The Dodge brand broke its own record of consecutive finishes atop J.D. Power’s annual U.S. Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout study by ranking No. 1 among mass-market brands for a fourth year.
The study measures customer feedback on current-model attributes from styling and safety to powertrain and fuel efficiency during 84,555 buyers’ first 90 days of ownership. Overall satisfaction in the industry finished at 845 on a 1,000-point scale, a 2 point decrease from last year with fuel economy the only measurement seeing improvement. Dodge’s score was 887, the same as Jaguar, which topped the premium brands.
“Despite the technology and design innovations that manufacturers put into new vehicles, owners are lukewarm about them,” Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking at J.D. Power, said in a statement. “While innovations like charging pads, vehicle apps and advanced audio features should enhance an owner’s experience, this is not the case when problems are experienced. This downward trajectory of satisfaction should be a warning sign to manufacturers that they need to better understand what owners really want in their new vehicles.”
An Stellantis NV sister brand, Ram, finished second among 18 mass-market brands for a fourth year. The finishes for Dodge and Ram mirrored their recent results in J.D. Power’s Initial Quality Study, marking the first time a single brand — Dodge — has topped both in the same year. The brands bucked the industry decline with Dodge and Ram posting improvements of 5 and 10 points, respectively.
“Dodge didn’t win this Award, we accepted it on behalf of the Brotherhood,” Dodge and Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis said in a statement. “We have listened and learned from them. Those lessons will inform our product development as we redefine American Muscle for the next era.”
Before Dodge took the first-place crown in the study in 2020, Ram was No. 1, marking five consecutive years of the automaker’s brands taking the top spot.
Coming in third was General Motors Co.’s GMC. Chevrolet was sixth, and Buick was ninth. The Ford brand was 10th. Falling below the industry average was Jeep at 12th, and Chrysler was last.
Of the 14 premium brands, Ford Motor Co.’s Lincoln was seventh. Below the average were Cadillac at eighth and Stellantis’ Alfa Romeo at 10th.
Hyundai Motor Co. had the most number of models rank highest in their vehicle segment. The Porsche 911 was the highest-ranking individual model. The Dodge Challenger was the highest-ranked midsize sporty car.
“This outcome demonstrates that the pursuit of superior customer experience is firmly entrenched in our culture,” Bill Kendell, head of Stellantis’ North American customer experience organization, said in a statement about the placements of Dodge and Ram. “Our motto is, ‘Every Customer Counts; Every Journey Matters.’”
bnoble@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @BreanaCNoble