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New Study has Nissan ranked 11th in quality perception

Over on the cars.com blog "Kicking Tires", Nissan is rated 11th for quality perception (meaning what people think the quality of a brand is, even if they don't own a car of that particular brand).

Thoughts?

Quote:

New Study Has Ford Overtaking Toyota in Quality Perception

The situation just keeps getting stickier, so to speak. On the heels of its latest mass recall, a study released Wednesday reports Toyota fell to seventh place for 2010 models — from second place in 2009 — among 20 mainstream brands in perceived quality. Ford, meanwhile, moved from eighth place last year to sixth for 2010. The study ended on January 17, a week before the most recent Toyota recall, but began after the recall of 4.2 million cars over floormats.

Bandon, Ore.-based CNW Market Research conducted the study, which asked 150,000 new-car shoppers, on a 1-to-10 scale, how well they perceived the quality of cars from 36 brands. CNW has been conducting the study for more than a dozen years, with shoppers asked to opine regardless of whether they could afford the brand’s cars.Of the 20 non-luxury brands, Toyota and Honda have ranked first or second from the 1997 to the 2009 model years. But for the 2010 model year, Toyota’s perception dropped to seventh place, with an average score of 8.51 out of 10. In 2009, it was 8.97.
Meanwhile, Ford — whose announcement Thursday of a profitable 2009 blew away analysts’ expectations — vaulted from 14th place as recently as the 2006 model year to sixth for 2010. Here’s how the 20 non-luxury brands stacked up:
1. Honda
2. Buick
3. Mazda
4. Volkswagen
5. Saturn
6. Ford
7. Toyota
8. Hyundai
9. Subaru
10. Chevrolet
11. Nissan
12. Mercury
13. Kia
14. Mitsubishi
15. Dodge
16. Jeep
17. Pontiac
18. Suzuki
19. Chrysler
20. Isuzu

“The problems really began with a small problem: The T100 ‘full size’ pickup was scary bad,” CNW President Art Spinella said in an email statement. “A variety of other recalls on vehicles such as Tundra and warranty issues such as the Multi-Function Display in the Prius added their own black marks. Consumer Reports’ halting a long-time practice of giving an automatic ‘pass’ on any new Toyota product was a major blow.

“The ‘Halt Sale’ directive to dealers impacts not only new vehicles but the used vehicles,” Spinella continued, referring to Toyota’s decision to halt sales of models encompassed by last week’s 2.3-million vehicle accelerator pedal recall.

CNW didn’t return our requests for additional comment, so we chatted with Erich Merkle, president of Autoconomy, a Grand Rapids, Mich.-based consulting firm.

The recent recalls have affected consumer perception “to a certain extent,” Merkle said. But another underlying reason for Toyota’s perceptual slide, he said, is its competition — including Ford.

“I don’t know that Toyota’s quality has degraded as much as it means that the bar has just moved higher,” Merkle said. Indeed, the CNW survey shows brands like Mazda, Volkswagen and Ford having steady perceptual gains over the past few years. Toyota, meanwhile, hovered in the same range from 2007 to 2009 before sliding for 2010.

“If you look at things that GM has done, and what Ford has done, and now what Hyundai and Kia are doing, they really provide that look and feel of quality,” Merkle said. “You look at where interiors have gone, and I don’t think that Toyota interiors have gotten worse. In fact, I think they’ve gotten a little better. But you look at the interior of the new Ford Taurus, and it’s outstanding.”

New Study Has Ford Overtaking Toyota in Quality Perception - KickingTires

what they think! enough said.

Insert face palm. Who cares? I love my Z and don't care about polls or studies or comparisons with Porsches, etc.

yah, ive driven quite a bit of the bread and butter toyota's at rental places and they were all crap. no better than a chevy colt or colbalt watever they're was called.

toyota really needs to get back into the game.

but then again, why is vw in there? :D i dont think that survey is very accurate.

I find Volkswagon coming in forth as an indication of how clueless society really is!

:D

Quote:

Originally Posted by kenchan (Post 380395)

but then again, why is vw in there? :D i dont think that survey is very accurate.

When is people's perception *ever* accurate? :)

The point of posting this though was that if Nissan's quality is seen as relatively low, this might explain the low sales figures for the new Z. Yes, it's the economy, stupid, but what happens when economic times are bad? People go more for quality and take that more into consideration when making major purchases.

I personally will pay attention only if one of the major quality-tracking firms states that Nissan's quality is low, which so far, I haven't seen (they've always been average or above average).

Pontiac that low?

Buick that high?

I don't even...

They are both GM brands.

http://bytewire.net/emot-psyduck.gif

Kia and Volkswagon even being ON the list kills any legitimacy. You might as well put Land Rover in the top five.

Well we went to 10th place since Toyota sank to the bottom of the list.

BTW, someone was smoking something good with their perception. :roflpuke2:

Quote:

Originally Posted by spearfish25 (Post 380662)

Kia and Volkswagon even being ON the list kills any legitimacy. You might as well put Land Rover in the top five.

