Ford ties Toyota in Strategic Vision 2008 Total Quality Awards
Strategic Vision has announced the results of its annual Total Quality Awards and is touting the performance of Ford this year versus perennial powerhouse Toyota. Both brands have three vehicles each that lead their segments, which include the Edge, Mustang Convertible and F-250/350 for Ford and Toyota's Yaris, 4Runner and Sequoia. The Volvo C30 also led the Small Specialty under $25,000 segment and the Mercury Sable the Large Car category, while the Scion xB was tops in the Small Multi-Function segment and the Lexus RX350 tied with the Land Rover LR2 in the Near Luxury SUV segment. Though all of those brands are technically owned by either Ford Motor Company or Toyota North America, none were counted by Strategic Vision in the battle of the Blue Oval versus the Japanese Juggernaut, though the automakers still would've tied if they were (if Land Rover were not counted as owned by Ford). Meanwhile, the Medium Car segment was lead by the Volkswagen Jetta, though the new Chevy Malibu jumped to second place (how are the Jetta and Malibu in the same segment?), and Honda had only one car make the list, with the Odyssey being named the best Minivan. Follow the jump to view the leaders of all 19 segments.While most surveys like this count objective stats like the number of problems encountered during initial ownership, Strategic Vision introduces additional criteria by which to judge vehicle quality like the buying experience, what it's like to own a particular car, its performance and driving and even exterior and interior styling. There's a lot of subjectivity in those additional criteria, which tends to skew the results as a whole regardless of the 20,655 buyer-strong sample pool that was surveyed on the 2008 vehicles it bought during September, October and November of last year. Also, as we were reminded by this post, keep in mind that most automakers are actually clients of Strategic Vision, Ford and Toyota included, so there's also money passing hands between these companies. The appearance of conflicts of interest notwithstanding, new car buyers love lists and automakers work hard to land on them, so you decide for yourself how much weight to give to Strategic Vision's 2008 Total Quality Awards.
[Source: Strategic Vision]
PRESS RELEASE
The 2008 Total Quality Awards™
Ford vs. Toyota: The Battle for Total Quality Intensifies, Reports Strategic Vision
For immediate release - Wednesday, May 28, 2008
San Diego – Toyota and Ford tied for leading in the most segments on Strategic Vision's Total Quality Index™ (TQI), leading with three vehicles each. Toyota lead with its Yaris, 4Runner and Sequoia while Ford lead with the Edge, Mustang Convertible and F-250/350. The San Diego based research firm today announced the 2008 results that are based on the ratings by new vehicle owners in 19 product segments.
Toyota Motor Sales had two additional leaders with the Scion xB and the Lexus RX 350 (which tied with Land Rover's LR2); while Ford Motor Company added two additional wins with the Mercury Sable and Volvo C30. "Ford is back, establishing its vehicle quality in the hearts and minds of its customers," says Alexander Edwards, president of Strategic Vision's automotive division. "The Ford Edge is one of the vehicles Ford can be proud of. By careful attention to key areas such as exterior styling, workmanship and performance, (which are the cues that signal quality for crossover customers), Ford is building vehicles that also build brand equity and perceived customer quality."
The Total Quality Index™ is the premier measure of new vehicle owner satisfaction. It asks buyers to rate all aspects of the ownership experience, from buying and owning to performance and driving. It is much more than simply counting problems. "Innovation and thoughtfulness in functionality and design, keeping in mind how the customer will interact and use the vehicle, is essential," reports Dr. Darrel Edwards, Founder and CEO of Strategic Vision. "Vehicles like the Volvo C30 and Toyota Sequoia are both terrific examples of providing customers with this 'functional luxury' in a very stylish design suggesting quality both on the inside and out."
Mercedes, Honda and Chevrolet brands each had two leaders: Mercedes leading with the S-Class and SL, Honda with the Odyssey and Ridgeline, and Chevrolet with the Corvette Convertible and a tie with itself in full size trucks between the Avalanche and Silverado. From three leads last year, Hyundai took the lead in only one segment this year with its Santa Fe in one of the most competitive automotive segments, the Smaller SUVs. The Volkswagen Jetta, Chrysler 300C and BMW X5 were each TQI leaders. Also worthy of mention is the redesigned Chevrolet Malibu, now second in the highly competitive Medium Car segment.
