Some people have been telling me that Mercedes' quality has improved a great deal for 2007.
Well, the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, released today for 2007 models, supports this assertion. Mercedes moved all the way from #25 last year to #5 this year.
Article on CNN: Ford gets 5 top quality awards - CNN.com
Quote from this article:
Mercedes-Benz has not done well in J.D. Power surveys in the past but jumped 20 places in the rankings this year to finish fifth.
"All Mercedes-Benz models in the study improved substantially," said Neal Oddes, director of product research and analysis for J.D. Power, in the announcement, "and the breadth and speed of these improvements demonstrates the Mercedes-Benz commitment to quality."
They also stress that Ford did well. Ford models have also been doing very well in TrueDelta's vehicle reliability research.
Be aware that the IQS includes two types of defects: design defects that cannot be repaired and manufacturing defects that can. Also, the differences have become quite small. Most brands are within a third of a problem per car of one another. The difference between #5 Mercedes and #21 BMW is about 0.2 problems per car.
My full take on the 2007 IQS:
JD Power's 2007 IQS: tightest spread yet
Well, the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, released today for 2007 models, supports this assertion. Mercedes moved all the way from #25 last year to #5 this year.
Article on CNN: Ford gets 5 top quality awards - CNN.com
Quote from this article:
Mercedes-Benz has not done well in J.D. Power surveys in the past but jumped 20 places in the rankings this year to finish fifth.
"All Mercedes-Benz models in the study improved substantially," said Neal Oddes, director of product research and analysis for J.D. Power, in the announcement, "and the breadth and speed of these improvements demonstrates the Mercedes-Benz commitment to quality."
They also stress that Ford did well. Ford models have also been doing very well in TrueDelta's vehicle reliability research.
Be aware that the IQS includes two types of defects: design defects that cannot be repaired and manufacturing defects that can. Also, the differences have become quite small. Most brands are within a third of a problem per car of one another. The difference between #5 Mercedes and #21 BMW is about 0.2 problems per car.
My full take on the 2007 IQS:
JD Power's 2007 IQS: tightest spread yet