The 2018 Lexus LC 500
Mack Hogan | CNBC
The three most trusted car brands in the US are now Lexus, Porsche and Kia, according to a new JD Power study. The three least reliable are Jaguar, Alfa Romeo and Land Rover.
Tesla, which was profiled for the first time in this year’s study on the reliability of vehicles, comes in 30th place out of 33 car manufacturers. It landed one place behind Chrysler and one ahead of Jaguar.
JD Power studies serve as a benchmark in the industry, and their results can increase sales and affect insurance premiums for owners. The U.S. Vehicle Dependency Study in 2021 analyzed responses from 33,251 verified owners of 2018 model year vehicles sold in the U.S. The study evaluated about 150 different models, including cars, trucks and sports utility vehicles.
Dave Sargent, JD Power’s vice president of car quality, says Tesla’s rankings in the 32-year annual study this year are considered unofficial. This is because Elon Musk’s electric vehicle business JD Power does not give permission to investigate its owners in 15 countries that need it.
One of the excluded states is California, Tesla’s home base and a major market for the company. However, the JD Power study included 756 Tesla respondents from 35 different states, including large markets with relatively hot weather such as Florida and Texas.
While Tesla was unofficially low on the reliability survey, it ended JD Power’s APEAL survey in 2020 unofficially, judging vehicle brands according to emotional attachment and excitement with their new vehicles.
Who’s up, who’s off
The reliability survey asks drivers how much and what kind of problems their cars, trucks or sports utility vehicles have experienced in the past year, and assigns a score based on the problems reported per 100 vehicles. The lower the score, the more reliable the car manufacturer.
The largest number of problems reported by vehicle owners in all makes and models relate to sound, communication, entertainment and navigation systems.
“As smartphone apps increasingly give owners an alternative, some will abandon the vehicle’s built-in systems that caused the initial frustration. This is problematic for carmakers, as much of the vehicle’s value is tied up in these systems, and it does not want this hand over business to third parties, ”Sargent said.
The Porsche 911 was the highest position in the 2021 study.
Lexus, owned by Toyota, topped the list among all brands, with a score of 81 issues per 100 vehicles.
Kia vehicles in particular have risen from the least reliable car brands in the US to the most reliable in just a decade, with an average of 97 problems per 100 vehicles. Toyota was at the top of the list with 98 problems per 100 vehicles.
Volkswagen, which introduced two new models in 2018, slipped on the reliability rankings. Sargent noted: “The results can be influenced by whether a manufacturer has just launched a bunch of new products. This is usually the most problematic in their first year out.”
Owners of the 3-year-old Teslas reported 176 problems per 100 vehicles, compared to the operating average in the US of 121 problems per 100 vehicles. Tesla owners have reported more problems with their exterior and interior than with other systems such as propulsion, battery or infotainment and navigation. However, some have complained about problems with Tesla’s voice recognition in the vehicle.
Overall, the vehicle’s reliability improved by about 10% year-on-year, JD Power found. Part of this was due to the lower use and misuse of vehicles amid a Covid pandemic that restricted commuting and travel in the state of the country.
“We know the more people use a vehicle, the more problems they are going to have,” Sargent said. Last year, consumers drove an average of about 32,000 kilometers over three years of ownership of new vehicles. This year, they drove 29,000 miles, representing a 10% reduction over a three-year period, and an implied 30% reduction over the past year.
– Michael Wayland, CNBC, contributed to this report.