Lexus Ranks Highest in Industry in 2012 Initial Quality Study
Cadillac (80 PP100) and Honda (83 PP100) round out the top five rank positions. In addition, Honda, which is the highest-ranking Non-Premium brand in the industry, has improved its initial quality score in each of the past four years. Also, Honda has ranked among the top 10 nameplates in the IQS since 2006. Ten additional brands receive scores that are better than the industry average. In rank order, they are: Acura, Infiniti, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Mazda, GMC, Nissan, Ram and Chevrolet.
At the model level this year, 14 brands each produce at least one model that ranks highest in one of the 21 award segments. Ford and Lexus each earn three segment-level awards, while Infiniti, Nissan and Toyota each receive two segment awards.
The following nine brands also each receive one segment award for one of their models: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Honda, Kia, Mazda, Porsche and Volvo.
In past years, only a handful of brands tended to collect numerous segment awards, but this year marks only the second time in the history of the study that so many different brands achieved award status. This is a positive indication of how widespread high quality is among automakers, with most brands producing a number of models with exceptional quality levels.
For a complete listing of all 2012 Initial Quality Study model-level segment award recipients, please visit www.jdpower.com/quality.
*Problems per 100 vehicles are abbreviated as PP100. Lower PP100 scores equate to higher vehicle quality.