Lexus extended its reign as the top brand for long-term dependability while mass-market brands, led by Toyota, outperformed luxury brands for the first time in an annual J.D. Power study.
Power said 2016 models from mass-market brands averaged 135 problems per 100 vehicles surveyed, compared with 141 problems per 100 luxury vehicles studied.
Lexus ranked on top for the eighth straight year even as it was tagged with more problems — 106 per 100 vehicles — than a year earlier (99 per 100).
Porsche and Toyota ranked second in a tie (108 per 100), followed by Chevrolet and Buick. At the bottom of the U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study, with an average of more than two problems reported per vehicle: Fiat, Land Rover and Volvo.
Across all brands, the reliability of 3-year-old vehicles improved 4 percent from last year, Power said. Overall, 13 brands showed improvement while 17 brands, including Porsche and Buick, had more reported problems. Hyundai's results were flat with 2018 but still above the industry average.
The continued rollout of new technology, often embraced first by luxury brands, remains a challenge across the industry.
"Vehicles are more reliable than ever, but automakers are wrestling with problems such as voice recognition, transmission shifts and battery failures," Dave Sargent, head of Power's global automotive practice, said in a statement.
Source: Read Full Article