Jaguar, the Most Dependable Car. Really.

The New York Times
MARCH 19, 2009, 7:01 AM

Jaguar, the Most Dependable Car. Really.
By CHERYL JENSEN

Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
Just when it seemed the automotive world was in such upheaval that nothing more
shocking could happen, Jaguar and Buick have tied for the top spot in the 2009 J.D.
Power Vehicle Dependability Study.

Jaguar, once reliable only for being the butt of cocktail party jokes about poor quality,
and Buick have toppled Lexus from first place, which the Japanese brand had held for the
last 13 years. (In 2007, Buick shared the top spot with Lexus.)

The 2006 Buick LaCrosse was the highest-ranked vehicle in the midsize car segment, according to the latest J.D. Power study on dependability. J.D. Power’s dependability rankings are determined by the number of problems per 100 vehicles that consumers experience: The lower the number, the better. This year’s study is based on responses from more than 46,000 original owners of three-year-old (2006 model year) vehicles.

While vehicle dependability has always been important to consumers, this year it’s even
more so as consumers hold onto their vehicles longer. The average age of a vehicle when
it’s traded in has increased to 73 months in 2009, up from 65 months in 2006, according
to J.D. Power.

Darren Staples/Reuters Jaguars parked outside a plant in Birmingham, England.
Buick and Jaguar were tied for first place with 122 problems per 100 vehicles; Lexus was
second with 126 problems. Toyota at 129 and Mercury, 134, rounded out the top five. The
bottom five were, in descending order, Mazda, Isuzu, Land Rover, Volkswagen and
Suzuki.

It isn’t that something significantly bad has happened to Lexus quality, said Neal Oddes,
director of product research and analysis for J.D. Power and Associates, the marketing
information services company.

“Their performance is exceptional,” Mr. Oddes said. “It’s just that other nameplates are
coming up and starting to challenge the quality leader, which is great for consumers.”
In addition to ranking the 37 brands, J.D. Power gives awards in 19 segments by naming
the top three models in each segment.

“Lexus performance at the nameplate ranking may have slipped slightly, but at the model
level they are still doing exceptionally well,” Mr. Oddes said.

Toyota vehicles ranking the highest in five segments, which was more than any other
brand, were the Highlander, Prius, Sequoia, Solara and Tundra. Lexus, Toyota’s luxury
brand, came next with four segment winners, which were the ES 330 (tied with the Acura
RL), GX 470, LS 430 and SC 430.

The highest ranked vehicles in other segments were the Scion xA, Mazda MX-5 Miata,
Buick LaCrosse, Mercury Grand Marquis, Nissan 350Z, Lincoln Zephyr, Honda Element,
Ford Ranger, Dodge Caravan and Lincoln Mark LT.

The study also found that Buick, Lincoln, Mercury and Jaguar owners were less likely to
have to replace large components than owners of other brands.

All of the top three vehicles in the segments and complete brand rankings are available at
JDPower.com.

Source: (The New York Times)