Full marques for dependability

Porsche (maker of the 918 Boxster Spyder) has shot from No 9 to No 1 in the dependability stakes. Photo / Supplied

Porsche has shot to the top of a closely watched US study of long-term vehicle dependability, overtaking American and Japanese rivals.

The German sports car brand took the No 1 spot in the annual J.D. Power and Associates survey, which gave it ninth place last year.

Ford's Lincoln division came in second, while General Motors' Buick and Toyota's luxury arm Lexus tied for third. Ford's Mercury and Toyota rounded out the top five.

The annual study measures problems experienced by the original owners of vehicles after three years. In last year's study, Buick and Jaguar tied for fewest problems, but both brands lost ground to rivals this year.

Toyota, whose reputation has come under scrutiny in the face of massive recalls, fell two spots from its third-place standing last year. While average vehicle quality across the industry improved from last year's survey, Toyota's quality score fell slightly.

However, the Japanese nameplate still swept four segment awards, more than any other brand. Japanese rival Honda took three segment awards, while Lincoln brand took two awards.

The industry average was 155 problems per 100 vehicles, J.D. Power said, or less than two problems per vehicle. That's a decline from 167 problems per 100 vehicles last year.

"The improvements in long-term dependability and component replacement rates are good news for both consumers and manufacturers," said David Sargent, vice-president of global vehicle research for J.D. Power.

J.D. Power's 2010 dependability study surveyed more than 52,000 original owners of 2007 model-year vehicles between October and December 2009.

The results are watched closely by carmakers and are often used in advertising. Owners' opinion of a car after three years can be a major influence on their opinion to buy that brand again. The company also releases an initial quality study, which measures problems in the first 90 days of ownership.

- AP