For the 8th year in a row, Ford Motors has kept in step with the consistent Japanese car manufacturers as far as brand quality is concerned. While many would think that Ford would have dropped due to the impending crisis and of course the celebrated “Bailout” issue, Ford is still up there with its Ford and Mercury brands.

Ford is in a statistical tie with Japanese car brands based on a study by J.D. Power and Associates. Overall the Ford brand improved by 10 points since last year’s study.

“It is gratifying to see our commitment to quality paying off,” said Bennie Fowler, Ford group vice president, Global Quality. “Ford has demonstrated consistent and continuous quality improvement. We’re now tied with the best of the Japanese automakers and we won’t be satisfied until Ford is the industry’s global quality leader.”

Among the cars that have contributed to Ford’s success included the Ford F-150, Mustang, Edge and Mercury Sable. But as far as Ford is concerned, that achievement is nothing. The goal, like any other car company to date, is to be the global leader in the car industry.

(Source) Press

Tags: bailout, brand quality, car brands, car industry, ford f 150, ford group, ford motors, impending crisis, industry source, j d power and associates, japanese automakers, japanese car, mercury sable, quality ford

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Despite the recession and car sales issues, Toyota and Lexus have earned 10 Segment Awards in the 2009 J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Study. Lexus continues to lead with the LX 570, boasting of being one of the problem-free vehicles available in the market today.

“We’re quite pleased to lead 10 segments and Lexus’ top position overall,” said TMS President Jim Lentz. “The dependability of our vehicles has always been a major factor in the company’s success. The IQS 90-day feedback is just one measurement – along with warranty claims, long-term durability, resale value and buyer loyalty – that helps us gauge our overall quality.”

With these citations and feedbacks, it is apparent that Toyota and Lexus have continued in the injection of quality without compromise for its vehicles. And with these awards, Toyota can only look forward to improving its goal, making car production quality better and enhanced, something that motorists look for today.

(Source) Press

Tags: car production, car sales, citations, compromise, free vehicles, j d power, j d power and associates, Lexus, motorists, president jim, production quality, quality study, recession

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Regardless of the type of auto in the market today, anyone of them will get hit by the economic problems plaguing the world today. Retail new-vehicle sales during the first 17 selling days of March were down by 40 percent compared with the same period one year ago, according to J.D. Power and Associates, which gathers real-time transaction data from more than 10,000 dealerships across the United States.

New-vehicle retail sales for the entire month of March are projected to come in at 633,000 units, compared with 1.07 million units a year ago. Retail sales in February totaled 557,000 units. To better reflect consumer demand for new vehicles, J.D. Power and Associates focuses on retail sales, which include only dealership sales and leases to private parties and does not include fleet sales.

The crossover utility vehicle (CUV) segment is generating the greatest year-over-year segment share growth, up by three percentage points since March 2008. In contrast, the traditional utility vehicle, compact car and midsize car segments are generating the greatest year-over-year declines in segment share. A proliferation of new CUV models has been introduced to capitalize on this shift in consumer demand. A total of nine new models have been introduced since February 2008.

(Source) Press

Tags: compact car, Crossover, economic problems, j d power and associates, midsize car, new vehicles, plunge, private parties, retail sales, time transaction

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This piece of news may not be surprising but it is really the figures that should be taken into consideration. As far as light vehicle sales are concerned, sales for the first 22 days of February were down nearly 38 percent compared with the same period one year ago, according to J.D. Power and Associates, which gathers real-time transaction data from more than 10,000 dealerships across the United States.

February’s new-vehicle retail sales are expected to come in at 580,000 units, down 34 percent compared to 913,000 units a year ago, with the volume adjusted for differences in the numbers of selling days for each period.

To better reflect consumer demand for new vehicles, J.D. Power and Associates focuses on retail sales, which include only dealership sales and leases to private parties and do not include fleet sales.

Total sales for the month of February are forecasted to come in at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) of 9.1 million units. This represents a 39 percent decline from one year ago, but a 14 percent gain from January 2009, selling day adjusted.

(Source) Press

Tags: j d power, j d power and associates, light vehicle sales, retail sales

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