The study is based on data from a survey of 110,000 car owners. The main assessment was the index of the number of problems encountered per 100 vehicles (measures number of problems experienced per 100 vehicles, abbreviated as PP100) during the first 90 days after purchase. The lower the indicator (score), the higher the reliability.
This year, the average PP100 for the industry was 162 points. As it turned out, this is 4 points less than last year. At the same time, JD Power noted: 20 car brands out of 32 that participated in the study improved their results in 2021.
The most reliable cars of 2021
Now to the specifics. It turned out that the most reliable cars according to JD Power are currently made by Ram. Its result is 128 points. By the way, last year this brand was “only” in 4th place.
In second place is Dodge – 139 problems per 100 cars. And here comes an interesting point: both Ram and Dodge belong to the same concern, the Franco-American group Stellantis.
The “bronze” was shared between Lexus and Mitsubishi – they have 144 problems per 100 cars. The TOP-5 of the most reliable car brands is closed by Kia – 146 points.
The most unreliable cars of 2021
But the anti-rating included such brands as Alfa Romeo, Volvo, Volkswagen, Audi and Chrysler. Their results were 204, 210, 213, 240 and 251 PP100, respectively.
Tesla stands apart in the list with a score of 231 points. It still cannot be fully included in the study, as the brand prohibits surveying its customers in 15 states.
Overall, the rating looks like this:
1. Ram: 128
2. Dodge: 139
3. Lexus: 144
4. Mitsubishi: 144
5. Nissan: 146
6. Kia: 147
7. Genesis: 148
8. Hyundai: 149
9. Jeep: 149
10. Chevrolet: 151
11. Mini: 151
12. Buick: 156
13. Toyota: 157
14. Ford: 162
15. Lincoln: 163
16. Porsche: 163
17. GMC: 164
18. Honda: 164
19. Jaguar: 165
20. BMW: 166
21. Infiniti: 170
22. Cadillac: 173
23. Mazda: 177
24. Subaru: 182
25. Mercedes-Benz: 193
26. Acura: 200
27. Land Rover: 200
28. Alfa Romeo: 204
29. Volvo: 210
30. Volkswagen: 213
31. Audi: 240
32. Chrysler: 251
33. Tesla: 231 (partially participates in the rating)
The most reliable car models
Separately, JD Power named such benchmark models by class (from compact car and mid-size crossover to minivan and full-size pickup, with division into mass-market and premium segments): Hyundai Accent, BMW 2 Series, Kia Forte, Lexus RC, Nissan Altima, Kia Sedona, Cadillac CT5, Nissan Maxima, Genesis G80, Chevrolet Corvette, Kia Soul, Lexus UX, Kia Sportage, BMW X4, Nissan Murano, Lexus RX, Jeep Gladiator, Kia Telluride, BMW X6, Toyota Sequoia, BMW X7, Tundra, Ram 2500/3500.
Finally, experts highlighted the best models for specific manufacturers:
- Hyundai Group: Genesis G80, Hyundai Accent, Kia Forte, Kia Sedona, Kia Soul, Kia Sportage and Kia Telluride;
- Toyota Motor: Lexus RC, Lexus RX, Lexus UX, Toyota Sequoia and Toyota Tundra;
- BMW AG: BMW 2-Series, BMW X4, BMW X6 and BMW X7;
- Nissan Motor: Nissan Altima, Nissan Maxima and Nissan Murano;
- General Motors: Cadillac CT5 and Chevrolet Corvette;
- Stellantis: Jeep Gladiator and Ram 2500/3500.
