The GMC brand was on par with the industry average in the J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study, with the premium truck brand beating out a handful of its direct rivals, including the Stellantis-owned Jeep and Ram brands.
The J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study measures the number of problems per 100 vehicles experienced during the past 12 months by original owners of three-year-old vehicles. It then uses this data to assign each vehicle brand a ‘PP100’ score, with a lower score reflecting a more reliable and less problem-prone vehicle. Vehicles are analyzed on 184 specific problem areas spread across nine major vehicle categories, including driving assistance (a new category for in 2022), driving experience, exterior, features/controls/ displays, infotainment, interior, powertrain, HVAC/climate and seats. Data for the study is provided through owner survey results, with this year’s study analyzing consumer responses of three-year-old, 2019 model year vehicles.
With a PP100 score of 192, the GMC brand was on par with the industry average score. It also beat out some of its crossover and truck-making rivals, including Jeep, which had a score of 201, along with Nissan (205), Ram (266) and Land Rover (284). GMC has some catching up to do with the rest of the GM portfolio, though, as it was outclassed by Chevrolet, Cadillac and Buick – all three of which were in the top ten.
The most commonly cited problems in this study were tied to in-car infotainment systems, J.D. Power says, which included issues related to freezing screens, phone pairing problems and software bugs, among more. David Amodeo, director of global automotive at J.D. Power, says automakers that can work to address these technological shortcomings and problems with good over-the-air updates will excel with regard to both vehicle dependability and customer perception in the future.
“For instance, cellphones update all the time with over-the-air software releases and, increasingly, automakers must take advantage of this approach to fix problems, improve features and add capabilities to keep owners satisfied,” Amodeo said. “Automakers that are able to do this best will have a huge advantage.”
The best-performing brand overall in this study was Kia, followed by Buick, Hyundai, Genesis and Toyota.
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Comments
So they are pretty good.
I mean, sure, they aren’t no Kia or anything, but are OK.
How can Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac be ranked higher, when they are basically the same vehicles as GMC? I’m shocked to see Honda and Acura so low.
Having been through a Honda in 2018, and talking with long-time Honda loyalists now driving other makes, I am not surprised.
Strikes me as demographics. Younger generations won’t complain (or misuse infotainment systems) unless the thing is literally falling apart. Hence why I think Kia and Hyundai are so high.
Whereas older buyers are overwhelmed with today’s vehicles and also are more likely to complain because they have the time and inclination.
So, in other words, all GM divisions are above industry average.
They are, but I think it’s the details that are strange.
Why is a Chevrolet less troublesome than a GMC, for example?
Why is Dodge better than either of them?
Electronic content. That is the number ONE reason for complaints.
This is a dependability study after three years of ownership, not complaints that they don’t know how they the stereo works.
Yes, and during that three years almost all the complaints are with the vehicle’s electronics. Most people have figured out how the radio works after the first five minutes, dumb-ass.
I don’t see your point, even if electronics are the problem after three years (which I haven’t seen stated anywhere that was the case).
Are you suggesting we need less electronics in our cars, so that they are more reliable? You know, like how they used to be, lol.
Looking at the press release, it looks like people are having problems with the navigation being outdated or maybe even broken, which is fair.
But, if some brands are doing a better job with the electronics, then we should totally count that, shouldn’t we?
Too many electronic devices are installed without being bug free. Lack of proper validation and testing is causing this kind of problem.
Interesting information on RAM trucks. Maybe MotorTrend should look at those poor numbers before they gush all over Ram pickup trucks. That magazine never ceases to amaze me with their slanted opinions.
J. D. Power surveys are about as useless as it gets. To send out surveys to new car purchasers with a dollar bill enclosed to evaluate a vehicle they just spent thousands of dollars on is at best a coin toss. First, there are just to many variables involved such as in-depth knowledge of a motor vehicle, brand loyalty, admitting you made a mistake on a vehicle you just spent your hard earned money on, nitpicking on items that have nothing to do with vehicle quality etc., etc. Second, today’s mass produced vehicles are platform engineered. For example, Chevrolet, GMC, and Cadillac truck based SUV’s are all the same.
Same engine, same transmission, same chassis, same hard mounting points for chassis, seats, instrument panels, doors, tailgates, yada, yada, yada. This is where the money is. The rest? – Wrinkles in the sheet metal, glitzier trim, uplevel electronics and front end cap that houses the Chevy , GMC, or Cadillac grille is pennies on the dollar in the overall cost of the vehicle. All other mass produced vehicles are the same. I retired from a GM assembly plant 14 years ago and witnessed this for some 30 years beginning around the early 1970’s. Let me add that there is nothing wrong with this. When I started at GM
all the divisions had their own engineering centers. This was extremely costly. Consolidating platforms saved a huge amount of money which improved engineering and quality. Styling not so much.
So, based on J.D. Power’s survey which shows identical vehicles other than the badge on the hood be so far apart on the ratings scale (which by the way will flip-flop on the same vehicles on their next survey)? I think it’s as I stated above.
In Germany, by law, vehicle service centers are required to input vehicle service data into a central data base accessible to the public which is much more accurate.