J.D. POWER 2020 - OVERVIEW

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American analytical company J.D. The Power and Association, which has been conducting an independent study of the market for new and used cars for more than three decades, at the end of June 2020 presented to the public the next (34th in a row) rating of reliability of new "iron horses" (IQS - Initial Quality Study), which are officially sold in North American countries.

For the study, experts interviewed more than 82,000 Americans - owners or renters of new cars after 90 days of operation. Car enthusiasts were asked to answer a total of 233 questions (divided into nine categories), affecting overall satisfaction with workmanship in various areas and the number of calls to car services.

The final result of the survey was the compilation of a reliability rating, in which each car brand was assigned an index of the number of defects per 100 cars (PP100 - Problems per 100 Vehicle) - and the lower this figure, the better.

Interestingly, most premium brands fell short of the industry average of 166 problems per 100 vehicles in terms of reliability, excluding Genesis, Lexus and Cadillac. As before, the largest number of complaints from car owners was collected by infotainment systems (in particular - voice control, Bluetooth, Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, etc.) - almost a quarter of the total, but there were also complaints about, for example, build quality of the body and interior.

It is also interesting that in 2020 the "hegemony" of South Korean automakers ceased, and three American brands were in the first "five" at once. Moreover, for the first time in the 34-year history of the rating, the top position was taken by a company from the United States - Dodge, with a result of 136 defects per 100 units of equipment, sharing the "gold" with Kia. Chevrolet and Ram followed them with the same index of 141PP100, and last year's leader Genesis moved immediately to fifth place (141PP100).

The worst reliability was demonstrated by the British brand Land Rover - 228 breakdowns per 100 vehicles. Audi and Volvo were able to boast slightly better results - 225PP100 and 210PP100, respectively, and closed the "five" outsiders Mercedes-Benz (202PP100) and Jaguar (190PP100). So it turns out that a rather contradictory situation has developed - only representatives of the premium class are located in the rearguard of the rating.

Well, the main loser of 2020 turned out to be Tesla, but unofficial - the automaker forbids interviewing owners of electric vehicles in 15 states, and according to the rating rules, studies should be carried out in all regions of the United States. Nevertheless, J.D. Power experts were able to talk to 1,250 Tesla car owners (most of them drive Model 3s), who complained little about the technical part and electronics, but were extremely unhappy with poorly docked body parts, poor-quality paintwork and extraneous sounds. The bottom line is that for every hundred electric cars, there were 250 certain malfunctions.

As for individual categories, here two brands at once (one mass and one premium) won four first places each in different nominations - Kia and Cadillac, respectively, while Hyundai and Ford cars dominated three segments.

Well, if we consider separately taken models (that is, "best in class"), then the final "satisfaction rating" of J.D. Power for 2020 looks like this: