Look up the facts.
http://www.jdpower.com/news/releases/pressrelease.asp?ID=2004037WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.—For the first time, Korean-branded vehicles outpace both European- and Domestic-branded vehicles in initial quality, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2004 Initial Quality StudySM (IQS) released today.
Manufacturers of Korean-branded vehicles, strongly driven by Hyundai’s performance, have aggressively cut initial quality problems by 57 percent in the past six years—dropping from 272 problems per 100 vehicles (PP100) in 1998 to just 117 PP100 in 2004. This dramatic improvement is a stark contrast to the state of initial quality among the Korean-branded vehicles in 1998, when they trailed the industry-leading European-branded nameplates by an imposing 116 PP100. The Koreans now lead the Europeans by 5 PP100 and the Domestics by 6 PP100, and trail the Japanese by just 6 PP100.
"A decade ago, as Korean manufacturers struggled with a universally poor reputation for vehicle quality, no one would have predicted they could not only keep pace, but actually pass Domestics and other imports in terms of initial quality," said Joe Ivers, partner and executive director of quality/customer satisfaction at J.D. Power and Associates. "This demonstrates how vastly more competitive the market has become—which is good news for consumers, who will ultimately benefit."
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"The fact that Hyundai is now outperforming even perennial quality leaders like Toyota—and in a relatively short amount of time—is nothing short of remarkable considering the vast quality gap it faced just a few years ago," said Ivers. "This kind of improvement simply cannot be achieved without a serious commitment to quality over the long haul. The question now is whether Hyundai can demonstrate this same level of improvement in terms of new-vehicle launch and long-term vehicle quality."
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I own a Hyundai Tiburon and Santa Fe. Both have been excellent vehicles at a cost the other car companies won't even begin to offer. When people tell me to support American companies, I ask them to name one. There is no such thing as an American car company today as they are all co owned by each other. The only difference is that the Japanese and Korean companies don't pay their executives nearly as well.
Edited to correct title.