Ford jumps and Toyota plunges in key quality measure

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Reuters

- Ford Motor Co (F.N) ranked No. 1 for new car quality among mass-market brands while recall-hit Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) plunged in a closely watched quality survey released on Thursday.

Toyota, grappling with a series of damaging recalls, fell below the industry average to place 21st in the influential study by J.D. Power and Associates -- its lowest ranking since the survey started 24 years ago.

Ford, the only U.S. automaker to avoid bankruptcy and a government bailout, climbed three spots to rank fifth -- the highest place Ford has achieved in the study.

Luxury brands captured the top four spots, led by Porsche (PSHG_p.DE) and followed by Honda Motor Co's (7267.T) Acura, Daimler AG's (DAIGn.DE) Mercedes-Benz and Toyota's premium Lexus nameplate.

The results underscore the progress U.S. automakers have made on closing their long-criticized gap in quality with Asian automakers, and also the challenges facing Toyota in the wake of recent safety woes.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65G5E320100617

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(Reporting by Soyoung Kim, additional reporting by Ben Klayman; Editing by Richard Chang and Gerald E. McCormick)

[Yuugal]

1. K&R

[MannyGoldstein]

2. LOVE my new Ford Fusion

and my 6-year-old Ford Focus.

We previously had Hondas, Ford quality's been just as good or better.

[divideandconquer]

3. What encouraging for American manufacturing is the new Ram truck line is 11th!

And think about this, a lot of truck owners actually put the their in vehicle in harms way often immediately after purchase, while the luxury cars get babied or just come out for weekends. I wonder how good Honda's score would be if they made vehicles that haul boats, ditchwhitches and such. So the good scores all the union built Detroit 3 trucks got should be roundly applauded, Toyota and Nissan have been humiliated again in the crucial full size truck market. Billions of Japanese zaibatsu money for naught. Nissan and Hyundai have both tried to buy Dodge trucks and rebadge them. Honda tried to buy Chevy V8 powertrains to build a truck.

I think the success of the Ford Fusion and Chevy Malibu show that Detroit has finally focused on mass market cars as intensely as trucks. The new Chevy Cruze and the new Ford Fiesta and Focus will actually try to beat the Japanese outright in the compact car market like they do in pickup trucks (VW and (Hyundai/KIA(Korean government motors)) are also fielding very strong entries) Honda has been intimidated into stalling the release of the new Civic to build a more competitive car since they will be decisively beaten in gas mileage and just about everything else. Only problem for the Japanese and their Confederate allies is that by then even more efficient FIAT/Chrysler C-evo cars will start arriving with world beating performance, safety and gas mileage. The first of these cars, the Alfa Guilietta just won best crash rating of all European marketed compact cars displacing the VW Golf.

Might be a good time to short Japanese car stocks, between the resurgent American car industry ( with some crucial European help), the weight of Korean government motors treating the car industry like a space program and VW's blitzkreig to be number one, the Japanese ministry of international trade banksters will be having some sleepless nights.

Yeah and Subaru was 22nd!

[saigon68]

5. They can quit killing whales too

[Romulox]

6. I see tons of new Fiestas all over Metro-Detroit. Really nice looking for a sub-sub-compact!

It makes the Yaris look like a toy.

[blue_onyx]

12. Really?

I haven't seen one yet. Based on the pics though, it looks like a great vehicle.

[Festivito]

4. Saw it coming, but only elapsed years can finally give this level of proof.

And, GMAC bringing GM and Chrysler downhill was because of HOME LOANS that Ford's Ford Credit did not do.

So, Ford made TWO good decisions.

[Romulox]

7. The man from Seattle has been awesome here in Dearborn.

Ford CEO Alan Mulally has been a godsend.

[Festivito]

8. I don't know. But, the decisions I talk about were made two decades ago.

They ramped everyone into quality and got the job done.

Now, they're working on shortening the design to street time. Will it bear good fruit?

Time, again, only time will tell certain.

[boppers]

9. LOL, Toyota still beats Ford, headline implies otherwise.

"Luxury brands captured the top four spots, led by Porsche (PSHG_p.DE) and followed by Honda Motor Co's (7267.T) Acura, Daimler AG's (DAIGn.DE) Mercedes-Benz and Toyota's premium Lexus nameplate."

So:
1. Porsche
2. Honda
3. Mercedes-Benz
4. Toyota
5. Ford

[divideandconquer]

10. And Chevy, Dodge and Ford full size trucks all beat Toyota Tundra

The new Ram beat every massmarket Japanese brand except Honda. This bodes well for the new Grand Cherokee super SUV being introduced officially Monday.


Not so fast about how to spin the numbers for the ministry of international trade's favorite zaibatsu. What happens to Toyota's number when you throw 22nd ranked Subaru in the mix? Subaru's aren't built with love they're built by Toyota.

[Zynx]

14. Lexus beat Ford. Honda was the only non-luxury brand to beat Ford.

Ford is not a luxury car producer. They are mass market.

[flvegan]

15. LOL, lets correct the Top 5 then by your mindset

1. VW
2. Lamborghini
3. Bugatti
4. Bentley
5. Audi

Call Porsche 6th.

Lexus is a division of Toyota. All the above listed are "divisions" of VW, who controls Porsche. So, if we're just going to substitute names...

[Aristus]

11. I'm much more likely now to buy a Ford as my next care. OTOH, I will never buy a "Chevy" again...

All of the scratch Chevrolet blew on their stupid fucking anti-Chevy campaign would have been better spent on their design and manufacturing teams.

But no, quality cars aren't nearly as important as what we call cars they've chosen to build poorly... :eyes:

[depakid]

13. Neither Ford nor Toyota can touch a 'zook

great performance & mileage and they just run and run and run.

[boppers]

17. zook?

Suzuki?

[guitar man]

16. They get my vote

I've got a '95 Lincoln mark viii with about 230k miles and it's not showing signs of giving up, it still runs and drives lke a champ. I bought it second hand with about 100k miles on it and we have gotten more miles per buck invested than any car I've ever had. If they have applied the same quality lessons to the rest of the line, I bet they are making a great range of cats now. Before the mark I had a 87 t-bird and a 96 f-150 and they were both just fantastic vehicles.

[rayofreason]

18. Bought a Focus...

...great car.

[nc4bo]

19. My mom just bought her 2nd Focus few days ago and loves it.

And so do I.

2010 Focus SE is sweet.