Ram, Dodge, Lexus and Mitsubishi get the best scores for the quality of new vehicles in the JD Power studio

Ram trucks topped JD Power’s ranking of new vehicles for quality for the first time. Across the industry, the annual study showed drivers were complaining about new high-tech features, such as entertainment and entertainment systems.

Dodge landed in second place, with Lexus and Mitsubishi tied for third place for the quality of the new vehicle. Toyota’s luxury Lexus brand was the top-ranked luxury vehicle brand, followed by Hyundai’s Genesis. Ram and Dodge trucks are produced by Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler.

JD Power’s initial quality study is considered an important measure within the automotive industry. The company surveys thousands of new vehicle owners and obtains car brand scores based on the number of problems reported per 100 vehicles during the first 90 days of ownership. Problems can range from slow smartphone connectivity to engine problems and poor paint.

The average number of problems per 100 vehicles was 162, an improvement of 2% over the previous year. The Nissan Maxima got the best score of any model in the study, with 85 problems reported for every 100 new vehicles.

The main problem reported by the owners was the connectivity of Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, which worsened significantly as car manufacturers implemented a new wireless connectivity for the phone’s replica features. It was the first time since 2011 that voice recognition was not the main problem of the study.

Quality retarders included Chrysler in last place, behind Audi and Tesla.

Tesla is not officially part of the study because it does not give JD Power access to customer data; permission from car manufacturers in 15 states is legally required. However, JD Power researchers were able to classify Tesla in its quality study from last year, basing its unofficial score on surveys of owners in the other 35 states.

JD Power vice president of automotive quality, Dave Sargent, said Tesla owners reported problems that had more to do with the quality of construction, adjustment and finish of their vehicles rather than the technology it contained. Examples included body board gaps, paint problems, wind noise, interior squeaks, and rattles.

Sargent said there was only one battery-powered electric vehicle, an electric version of the Mini Cooper.

In general, the problems reported by owners with battery-powered vehicles were not directly attributable to the fact that they were electric vehicles, he said, so they had no problems with the battery or electric motors of their new electric vehicles during the early 1990s. property days.

“These vehicles, because they are generally offered to people with a lot of technology experience, are usually loaded with the latest features and don’t always work well in any vehicle,” said Sargent, who added that he believes the vehicles will improve.

With seven first-class vehicles, Hyundai ranked as the number one overall carmaker in the studio. Toyota finished second with six vehicles, followed by BMW and Nissan at four. General Motors and Stellantis had two.