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Lexus tops JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study again, Buick bests Toyota

It shouldn't surprise anyone, but Lexus has once again taken the top spot in JD Power's Vehicle Dependability Study. That'd be the Japanese luxury brand's fourth straight year at the top of table. The big news, though, is the rise of Buick. General Motor's near-premium brand beat out Toyota to take second place, with 110 problems per 100 vehicles compared to Toyota's 111 problems. Lexus owners only reported 89 problems per 100 vehicles. Besides Buick's three-position jump, Scion enjoyed a major improvement, jumping 13 positions from 2014. Ram and Mitsubishi made big gains, as well, moving up 11 and 10 positions, respectively. In terms of individual segments, GM and Toyota both excelled, taking home seven segment awards each. The study wasn't good news for all involved, though. A number of popular automakers finished below the industry average of 147 problems per 100 vehicles, including Subaru, (157PP100), Volkswagen (165PP100), Ford/Hyundai (188PP100 each) and Mini (193PP100). The biggest losers (by a tremendous margin, we might add) were Land Rover and Fiat, recording 258 and 273 problems per 100 vehicles. The next closest brand was Jeep, with 197PP100. While the Vehicle Dependability Study uses the same measurement system as the Initial Quality Survey, the two metrics analyze very different things. The VDS looks at problems experienced by original owners of model year 2012 vehicles over the past 12 months, while the oft-quoted IQS focuses on problems in the first 90 days of new-vehicle ownership. Like the IQS, though, the VDS has a rather broad definition of what a problem is. Because of that, a low score from JD Power is no guarantee of extreme unreliability, so much as just poor design. In this most recent study, the two most reported problems focused on Bluetooth connectivity and the voice-command systems. The former leaves plenty of room for user error due to poor design (particularly true of the Bluetooth systems on the low-scoring Fords, Volkswagens and Subarus), while the second is something JD Power has already confirmed as being universally terrible. That makes means that while these studies are important, they shouldn't be taken as gospel when it comes to automotive reliability. News Source: JD PowerImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Jeremy Korzeniewski / AOL Buick Fiat Ford GM Hyundai Jeep Land Rover Lexus MINI Mitsubishi RAM Scion Subaru Toyota Volkswagen Auto Repair Ownership study

Toyota profits up 23% on high US sales, despite mounting legal costs

Toyota earned $9.3 billion in net income in the financial year that ends next month. The number beats earlier forecasts and marks a five-year high for the automaker, with both operating income and revenue up by 9.5 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively. Toyota saw quarterly profit enjoy a year-on-year jump of 23.4 percent, with the manufacturer earning more than $1 billion between October and December 2012. The good news comes in spite of the fact that the Japanese automaker actually endured an operating loss in North America, due in part to legal fees.
Toyota is set to pay more than $1 billion to owners who claim their vehicles decreased in value as a result of the company's recent spate of recalls. Even so, all three of the automaker's brands enjoyed a 13.5 percent sales increase in the US in the last quarter, beating the industry average. Toyota faltered in Europe, however, where it earned $99 million in operating profit last year, compared to $111 million in 2011. You can take a closer look at the company's full press release below for more information.

This 1,000-horsepower, rear-drive Toyota Corolla iM could be yours

We were amazed last year when we learned that Papadakis Racing built Fredric Aasbo a rear-drive, 1,000-horsepower 2017 Toyota Corolla iM for drifting. Now we're amazed that the car could end up in the hands of an average person, because the car is currently going for auction on Bring A Trailer. Just as a quick recap for those that might have missed hearing about the car last year, the little Toyota hatch features a turbocharged and nitrous-injected 2.7-liter 2AR-series Toyota four-cylinder. Variants of that engine are found in older Toyota RAV4s and Camrys. According to Bring A Trailer, the engine hits 1,000 horsepower and 850 pound-feet of torque when running on E85. Power goes through a four-speed dog box manual transmission to the rear wheels. Now there is the question of what you would do with such a mad machine. One possibility is to run it again in the Formula Drift series the car was built for. Bring A Trailer reports that it should be legal for the 2019 season, and with extra parts and wheels, you would be in a good spot to get started. The seller does note that all the graphics and sponsor decals would have to be removed if it's entered again. Even if you didn't run it in a professional drift series, it would probably be a fun car to use in more grassroots drift events or even just as a track car of some sort. There's also one more potential option that would be totally absurd. You see, it appears Papdakis Racing started with a factory-built, street legal Corolla iM that could have easily gone on to see a life of ferrying a young couple or family around in efficient, affordable style. As such, it should have a VIN that could be used to register and insure the car without too much trouble. It even still has functional lights. As long as you're in a state that doesn't have modification or emissions restrictions, it could be possible to make this a street car. Now we're not positive on this, so do your due diligence before plunking down cash for it, but it does seem possible, and it would be crazy and awesome. Related Video: