General Motors also places well in the most recent J.D. Power and Associates survey of 2002 model year car owners.
GM took the top spot in eight categories, which was the most of any vehicle manufacturer. But Lexus and its LS430 sedan had only 90 problems per 100 vehicles. That’s the first time any model had less than a single problem per vehicle reported in the survey.
Out of GM’s eight category-toppers, two vehicles were dropped from production this year, while two more will cease production later this year. The Chevrolet Prizm and S-10, and the Buick Century and LeSabre, are the models leaving production.
Responses to the Vehicle Dependability Study came from 50,635 original owners. Their responses show the industry average of problems per vehicle improved by 32 per 100, compared to the 2004 survey.
In addition to the LS430, Lexus also placed its RX 300 and LX 470 SUV models atop categories.
Hyundai, which also owns the Kia brand, had a 31 percent improvement on the latest survey. “Hyundai experienced similar levels of improvement in the 2002 Initial Quality Study, when these vehicles were new, which shows a successful effort by Hyundai in translating short-term quality improvements into higher long-term quality,” said Chance Parker, executive director of product and research analysis at J.D. Power and Associates.
With sky-high gas prices in the US and lower sticker prices than other brands, Hyundai and Kia may be able to parley their quality improvements and better gas mileage into an increase in sales over time.
David Utter is a staff writer for murdok covering technology and business. Email him here.
