Hyundai registers large gains in quality survey

Hyundai, Nissan, Ford, BMW, and Volkswagen were viewed as the highest-quality automobile brands by owners of new 2007 vehicles, according to the latest Strategic Vision Total Quality index survey.

The study, which takes into account overall satisfaction and problems reported with 2007 model vehicles, showed Hyundai, Nissan, Ford, and BMW as having the top models in three different vehicle classes each.

Hyundai vehicles leading their respective classes were the Azera, in the large-car segment; the Santa Fe, among small SUVs; and the Entourage, which tied with the Kia Sedona and Nissan Quest among minivans. The Sedona and Entourage are essentially the same vehicle, however; Kia is a subsidiary of South Korea's Hyundai and shares its minivan design with the Hyundai brand.

The Entourage, Sedona, and Quest beat out the Honda Odyssey for this year's top spot; the Odyssey had held the number one position for the previous five years.

Number two Japanese automaker Nissan's class-leading vehicles, besides the Quest, were the Maxima, which tied with the new Saturn Aura for first place among medium-size cars; and the Titan, which tied the Ford F-150 for the top spot among full-size pickups.

The survey ended in November, before the redesigned 2007 Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, and Toyota Tundra came to market. We'll have to wait for next year's survey to see how these new pickups fared.

Ford also won the top spot among heavy-duty pickups with the F-250/350, and full-size SUVs with the Expedition EL.

BMW's three winners included the Mini Cooper sedan as best specialty car under $25,000, the Mini Cooper convertible as best convertible under $30,000, and the BMW 3-series as the best near-luxury car.

Additionally, Germany's BMW had the highest overall score for quality among all automakers in the Strategic Vision survey for the eighth time in nine years.

Germany's Volkswagen scored the highest overall score for a full-line vehicle brand for the second year in a row, even though only one VW vehicle placed first in its class. That was the Rabbit, which won top honors as top small multifunction (hatchback/wagon) vehicle.

Toyota had no leading vehicles at all, while Toyota's luxury brand, Lexus, had only one: the RX 350, the leading near-luxury SUVs.

Even Honda, which usually ranks at or next to the top along with Toyota in quality surveys, had just two segment leaders. The Civic won as best small car and the Ridgeline as best standard (compact or midsize) pickup.

With the Kia Sorento winning the top spot among medium-size SUVs, Hyundai Motor Co. had a total of five segment leaders between its Hyundai and Kia brands.

This is the first time Hyundai has produced the most leaders in the Strategic Vision survey.

German luxury brand Mercedes-Benz was the only other automaker with at least two segment leaders. The Mercedes S-class won as best luxury car, while the ML-class was best in the luxury SUV segment.

Among the other Big Three American brands, Chevrolet and Dodge had one top winner each.

Chevrolet had the leading convertible over $30,000, the Corvette, while the Dodge Magnum won as top medium-size crossover utility vehicle.

Strategic Vision surveyed more than 27,000 vehicle buyers who bought 2007 models in September, October and November 2006. Owners in 19 separate vehicle segments were asked about their overall experiences, including buying, owning and driving their new vehicles.

Strategic Vision noted that Toyota's scores improved overall, but that "the most significant change in 2007 is the lack of any Toyota brand segment leaders."

"Examining the number of problems or things-gone-wrong per vehicle (the traditional definition of quality), Toyota and Lexus are still among the best," the company said. "However, Toyota's lead in this narrower definition of quality is now shared with other brands like Honda, Hyundai, Infiniti, and domestic brands such as Ford.

"For example, the Ford Expedition EL enjoyed a very large lead and had fewest problems in the segment. Expedition EL owners recognized innovative changes, which are key to future domestic success."

Ford redesigned the full-size Expedition for 2007, adding the extended-length, or EL, model to compete against the Chevrolet Suburban and its clone, the GMC Yukon XL. The Expedition EL replaced the larger Excursion, which has been discontinued, as the biggest SUV in the company's lineup.

The excellent results for Hyundai are consistent with the way the company's vehicles have performed on other recent quality surveys, including J.D. Power.

The Entourage and Sedona also have won top ratings for safety from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an independent testing agency funded by the automobile-insurance industry.

The redesigned Sedona, which arrived for 2006, was the safest minivan the institute said it had ever tested. Hyundai introduced the Entourage for 2007 as the first minivan under the Hyundai brand, and it received the same safety ratings as the Sedona, without separate testing, because it is functionally identical, the institute said.

Entourage base prices range from $24,495-$29,495 (including freight), while Sedona prices go from $21,195-$26,895.The Sedona is offered in short- (113.8 inches) and long-wheelbase (118.9 inches) versions, while the Entourage is offered only in the longer version.