Do You Even Look At The Reliability Scores Before You Buy A New Car?

Should you care if a new Chevrolet is less than 1% more likely to have a problem than a new Toyota? If a new Honda is 2.8% more likely to have a problem than either?

Some people who follow the auto industry carefully found themselves asking those questions recently after J.D. Power revealed the latest edition of its closely watched Initial Quality Study of new cars.

“The margin from the best cars to average and below average has diminished dramatically,” Autotrader.com senior analyst Michelle Krebs said.

It’s not like the 1980s, when vehicles with atrocious dependability and reliability were as common as oil leaks. J.D. Power’s surveys became industry benchmarks then, but are they relevant today?

Agent009 - 7/7/2014 10:48:54 AM

-5 Boost

Truthfully? Don’t even care. The differences in general are almost infinitesimal.

It is almost like looking at the odds of crashing in a airplane on your vacation vs the car on the trip to the airport and worrying about it.

The trip to the airport is far more hazardous but no one gives it a second thought because of the odds.

If you worry about time or safety then you need to look at recalls in many cases.

USNA1999 - 7/7/2014 3:41:11 PM

-3 Boost

I guess a lot if uninformed and unintelligent buyers like myself with post graduate degree and earning high six figures. Yes, we are a bunch on morons for not buying Hondas, LoL!

MattDarringer - 7/7/2014 9:04:41 PM

+4 Boost

Lease an Audi do not buy. If you buy, get the extended warranty. You'll need it.

Baby - 7/9/2014 11:08:53 PM

+2 Boost

USNA1999; Your statement alone speaks to your maturity level; I guess you never grew up because I am in that same category and yes I do actually care about things like this. I mean why waste money. Period!!!

USNA1999 - 7/7/2014 3:36:32 PM

-4 Boost

Let see how many recalls they can predict prior to making your purchase. Maybe this way you can figure what are you chances of dying on one of this POS cars full of recalls. Lol!
Who cares? Maybe people that have money issues but just look at how all the Germans are breaking records worldwide; enough said.

800over - 7/7/2014 4:28:46 PM

+7 Boost

Love how 009 can't seem to understand the difference between initial quality and reliability. Initial quality is nothing compared to reliability differences after 5 years. Do you think 5 year old GM comes anywhere near the Hondas/Toyotas in JD power's reliability survey. Nope. Oil leaks have nothing to do with initial quality. When someone doesn't like how the cupholders are placed it affects intial quality.

MattDarringer - 7/7/2014 9:09:54 PM

+4 Boost

Indeed

The initial quality survey isn't remotely scientific or even valid because it's based on customer gripes that may or may not be valid. If Ford has 1 complaint and VW has 10, is VW ten times worse? No. So being at the top of IQS is all about keeping the customer happy when they complain that the infotainment system actually asks them to have a brain.

We also have to remember that JD Power is NOT unbiased. They make money SELLING their endorsement so it benefits them to have the endorsement spread around to numerous automakers. JD Power and "impartial" do not go together.

ParadoX - 7/7/2014 11:51:00 PM

+4 Boost

Of course I look at reliability scores. I also believe in good old fashioned common sense. An Accord is not going to turn into a bucket of bolts like many of its competitors. Some cars are clearly more reliable than others.

cidflekken - 7/8/2014 4:57:15 AM

+2 Boost

I don't rely on surveys and scores. I rely on word of mouth and real-world experiences. I trust my family and friends to be more truthful about the experiences with their cars than I do any tabulated number.

For that reason, I'd easily go with any German luxury brand, Infiniti and Acura as first choices.

klipprand - 7/8/2014 10:24:46 AM

+4 Boost

IQS is not long-term reliability. Don't pay much attention to IQS, I do pay attention to long-term reliability studies.

NeoReaper - 7/16/2014 5:10:31 PM

+1 Boost

Even if a car company happens to have built a reliable car 5 years ago, that does not mean the new car rolling off the show room floor today will be just as reliable even if it shares the same name plate. The concept of long term reliability indexes for purchasing NEW cars is absurd and about as accurate as the weather man.