[rahul_intlad]

Firstly don't know if this is one of those PR tricks by the americans against the Japanese car manufacturer but here's what they say

Car buyers, in a surprising shift from a year ago, are more satisfied with their American-made Buicks and Lincolns than they are with their Toyotas these days, according to a University of Michigan study published Tuesday.

But the turnabout isn't indicative of quality and reliability improvements up and down model lineups at both General Motorsand Ford .Instead, the study contends, it's a function of Toyota's brand, which has suffered from recalls and other uncharacteristic hiccups, dropping from first place and allowing offerings like Buick and Lincoln-Mercury to climb the list.

"What goes up must come down, but it remains to be seen whether this is just a stumble for Toyota or a sign of something more serious," said Claes Fornell, who heads the study.

"But Detroit automakers would be making a huge mistake if they think the Asians will keep falling back to them," he added. "They have to do it on their own."

Last week, J.D. Power's closely watched dependability survey reported similar results, with Buick joining Lexus as the most reliable brand

Source:
Toyota's customer satisfaction takes a hit - MarketWatch

[srishiva]

JD Power brand ranking for dependability was something like this with problems reported per 100 vehicles.

Buick 145
Lexus 145
Cadillac 162
Mercury 168
Honda 169
Toyota 178
BMW 182
Lincoln 182
Subaru 192
Oldsmobile 196
Jaguar 197
Acura 207
Infiniti 215

Others are below the industry average
Ford 221
Chevy 226
Porsche 252
Nissan 274
Vokswagen 298
Suzuki 324

For specific cars it was Honda, Toyota in non premium and Lexus, Cadillac, Buick and Infiniti in premium.
BMW scored only in compact premium sport car (Z4). Merc (only SLK in sport premium), Porsche VW were present in none


Honda S2000 continues to be best in sport premium, quite a good result for such a old car.

[devarshi84]

Its high time Toyota gets what it deserves.

2 corolla's 3 mind life-threatening accidents and my friend has sworn never to touch a Toyota again.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Aaaaarrrrrgggghhhh!!!!!!
Suzuki is at the bottom of the table!!!!
Just think of it - in India, Suzuki comes up at the top, and Chevy is trying to make its mark (at least the feed back about chevy on this forum is very good), whereas American customers give both car makers below average ranking!!!
We, the customers need some real training on car quality!!!

[ravibhat]

Thats good thread! About Suzuki which comes top in India mianly because its established player here with lot of lineups and very cheap to buy compared in its segment.

In India most of the car buyer give importance to price first and then comes resale value, looks followed by safety, quality. Suzuki with MUL back up score high on compitative price tag, good established brand among small cars hence good resale value so come first.

Regards,

Ravi.

[sujaylahiri]

The return of the Americans.

[1100D]

Very nice, but then dear Yankees, Lexus is right up there!! Thats were the real push is, from Toyota.

Suzuki ranks the top in India, mainly because of the huge and large first mover advantage which allowed them to build over the years a service network, which apart from Hyundai and Tata, no one has been able to come close (Irrespective of product quality).

[Mayavi]

Originally Posted by sujaylahiri

The return of the Americans.

A man can always dream
On a serious note, it is just one damn report. Toyota sales haven't dropped and infact Toyota recently overtook GM in sales for the first time in the history and all thanks to its north american market.

I would believe Americans have arrived if their cars command the same resale that Toyota, Honda and BMW command.

[highwayblaze]

Well all this massive expansion is going to take some toll atleast. But trust me rising coming from where they have it won't be long before they get a grip on the situation and hurl back. Don't worry guy Toyota's here to stay.

Also some one mentioned Suzuki being at the bottom of the list. Thats becoz most Suzuki's run on GM engines. There's a lot of platform/engine sharing between GM Daewoo and Suzuki. The Suzuki XL-7 for instance has everything GM except the body. Even the car keys are GM.
The Suzuki Reno is Daewoo built. It shows in the report if you want to go by it !

[devarshi84]

Originally Posted by Mayavi

A man can always dream
On a serious note, it is just one damn report. Toyota sales haven't dropped and infact Toyota recently overtook GM in sales for the first time in the history and all thanks to its north american market.

I would believe Americans have arrived if their cars command the same resale that Toyota, Honda and BMW command.

It not always about resale, is it?

[Mayavi]

Originally Posted by devarshi84

It not always about resale, is it?

What is it about then? Except for Exotics and high end luxury cars which have high depreciation, resale value is a measure of reliability and desirability. If a 5 year old used car doesn't need maintenance, it means it didn't need any when new, ergo reliable.

[rahul_intlad]

Would love to know what's the secret behind lexus being at the top for quite a while now.

What magic does lexus have keeping it ahead for so many years ,something that toyota does not have which keeps toyota away from even the number two spot if not the same spot as Lexus.

[Mayavi]

Well, the secret is that there is no $12,000 Lexus

Btw, has anyone seen a 20 - 40 yr old driving a Buick?

[ananthkamath]

This is all bullcrap. CSI doesnt mean a tiny damn thing. Word on the street is, simply, if you want a car that is almost GUARANTEED to run 200,000 miles right out of the box, buy Toyota/Honda. Not Buick or Chevy or Ford.

[devarshi84]

Originally Posted by Mayavi

What is it about then? Except for Exotics and high end luxury cars which have high depreciation, resale value is a measure of reliability and desirability. If a 5 year old used car doesn't need maintenance, it means it didn't need any when new, ergo reliable.

Resale value is just a measure of how well has a company been able to market its image. Nothin else. All the companies today have equivalent quality control standards.

you certainly wouldnt want to say that fiat palios can be beaten by Tata indicas in quality and reliability.

Toyota makes commuter vehicles and not cars. Both are different concepts.

Originally Posted by rahul_intlad

Would love to know what's the secret behind lexus being at the top for quite a while now.

What magic does lexus have keeping it ahead for so many years ,something that toyota does not have which keeps toyota away from even the number two spot if not the same spot as Lexus.

The magic is lots of marketing. Whereever you see a bmw/Mercedes poster or media ad, there will be a Lexus ad.

The Big three until now were only fighting among self not giving any importance to competition.

Half the people here wouldnt even know About buick and LIncolns.


I aint a fan of big three, mind you. But I aint a supporter of the Japanese marketing gimmics also.