Lexus continues to rule the roost of reliability as J.D. Power reports overall vehicle dependability improves

JD Power has just dropped its 2023 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS) and the blanket results indicate that vehicle reliability has increased with an industry average of 186 problems per 100 (PP100) vehicles, an improvement of 6 PP100 from 2022.

Vehicles from the 2020 model year were the focus of this study as it delved into quality, component replacement and appeal to help carmakers design and build more reliable vehicles with a view of promoting higher resale value.

Mass market brands lead the industry’s improvement with 182 PP100, an improvement of 8 PP100 from the year before. For context, a lower PP100 score is better. Even premium marques scored an improvement, lowering their score by 23 PP100.

This marks a gap between the two segments at its widest since the study launched 34 years ago. The disparity can be attributed to new technology introduced in vehicles. Premium brands tend to introduce new, complex technology earlier at the expense of having ironed out all the bugs.

Helping mass market brands foreshadow this new tech being trickling down and being implemented in their models are two of the industry’s preeminent studies, the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS) and the VDS.

The 3-year-old vehicles measured in this year’s study were first examined in the 2020 IQS and 6 of the 10 highest-ranked brands in the 2020 IQS scored among the 10 highest-ranked brands in this year’s VDS.

Also Read: J.D. Power: Chinese car brands are closing the gap with international brands in quality

Many of the issues plaguing these brands 90 days to 3 years of ownership stemmed from starter battery failures, outdated maps, Android Auto/Apple CarPlay and voice recognition problems. The increase in problems with the technological aspect of cars is a clear demonstration on the importance over-the-air (OTA) updates can play.

The study was redesigned in 2022 to include features and technology that are available in current vehicles. It now covers 184 specific problem areas across nine major vehicle categories:

• climate
• driving assistance
• driving experience
• exterior
• features/controls/displays
• infotainment
• interior
• powertrain
• seats

Also Read: Who makes 2021's most reliable cars? What’s the 10 best car brands to buy from?

Infotainment systems continue to rank as the most problematic with an average of 49.9 PP100, almost double the second-highest category that’s exterior. 6 of the top 10 problem areas in the study are infotainment related.

Furthermore, technology improves appeal for parts that appear outdated as owners’ expectations depend heavily on how up to date the technology remains over time. A clar example lays with satisfaction scores improving when vehicles receive OTA updates to infotainment systems that are perceived to be outdated.

The Lexus RX and Toyota C-HR tied for the most dependable model in the study, both scoring 111 PP100 as they demonstrated improvement in 8 of the 9 categories compared to the previous year.

Also Read: Consumer Reports: Toyota and Lexus top reliability charts, yet again

More impressively though are the top 3 brands with the greatest improvement in the number of problems with Ram leading the way (77 PP100 improvement), followed by Volvo (41 PP100 improvement) and Nissan (35 PP100 improvement).

A notable inclusion for the first time ever in this year’s VDS is Tesla and the electric carmaker scored 242 PP100. Nonetheless, as Tesla doesn’t allow access to owner information in the states where that permission is required by law, Tesla vehicles remain ineligible for awards.

Sitting atop the throne of dependability is Lexus with 133 PP100 while Genesis (144 PP100), Cadillac (173 PP100) and BMW (184 PP100) make up the top 4.

Kia (152 PP100) ranks highest in the mass market segment for a third consecutive year but a close second is Buick (159 PP100) followed by Chevrolet (162 PP100), Mitsubishi (167 PP100) and Toyota (168 PP100).

The used-vehicle market has helped sustain dealers’ profitability in the past couple of years but dealers need to know which vehicles to have on their lots. Naturally, vehicles with strong dependability scores will nurture a positive brand perception and drive used car sales.

The 2023 VDS is based on responses from 30,062 original owners of 2020 model-year vehicles after 3 years of ownership.