Quick Cash Auto Blog

Drivers interested in some of the most reliable vehicles on the road will be interested to learn of a recent announcement from J.D. Power and Associates; Lincoln and Toyota rank the highest. Lincoln was an often overlooked brand in favor of other luxurious models. Changes in approach and design pushed Lincoln ahead of Toyota, Porsche, Jaguar, and Lexus in reliability.

Domestic brands largely rate at lower than imports in reliability. Even still, brands are not a good measure of the overall quality one should expect from a vehicle. Manufacturers such as Chrysler provided a fairly weak offering early on, but have further honed their automobiles into much more efficient machines. Judge a vehicle based on its individual merits and flaws, not by the brand as some would claim.

J.D. Power and Associates conducts and distributes several quality studies a year. The most recent one took stock of consumers’ opinions after a three-year ownership. Three years is generally considered long enough for any real problems to develop with an automobile, if they are going to. Overall, vehicle dependability has never been higher since J.D. Power and Associates started this study in 1990.

This ranking is great news for Lincoln as it enters an era when Ford looks to sink more money into the brand. Ford has since sold off European luxury brands Aston Martin, Land Rover, Jaguar, and Volvo. Freed money will undoubtedly be poured into advertising programs to help bolster sales of Lincoln and help grab consumer interest in the vehicles.

It should be noted that some of the vehicles featured in J.D. Power and Associates’ study were remodeled to fix problems and efficiencies at some point. Recalls were taken into consideration but they often did not cause the same kind of difficulty one would have with an unexpected breakdown.

Toyota Motor Corp. automobiles won seven of the available categories in the study. The 4Runner, Sienna, Tacoma, Tundra, and Prius all ranked highest in their respective categories. The Scion xB and Lexus RX also won their categories.

Ford scored in four categories with the highest dependability with the Lincoln MKZ and Navigator. The Ford Mustang and Fusion also ranked top in their divisions. GM and Honda both walked away with three categories of their own.

The study was conducted by J.D. Power and Associates; one of the leading arbiters of quality that consumers tend to listen to. Their study was conducted on approximately 43,000 owners of 2008-year model vehicles after three years of ownership. The study was conducted toward the end of 2010.

In many ways Nissan is at a disadvantage in the full size truck market in the United States. Sure, Nissan is a reputable name in the auto industry in the States as well as abroad but competition is still in America with regard to the truck market because it is so saturated with American branded names and models. Nissan’s full size truck model known as the Titan has been holding its own within the market over the last several years but still has aspirations of creating a super truck that will beat out the likes of Ford, Chevy and GM. The 2011 Nissan Titan Crew Cab 4×4 is a very impressive truck in many ways but is it truly a super truck worthy of the heavy duty crown?

The specs for the 2011 Titan have not changed much in the last five years which could be a sign that Nissan is confident that their formula is the winning one or that the company is at a loss for what to change, or even worse they may be complacent in the market. The Pro 4X Crew Cab model has some tremendously impressive specs on both the interior and exterior like comfortable captain-style seats up front, lockable center console large enough to fit a laptop with room to spare, and even front steering that is an independent double-wishbone style with a stabilizer bar and Dana axles.

The Titan 4×4 comes with a base price of a little more than $33,000 but there are several option packages that can be purchased with the vehicle that makes the Titan even plusher. For example, the Premium Utility Package includes items like a 10 speaker Rockford sound system with subwoofer, spray on bed-liner, bed-side storage compartments, XM radio, and tow mirrors but is priced at nearly $2,000. Other optional packages are priced from $345 and include the SV Value Truck Package and the Utility Accessory Package.

Reviews from Edmunds and Motor Trend find the accessories and options in the 2011 Titan very desirable and agree that the extra features make the truck fun to drive and user friendly. However reviews have been mixed regarding the overall work capabilities, endurance, and toughness of the 2011 Titan 4×4. Sales for the Titan peaked in 2008 when more than 34,000 models were sold but sales have been mediocre in comparison since and only 23,426 were sold in 2010.

Overall, long term tests and reviews are needed to make a final judgment on the 2011 Titan and whether it is worth the hefty price tag. While the Titan has some cool features, Nissan may need something new to set them apart from the crowd.

