Do the J.D. Power Initial Quality Results Matter? (Part One) [News]

Every year, J.D. Power does its initial quality study, where cars in each segment are ranked based on the number of problems experienced by owners in the first 90 days of ownership.

The cars are ranked by problems per 100 cars, with the top cars in each segment given the initial quality award.

But does this matter when a buyer signs on the dotted line? Does the initial quality ranking of a car lead to more sales?

In the midsize sedan segment, the Chevrolet Malibu was ranked the best for initial quality, followed by the Kia Optima and the Toyota Camry. But in overall sales, the Malibu ranked fifth and the Optima eighth, with the Camry taking the top spot.

In the growing compact SUV segment, Chevrolet’s Equinox tied with the Ford Escape for first place, with the Chevy’s sister vehicle, the GMC Terrain, taking the third spot. In year-to-date sales, the Equinox and Escape are second and third, respectively, with the Terrain in ninth spot.

To determine if the initial quality awards contribute to sales, these numbers will serve as a baseline. In one month, part two of this story will see if the cars that received initial quality awards showed any increase in sales.

The following is a list of all J.D. Power initial quality award winners for 2015:

Check out this TFLcar preview video of the 2016 Chevrolet Equinox: