Hyundai joins Toyota, Honda atop quality list

[lordbiotree]

By Martin Wolk

MSNBC

It was only a few years ago that Korea’s Hyundai was considered a second-tier auto brand, inferior in quality to better-made Japanese and American models.

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Those days are rapidly fading into history, according to a survey that ranks Hyundais with Toyotas and Hondas as the most reliable cars sold in America.

Hyundai rose from No. 10 last year to tie for second place with Honda, slightly behind perennial No. 1 Toyota, according to the J.D. Power and Associates survey. The three companies easily outranked No. 4 BMW and No. 5 General Motors in the study, which measured problems reported in the first 90 days of ownership for 2004 models.

Just six years ago Korean brands, including Kia and Daewoo, struggled against a reputation for poor quality, with owners reporting an average of 2.7 problems per vehicle in the first 90 days of ownership, according to J.D. Power. That figure has dropped 57 percent to fewer than 1.2 problems per vehicle.

For Hyundai brand cars, the number is close to one problem per vehicle, comparable with Toyota and Honda.

The comparison is not exactly fair, because Hyundai sells a relatively limited lineup of U.S. models, while Toyota, Honda and the Big Three carmakers each market several dozen "nameplates" under multiple brands. And Hyundai owners reported more problems in the crucial engine and powertrain areas, said Brian Walters, senior director of vehicle research at J.D. Power. Still, Hyundai's performance is "nothing short of extraordinary," he said

The improvement in the Korean brands is part of an overall improvement in auto quality, according to J.D. Power officials. Overall, complaints about initial car quality dropped 11 percent in the past year, and 76 percent of models showed an improvement from the 2003 to 2004 model years, according to the survey.

Among individual “nameplates,” luxury brands Lexus, Cadillac and Jaguar stood at the top of the list with less than one problem per vehicle on average. But a high price paid was no guarantee of a worry-free automotive experience. Owners of General Motors’ super-heavy Hummer brand sport-utility vehicle that lists for $50,000 and up, reported an average of 1.7 problems per vehicle, the most of any brand.

Volkswagen and Porsche also ranked poorly in the study, although the Porsche 911 still ranked as the top premium sports car, ahead of the Honda S2000 and Nissan 350Z. Porsche was hurt by its introduction of the Cayenne sport-utility vehicle. Carmakers often encounter initial quality "bugs" in new models.

The Toyota Corolla was the top-ranked compact car, and the Hyundai Sonata, with a base sticker price of $16,000 was No. 1 among so-called entry-level midsize cars, ahead of the Oldsmobile Alero and Chevrolet Malibu.

GM's Buick Century was at the top of the competitive "premium midsized" category, outranking the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and other models. The Mercury Grand Marquis and Dodge Stratus Coupe were among other top-ranked American-branded cars.

Among pickup trucks, the Ford Explorer Sport Trac, Toyota Tundra and Dodge Ram HD were all tops in their categories.

The J.D. Power study surveyed 51,000 people who bought or leased new 2004 model year cars and trucks. The study is one of two major vehicle quality surveys produced annually by J.D. Power, which sells the data to car makers.

The other survey measures problems reported in the first three years of ownership, which is considered more important factor to prospective buyers than initial quality. In that study, released last July, Porsche ranked No. 1 for the 2000 model year.

Toyota, ranked first among companies with a full lineup of vehicles, followed by Honda and Nissan.Korea's Daewoo and Kia were at the bottom of the list.Daewoo models are no longer marketed in this country.

Found at:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4854302/

[lordbiotree]

What do you guys think?

Personally I think Hyundai is junk. According to this that is just a false statement.

Kinda reminds me of the early days of Datsun. Just the only thing is that Nissan clearly never had any drive train problems. I found the article very interesting.

I still dont like the thought of buying a Hyundai.

-Brandon

[texasz]

A friend had one...I had never seen a bigger pile of s**t on wheels in my life!! Spent more time in the shop than on the road, paint was crap after only 2 years, interior was no better (it was parked in a parking garage at work all day everyday too).

[MikeW]

I'm surprised to see Cadillac rated favoribly. I recently saw a study where they were at the bottom of the heap of US cars. It was as if there had been a complete reversal from many years ago. Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Lexus, Infiniti, etc. were the top-rated cars in terms of quality. American domestics were generally in the middle and certain European makes, such as Audi and Jaguar were at the bottom. I think I saw this in Consumer Reports.

[gema]

Hyundai is making leaps and bounds in progress, both in design, manufacturing, and sales.

However, they still suck and I love my Nissans!!!!

[PrOxLaMuS©]

My dad drives a 2002 Hyundai Sonata

My mom drives a 2002 Hyundai Elantra

Both excellent cars... the Sonata is sweeT!

But i'm a Nissan guy (only 17 hehe)

[Xargon321]

Hyundai's are ok for what they do, get you to point a to point b there not ment to be much more then that, they get hammered and they fall apart, same as every other car out there but they have a cheaper price soo people beat the crap out of them, its just a first timer car or a car to get when you straped for cash but still need a decent car to drive or when your restoring you z and dont want to spend big bux on a driver!

[Alfadog]

Originally posted by gema

Hyundai is making leaps and bounds in progress, both in design, manufacturing, and sales.

However, they still suck and I love my Nissans!!!!

Couldn't have said it better!

[seerex]

would never put hyundai with the likes of honda toyota or nissan , i am sure they are getting better , but in my opion no matter how much you polish a turd its still a turd , i have seen other articles which aren't the same but i am sure they all use diffrent formulas , gotta say if the tiburon was made by someone else i might buy one ,

[26ounce]

Yeah, the tiburon looks bloody nice. Too bad they could not make it rwd and get a bit more oomph out of the v6. They also have a model called a grandeur in aus which has a classic sedan design that I really like.

Hyundai have shown a rapid improvement over the last 10 years. While I won't be rushing out to buy one any time soon I am finding a grudging respect for them. If Hyundai Aus had a similar warranty to the US I would definitely consider a hyundai as daily basic transport.

On the flip side though, what is up with Honda? Lately they seem to have gone backwards. It's like they forgot everything that made them successful in the nineties.

[Gav240z]

What about safety? I don't think a Hyundai is anywhere near safety standards. I don't like em' 1 bit if you look into their interiors they just look plain and cheap. Maybe they are getting better but they still have a very very long way to go.

I think Honda make a very good product in terms of interior/paint/finish and the motors seems to be good if you get them serviced as they should be.

Likewise for Toyota except i find Toyotas to be a little less compared with a Honda in quality.

I know the Z's interior has it's qualms but have you ever pulled a panel off these cars? it's a wonder they don't flop like tin foil, I know the idea of a car is to crumble and absorb the energy in a crash but that should be more chassis related than panel related.

Bah i'll get to my point I just think that article is bollocks and that it's been twisted with statistics that could be taken from any source and for all we know Hyundai paid them to put a good word in.

Nuff said .

[speedyblue]

A good friend of mine had a mate who bought one. He is a dentist and quite well off. Bought an Excel on the $13990 drive away deal. Why? Because he could treat it like he stole it. Leave it anywhere do anything in it, never wash it or service it. Didn't care about it one bit. After a few years, my mate convinced him to check the oil in it. There was rust on the dipstick.

Good cheap nasty car. Great daily hack if you want a car you don't care one bit about.