Tag Archives: J.D. Power and Associates

J.D. Power and Associates: The World’s Happiest Car

ID-10041991American consumers want the best of everything, especially when it comes to their cars. They walk into car dealerships with mountains of research on which car is the most fuel-efficient, the most powerful, the best car for a growing family, and so on and so forth. Interestingly enough, though, a new study from J.D. Power and Associates did not rank popular vehicles by these typical factors but rather looked at which car brand has the happiest owners.

The results of the study were based on 77 attributes. Each vehicle and brand was assigned a numerical score and then ranked on overall brand, best city car, best compact, best midsize premium, and so on. The industry as a whole came in with a score of 795, not much lower than the top-scoring brand which was the Porsche.

American brands performed fairly well in the survey with the Chevrolet Sonic winning Best Sub-Compact, Chevrolet Volt winning Best Compact, Ford Mustang winning Best Midsize Sporty Car, and Dodge Charger winning Best Large Car. Ford and Chevrolet also managed to make it into the top 5 car brands, and Chrysler and GMC made it into the top 10.

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Study: New Cars More Dependable Than Ever

The new 2013 models are here, and while conventional wisdom would suggest holding out on buying until any kinks are worked out, a new study suggests that car shoppers might want to buy now.

The study, which was conducted by J.D. Power and Associates, found that customers had fewer problems with vehicles that were either completely new or recently re-launched. In the study, they monitored the 2010 model year and compared new or re-launched cars with carryover models. Carryover models had 17 more problems per 100 vehicles than the new models.

Among the car brands, Lexus performed the best, coming out as the most dependable on average, followed by Porsche, Lincoln, Toyota, and Mercedes-Benz. Buick, Honda, Acura, Ram, Suzuki, Mazda, and Chevrolet all managed to perform better than the industry average of 126 problems per 100 vehicles.

In response to the results, J.D. Power Vice President David Sargent praised the auto industry’s improved standards and encouraged consumers to consider new models, saying, “Consumers can buy a vehicle the first year it’s out on the market fairly safe in the knowledge that it’s going to be as dependable as a vehicle that had carried over from the previous year.”

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Compact Cars: Trading Down is Trading Up

A recent study released by J.D. Power and Associates had some interesting findings about car trade-ins and how people view a vehicle downsize as a trade up.

According to the study, more than a quarter of drivers trading in their car opted to go for a smaller vehicle while only 13 percent chose to go with a larger car. Compact cars aren’t only getting love from trade-in drivers, though. Across the board, more people are buying compact cars this summer.

Why is there such an interest in smaller cars? Well, compact cars today offer great features that at one time were only available in larger vehicles. Getting a compact car no longer means sacrificing comfort or new car technology. Cars like the Dodge Dart have digital dashboard displays, customizable interiors, and other high-demand add-ons like the wireless iPhone charger. To make the deal sweeter, compact cars tend to get better fuel economy than their larger counterparts, making it a greater value in the long run.

No matter what kind of car you are looking for, from compact cars to pick-up trucks, Approved Loan Store wants to help you! Good credit, bad credit, no credit, we work to get the best rates possible for our customers. Fill out our secure online auto loan application here, and keep up with the latest auto news by liking Approved Loan Store on Facebook, following Approved Loan Store on Twitter, and subscribing to Approved Loan Store on YouTube!

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