Hey this looks good right?

We remember when LR used to only beat itself (Jaguar).

Imagine working for JLR, on the Jaguar side, having a desk across from those smug not-last-place Landy people. The relentless taunts. Of course Ian's late, he's got the new Jag-ewe-are.

Must be hell trying to figure out who's got a coolant leak in that employee car park.

We'll, not any more. Now we're beating Porsche, Volvo, Audi and even Jeep. Lesb-a Subaru, Acura, and Merc are right there within 3 or 4 statistically irrelevant points.

Bastions of automotive excellence Chrysler, Maserati, Alfa, and Mitsubishi (they still exist?) are all now in the ClearSight mirror (or not depending on availability).




But wait. Things really just got so very much worse.

 

I've been thinking about whether they somehow changed their scoring, or if things really did get so much worse, and I have to say, I think it's the latter. I've seen so many issues on the Bronco forums (some pretty major), and in general people seem to be complaining about their cars breaking quite often (mostly because they then complain about a lack of loaner cars at the dealerships).

I think the pandemic has really taken a toll on the entire industry. Congrats to Land Rover for being less than doubly bad?

 

Interesting morning coffee reading, thanks for sharing...and wow the # has really increased in 3 years. Couple thoughts.

1 - JD Power rankings are becoming or have already become an albatross of the past, an outdated measurement system, much like Nielsen ratings have become for TV ratings. Ie... these books are more cooked than the NYT bestseller lists.

2 - Tesla still does not make the rankings cut (are they not the #1 EV seller globally and even the #1 luxury seller in the US market?), but now at least they are finally including their data after *not* doing so for years. Why is JD Power still trying to force them to conform? I'd bet it's because they have no PR dep't to return the calls of JD Power...

3 - It would be great to see where all manufacturers land on this list, especially the small volume manufacturers. Maclaren? Lotus? They are the new bottom of all this btw, I'd love to see their data, it's comical. You would be absolutely floored at the hilarious issues on new 720S's... or the Lotus models released far too early. They made a nice effort with Polestar I guess due to Volvo ownership, but still in the same bucket as Tesla, unranked.

4- Software and OTA software updates have made their data set quite questionable I did read somewhere that they've had to update their maths for the massive explosion in infotainment / software issues because .. is it one issue, or multiple issues (for example a software update that fixes 5 issues... 1, or 5?) That can and does swing results big time.

Sandy Munroe talked about #4 in an interview in the past year, was quite interesting.

 

I currently own cars that are *below* JLR in initial quality and I have had minor issues with one, and no issues with the other. Others I've owned on that list had no issues either. What qualifies as this? for me it's 'can't drive car/car isn't functioning'

Now if it's a lose trim piece or something else simple, I'd have to change that as I've had a trim piece fall off on a car but that was the only issue I had over the ownership term. My Tesla has had several major surgery issues, eats its battery sitting still, but my Polestar 2 is super new but haven't had anything. Our VW ID.4 has been flawless since October 2021.

Curious what makes the number move on that list, as VW is below JLR, and so was my last two cars (Audi) and the best rated was my Chevrolet Bolt EV which had a recall.

I think it's just luck of the draw or what day of the week the QA people checked the car at the end of the line

 

I intended to link the story but obviously didn't so here it is.

It's the same old usual JD Power owner surveys where they mail you a crisp dollar bill and a blown engine counts as much as a glitchy Bluetooth connection. Happy owners, like me, generally keep the 💵 and toss the survey.

Bitchy sad sacks get right down to complaining and promptly mail it off.

Makes me wonder if all vehicles really are having SO many more problems or if the world is just full of more insufferable moaners these days.

Expensive marquis brands live by a sharper sword as they set a higher expectation and deliver more cutting edge tech.
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I would guess that most “problems” reported to JD Power are nothing more than a “misunderstanding” between the car’s owner, and the car’s technology (translation: people don’t read the owners manual).
It’s simply ridiculous that JD Power counts something serious like blown engine, and a user error getting Bluetooth working, as equal “problems”.

This is really about money: JDP sells their “problems” data to the manufacturers and offers their “expert” consulting on how to fix these problems.

It’s just a shame that the news media reports this “data”.

(man I use a lot of quotes)

 

That is exactly why Porsche has dropped so much. My Taycan infotainment has been buggy as hell. Volume wouldn't go past 3 the other day. Bass, treble, and DSP settings default to 0 every time I start the car, Spotify won't stat connected.

3 problems right there. I'm torn though about that counting as 3. There are a lot of people with similar issues so, does it make sense that they get hit hard and have a little 3rd party incentive to push for better?

The car itself is exceptional but it's a real nuisance and it definitely takes away from the experience.

 

Funny how Dodge is #2, Ram is #18 and Chrysler is #33. Or Kia #5 and Hyundai #17. Makes more sense that Ford & Lincoln are together and Audi & VW are together.

 

I've got a Defender 130 on order coming in October and have been running Tesla's since 2015. I must love taking the low performers on this list and yet have had no problems with any vehicle the past 6 years. I think it's possible the calculations are a bit out dated and some of the "issues" are things that people would look past or not let them ruin the other wonderful things each car makers does. I can't wait for my Land Rover because they really do feel unique in this market between capability and luxury. I've never had one and knowing all of these reliability issues exist was still not enough to deter.

 

# of reported problems is up drastically across the board in the industry. Combination of labor shortages/supply constraints and ever more complex infotainment systems?