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Ram trucks lead 2021 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study

For the first time ever, Ram leads in J.D. Power's annual Initial Quality Study with a score of 128 PP100, or problems experienced per 100 vehicles in the first 90 days of ownership. Ram was in third place in last year's rankings. Coming in second place is Dodge (139 PP100), a sister division to Ram under the Stellantis umbrella, followed by Lexus (144 PP100), this year's highest-ranked premium automaker, in third. These findings reinforce an overall trend over the last few decades where mass-market brands have outperformed premium brands that tend to introduce bleeding-edge technologies that can confuse owners or fail to work entirely. Genesis (148 PP100) is the only other premium automaker to perform better than average. At the bottom of the official rankings is Chrysler (251 PP100), which seems to make little sense considering most of its technologies are shared with Dodge and many with Ram until you consider that Chrysler only offers two platforms and one of them is the Pacifica/Voyager minivan twins that are unique to the brand. The next worst are Audi (240 PP100) and Volkswagen (213 PP100). Tesla would fall in between VW and Audi with its score of 231PP100, but because the electric car manufacturer doesn't provide access to J.D. Power in every state, it's not officially included. Interestingly, J.D. Power said on a followup call that the problems that Tesla owners report most often are more traditional issues, such as panel fitment, interior noises or paint problems instead of problems with the car's electronics. According to J.D. Power, the industry averaged a score of 162 PP100. That is four points higher than the overall score in 2020, and 20 of 32 brands improved their quality scores over the last year. That's a two percent increase in quality in 2021, which is good but slightly lower than the average rate of improvement over the last decade. On a car-by-car basis, the Nissan Maxima leads the overall field with a score of 85 PP100. Issues with infotainment systems — and in particular problems pairing smartphones with in-car technologies — continue to be the top-reported problems. Headaches connecting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto dominate the complaints. "Owners want wireless connectivity, and the industry has responded," according to Dave Sargent, vice president of automotive quality at J.D. Power. "However, this has created a bigger technical challenge for both automakers and tech companies.

Jeep Begins Fixing 1.56 Million Recalled Grand Cherokee, Liberty SUVs

Chrysler is just now beginning the big job of fixing 1.56 million older Jeep SUVs seven months after a recall was announced, according to The Detroit News. Jeep Grand Cherokees sold between 1992 and 1998 and Jeep Liberty models sold between 2002 and 2007 are being recalled because the gas tank can leak in the event of a rear-end collision, leading to a fire. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration originally requested the recall of 2.7 million vehicles. Chrysler initially disputed NHTSA's findings and seemed willing to go through a court battle until an 11th-hour deal reduced the number of vehicles involved in the recall. The remaining vehicle owners left out of the recall will receive a "customer service action" notification and may not get fixed. Chrysler says the vehicles are safe and need no repairs. Fixing the 1.56 million Jeeps will cost Chrysler $151 million. NHTSA cited 51 deaths causes by such tank fires. Chrysler plans to install protective trailer hitches to protect the gas tanks, but even the automaker admits the hitches will only provide incremental protection in a low-to-moderate speed rear-end crash. Related Gallery 2014 Jeep Cherokee Test Drive View 9 Photos Recalls Chrysler Jeep jeep liberty

UPDATE: GM, Ford, FCA, Honda shutting down all North America plants

Following an earlier report that General Motors, Ford and FCA would take action to curtail the potential spread of the Coronavirus, news comes today that the three American automakers will instead close all North American plants for an unknown period of time. Ford said in a statement that it "is temporarily suspending production at its manufacturing sites in North America to March 30 to thoroughly clean its facilities to protect its workforce and boost containment efforts for the COVID-19 Coronavirus." General Motors followed with a statement confirming that its suspension "will last until at least March 30," and adding that the situation will be reevaluated from week to week after that. FCA has not yet issued an official statement. Rory Gamble, president of the United Auto Workers union, praised the news. "This will give us time to review best practices and to prevent the spread of this disease," Gamble said in a statement. According to the Associated Press, around 150,000 workers are "likely to receive supplemental pay in addition to unemployment benefits." The United Auto Workers had asked the automakers to reconsider their position on Wednesday, a day after the parties agreed to slow production at U.S. plants and limit the number of workers on the job at one time to prevent the spread of the virus, a source who asked not to be identified told Reuters. The UAW’s new request for the closure of the Detroit Three automakersÂ’ U.S. plants came after Honda said on Wednesday it was temporarily shutting its North American plants for six days because of the anticipated decline in consumer demand. Plants/Manufacturing UAW/Unions Chrysler Fiat Ford GM coronavirus