Industry Report Part 1: New J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study Puts Lexus on Top as Usual

Toyota at least hasn't fallen as far as Porsche mind you, that dove right past 9th place finisher Mercury, the domestic Ford

While Toyota can't be happy about their fall from 6th to 8th, it's nothing compared to Porsche's slide from 4th to 10th. (Photo: Porsche Cars North America)

Motor division up from 10th last year and improving its PP100 from 240 to 224. Porsche manages only 10th place with a PP100 of 240, dropping from its 2003 ranking of 4th place and 193 PP100. While still above the industry average, it's difficult to say why Stuttgart firm lost so many places. Excepting the 911 Turbo, which was low on volume and therefore should only reflect nominally in the automaker's overall ranking, no new models were introduced from 2000 to 2001. Porsche's 2004 Initial Quality Ranking (IQS), which includes new cars in their first three months of ownership, dropped much more dramatically from 2nd to last place in corporate rankings, and 7th to 34th place in nameplate rankings, due to a poor showing by its less than reliable Volkswagen-produced Cayenne SUV. Porsche will no doubt feel the pain of this reality in its 2007 VDS score as well.

Outside of the top ten, Chevrolet, GMC, BMW, Saab and Saturn all rank better than the industry average, with problems per 100 vehicle ratings of 262, 262 (tied), 264,

Although outside the top 10, Chevrolet, GMC, BMW, Saab and Saturn all ranked above the industry average. (Photo: BMW Canada)

265, and 267 respectively. Jaguar, Nissan and Subaru, which were rated above average in the 2003 VDS, have fallen to 25th, 17th, and 20th place respectively.

While still below average, Ford and Chrysler have made big gains, rising through the ranks from 23rd and 22nd places respectively last year to 18th and 16th spots in the 2004 VDS, with Ford having passed by Chrysler, the two now split by Nissan.

Actually, almost all the domestics have improved since last year. Ford moved up by 19 PP100, while its Lincoln luxury division rose by 18. Mercury, also owned by Ford Motor managed a 16 PP100 gain, while Dodge came up by 14, Cadillac and Plymouth (no longer being sold) by 13, plus Chevrolet and Chrysler by 10 PP100.