The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based RDA Group has found that Ford is on par with top-level stalwarts Toyota and Honda when it comes to vehicle quality. Ford managed 1,284 "things-gone-wrong" (TGW) per 1,000 vehicles during the first three months of ownership this year, statistically matching the two top Japanese brands, which are tied at 1,250 TGW. Though it certianly won't be the last word in the ongoing debate as to who makes the best cars, it is at least a good sign for Ford. Perhaps what's most impressive is that 36 of 40 Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and Mazda nameplates improved this year versus 2007. Ford's performance in this study marks an eight-percent improvement over the previous year, at which time they were tied with Toyota, but trailing industry-leader Honda. While Ford is glad to see quality improving, every automaker would surely like to sit alone at the top of the quality rankings, and Ford is no different.
Ford builds some pretty good vehicles these days, but faces a large perceived quality gap, as only 41-percent of consumers consider Ford vehicles according to their own internal data. For that reason, expect Ford to tout these new quality findings as part of their Drive One campaign.
Ford's quality record at the beginning of this decade was so bad, the automaker was spending billions on warranty repairs, while simultaneously turning off potential buyers in droves. The blue oval has been righting the ship for the past couple of years, with vehicles like the Fusion and Taurus leading a quality renaissance that has the automaker nipping at the heels of its Japanese competition. That quality improvement has been cutting losses, with $900 million in savings achieved in 2007, and more on the way. The embattled automaker is forecasting an additional $300 in savings for 2008, which means Ford is expecting additional quality improvement. The money will eventually be used to finance new product, but for now the cash infusion is merely stemming Ford's substantial North American losses. There is little doubt that newer models like the Edge and Milan are far more reliable than what Ford was making even three or four years ago. The trick will be to convince the public to forgive Ford for its past woes and give the automaker another chance.
Many of us in the know, i.e. auto enthusiasts, are well aware that our domestic automakers have made significant strides in improving the quality of the cars and trucks they sell. We also know that it's been extremely difficult to shake their reputation of shoddy quality that may have been deserved in the past, but is becoming less so by the day.
Ford revealed today that it has taken steps to provide some objective data to support improvements in quality that are beginning to pay off. In conjunction with RDA Group, a market research firm based in Bloomfield Hills, Ford has released details of the Global Quality Research System (GQRS) report, a survey of 31,000 new vehicle owners. The survey focused on 2007 model year cars and trucks and asked participants to list any problems experienced within the first 90 days of ownership.
Normally we would question a study about vehicle quality that was associated with a particular automaker, as there are some pretty clear conflicts of interest that could taint the results. However, the results of this study appear not to favor Ford in particular, as Honda was found to be the best brand when it comes to new car quality, earning a TGW score of 1313 "things gone wrong" per 1,000 vehicles. Ford's TGW score of 1,456, which includes both Lincoln and Mercury vehicles, placed it in a virtual three-way tie for second place with Toyota (1,453) and Nissan (1,456). The victory is a bit more significant for Ford than Toyota or Nissan since it represents an 8% improvement for the domestic manufacturer over last year, which is well ahead of the industry's average improvement of 2%.
After the jump you'll find out how some individual models scored on the survey.
Ford informed its dealers yesterday that the Edge and Lincoln MKX crossovers will not arrive at dealership in mid- to late-November as previously planned, but would instead be delayed a couple of weeks until at least December. Joe Hinrichs, Ford's vice president of North American manufacturing, said in an interview that there are "some hiccups in the launch curve." The Edge and MDX MKX are already being built at Ford's Oakville, Ontario plant and completed units number in the thousands. It sounds like the assembly line is being slowed or even stopped because of these undefined "hiccups". Though Ford will lose valuable selling days in the month of November, we think the Blue Oval made the right decision to delay these crossovers until it's confident they can be pumped out with no problem. Ford needs to prove the successful launch of the Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr wasn't a flash in the pan, and an initial batch of Edge and MKX crossovers that have quality problems would do more damage than this delay.
Those looking for a glimpse into the future of light-duty diesel reliability may be interested in a new study by J.D. Power on customer satisfaction with modern heavy truck powertrains. The 2006 Heavy Duty Truck Engine/Transmission Study ranked engines from the 2004 model year by quality, performance, cost of ownership, and warranty, and revealed what one would reasonably expect from new technology.
An average of 74 problems per 100 vehicles was reported, which represents a 60% increase in trouble over the prior year. This was attributed directly to the emission control systems that were phased in during 2003 and 2004. Fuel economy also declined from 6.04 MPG in the 2004 study to 5.72 MPG - a drop of over 5%. Ranked highest in the study was Caterpillar, and the company's ACERT technology allowed the C12 and C15 (pictured above) to lead the ratings of individual engines. Unfortunately, unless you hold a CDL, it's highly unlikely that either one of them will find their way into your personal fleet.
So, what does this mean for consumers of passenger vehicles? Just as we've experienced the evolution of emission controls on gasoline engines, problems can be expected as manufacturers roll out clean diesel technology. How long it will take to sort out these issues is not yet clear, but we're guessing that things get sorted out rather quickly, and indeed some of the problems that are currently affecting heavy trucks may very well be eliminated before it trickles down to smaller oilburners.