"Over the past quarter century in the US, customer perceptions of quality of domestic and Asian manufacturers underwent large swings. Today, it doesn't matter if you are a Toyota or a Ford, BMW or Hyundai, each manufacturer has the opportunity and mandate to produce a product with the right Cues of Quality - those product attributes that signal quality and create customer Trust - and present vehicles that have a greater impact on the purchase decision," says Alexander Edwards.
Buyers rated the following vehicles tops in their segments:
Segment Winner(s) TQI Score
Small Car Toyota Yaris 860
Small Multi-Function Scion xB 876
Medium Car Volkswagen Jetta 911
Large Car Mercury Sable 877
Small Specialty Under $25,000 Volvo C30 T5 Hatchback 908
Near Luxury Car Chrysler 300C 927
Luxury Car Mercedes-Benz S-Class Sedan* 950
Convertibles Under $30,000 Ford Mustang Convertible 896
Convertibles Over $30,000 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible*, Mercedes-Benz SL 940/939
Minivan Honda Odyssey 864
Small SUV Hyundai Santa Fe* 866
Medium Crossover Ford Edge 877
Medium SUV Toyota 4Runner 891
Large SUV Toyota Sequoia 897
Near Luxury SUV Lexus RX 350*, Land Rover LR2 913/912
Luxury SUV BMW X5 907
Standard Pick-Up Honda Ridgeline* 878
Large Pickup Chevrolet Avalanche 1500, Chevrolet Silverado 1500 880/880
Heavy Duty Pickup Ford F-250/350 863
*2007 Total Quality Award™ winner
The Total Quality Index™ was calculated from the responses of 20,655 buyers who bought 2008 models in September, October and November of 2007. Strategic Vision has presented Total Quality annually since 1995.
Since its incorporation in 1989, Strategic Vision has studied consumer and constituent decision-making for the widest variety of clients, including most auto manufacturers, Coca-Cola, American Airlines, Procter and Gamble, as well as for most advertising agencies. Its unique expertise is identifying consumers' motivational hierarchies, including the values that shape perceptions and capture the customers' emotional responses and drive behavior. The firm's in-depth Discovery Interviews and ValueCentered Surveys provide comprehensive, integrated and actionable outcomes.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Jordan 11:42AM (5/29/2008)
The best list of all in determining car quality, dependability, happiness factor, prestige, and every other criteria is resale value after 5 years. Thats it.
These polls and who does them are irrelevant.
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Bah 12:07PM (5/29/2008)
You mean % resale value as compared to original purchase price I think.
Of course, resale value is also driven by these types of surveys.
why not the LS2LS7? 11:56AM (5/29/2008)
Resale value versus purchase price perhaps. But it's tough to do that since purchase price is not tracked, just MSRP.
Additionally, on vehicles where there are a lot of leases (like luxury cars), the lease residuals tend to greatly affect the resale values (in fact all but directly set them) and yet lease residuals are not set by customer satisfaction, but by actuaries. Thus, if you are in the luxury market you can increase your resale (and your perceived value) by subsidizing leases by increasing the residual value.
kory kickul 11:59AM (5/29/2008)
i agree absolutely with your comments............. talk to someone right now trying to trade in their ford of any kind........... how happy are they?
compy386 12:11PM (5/29/2008)
That comment is completely off. SUV resale values have hit the tubes because of gas prices. MINI resale values are the highest in the industry and most gen 1 MINIs were abysmal in quality. Had a friend with one that needed a new tranny in the first year. Usually tied with Land Rover in worst quality in most studies. Resale value is based on supply and demand. People demand things other than just quality.
