Buick and Lexus Brands Tie for Highest Rank in Vehicle Dependability

J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Buick and Lexus Brands Tie for Highest Rank in Vehicle Dependability

Strong Dependability Levels Can Elevate Residual Value and Purchase Price of Used Vehicles

Buick ties with Lexus to rank highest among nameplates in vehicle dependability — marking the first time in 12 years that another brand ties with Lexus for the highest-rank position, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2007 Vehicle Dependability Study(SM) (VDS) released today.

The study, which measures problems experienced by original owners of 3-year-old (2004 model year) vehicles, finds that Buick and Lexus tie for the top rank position with a score of 145 problems per 100 vehicles (PP100). Following in the top five rankings are Cadillac, Mercury and Honda, respectively.

“With three non-premium nameplates — Buick, Honda and Mercury — ranking within the top five, and particularly with Buick tying with Lexus for the top rank, consumers seeking a vehicle with strong dependability have good choices at various price levels,” said Neal Oddes, director of product research and analysis for J.D. Power and Associates. “Consumers don’t necessarily need to pay premium prices to obtain high quality and dependability.”

Lexus garners five segment awards — the most of any nameplate in 2007 — for the GS 300/GS430, GX 470, LS 430, LX 470 and SC 430. Toyota follows with four segment awards for the RAV 4, Sequoia, Tacoma and Tundra. Ford, Honda and Oldsmobile each capture two awards. Ford models receiving awards are the Crown Victoria and Mustang (in a tie), while Honda earns awards for the Civic and S2000. Oldsmobile models receiving awards are the Bravada and Silhouette. Models by Buick, Chevrolet, Infiniti, Mazda and Scion each rank highest in one segment.

HUMMER is the most improved brand in the study, although it continues to rank below the industry average. HUMMER improves by 65 PP100 since 2006.

The study also finds that vehicle models with strong dependability may retain up to 15 percent more of their value after three years, which may increase their purchase prices when sold as used vehicles. In particular, vehicle models that demonstrate strong dependability lose their value less rapidly compared with vehicles that are not as dependable. With higher residual value, dependable vehicles may command higher purchase prices on the used-vehicle market. In addition, vehicles with higher retained value can be important assets to automakers and dealerships, which may be able to sell a dependable vehicle two to three times during its life cycle.

For example, the Scion xA — which receives an award in the sub-compact car segment with a score of 207 PP100 — maintains residual value averaging 71 percent, which is considerably higher than the industry average of 56 percent. After three years, the 2004 Scion xA may retain value up to $10,607 of its initial average transaction price of $14,939, compared with only $8,366 if the model’s residual value rate matches only the industry average.

“Automakers may reap numerous benefits from producing dependable vehicles — not only in higher residual values, decreased warranty costs and opportunities for remarketing their vehicles, but also in higher customer satisfaction and increased likelihood of customers recommending or purchasing newer dependable models,” said Oddes. “This is why it is especially important for automakers to successfully launch new vehicle models with high initial quality and appeal — models that perform well in these regards tend to exhibit particularly strong dependability later in their life cycle.”

The study also finds that approximately 65 percent of vehicle owners experience one or more problems that require components to be replaced. Owners who have problems that require component replacements within the first three years of ownership are considerably less satisfied than owners who don’t need to replace components. Satisfaction is decreased further if owners are required to replace a major component, such as a transmission, as well as if minor components, such as brake pads, need to be replaced frequently. Component failure and the accompanying decline in satisfaction can lead to decreased customer loyalty. Owners who experience component failure expect to keep their vehicle approximately one year less than do owners who experience problems but do not need to replace components.

“As owners experience vehicle problems — particularly ones that require components to be replaced — they are less likely to repurchase or recommend their current model,” said Oddes. “Automakers can improve upon customer loyalty by working closely with their component suppliers to monitor quality, since failure of a component ultimately reflects upon the quality of the vehicle brand in the minds of consumers.”

The 2007 Vehicle Dependability Study is based on responses from more than 53,000 original owners of 2004 model-year vehicles. The study was fielded from January through April 2007.

