Monday, June 22, 2009

J.D. Power 2009 Initial Quality Study: Top Subcompacts


J.D. Power and Associates just released its 2009 Initial Quality Study. And the top vehicles in the subcompact class are the Toyota Yaris, the Hyundai Accent, and the Honda Fit (in that order).

Most people have become accustom to seeing Toyota and Honda in the top few spots, but in yet another move that solidifies the fact that the Koreans are building better vehicles, the Hyundai Accent came in above the Honda Fit. In fact, in overall quality, Hyundai scored slightly higher than Honda overall, with both brands outscoring Toyota, which placed seventh (down two spots from 2008).

Who else is hot on the heels of Toyota? Ford and Chevrolet with only 1 and 2 more problems per 100 vehicles than Toyota, respectively. This year's industry average was 108 problems per 100 vehicles; 2008's average was 118.

Most improved had to have been Suzuki, which went from the 32nd spot (of 36 brands) in 2008 to 10th of 37 in 2009. You can probably attribute that to the phasing out of the Daewoo-badged vehicles, and the proliferation of the SX4 into the market.

Last place for 2009 was BMW's subcompact MINI brand, which was second to last in 2008. Smart, the other all-subcompact brand, placed third-to-last this year.

Click the image below to see the full-size chart:
2009 J.D. Power Initial Qualty


LINKS
2009 J.D. Power Initial Quality Ratings (via Autoblog)
2008 J.D. Power Initial Quality Ratings (via Autoblog)
J.D. Power 2009 Initial Quality Reports (www.JDPower.com)

1 comment:

D2M said...

You know, I was surprised to see Chevrolet in the top 10. I guess I won't talk down on them now. xD

Good for the Koreans! They're actually in a good place right now to start building reliable but cheap vehicles. (The Won is pretty much weak against all the popular currencies.) I hope they do well!