Hyundai, Ford show biggest quality gains

This isn't much of a surprise but is still interesting: Ford and Hyundai have had the highest level of improvement in perception of quality among all automakers during the last five years, according to ALG, the modern name for what used to be called Automotive Lease Guide.

Since 2008, Ford's perception of quality has improved nearly 37%, which is good enough for fourth place. Hyundai's is up 25% during the same time period putting it pretty much in the middle. Remember, though, both were coming from far back in the pack.

At the top of the list, Honda ranks highest among mainstream brands with a perceived quality score of 81.3. Toyot is right on its heels with the largest year-over-year perception improvement of any brand. Subaru ranks third.

Lexus is highest ranked among luxury brands for the second consecutive year, with a perceived quality score of 85.4. Next comes the the Europeans: Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Porsche.

"Consumers recognize the product improvements made by Ford and Hyundai," said Eric Lyman, an ALG's vice president. "Honda and Toyota are still widely recognized as being the quality leaders, but as more consumers increasingly consider brands like Subaru, Ford and Hyundai, that perception gap erodes."

Other brands showing significant year-over-year improvement include Fiat, Scion, Dodge and Kia.

ALG's Perceived Quality Study is a semi-annual consumer survey measuring the perceived quality of automotive brands. It is based on opinions of more than 3,000 U.S. consumers in order to gauge perceptions of mainstream and luxury brands.

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