JD Power 2005 survey is out: www.whatcar.co.uk
It's mostly the normal stuff but the Koreans have come 1st and 3rd in the 4x4's.
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Interesting. A few things strike me.
Despite the fact that JD Power use a more satisfactory method of taking their samples, the overall results are pretty similar to those of the Auto Express Driver Power Survey. If you look at the manufacturer league table, the similarity is almost uncanny (though there are some discrepancies, such as MINI, which comes near the top in JD Power, but right in the middle with Auto Express) - Top 3 are Lexus, Skoda, and Honda in both.
Auto Express treat MG and Rover as 2 manufacturers, while JP Power treat them as one. I can see the arguments both ways on that - though I'd be inclined to think JD Power has got it right.
However, I can't say I agree with JD Power in treating the Rover 75 & the MG ZT as one model (& the same with the 25/ZR & 45/ZS). AutoExpress separates them, and rightly so.
I find the JD Power system of giving cars ticks and crosses for reliability, interior quality, etc. a bit strange, when they then come out with a precise percentage overall result. Why not give percentages for the different categories, like AutoExpress do?
It's interesting to find that the JDPower results often fly in the face of the advice that What Car? has been giving its readers. A year or two ago, the Honda Logo, a car that What Car? was dismissive of, came right at the top of the survey. This year, the new SEAT Ibiza, which What Car? have been declaring to be the best supermini for 3 years now, came out remarkably near the bottom.
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These surveys are wide open to abuse. It would only take a determined effort on the part of an owners' club (or manufacturer) to rally its members' support to distort the results wonderfully - a bit like the way record companies used to buy up lots of discs from their own artists to achieve higher chart rankings.
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These surveys are wide open to abuse. It would only take a determined effort on the part of an owners' club (or manufacturer) to rally its members' support to distort the results wonderfully
Look at the small print of how these surveys are carried out. What you say is quite true of the AutoExpress survey - anyone at all can take part. It is not true of the JD Power survey. And curiously enough, they do tend to get fairly similar results.
Incidentally, has anyone any evidence of any major "determined efforts" being made to influence any of these surveys?
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>> It's interesting to find that the JDPower results often fly in the face of the advice that What Car? has been giving its readers. A year or two ago, the Honda Logo, a car that What Car? was dismissive of, came right at the top of the survey. This year, the new SEAT Ibiza, which What Car? have been declaring to be the best supermini for 3 years now, came out remarkably near the bottom.
The JD Power survey is about owner satisfaction, whereas the magazines tend to be more about driving and performance / fuel economy figures. It's not really possible for a road test to give the same information as owning a car which is why reading both is important.
Owners of xxxx cars might be very satisfied, but if they don't rate performance as a high priority the car won't do very well in the magazine road tests when it takes 20 seconds to do 0-60
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The JD Power survey is about owner satisfaction, whereas the magazines tend to be more about driving and performance / fuel economy figures. It's not really possible for a road test to give the same information as owning a car which is why reading both is important.
Agree with you. When What Car? rates a car, they are doing in on the basis of a few hours with the car. Ownership surveys are based on living with a car for a few years.
But it is interesting that What Car? reviews & JD Power ownership satisfaction surveys do look at a lot of the same things.
What Car? doesn't just rate a car for driving, (that's only about a third of the final score). It also looks at ownership costs, comfort, space & practicality, build quality and reliabilty - even styling. JDPower (& AutoExpress) surveys ask about all these things as well - and, it seems, don't always come to the same conclusion as the motoring journalists.
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It's horrible inaccurate becuase its based on perception.
Consider two people.
Person A is a BMW driver, but his company budget is reduced and he is forced to choose a Vauxhall Vectra as his company car instead. The Vectra, over the course of the year, needs to be fixed at the dealers once for a fault, and compared to his BMW, is really quite below par on quality. He does not give it a favourable review becuase he doesnt like it. It's hardly a 5 Series, is it?
Person B lands a new job after previously not really doing that well and moving from old banger to old banger. He gets a Skoda Octavia. Quality wise its probably the same as the Vectra, and over the course of the year lets say it goes to the dealer 3 times. But Person B doesn't care - his banger Sierra went to garage twice a month, this Skoda only went 3 times a year and never cost a penny to get fixed! And the interior is so much better than his Sierra. He gives it a glowing report.
So there we have two broadly similar cars getting completely diferent writeups becuase peoples perceptions change based on what they are used to.
I think Mk2 Mondeos are great becuase, as a Uni student, I they are the best around for my budget. Mr 'I have an S Class' will probably rightly think they are terrible. But its the same car being judged each time and coming out with completely opposite reviews.
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Oh, plus how is Mr Average supposed to rate the drive? To one person the fact his Fiat Multipla accelerates, stops and goes round corners means it drives brilliant. To another guy, the fact his new Clio 182 won't lift off oversteer like his old 205 GTi means its a rubbish drive..
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Person A is a BMW driver Person B ... gets a Skoda Octavia.
And if A got an Octavia and B a Vectra? Or even Mondeos? Granted some people are going to have the hump with their company car, but what all the people that part with their own cash and applaud the Lexi and pan the Fiats. Your example's a bit simplistic and stereotypical I think.
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>> Person A is a BMW driver >> >> Person B ... gets a Skoda Octavia. And if A got an Octavia and B a Vectra? Or even Mondeos? Granted some people are going to have the hump with their company car, but what all the people that part with their own cash and applaud the Lexi and pan the Fiats. Your example's a bit simplistic and stereotypical I think.
But that's exactly the point, isn't it? Any of these combinations could be true, and the point is that depending on expectations, the results for the same car could be wildly different.
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I think Mk2 Mondeos are great becuase, as a Uni student, I they are the best around for my budget. Mr 'I have an S Class' will probably rightly think they are terrible. But its the same car being judged each time and coming out with completely opposite reviews.
Not sure your argument holds water, as Mr "I have a Mercedes" is obviously not happy with his own vehicle (Mercedes as a whole are rated below industry average in the JD power 2005 survey) If BMW/Audi owners are happy then something is not right.
Overall these surveys are useful, but your preferences will probably overide them.
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It's horrible inaccurate becuase its based on perception.
People buy cars using their perception. Ignore that fact and you end up like the British car industry.
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>> It's horrible inaccurate becuase its based on perception. People buy cars using their perception. Ignore that fact and you end up like the British car industry.
But you want to buy based on your preferences and perceptions, not someone elses.
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