Hey Spear, watch it with that Land Rover comment! Ha ha ha! :icon17: Love those things.

I still think that alot of this has to do with all of the problems that and low scores Nissan received for the 2004 to current Nissan Quest (same body), that thing was and is a reliability/maintenance nightmare.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheWeatherman (Post 380676)

Hey Spear, watch it with that Land Rover comment! Ha ha ha! :icon17: Love those things.

I loved my Defender 90 until the engine started sputtering every time I'd drive it. My first date with a girl, it broke down as we pulled through McDonalds to pick up a Coke for her (not the final destination of the date!). I had to push it through the drive-through as the window person leaned out, waving for me to pull up. Very embarrassing. In retrospect, I think the catalytic converters were shot and were choking the engine. Great vehicles if you're prepared to replace every single part eventually :).

yeah right.
2nd Buick...
4th VW????
10 Chevy?

sounds like we all are doing the samething as the article, unless we have driven all cars for years we cant really do anything but guess ourselves about the rankings.

haha it's like they drew straws out of hat. Weatherman didn't know you were on here hows it going.

We should be criping up to 9th place now. Honda is doing a recall too!

6,000 Fits recalled!

this would be better if we actually had the real quality list to compare it to.

I find the list, not believable!

Quote:

Originally Posted by frost (Post 380992)

this would be better if we actually had the real quality list to compare it to.

Ratings | J.D. Power

Quote:

Originally Posted by frost (Post 380992)

this would be better if we actually had the real quality list to compare it to.

Based on this chart, the actual quality rankings are a little different than the perception of quality rankings:

Numbers in parentheses is # of problems per 100 vehicles.
Industry average is 206.

1. Lexus (120)
2. Mercury (151)
3. Cadillac (155)
4. Toyota (159)
5. Acura (160)
6. Buick (163)
7. BMW (164)
8. Lincoln (165)
9. Honda (177)
10. Jaguar (178)
11. Porsche (193)
12. Mitsubishi (197)
13. Hyundai (200)
14. Ford (204)
15. Infiniti (204)
16. Audi (207)
17. Mercedes (215)
18. Nissan (224)
19. Pontiac (225)
20. GMC (226)
21. Mazda (228)
22. Chrysler (229)
23. Dodge (230)
24. Mini (233)
25. Chevrolet (239)
26. Hummer (241)
27. Scion (243)
28. Volvo (244)
29. Saturn (250)
30. Jeep (253)
31. Volkswagen (253)
32. Saab (254)
33. Isuzu (274)
34. Kia (278)
35. Suzuki (302)
36. Land Rover (344)

And the perception quality list once again:

1. Honda
2. Buick
3. Mazda
4. Volkswagen
5. Saturn
6. Ford
7. Toyota
8. Hyundai
9. Subaru
10. Chevrolet
11. Nissan
12. Mercury
13. Kia
14. Mitsubishi
15. Dodge
16. Jeep
17. Pontiac
18. Suzuki
19. Chrysler
20. Isuzu

Also, for those who like to read (I know... about 3 of you! ;) ), there's this from Consumer Reports:

Quote:

Ford still leads the domestics
Ford consolidated its position as the only Detroit automaker with world-class reliability. The Fusion and Milan led the charge; four-cylinder, front-wheel-drive V6, and hybrid versions got top marks.

Of the 51 Ford, Mercury, and Lincoln products that we surveyed, 46, or about 90 percent, were average or better, including the new Ford Flex SUV. But the Lincoln division had mixed results; some models scored below their Ford equivalents. All-wheel-drive versions of the Lincoln MKS, MKX, and MKZ, essentially high-end versions of the Ford Taurus, Edge, and Fusion, were all below average.

Following its bankruptcy filing and shedding the Hummer, Pontiac, and Saturn brands, GM now consists of Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC. Of the 48 models we surveyed from those brands, 20 had average scores, and only one, the Malibu V6 sedan, was better than average.

Some newer GM products were bright spots. Besides the Malibu, the Buick Lucerne also did well in our road tests, and it scored average in reliability. The Chevrolet Traverse SUV also made the cut, as did its cousin, the Buick Enclave, but only in the all-wheel-drive version. The Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500 pickups, two good performers, earned our recommendation as well. GM has a number of strong contenders either just released or in the pipeline, but we won't have reliability data on them for a while.

We recommend the Pontiac Vibe and the V8 version of the Pontiac G8, as well as the Saturn Aura, which have average or better reliability. Some of those cars can still be found on dealer lots.

In last year's survey we couldn't recommend any Chrysler products, either because of mediocre performance, poor reliability, or both. Now there is one: the four-wheel-drive version of the Dodge Ram 1500 pickup, which was redesigned for 2009. It did well in our road tests and rated average in reliability. Still, more than one-third of Chrysler products were much worse than average, including its new car-based SUV, the Dodge Journey.

Asian brands still dominate
The major Japanese brands and South Korea's Hyundai and Kia make plenty of reliable vehicles. Of the 48 models with top reliability scores, 36 were Asian. Toyota accounted for 18; Honda, eight; Nissan, four; and Hyundai/Kia and Subaru, three each.

