April 28, 2004 01:00 AM
Hyundai soars in Power quality ratings
Mark Rechtin
LOS ANGELES -- Man bites dog. The earth is flat. Hyundai builds better quality cars than Toyota.
A study released Wednesday by J.D. Power and Associates rated Hyundai Motor America vehicles as having lower defect rates than those of Toyota Division.
The consultancy"s 2004 Initial Quality Study showed Hyundai vehicles as having 102 defects per 100 vehicles, whereas Toyota vehicles had 104 defects per 100 vehicles. The survey taken of 51,000 new-car owners after 90 days of ownership makes no differentiation between a major gaffe, such as a transmission failure, and something minor, such as wind noise or a glove box squeak.
While applauding Hyundai"s efforts, Toyota officials said the IQS results are just one piece of a larger puzzle.
"What happens in the first 90 days of ownership can be telling, but the undisputed indicator of quality is time. Toyota vehicles continue to stand the test of time," said Toyota spokesman Xavier Dominicis. "While initial quality is one factor in the car buying process, shoppers should also look into a vehicle"s long-term durability, fuel efficiency, environmental record, safety and resale value."
The Toyota figures do not include those of Toyota Motor Corp."s Lexus Division, which again won the title for best-quality vehicles. They also don"t include those of Toyota Motor"s Scion youth division, which finished a staggering fourth-worst.
Dominicis said the Scion results came from "buyers having luxury expectations at a subcompact price." As such, the ratings were not quality and defect related, but "preference and performance issues," such as the xA’s stiff ride and the xB"s air conditioning system not cooling the car quickly enough, he added.
Under a corporate Initial Quality Study rating -- which gives Toyota, Lexus and Scion one rating -- Toyota finished first among automakers. Hyundai Motor America -- which does not include Kia -- finished a close second, tied with American Honda Motors Co."s combined scores for the Honda and Acura brands.
Hyundai"s improved score underlines the compression of quality in the J.D. Power ratings. Although vehicles manufactured by Japanese automakers as a whole continue to lead the survey, their lead has been diminished continually over the past decade. And although Hyundai sibling Kia continues to struggle with its quality -- it finished seventh-worst in the survey -- Korea-badged vehicles passed both European and U.S.-branded vehicles in quality this year.
"A decade ago, as Korean manufacturers struggled with a universally poor reputation for vehicle quality, no one would have predicted they could not only keep pace but actually pass domestics and other imports in terms of initial quality," said Joe Ivers, a J.D. Power and Associates partner, in a release. "The question now is whether Hyundai can demonstrate this same level of improvement in terms of new-vehicle launch and long-term vehicle quality."
Said Brian Walters, senior director of vehicle research with J.D. Power and Associates: "Hyundai has done its homework and really understands the U.S. consumer. What Hyundai has gone through is really no different from what the Japanese carmakers went through," with quality problems in the 1970s.
Hyundai leaped from 10th place in last year"s study. Hyundai has cut the number of quality problems by 57 percent over the past six years, dropping from 272 problems per 100 vehicles in 1998.
Hyundai"s gains could partly be attributed to its relatively small number of cars and sport utility vehicles, and the carmaker could be challenged if it expands its lineup, which has hurt Nissan and Porsche, Walters said.
Japan"s Nissan and Germany"s Porsche AG dropped sharply in the poll due to problems with new vehicles.
On the domestic front, Cadillac, Buick, Mercury and Oldsmobile were the only domestic-branded vehicles to finish with above-average quality scores. Chevrolet had a defect rate at the industry average of 119 defects per 100 vehicles.
Despite having no brand finish above average, Chrysler Group said in a release that the results marked the 14th consecutive year of improvement, "a claim that cannot be made by any other manufacturer and is further proof that our quality initiatives are being validated."
Some domestic plants are on the rebound. In past years, ratings of the top manufacturing plants in North or South America typically went to Japanese transplants. This year, the two top plants in North or South America belonged to General Motors, and third-best was a Ford Motor Co. plant.
Other items of note in the survey:
Ratings of the top vehicles by model line still were dominated by Toyota Motor vehicles. Of 18 categories, Toyota or Lexus vehicles took the best rating seven times and were runners-up in seven other categories.
BMW was the only corporation besides Toyota Motor, American Honda and Hyundai to have a corporate quality score above the industry average. However, when Mercedes-Benz"s results were peeled away from those of DaimlerChrysler, Mercedes-Benz fared better than BMW.
Although Ford Motor Co. has been on a quality mission in the past year, the Ford Division quality scores were among the worst of any domestic-badged volume brand. Only Jeep and Saturn fared worse.
contributed to this report.
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