Bobby
New member
By Barbara Powell
Bloomberg News
Thursday, May 19, 2005; E02
Toyota Motor Corp. led 10 of 18 car and truck categories and General Motors Corp. was best in five, putting the world's two largest automakers at the top of an annual industry quality study.
Honda Motor Co.'s main brand fell out of the top 10 and Nissan Motor Co.'s improved 22 percent in the J.D. Power & Associates survey of new-vehicle owners. The industry average was 118 problems per 100 vehicles, one fewer than last year. The market-research company dropped corporate rankings, which Toyota had headed for seven straight years.
The U.S. survey "is a model-level study and we want to put the focus back on the models," said John Tews, a spokesman for Westlake Village, Calif.-based J.D. Power. "For virtually every corporation, model performance varies widely, with some models doing very well and others not performing as well."
Toyota's Lexus again led all 36 brands and had the top vehicle in all five luxury categories. GM's Hummer rose to a tie for 10th, from last in 2004, and along with the company's Buick, Cadillac and GMC brands did better than average. Automakers watch the 19-year-old study because it can sway buyers.
Lexus owners reported 81 problems per 100 vehicles in the first 90 days after purchase, J.D. Power said. Toyota's main brand went to 105 from 104 and its Scion improved to 134 from 158. The survey is based on responses from about 62,000 people who bought or leased new 2005 cars and trucks.
Ford Motor Co.'s Jaguar was second among brands with 88, followed by Bayerische Motoren Werke AG's BMW with 95, GM's Buick with 100 and GM's Cadillac and DaimlerChrysler AG's Mercedes-Benz with 104 each.
Honda's namesake brand worsened to 112 from 99 and fell to 12th, from fourth last year. Nissan's main brand improved to 120 from 154.
Ford's namesake brand improved to 127, from 130 last year. DaimlerChrysler's best U.S.-based brand was Jeep at 120, an improvement from 136. Chrysler worsened to 121 from 120 and Dodge went to 130 from 121.
GM's Hummer improved to 110 from 173. The automaker's biggest brand, Chevrolet, worsened to 127 from 119.
Of 15 brands that did better than average, four were from GM, the world's largest automaker by sales volume, and two were from No. 2 Toyota. Honda and Ford also had two each, and there was one each from BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Nissan, Hyundai Motor Co. and Volkswagen AG.
Among the 18 vehicle categories, the only automakers besides Toyota and GM with a top car or truck were Ford, with two, and Nissan, with one.
Toyota vehicles that led their categories included the Lexus SC 430 for premium luxury cars, the Prius gasoline-electric hybrid for compact cars, the 4Runner for mid-size sport-utility vehicles and the Sienna for mid-size vans. GM's category leaders included the Buick Century for premium mid-size cars and the Chevrolet Suburban for full-size SUVs.
Bloomberg News
Thursday, May 19, 2005; E02
Toyota Motor Corp. led 10 of 18 car and truck categories and General Motors Corp. was best in five, putting the world's two largest automakers at the top of an annual industry quality study.
Honda Motor Co.'s main brand fell out of the top 10 and Nissan Motor Co.'s improved 22 percent in the J.D. Power & Associates survey of new-vehicle owners. The industry average was 118 problems per 100 vehicles, one fewer than last year. The market-research company dropped corporate rankings, which Toyota had headed for seven straight years.
The U.S. survey "is a model-level study and we want to put the focus back on the models," said John Tews, a spokesman for Westlake Village, Calif.-based J.D. Power. "For virtually every corporation, model performance varies widely, with some models doing very well and others not performing as well."
Toyota's Lexus again led all 36 brands and had the top vehicle in all five luxury categories. GM's Hummer rose to a tie for 10th, from last in 2004, and along with the company's Buick, Cadillac and GMC brands did better than average. Automakers watch the 19-year-old study because it can sway buyers.
Lexus owners reported 81 problems per 100 vehicles in the first 90 days after purchase, J.D. Power said. Toyota's main brand went to 105 from 104 and its Scion improved to 134 from 158. The survey is based on responses from about 62,000 people who bought or leased new 2005 cars and trucks.
Ford Motor Co.'s Jaguar was second among brands with 88, followed by Bayerische Motoren Werke AG's BMW with 95, GM's Buick with 100 and GM's Cadillac and DaimlerChrysler AG's Mercedes-Benz with 104 each.
Honda's namesake brand worsened to 112 from 99 and fell to 12th, from fourth last year. Nissan's main brand improved to 120 from 154.
Ford's namesake brand improved to 127, from 130 last year. DaimlerChrysler's best U.S.-based brand was Jeep at 120, an improvement from 136. Chrysler worsened to 121 from 120 and Dodge went to 130 from 121.
GM's Hummer improved to 110 from 173. The automaker's biggest brand, Chevrolet, worsened to 127 from 119.
Of 15 brands that did better than average, four were from GM, the world's largest automaker by sales volume, and two were from No. 2 Toyota. Honda and Ford also had two each, and there was one each from BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Nissan, Hyundai Motor Co. and Volkswagen AG.
Among the 18 vehicle categories, the only automakers besides Toyota and GM with a top car or truck were Ford, with two, and Nissan, with one.
Toyota vehicles that led their categories included the Lexus SC 430 for premium luxury cars, the Prius gasoline-electric hybrid for compact cars, the 4Runner for mid-size sport-utility vehicles and the Sienna for mid-size vans. GM's category leaders included the Buick Century for premium mid-size cars and the Chevrolet Suburban for full-size SUVs.
