JD Power Initial Quality Survey 2009 Arrives

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

And we don’t care. Again. Still. If there’s a more nebulous concept out there than “ initial quality,” we’re not aware of it. Check minus.

Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Twotone Twotone on Jun 23, 2009

    Lokkii, thanks for the article -- an interesting read. One variable not part of the report is mileage. Porsche is on the top of the list due to the fact that their owners have one or two other cars and don't put a lot of miles on "their baby". I'm guessing a 20 year-old Porsche has fewer miles than a 10 year-old Toyota. It would be interesting to compare longevity and dependability from a mileage rather than a time perspective. Twotone Lokkii : June 23rd, 2009 at 10:59 am Here is an interesting study of dependability as measured in terms of longevity from November 2007…. http://www.desrosiers.ca/2007%20Update/Documents%20and%20Reports/2007%20OBS/Trends%20in%20Vehicle%20Longevity.pdf

  • Lokkii Lokkii on Jun 23, 2009

    I agree that the mileage factor is very significant here, as is that supposed intangible "desirability". People with Porsches want to take good care of them. I think that it's better to throw out the outliers in the data sample....

  • Don1967 Don1967 on Jun 23, 2009
    Here is an interesting study of dependability as measured in terms of longevity No, it's an interesting list of cars ranked by replacement cost. If a ten-year-old Porsche needs a transmission, it gets a transmission and goes on to become the most dependable car on the road. But if a ten-year old Lada needs a transmission, it gets parked at the bottom of a lake. This is not about dependability or durability; it is Economics 101.
  • Golden2husky Golden2husky on Jul 04, 2009
    Reminds me of the time in the 90’s when Mazda MX-6 and Ford Probe were both assembled at Flat Rock on the same platform with the same powertrain, and the MX-6 got way better repair ratings from CR in almost all categories, including engine and suspension... How true. Back in the day, sometimes I would say I bought an MX-6 instead of a Probe GT for fun to see if there was truth to this. True, indeed. The overall reaction for the MX-6 was way better that for the Ford. So perception (sorry guys) does play a part. Now, this is from many years ago, so one could argue that the D3 have had plenty of time to make the perception go away and they haven't. Fair enough, but there is a reason (as posted by Bimmer and others) that oddities occur and when the product is virtually identical, it is either from the survey itself or the predisposition of the people being surveyed. Seems to me the best data would come from the manufacturers' warranty records. Note that nobody wants to release that information. Don1967: You totally nailed this one. What determines which cars are registered the longest or have the most miles often have more to do with money than anything else. A good example would be an old Taurus and an old Accord. At 140K or so, it is safe to say either car may be ready for a transmission rebuild. But with the steep depreciation curve, the bull is likely to be sitting in the junkyard with 130K displayed, whereas the Accord is likely to get that trans rebuild. So, it will be on the road for another 5 years and heads to the boneyard displaying a proud 248K. And that is pure economics; it has nothing to do with long term durability. JD Power clearly states that a high Initial Quality score indicates a clear relationship to long term satisfaction. Is that really true? My intuition and experience suggests not. I recall my father's '84 Chrysler NewYorker with the "silent shaft" Mitsubishi 2.6 litre engine. This car, for the first eighteen months had chronic failures one after another. And not just your typical stuff like $700 Mikuni carbs. The digi dash, the radio, power seat tracks, struts, bushings, and on and on. Yet after all this stuff was repaired, the car became rock solid in terms of reliability. We gave it away with over 100K on it, and the relative we gave it to used if for another 5 years with minimal fuss. Not exactly what JDP would suggest...
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