US quality study: Tesla and Polestar perform really badly

Consumer research firm JD Power has released its year’s quality study of new cars sold in the United States. The result is a slap in the face for Tesla and Polestar.

One result of the JD Power 2022 US Initial Quality Study: The quality of new vehicles has fallen by eleven percent compared to the previous year. This is the steepest fall that the study has ever recorded. JD Power blames supply chain problems, among other things, for the drop in quality.

The decline in quality is particularly serious for manufacturers of electric cars. Polestar even ends up in last place. Tesla is seventh from last.

Specifically for Tesla, JD Power registered 226 problems per 100 Tesla vehicles. If you add up all electric cars that do not come from Tesla, JD Power comes up with 240 problems for every 100 electric cars. In 2021, JD Power still registered 251 problems for every 100 electric cars.

For the study, JD Power evaluated the input of 84,165 owners of privately used new cars. The information obtained relates to 33 manufacturers and 189 different models. The study is based on a questionnaire containing 223 questions, which is divided into the following vehicle categories: infotainment, equipment, controls and displays, exterior, driving assistance, interior, powertrain, seats, driving experience and climate.

Among the problem areas, the software stands out: six of the ten biggest problems concern the infotainment system. Interesting in this context: Carplay is used by half of those surveyed, while Android Auto is only used by 17 percent of those surveyed. Carplay users were overall happier than Android Auto users, The Verge adds. However, many users criticize both systems equally for being difficult to understand and making the connection with the smartphone is often a problem. The problems seem to be increasing, especially with the wireless variants of Carplay and Android Auto.

While Tesla and Polestar are at the lower end of the satisfaction scale, the US brand Buick is in first place. Some other US brands are also top-ranked, including Kia, Lexus (Toyota’s premium brand) and BMW. Toyota and Mazda are also above average. Mercedes-Benz, Land Rover and Porsche, on the other hand, receive lower than average ratings. But one must never forget the expectations of the buyer: from the outset, one expects more from a Porsche than from a significantly cheaper make from a “volume manufacturer”.

Incidentally, Volkswagen also ranks quite far behind when it comes to satisfaction, and Audi is even behind VW.

Here you can read the results of the study summarized in a PDF.

Study: Tesla builds the cars with the most errors