J.D. Power’s 2023 Worst Car Brands for DependabilityJ.D. Power’s 2023 Worst Car Brands for Dependability

The annual dependability survey looks at three years of driving 2020 models.

Dan Carney, Senior Editor

February 13, 2023

17 Slides
Collage Maker-13-Feb-2023-12.36-PM.jpg

Already have an account?

Images courtesy of Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Infiniti, and Acura

J.D. Power’s annual survey of drivers has compiled the reliability scores for 2020 models, providing us the list of the year's most dependable models after three years of driving along with the brands whose cars scored below average in the survey.

The survey found an average of 186 problems per 100 vehicles (PP100), which means that the average 2019 car in the survey had 1.86 problems during the last three years. The worst-scoring brands had more problems than that, with the last-place brand averaging 273 PP100, or close to three problems in three years.

The study covers 184 specific problem areas across nine major vehicle categories: climate; driving assistance; driving experience; exterior; features/controls/ displays; infotainment; interior; powertrain; and seats.

The infotainment category continues to be the most troublesome, with an average of 49.9 PP100—almost twice as many problems as the next-highest category, which is exterior. Six of the top 10 problem areas in the study are infotainment-related, including built-in voice recognition (7.2 PP100); Android Auto/Apple CarPlay connectivity (5.5 PP100); built-in Bluetooth system connectivity (4.0 PP100); touchscreen/display screen difficult to use (4.0 PP100); not enough power plugs/USB ports (3.8 PP100); and navigation system inaccurate/outdated map (3.3 PP100).

As a rule of thumb, premium brands fared worse than their mass-market counterparts. That’s because new technology tends to have more problems. “It is typical in the automotive industry to roll out concepts and features by putting them in premium vehicles first,” said Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking at J.D. Power.

The definition of “dependability” needs some explanation here; respondents complain about things like not having enough USB outlets in their cars.

Click through our gallery to see which brands ended up at the bottom of J.D. Power’s dependability list.

About the Author

Dan Carney

Senior Editor, Design News

Dan’s coverage of the auto industry over three decades has taken him to the racetracks, automotive engineering centers, vehicle simulators, wind tunnels, and crash-test labs of the world.

A member of the North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year jury, Dan also contributes car reviews to Popular Science magazine, serves on the International Engine of the Year jury, and has judged the collegiate Formula SAE competition.

Dan is a winner of the International Motor Press Association's Ken Purdy Award for automotive writing, as well as the National Motorsports Press Association's award for magazine writing and the Washington Automotive Press Association's Golden Quill award.

AstonMartinVanquish_©AndyMorgan_025_copy_2.JPG

He has held a Sports Car Club of America racing license since 1991, is an SCCA National race winner, two-time SCCA Runoffs competitor in Formula F, and an Old Dominion Region Driver of the Year award winner. Co-drove a Ford Focus 1.0-liter EcoBoost to 16 Federation Internationale de l’Automobile-accredited world speed records over distances from just under 1km to over 4,104km at the CERAM test circuit in Mortefontaine, France.

He was also a longtime contributor to the Society of Automotive Engineers' Automotive Engineering International magazine.

He specializes in analyzing technical developments, particularly in the areas of motorsports, efficiency, and safety.

He has been published in The New York Times, NBC News, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics, The Washington Post, Hagerty, AutoTrader.com, Maxim, RaceCar Engineering, AutoWeek, Virginia Living, and others.

Dan has authored books on the Honda S2000 and Dodge Viper sports cars and contributed automotive content to the consumer finance book, Fight For Your Money.

He is a member and past president of the Washington Automotive Press Association and is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers

Sign up for Design News newsletters

You May Also Like