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To gather car reliability data for the VDS, J.D. Power surveys tens of thousands of original owners of 3-year-old vehicles, asking them how dependable their vehicles have been during the prior 12 months. Based on this information, J.D. Power calculates which new-car models are the most dependable within the different vehicle segments.
According to the results of the 2018 VDS, the following 2015 model-year vehicles receive an award for ranking highest in their respective segments.
Subaru dropped quite a bit in rankings. Last year with 164 problems, they were just under the Industry Avg of 156. This year Industry avg dropped considerably to 142. Legacy and Outback were all-new in 2015, I know those vehicles had an early transmission recall, but can't think of anything more recent. Of course the overall methodology and lack of weighting between various issue areas also leaves a lot of be desired but that's a different animal to tackle.
Subaru dropped quite a bit in rankings. Last year with 164 problems, they were just under the Industry Avg of 156. This year Industry avg dropped considerably to 142. Legacy and Outback were all-new in 2015, I know those vehicles had an early transmission recall, but can't think of anything more recent. Of course the overall methodology and lack of weighting between various issue areas also leaves a lot of be desired but that's a different animal to tackle.
Since this study involved three-year-old models, that was during a period (or close to it) when non-turbo Subaru 2.0L and 2.5L flat-fours were being produced with piston rings that sometimes allowed premature oil-consumption.
Since this study involved three-year-old models, that was during a period (or close to it) when non-turbo Subaru 2.0L and 2.5L flat-fours were being produced with piston rings that sometimes allowed premature oil-consumption.
Does that count for 1.67 problems per vehicle? So without the piston ring problem, the rating should be .67 problem per vehicle. Of course I dont know the exact weighting and methodology.
I look at it more as the seperation between makes, they are almost a series of steps. You can see the increase in pp/100 vehicles between Lexus/Porsche and the next step down which spans Buick to Toyota. And then further down the gap closes between those steps.
What's interesting is to see BMW and Toyota sharing the same ranking here. And Hyundai/Kia sharing one of the top segments, particularly Kia not that far away from Buick. Cadillac to Chrysler sitting at the bottom with Fiat, Jeep and LR? No surprise there.
yeah because they have 2 problems per car avg vs. 1 problem per car average for lexus. oh what a calamity.
#statisticscansayanything
Again, we have to define "problem". You and I have both noted that, recently, what constitutes a "problem" in some vehicles is simple dissatisfaction of drivers with the way some controls and video-screens work. Yes, defective piston rings is indeed a legitimate mechanical problem. But, again, the same symptoms from it are not necessarily going to be seen on some vehicles......or, if so, not necessarily at the same mileage or age. One (affected) Subaru, for example, may start using oil as soon as the first couple of oil changes.......another of the same example, not for maybe several years.
One of the things that is also contributing to "oil use" on today's cars is the long intervals that the oil-use computers (if so-equipped) sometimes give to remaining oil life. In the old days, you simply went in every few months or couple of thousand miles and got fresh oil and filter (or did it yourself)....and that was that. The level in the crankcase went back up to full, and you started over again. Now, with the much better oils we have nowadays (some manufacturers call for synthetics, even for non-turbo engines), and with the ability of computes to estimate remaining oil-life based on daily-driving factors, intervals between oil changes may be almost a year and as long as 8K-10K miles. With the owner (usually) not checking or adding oil, in that relatively long period of time, the engine could be using one, two, or even more quarts of oil, even at relatively low mileage. So then, all of a sudden, for obvious reasons, the red oil light starts blinking intermittently (usually at idle), or the oil-pressure gauge drops, and the owner thinks he or she has a problem, when in reality, all that was needed was to manually check the oil occasionally, and add some if needed. This is why, in reviews, I note how easy or difficult it is to reach dipsticks and filler-caps underhood.
Last edited by mmarshall; Feb 14, 2018 at 04:32 PM.
I honestly don’t put too much stock in these surveys. I would rather use word of mouth and my own experience as the most important determinant factor. A three year study seems pointless as all cars have a 3 year warranty.
I think resale, lack of discounts, average selling prices is a much more important factor IMO.
Again, we have to define "problem". You and I have both noted that, recently, what constitutes a "problem" in some vehicles is simple dissatisfaction of drivers with the way some controls and video-screens work. Yes, defective piston rings is indeed a legitimate mechanical problem. But, again, the same symptoms from it are not necessarily going to be seen on some vehicles......or, if so, not necessarily at the same mileage or age. One (affected) Subaru, for example, may start using oil as soon as the first couple of oil changes.......another of the same example, not for maybe several years.
The real thing is that all of those variables you have mentioned have been engineered out of the equation quite easily. This is not rocket science, so all else being equal - some manufacturers deliberately choose to spend less time, money and effort understanding these things vs others. That is the root of what a JD or CR study does. It's about having predictability and knowing what problems are going to show up when. When all of the manufacturers are weighted for all or any problems, it seems some perform consistently and some don't. That's what a reliability or durability study means to me. Take the data and look at trends. Which car companies always seem to let you down vs which improve year over year.
What they don't take into account is the behavior of the owners. Toyotas will attract certain buyers. Mustangs will attract certain buyers, each with a specific set of behaviors.
Let's use common sense, Porsche and Buick, #2 and #3. Likely this is about as valid as the Gartner Magic Quadrant and Genies in a Bottle, BMW tied with Toyota and above Nissan and Honda.
