Research company J.D. Power has released its 2020 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study, and the result is quite surprising.

The study, now in its 31st year, measures the number of problems per 100 vehicles (PP100) experienced during the past 12 months by original owners of their three-year-old vehicles. The 2020 study measures problems in model-year 2017 vehicles. A lower score reflects higher quality, and the study covers 177 specific problems grouped into eight major vehicle categories.

According to the J.D. Power study, vehicle dependability has improved, but at a slower rate. The industry average in 2020 is 134 PP100, which is an improvement of just 2 PP100 from 2019. (However, in 2019, there was an improvement of 6 PP100 from 2018.) Despite the slowing rate of improvement, 2020 marks automakers’ best performance in the history of the study.

And among the eight major vehicle categories studied, In-vehicle Technology shows the greatest improvement. However, it still accounts for more problems than any other category in the study. Owners continue to cite problems with voice recognition, Bluetooth connectivity, and navigation systems.

Among brands, taking the top spot this year is Hyundai Group’s luxury brand, Genesis. With just 89 PP100, it managed to best Lexus which now drops to second place with 100 PP100. Buick is third with 103 PP100, Porsche in fourth with 104 PP100, and rounding up the Top 5 is Toyota at 113 PP100.

The rest of the Top 10 are: Volkswagen, Lincoln, BMW, Chevrolet, and Ford.


Toyota receives six segment awards for the Lexus ES, Lexus GX, Toyota 4Runner, Toyota Avalon, Toyota Sienna, and Toyota Tundra. The Toyota brand receives the highest number of segment awards in the study. Meanwhile, General Motors receives five segment awards: for the Buick Encore and Buick Regal, and for the Chevrolet Equinox, Chevrolet Silverado HD and Chevrolet Tahoe.

Among individual models, the Lexus ES is the king with just 52 PP100.
Within their segments, the following models stood out:

• Honda Jazz/Fit (Small Car)
• Buick Regal (Midsize Car)
• BMW 2 Series (Small Premium Car)
• Ford Mustang (Midsize Sporty Car)
• Nissan Leaf (Compact Car)
• Genesis G80 (Midsize Premium Car)
• Mazda MX-5 (Compact Sporty Car),
• Toyota Avalon (Large Car)
• Lexus ES (Compact Premium Car)
• Buick Encore (Small SUV)
• Lexus GX (Midsize Premium SUV)
• Mercedes-Benz GLA (Small Premium SUV)
• Toyota Sienna (Minivan)
• Chevrolet Equinox (Compact SUV)
• Chevrolet Tahoe (Large SUV)
• Porsche Macan (Compact Premium SUV)
• Ford F-150 & Toyota Tundra (Large Light Duty Pickup)
• Nissan Frontier (Midsize Pickup)
• Chevrolet Silverado HD (Large Heavy Duty Pickup)
• Toyota 4Runner (Midsize SUV)