On the whole, Japanese vehicles are consistently good. All Hondas and Acuras were average or above. Toyota, with its Lexus and Scion brands providing a broader product range, had just one vehicle that was below average in reliability, the Lexus GS AWD.

The Nissan and its Infiniti luxury division have been mostly very good despite lapses such as the subpar Nissan Quest minivan. The once problematic Infiniti QX56 and Nissan Armada SUVs are now average, and the same goes for the 4WD Nissan Titan pickup, although its RWD version is still troublesome. Over the last two surveys, the Nissan Versa hatchback has been average while the sedan has been far below average-an oddity.
Subaru has been a very reliable brand, but this year the turbocharged Impreza WRX turned up with a worse-than-average reliability score even though other versions of the Impreza have been average or better, as were all other Subarus.

Hyundai and Kia continue to make reliable cars. The Hyundai Elantra and Tucson, and the Kia Sportage got top marks. The new Genesis sedan was better than average with the V6, average with the V8. The only models that scored below average were the Kia Sedona minivan and Sorento SUV.

Good news from Europe
European brands continue to improve. Mercedes-Benz has made great strides, with most models average, and the GLK did exceptionally well in its first year. Scores from rival BMW were more mixed. The 535i sedan and X3 SUV declined in reliability, and the 135i, debuting in this survey, scored below-average. Some BMW models had average or better reliability, but the 328i versions are the only ones that we've tested and can recommend.
Volkswagen and Audi are staging a nice recovery.

The Volkswagen Rabbit (Golf for 2010), and its new CC got top scores. The VW Jetta's recommendation now extends to the diesel version, making it the only diesel we currently recommend. Both the Passat and Audi A3 have improved to average. The new VW Tiguan SUV was average. The Audi Q7 SUV continues to be much worse than average, while the VW Touareg, which had the worst new car prediction score in the survey, is 27 times more likely to have a problem than the best, the Honda Insight.

All of Volvo's sedans were average or better, but Volvo's XC90 SUV was below average. Porsche, which has been doing quite well in our survey of late, had one serious hiccup this year: The Boxster dropped to below average, which strikes it from our recommended list. But the Cayenne SUV improved to average.

Interesting! But what counts as a problem?

Perception vs. statistics: Perception is, literally, "an impression; the interpretation of information or experience; using of the senses to acquire information". It implies emotions and personal likes/dislikes. Stats, on the other hand, are cold facts; information gathered by scientific means, that keep a record of reliability and performance. Stats indicate the following: 1. Honda; 2. Toyota (shaky, at present!); 3. Nissan; 4. Subaru... and the rest.

Quote:

Originally Posted by j.arnaldo (Post 381515)

Human Factor, perception... Most people will buy thier cars base on that without looking at the actual statistics...

However, Perception vs Statistic can be a good Case Study for a Cap Stone project. ;)

Strange list. Why would anyone care what the 'perception' of quality was?

If I were polled, what valuable information could I provide about cars I don't own?

Not a slam on the OP, just puzzled why the people who created these rankings thought they would be helpful.

Thanks for the J.D. Power Rankings link, soCo.

Quote:

Originally Posted by didymus (Post 381513)

Interesting! But what counts as a problem?

It's a problem for Nissan if people's perception of their quality is low. It's also a problem if Nissan's actual quality is low, although that doesn't seem to be the case (about average).

Everything I've read about the Z indicates that the quality of this particular model is high, but I was just wondering if poor Z sales might be due, partially at least, to people's low opinion of Nissan quality.

Just a theory. :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by j.arnaldo (Post 381515)

J, do you have a link to these stats? I'd be interested in looking at them. Thanks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jakoye (Post 381478)

All I know is my '08 Altima Coupe has been perfect since delivery and just got me through this horrible snowstorm we encountered while visiting Ford's Theater here in Washington DC. So was my last Altima and my Z so far has been trouble free. I don't seem to hear of any Nissan recalls!

Quality Concerns

Well I used to like Ford until my moms Ranger starting having it's problems, should of got the Tacoma, My Buick Regal had great longivity I can see how they were tops in domestics in the 90s. Toyota is the big dog now so with that comes high volume and greater chance of developing certain problems associated with that sheer volume,:iagree:

Quote:

Originally Posted by j.arnaldo (Post 381515)

Perception studies are very important, especially in the USA. Basically, you can sell the biggest piece of sh** in this country if you throw some kind of status symbol on it. Consider BMW. Everything above the 3 series is a piece of crap and the 3 series is overpriced but still sells.
Customer perception is what makes people buy cars. So if you look at it in terms of vehicles. The top 5 vehicles will be the standard for what the american consumer wants vs what is good for the american consumer. Customer perception is what makes companies change up or add features or models to there line ups as well as subtract them. It has nothing to do with quality. It has all to do with what will line the car corps pockets.

Perception and facts are two different things. That survey is useless and a waste of time and money.

Buick? Chevy? ...dismissed!