J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Ford ACD Has the Highest Quality Seats On North American-Built Vehicles
20 October 1997
J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Ford ACD Has the Highest Quality Seats On North American-Built Vehicles
AGOURA HILLS, Calif., Oct. 20 -- Ford ACD moves to the top
becoming the "highest quality seat supplier" among first tier seat suppliers
to North American-built vehicles in J.D. Power and Associates 1997 Seat
Quality Report(SM). This honor is awarded to the supplier with the fewest
consumer-reported problems with the seats in their new 1997 model year
vehicles after approximately three months of ownership. According to
consumers, Ford ACD, part of Ford's component group Visteon, manufactures the
highest quality seats in North American-built vehicles, with 11.3 problems per
100 vehicles. Magna is not far behind Ford ACD followed by SAS, a Johnson
Controls-Summa joint venture.
The J.D. Power and Associates 1997 Seat Quality Report identifies consumer
satisfaction with their seats by reporting seat problems they have experienced
or things gone wrong (TGW). The study also includes information on things
gone right (TGR), measuring what consumers like and dislike about their seats,
and providing insight into what it takes to excite and delight buyers with the
seats in their new car or truck. In addition, the report identifies the seat
system and seat restraint suppliers for all models sold in the US.
"Eliminating vehicle problems has been a priority to OEMs and suppliers
alike as product quality directly impacts customer satisfaction and customer
loyalty," commented Melissa Ross, manager, supplier services at J.D. Power and
Associates. "Understanding product quality has grown in importance for seat
suppliers as they have assumed more and more responsibility from the OEMs.
With this added responsibility has come an increase in accountability --
including recent instances where suppliers have shared warranty costs with
vehicle manufacturers. As responsibility and accountability continue to shift
down the supply chain, understanding seat quality from the consumer's
perspective will be imperative for suppliers to strengthen and grow their OEM
relationships," Ms. Ross said.
The study also found that the abundance of new model launches this year
created many challenges for suppliers and designers. The report points out
that the majority of buyers of newly-launched models were pleased with the
seats in their new vehicles, with over 60 percent of the models receiving a
TGR score higher than the segment average. However, when looking at the TGW
rankings nearly 60 percent of the new models experienced more problems than
what is average for their segment.
The J.D. Power and Associates 1997 Seat Quality Report is based on data
from the firm's Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout survey (APEAL).
The APEAL study surveyed over 29,000 new car and truck owners after
approximately three months of ownership. The Seat Quality Report is the first
of five 1997 J.D. Power and Associates component-focused reports to be
published. Additional reports will focus on audio systems, vehicle interiors,
HVAC systems and transmissions.
J.D. Power and Associates is an international firm best known for its
marketing information services in key business sectors including market
research, forecasting, and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and
satisfaction measurements are based on actual customer responses from over a
million consumers annually. With its headquarters in Agoura Hills,
California, the firm also has U.S. offices in Torrance, California; Michigan;
and Connecticut. Its international locations include Japan, Korea, England,
Canada and Brazil.
J.D. Power and Associates can be accessed through the World Wide Web at
http://www.jdpower.com. Email: info@jdpower.com.
No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in
this release or J.D. Power and Associates survey results without the express
prior written consent of J.D. Power and Associates.
Top 3 Primary Seat Suppliers
TGW Ranking by Origin
North American-Built Vehicles
Industry Average = 15.7 Problems per 100
Ford ACD: Ford, Lincoln, Mercury 11.3
Magna: Ford, Mercury, Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth 12.4
SAS: Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth 13.5
Source: J.D. Power and Associates 1997 Seat Quality Report
Top 3 Primary Seat Suppliers
TGR Ranking by Origin
North American-Built Vehicles
Industry Average = 664
Peregrine: Cadillac 749
SAVASA: General Motors 693
Trimmasters: Toyota 686
Source: J.D. Power and Associates 1997 Seat Quality Report
SOURCE J.D. Power and Associates
