Lexus Regains No. 1 Spot in Vehicle Quality Rating
Toyota Motor Corp.’s Lexus division reclaimed the top spot in a closely watched survey of vehicle quality released Thursday, while European and American auto makers continued to close the gap on their Asian competitors.
In the survey of 54,000 new vehicle owners or lessees, Lexus scored 85 consumer-reported complaints per 100 vehicles during the first 90 days of ownership, beating the 1999 winner, Ford Motor Co.’s Jaguar, which finished second with 108.
Reconfirming its reputation as a maker of top-quality cars and light trucks, Toyota and its Lexus luxury brand took top honors in seven of 16 different vehicle segments, according to the survey by Agoura-based marketing and research firm J.D. Power & Associates.
Lexus’ flagship LS 430 sedan scored the top overall rating with just 58 complaints per 100 vehicles, taking the top title for the seventh time in the last nine years.
Asian auto makers overall, including the poor-scoring South Korean brands, improved their ratings marginally to 140 problems per 100 vehicles, down from 142 last year. European brands closed to within one point to 141 from 154 last year, while the American auto makers trailed with 153 compared with 164 the previous year.
“The gap is closing, and the Europeans in particular are closing it more rapidly than the domestic auto makers are,” said Joe Ivers, a partner and executive director of quality and customer satisfaction research at J.D. Power.
Overall industry results improved 5% for the second year in a row to 147.
Among U.S. auto makers, only General Motors Corp. scored above the industry average with a result of 146. Ford and DaimlerChrysler’s Chrysler brands finished with below average figures, which J.D. Power declined to release.
Industry analysts have repeatedly cited perceptions about the quality of American vehicles as a reason why Ford, GM and Chrysler are losing U.S. market share to Japanese and German auto makers.
“About 40% of new-car buyers say quality or reputation for quality is the most important factor in choosing the vehicle they buy,” Ivers said.
Ford suffered through one of the most high-profile product recalls in history last year when it replaced 6.5 million Firestone tires on its Explorer mid-size sport-utility vehicle. Last month, Ford had to fix a faulty rear window on the redesigned Explorer, only weeks after it went on sale.
“Ford’s overall performance was not much different from where it was a year ago. But the thing that is a challenge for them is they sort of stood in the same position at a time when the market moved forward,” Ivers added.
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Top Cars
The top-ranked cars in the J.D. Power & Associates 2001 Initial Quality Study:
* Compact car: Toyota Corolla
* Entry-level mid-size car: Nissan Altima
* Premium mid-size car: Toyota Avalon
* Full-size car: Chrysler Concorde
* Entry luxury car: Lexus ES 300
* Mid-range luxury car: Saab 9-5
* Premium luxury car: Lexus LS 430
* Sporty car: Acura Integra
* Premium sports car: Chevrolet Corvette
Source: J.D. Power & Associates
