Chinese brands' vehicle quality has declined, J.D. Power study shows
After several years of improving quality, the latest vehicles produced by domestic Chinese brands suffered an increase in problems, concludes J.D. Power's 2011 China Initial Quality Study.
The study, which was released last week, measured problems experienced by new-vehicle owners within the first two to six months of ownership.
Each model's score is determined by the number of problems per 100 vehicles. Chinese brands averaged 232 problems per 100 vehicles, up from 224 a year earlier.
"The most commonly reported issues by owners of Chinese domestic brands involve putting manual transmissions in gear," said Chris Chen, automotive research manager at J.D. Power Asia Pacific.
Other common problems were loss of engine power when the air conditioning is on, and excessive fuel consumption, according to the study.
By contrast, international brands recorded 131 problems per hundred vehicles, down from 135. And Japanese brands averaged only 108 problems.
The 2011 survey was based on evaluations from 17,675 owners of new vehicles purchased between October 2010 and June 2011. The survey was conducted in 37 major Chinese cities.
Here is J.D. Power's list of the top-quality models in each market segment:
Compact: Suzuki Alto
Premium compact: Suzuki Swift
Entry midsize: Honda Fit
Midsize: Nissan Tiida and Toyota Corolla EX (first-place tie)
Lower premium midsize: Chevrolet Epica and FAW Besturn B70 (tie)
Upper premium midsize: Mazda6
Entry luxury: BMW 3 Series
Luxury: Toyota Crown
SUV: Honda CR-V
MPV: Buick GL8
Microvan: Dongfeng Xiaokang
