The trusted voice of the industry
for more than 30 years

Kia tops Initial Quality Study

Posted on 27 June, 2017
Kia tops Initial Quality Study

Kia has been named the highest ranking brand in the JD Power 2017 Initial Quality Study (IQS). After topping the study in 2016, Kia has made a seven per cent improvement this year with just 72 problems per 100 vehicles, down from 83 in the previous survey.  Kia vehicles topped five individual segments with the Soul named leading Compact Multi-Purpose Vehicle and the Cerato  taking out the Compact Car.  The Cadenza was awarded the Large Car, the Niro hybrid SUV won the Small SUV category and Sorento was named as the top Midsize SUV. It’s the third year running that the Kia Soul was top of its category, Optima and Sportage finished second in their respective categories. “This is a stunning endorsement for the quality and reliability of Kia vehicles,” says general manager for Kia Motors New Zealand, Todd McDonald. “The JD Power IQS study is one of the top automotive benchmarks in the world. Every vehicle manufacturer aspires to do well because it is a true reflection of how well you build vehicles, and support the customers who buy them. “To improve on the quality score from last year’s impressive result is an extraordinary achievement.” The study is based on responses from nearly 80,000 purchasers, covering 243 vehicle models across 26 segments. Vehicles were evaluated on driving experience, engine and transmission performance and a broad range of quality problem symptoms reported by vehicle owners. Kia scored well across the various categories, including the performance and reliability of its infotainment systems, which is an area that has drawn the most complaints from vehicle owners in general over recent years as on-board technology becomes more complex. Filling out the other places in the top five were Kia’s stablemate, Genesis, in second place, Porsche in third, with Ford and Ram trucks in joint fourth position. Toyota fell from fifth place last year to 14th in the latest study.