus SC 430
According to officials at J.D. Power, higher scoring vehicles retain their value and are perceived more favorably when it comes time for consumers to make a repurchase or recommend a particular product line to friends and family members. As the report notes, "vehicle dependability can have a direct impact on a manufacturer's bottom line."
For more information about the survey, please click on the following link:
http://www.jdpower.com/corporate/news/releases/pdf/2006133.pdf