Robert 12:54PM (5/29/2008)
Resale with respect to transaction price I can believe. It's been four years since I bought my Focus. It retailed for $17,700 and I bought it for $12,500. It is now worth $7,400 for an equity loss of $5,100. The Corolla the Toyota dealer wanted me to pay $16,800 for is now worth about $11,300. Percentage is higher, but the loss is still $5,300 for essentially the same car. However, that extra $4,300 that I didn't spend on the Corolla has been invested and is probably worth close to $7-8k positive financial swing for me (some through debt repayments, some through savings), more than covering the extra value the Corolla is worth.
I'd say with 0 problems at 58,000 miles, my Focus was the correct choice. Surveys like these are relevant, ultimately, because my resale is worse not just because of supply and demand (let's face it, Ford used to dump these Focuses in fleets) but because of perception. And surveys like these change perception over time.
Leading to your 5-year resale values...
FThorn 2:21PM (5/29/2008)
if that's the case then the MINI Cooper is the best.
Then Ferrari. That 17 million dollar Ferrari Cali is good return.
kory kickul 2:35PM (5/29/2008)
good point robert, never thought about it like that.......
now, if ford would price their vehicle correctly instead of the overprice then rebate it would make things easier....
if a car is worth 12000 then price it that way.......... I sure hope people dont buy the car and take zero percent for 60 months waving the rebate then want to trade it in a year..........
Yes gas prices are contributing to the whole mess.........
BlazerUnit 12:18AM (6/01/2008)
Odd, I'd sort of believe the best indicator might include the number of able-moneyed families holding onto their cars and NOT trading them in for something new.
Resale value is a figure for idiots too stupid to remember that cars aren't investments.
Randy 10:21AM (6/03/2008)
Robert @ May 29th 2008 12:54PM
YOU ROCK!
If you haven't read Robert's post! Scroll back up! The name and time stamp is at the top of this post! :)
Austin 11:48AM (5/29/2008)
Let me guess tomorro Toyota will come out and discredit these quality ratings just like they did the others. Toyota is sad.
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Tricky dicky 11:54AM (5/29/2008)
you got it. they will minimize all statistics which ironically helped them have their rise to fame.. lmao..
kory kickul 12:01PM (5/29/2008)
i find this findings really unbelievable....... did they actually drive a ford edge? that thing is an absolute disaster of a vehicle.............
why not the LS2LS7? 11:59AM (5/29/2008)
While embracing the figures that the big 3 pushed for while they had their eyes off the ball like total sales volume, leaving someone else to produce efficient, reliable cars with high customer satisfaction and grow their company.
Jared 12:44PM (5/29/2008)
I recently rented a Ford Edge for about a week. I put about 500 miles on the car. Is it a perfect cross-over? No. But I was actually quite impressed with the car.
Disgruntled Goat 12:57PM (5/29/2008)
You have to admit though that this "quality" survey really has very little to do with true quality. This is more of a "Do you still like your car 2 months later and were you happy with the sales experience?" survey.
The Luigiian 11:55AM (5/29/2008)
I wanna look at resale value at five years post-Mulally and see how things are doing. I would say these awards are pretty much irrelevant, and we won't know how much Mulally is doing to help Ford for a good long while.
Anything Bill Ford did is questionable. That's the stuff we're seeing right now.
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Aprime 12:35PM (5/29/2008)
Ditto
zamafir 11:57AM (5/29/2008)
"how are the Jetta and Malibu in the same segment"
Damn near same width, damn near same height, damn near same mpg, damn near same front leg room (within an inch), exact same rear head room, damn near same front head room, damn near same front and rear shoulder room, damn near same trunk.
Jetta has a bit more standard features and handles better (shorter, shorter wheel base) but aside from that, is it really that difficult to see how two cars which are within in inch of each other in all but overall length and rear leg room(entertaining when the jetta has more trunk space when it's over 10" shorter and only has 2 inches less leg room in the back)
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The Other Bob 12:01PM (5/29/2008)
I have been in both cars. The Jetta is much more cramped. You cannot fit a rear-facing baby seat in the back without moving the front seats forward, which for me is impossible. Even the last Malibu didn't have this problem.
The Jetta is smaller, and in many cases gets worse gas mileage.