J.D. Power 2004 Vehicle Initial Quality Survey
J.D. Power and Associates published its 2004 Vehicle Initial Quality Survey results. Notably, Hyundai becomes one of the reliable carmakers in the country in this new ranklist.
J.D. Power measures vehicle initial quality by number of problems reported in the first 90 days of ownership. This year, the industry average is 119, representing a remarkable drop compared to last year's reading of 133. Since 1998, the industry average of initial quality improved every year from the 1998 high of 176 problems per 100 vehicles.
As reported by the 2004 Survey, there are only four carmakers that surpassed the industry average of 119: Toyota (101), Honda (102), Hyundai (102) and BMW (116).
The bottom performers include Porsche (159), Kia (153) and Suzuki (149).
In terms of nameplates, the top names are Lexus (87), Cadillac (93), Jaguar (98), Honda (99), Buick (100), Mercury (100), Hyundai (102), Infiniti (104), Toyota (104) and Mercedes-Benz (104). At the bottom of the list are HUMMER (173), Volkswagon (164) and Porsche (159).
Some more details can be found in this MSN Money analysis.
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