[Source: J.D. Power; the complete press release is posted below the jump]
You know when automotive journalists write articles for fun listing headlines you never thought you'd see on the printed page? Headlines like "Porsche builds SUV" or "Volkswagen to offer uber luxury car" come time mind... oh, wait... yeah, bad examples. No joke here, however - this post's headline is true. Jag has secured the top spot in a reader poll done by Germany's Auto Zeitung magazine that rated 33 brands in product quality, reliability and service. The British cat jumped up four spots from last year, in fact.
This could be a case of "the grass is always greener," as the 30,000 Germans polled picked British-built Jaguar over their own Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, surprisingly enough. It's is a small bright spot for Ford as it sifts through debt and layoffs this week, as well as a bright spot for Jaguar, whose days could be numbered as a member of Ford's Premier Automotive Group, according to some industry experts.
Automotive News is reporting that the 2007 Toyota Camry could be the first car to break 450,000 sales in one year since the Chevy Impala did it back in 1978. That is, if Toyota's production capacity can meet the challenge. Currently there are reports of people following car carriers with Camrys right to the dealership and Toyota is dealing with a short 10-day supply of cars for those dealers. Not only is the Camry selling well (41,892 sales in July, more than the Nissan Altima and Pontiac G6 combined), but it's selling at an even higher price than its predecessor with no incentives or rebates luring in customers. They're coming of their own free will, apparently with wallets splayed and at the ready. The average transaction price of a Camry is now $22,558, up from $22,378 in April, and dealers are making money on them, sometimes getting within $500 of the vehicle's sticker.
Toyota's challenge in ramping up production, however, is to ensure that quality doesn't suffer. Automotive News reports that some Camry owners have already begun complaining about the same hesitation experienced under low-speed acceleration that dogged owners of the just-launched all-new Toyota Avalon last year. Several Technical Service Bulletins have already been issued by Toyota, which is not uncommon for any vehicle on the market, that address such problems as an issue with the snap ring on the car's 6-speed automatic, a shift flare issue for a small number of cars and some reports of harsh downshifting by owners of the four-cylinder automatic Camry. Toyota, for its part, has begun reassuring Camry owners on message boards and forums that any and all issues are being addressed.
Ford Motor Company is sweetening its warranty with an extra two years of powertrain coverage for its 2007 vehicles, Automotive News reports. The deal that covers all Ford and Mercury brand vehicles supplements the three-year, 36,000 bumper-to-bumper with a five-year, 60,000 mile powertrain warranty, while the powertrain warranty on Lincoln vehicles ups the coverage to six years and 70,000 miles. Free roadside assistance extends along with the new powertrain warranties.
The move is Ford's effort to provide customers with more value and fend off quality issues.
The pecking order of quality rankings was shaken up a bit this year thanks to J.D. Power and Associates significantly revising its survey process. With all the media outlets reacting differently to the results, we decided to let you be the judge of the most significant headline that could emerge from these results. Here are your choices...
The Detroit News is reporting that J.D. .Power is tinkering with its Initial Quality Survey for the first time since 1998 and only the second time since it was introduced in 1987, and the results could mean an increase in reports of problems by up to 40 percent.
The changes affect the number of questions asked (217 vs. 135) and the way in which they're asked to the almost 60,000 new car and truck owners. Owners are also given the chance to reply in essay form for the first time.
Though some manufacturers might cry foul if they drop in the rankings as a result of the new survey, most appreciate the additional material they'll be able to glean from J.D. Power's results.
The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based RDA Group has found that Ford is on par with top-level stalwarts Toyota and Honda when it comes to vehicle quality. Ford managed 1,284 "things-gone-wrong" (TGW) per 1,000 vehicles during the first three months of ownership this year, statistically matching the two top Japanese brands, which are tied at 1,250 TGW. Though it certianly won't be the last word in the ongoing debate as to who makes the best cars, it is at least a good sign for Ford. Perhaps what's most impressive is that 36 of 40 Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and Mazda nameplates improved this year versus 2007. Ford's performance in this study marks an eight-percent improvement over the previous year, at which time they were tied with Toyota, but trailing industry-leader Honda. While Ford is glad to see quality improving, every automaker would surely like to sit alone at the top of the quality rankings, and Ford is no different.
Ford's quality record at the beginning of this decade was so bad, the automaker was spending billions on warranty repairs, while simultaneously turning off potential buyers in droves. The blue oval has been righting the ship for the past couple of years, with vehicles like the 
Many of us in the know, i.e. auto enthusiasts, are well aware that our domestic automakers have made significant strides in improving the quality of the cars and trucks they sell. We also know that it's been extremely difficult to shake their reputation of shoddy quality that may have been deserved in the past, but is becoming less so by the day. 
Those looking for a glimpse into the future of light-duty diesel reliability may be interested in a new study by J.D. Power on customer satisfaction with modern heavy truck powertrains. The 2006 Heavy Duty Truck Engine/Transmission Study ranked engines from the 2004 model year by quality, performance, cost of ownership, and warranty, and revealed what one would reasonably expect from new technology. 
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