A bad consumer review can be like the kiss of death for merchandise on the market today because of the accessibility that consumers have to the information. Consumer reports tend to be honest and forthright concerning products so many consumers hold these reviews in high regard. While potential consumers may find these reports helpful in their navigation of the marketplace of products, negative reviews are especially brutal for car companies and their associated products.

The highly acclaimed Consumer Reports magazine released news this week that Chevrolet and Ford are among other car companies whose products will not be recommended to consumers. More specifically, the 2011 Chevy Tahoe sport utility, 2011 Ford Edge crossover, and 2011 Lincoln MKX crossover are the most well known car models that will not be supported by Consumer Reports. While the magazine admits that all three of these popular vehicles do have some valuable strengths that consumers will appreciate, the vehicles performed poorly in a series of rigorous tests and data compilation performed by the popular publication.

The touch screen navigation in the Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX received negative reviews on almost all counts especially on the overall distraction that is causes for drivers. The Chevrolet Tahoe received decent reviews with regard to its technology, however, received poor marks on braking time, price, and overall handling.

Other vehicles that will not be sponsored by Consumer Reports are the Honda CR-Z hybrid, Porsche Cayenne sport utility, and the Infiniti QX56 sport utility. While it is likely that both the Cayenne and Infiniti are too new for Consumer Reports to have done sufficient testing by the time their February issue was sent for publication, the Honda CR-Z reportedly performed surprising low in testing done by the consumer review experts especially considering that it has great fuel economy and a relatively affordable price tag. The CR-Z, which looks similar to the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius, is being blogged about across the internet as an ugly twin to the Insight with bad handling, high level of cabin noise, and a payload that is basically equivalent to that of a large moped.

While it is bad news for these car companies that Consumer Reports gave poor marks to their car models and accessories, most of these names are already popular and established in the car market so they may be able to withstand these reviews. Overall, Consumer Reports magazine is a highly respected publication that can positively or negatively affect the sales and perceptions of products. Ford, Chevy, and the other companies that are receiving bad reviews in February’s issue will have to hope that these reviews will not hurt their sales efforts.

It is probably never a good idea for a car company to name a car something that rhymes so well with a word that has a negative connotation. Sure, Cruze rhymes with lose but it could be a lot worse, like if a car company named one of their models the “Spunk”; one bad review and the media would be calling it “Junk”. Chevrolet expects big things from their newest car model, and the car definitely looks great in all the advertisements that have been aired lately on television, but will the Chevy Cruze stack up well against competitors and perform well under pressure?

Executives at Chevrolet stepped out their comfort zone when choosing a lead design company that would engineer the Chevy Cruze by selecting Daewoo. The Korean based company has had its share of flops in recent years like the Suzuki Forenza or the Chevy Aveo. Despite the Korean automaker’s many shortcomings regarding cars produced for sale on American soil, the Cruze does seem promising.

The new car model was sold and marketed in Europe for more than a year before hitting showroom floors in the United States several weeks ago. Experts stated that this European launch was used mainly as a way to work out the kinks and other problems with the car before selling the model in the U.S. Chevrolet expects big things from the sporty Cruze and they cannot afford to get it wrong so a test year in Europe was a smart move.

There are three versions of the Chevy Cruze that are or will be sold in America. A 1.8 liter V6 gasoline engine with just under 140 horsepower will be a big seller, as will the 1.4 liter turbocharged 4-cylinder that gets more than 40 miles per gallon on the highway. A sleek and sporty SS version will hit stores soon; the SS version will boast 260 horsepower with a turbocharged 2.0 liter engine.

Overall the Cruze has features, power, and style that compete very well with similar cars like the Ford Focus and Honda Civic. The car has been implemented with technology that competes well with these cars and the 17 inch wheel option makes the car seem much more sporty, which may attract younger consumers. The Cruze is priced similarly to its competitors with MSRP starting at just over $16,000.

Overall, it seems that buyers of the new Chevy Cruze may indeed be winners but only time will tell the real story about performance, durability, and resale value.