J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Heavy-Duty Truck Brands for Customer Satisfaction
Class 8 Truck Quality Declines Due to More Problems With Low-Emission Engines
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., Aug. 16 -- For a second consecutive year, Kenworth ranks highest in heavy-duty truck customer satisfaction for over-the-road trucks, pickup and delivery trucks, and dealer service, while International Truck and Engine ranks highest in the vocational truck segment, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Heavy-Duty Truck Customer Satisfaction Study(SM).
Now in its 11th year, the study includes responses from 2,529 primary maintainers of two-year-old Class 8 heavy-duty trucks. The study focuses on smaller fleets and owner/operators with an average fleet size of approximately 61 trucks at a single location. The study also measures satisfaction with services received from an authorized truck dealer's service department.
Customer satisfaction for the three product segments is measured for four factors: performance, quality, warranty and cost of ownership. In the over-the-road segment, satisfaction with the vehicle's sleeper is also measured.
Recent government mandates requiring heavy duty trucks to lower emissions have had a negative impact on customer satisfaction as the number of engine related problems continue to increase. Owners report their trucks were down an average of 4.1 times in the past year -- up from 2.9 times in 2005. This also has had a negative financial impact on owner and operators as the average down time problems reported rose significantly from an average of 6.6 days in 2005 to 9.7 days in 2006, with much of that increase attributed to engine- related problems.
The overall customer satisfaction levels have clearly been affected by the decline in quality. Overall customer satisfaction for Class 8 trucks averages 744 index points on a 1,000-point scale. Owners of vocational Class 8 trucks report the highest satisfaction, while over-the-road customers report the lowest satisfaction. Over-the-road owners also report the most problems, with 310 problems per 100 (PP100) trucks. Pickup and delivery truck owners report the fewest problems at 216 PP100, while vocational truck owners report 225 PP100.
"Time is money in the trucking business, and when a truck is in for service, it impacts the fleet's bottom line," says Brian Etchells, senior research manager in the commercial vehicle group at J.D. Power and Associates. "Performance and quality account for 65 percent of total product satisfaction, so it's easy to see how problems quickly erode owner satisfaction."
Kenworth ranks highest in the over-the-road segment, receiving high marks from customers in each of the five index factors. Kenworth also ranks highest in the pickup and delivery segment, receiving the highest ratings for all four factors.
International Truck and Engine ranks highest in customer satisfaction in the vocational segment. International performs very well in quality and for its warranty.
Kenworth ranks highest in dealer service, receiving very strong ratings from customers in five of the six factors that drive overall service satisfaction: dealer facility, service quality, service delivery, service initiation, and service advisor. International Truck and Engine closely follows Kenworth in the dealer service ranking, performing well above the segment average on all six factors and outdistances all competitors on the price factor.
"More than three-fourths of Class 8 owners report taking their trucks to the dealer for service within the first two years of ownership," Etchells said. "That provides dealers an excellent opportunity to have a positive impact on their customers. A positive dealer service experience not only enhances the relationship with the customer but also increases loyalty."
Among the 78 percent of respondents who took their truck to a dealer for service, 81 percent indicate that the work was done right the first time. Among those whose vehicle was not fixed right the first time, it took an average of two return visits was required to fix the problem.
Over-The-Road Segment Index Ranking (Based on a 1,000-point scale) Kenworth 789 Over-The-Road Segment Average 724 Peterbilt 718 Volvo 711 Freightliner 708
Included in the study but not ranked due to insufficient sample size are: International Truck and Engine and Western Star.
Pickup and Delivery Segment Index Ranking (Based on a 1,000-point scale) Kenworth 805 Peterbilt 777 Freightliner 769 Pickup and Delivery Segment Average 752 International 730 Mack Trucks 721 Sterling 716
Included in the study but not ranked due to insufficient sample size are: Volvo and Western Star.
Vocational Segment Index Ranking (Based on a 1,000-point scale) International 786 Peterbilt 778 Kenworth 775 Vocational Segment Average 763 Sterling 759 Freightliner 758 Mack Trucks 741
Included in the study but not ranked due to insufficient sample size are: Volvo and Western Star.
Dealer Service Index Ranking (Based on a 1,000-point scale) Kenworth 781 International 778 Mack Trucks 759 Western Star 759 Dealer Service Average 741 Peterbilt 729 Volvo 724 Sterling 721 Freightliner 719 About J.D. Power and Associates
Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.
About The McGraw-Hill Companies
Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 290 offices in 38 countries. Sales in 2005 were $6.0 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/.
Segment Definitions
Vocational segment: Heavy-duty trucks operating in typically rugged business environments such as construction, sanitation/refuse, forestry, mining or utility services. Also included in this segment are dump trucks, concrete mixers, cranes and other related vehicles.
Over-the-Road segment: Non-vocational trucks with sleepers, typically used for long-haul applications that are not returned to home base each night.
Pickup and Delivery segment: Non-vocational day cabs, typically used for city stop-and-go applications with a return to home base each night.