Find more detailed findings on vehicle dependability as well as model photos and specs by watching a video, reading an article and reviewing brand and segment dependability ratings at JDPower.com.

About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, training and customer satisfaction. For more information on car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance, cell phone ratings, and more, please visit JDPower.com. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor’s, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2006 were $6.3 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com.

No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power and Associates. http://www.jdpower.com/corporate

    2007 Nameplate Ranking
    Problems per 100 Vehicles
    Buick            145
    Lexus            145
    Cadillac         162
    Mercury          168
    Honda            169
    Toyota           178
    BMW              182
    Lincoln          182
    Subaru           192
    Oldsmobile       196
    Jaguar           197
    Acura            207
    Mercedes-Benz    212
    Infiniti         215
    Industry Average 216
    Jeep             219
    Pontiac          220
    Scion            220
    Ford             221
    GMC              222
    Chevrolet        226
    Hyundai          228
    Mitsubishi       228
    Volvo            230
    Audi             234
    Dodge            236
    HUMMER           242
    MINI             247
    Chrysler         249
    Porsche          252
    Nissan           274
    Saturn           274
    Kia              288
    Mazda            289
    Volkswagen       298
    Saab             319
    Isuzu            322
    Suzuki           324
    Land Rover       398

    Top Three Models per Segment
    Car Segments

    Sub-Compact Car
    Highest Ranked: Scion xA
    Hyundai Accent
    Chevrolet Aveo

    Compact Car
    Highest Ranked: Honda Civic
    Toyota Prius
    Toyota Corolla

    Compact Sporty Car
    Highest Ranked: Mazda Miata
    Mitsubishi Lancer/Lancer Sportback
    Toyota Celica

    Midsize Sporty Car
    Highest Ranked:
    Chevrolet SSR (tie)
    Ford Mustang (tie)
    Toyota Solara

    Midsize Car
    Highest Ranked: Buick Century
    Buick Regal
    Mercury Sable

    Large Car
    Highest Ranked: Ford Crown Victoria
    Mercury Grand Marquis
    Buick Park Avenue

    Compact Premium Sporty Car
    Highest Ranked: Honda S2000
    BMW Z4
    Mercedes-Benz SLK-Class

    Entry Premium Car
    Highest Ranked: Infiniti I35
    Cadillac CTS
    Lexus IS 300/IS 300 SportCross

    Midsize Premium Car
    Highest Ranked: Lexus GS 300/GS 430
    Acura RL
    Lexus ES 330

    Large Premium Car
    Highest Ranked: Lexus LS 430
    Lincoln Town Car
    Cadillac DeVille

    Premium Sporty Car
    Highest Ranked: Lexus SC 430
    Ford Thunderbird
    Chevrolet Corvette

    NOTE: Models with multiple trim levels are combined for ranking purposes.

    Top Three Models per Segment
    Truck / Multi-Activity Vehicle (MAV) Segments

    Compact MAV
    Highest Ranked: Toyota RAV4
    Honda CR-V
    Honda Element

    Midsize MAV
    Highest Ranked: Oldsmobile Bravada
    Buick Rainier
    Toyota 4Runner

    Large MAV
    Highest Ranked: Toyota Sequoia
    GMC Yukon
    Chevrolet Suburban

    Large Pickup
    Highest Ranked: Toyota Tundra
    Ford F-150 Heritage/F-150 Lightning
    Ford F-150 LD

    Midsize Pickup
    Highest Ranked: Toyota Tacoma
    Ford Ranger
    Mazda B-Series

    Van
    Highest Ranked: Oldsmobile Silhouette
    Mercury Monterey
    Honda Odyssey

    Midsize Premium MAV
    Highest Ranked: Lexus GX 470
    Lexus RX 300
    Infiniti FX-Series

    Large Premium MAV
    Highest Ranked: Lexus LX 470
    Toyota Land Cruiser
    Cadillac Escalade EXT

NOTE: Models with multiple trim levels are combined for ranking purposes.