Indica, Ambassador fail JD quality test again

Though after the last year’s JD Power rating announcement, Telco chairman Ratan Tata had announced that he will take steps to ensure better quality, the latest results show that all car makers barring Hindustan Motors raced ahead of Telco.

Among the mid-sized cars, Maruti Esteem (138) and Hyundai Accent (161) were the toppers, followed by Ford Ikon (174) and Opel Corsa (187) with Fiat Siena (214) being the last. Similarly, in the premium mid-sized segment,Mitsubishi Lancer (84) and Baleno (111) were the first two, followed by Honda City (133) and Opel Astra (185).

In a news statement issued here today, JD Power said the silver lining of the study was that the number of problems reported by new car owners declined by 27 per cent as against 1999 figures.

The quality improvements are driven by the strong performance of six new models included in the 2000 IQS as well as improvement by the majority ofexisting models. Five out of the six new models — Ford Ikon, HyundaiAccent, Opel Corsa, Maruti Baleno and Toyota Qualis — recorded fewer than 200 problems per hundred vehicles.

Hyundai Santro has improved its ranking by 19 per cent and performedconsistently across all the problem categories, JD Power said. The carranked ahead of other small cars like Maruti Zen, Fiat Uno, Daewoo Matiz andTelco Indica.

Excessive fuel consumption remains the most frequently reported problem inthe industry. "Initial quality in India has improved dramatically these past four years," Chris Bonsi, director JD Power Asia Pacific said.

"Maruti Esteem has improved its IQS performance by 40 per cent, ranking ahead of the newly introduced Ford Ikon, Hyundai Accent and Opel Corsa," thestudy says. It says that Mitsubishi Lancer in alliance with Mitsubishi MotorCorporation of Japan, "has established a new benchmark with 84 problems perhundred vehicles, the first model in India to break the 100 problems perhundred vehicles barrier".

Toyota Qualis has been adjudged the best MUV ahead of Tata Safari, TataSumo and Mahindra Armada, JD Power said in a statement. Mahindra’s Armada had the highest customer dissatisfaction at 335 points while Tata Sumo, another Tata Group contribution to Indian roads, has recieved 315 points.

The survey included responses from new car owners of more than 20 differentmodels which represented 11 different makes. "The 2000 India IQS results show that manufacturers are delivering better quality vehicles than they have in the past. For example, Honda City was the only model to record fewer than 200 problems per hundred vehicles in 1998. In comparison, 12 out of the 23 models covered in the 2000 IQS recorded a score better than 200 problems per hundred vehicles".

On fuel consumption, he said although many car makers have improved theirfuel economy by switching to fuel injected engines, fuel consumption wasdependent on road conditions and driving habits, which were beyond themanufacturer’s control.