Date: 9 Aug 2006 20:29:35 GMT From: Dave Hinz <DaveHinznospaml.com> Subject: Re: JD Power: Saab 2nd to last in quality
On Wed, 9 Aug 2006 16:17:00 -0400, Tex <texnospamm101.org> wrote: > "Fred W" <Malt_Houndnospamm-me-not*yahoo.com> wrote in message > news:YdqdnTLCYZcUoUfZnZ2dnUVZ_rWdnZ2dnospamphia.com... >> JD Powers surveys are stupid. They have very little to do with actual >> quality and much more to do with "customers' perceptions". Read about it >> on their own web page: >> http://www.jdpower.com/global/content/ratingsguide.asp > > It seems like we go through this every time...so I suppose if Saab ended up > at the top of the list (ie, the fewest user reported problems), it would > still be worthless. Yeah, pretty much. Just like consumer reports, far as I'm concerned. A Saab buyer will complain about things that a POS econobox buyer won't. Yet the count of issues is all they look at, not the real severity of them. > From what I've seen, other quality reports indicate similar poor quality > amongst Saab models. It's harder to argue that these reports are worthless > when they, using various other methodologies, report similar poor results. Expectations vs. execution. You expect the back seat of a POSbox to rattle, so you don't complain when it does. > Where does the dealer enter the picture? It's simply a measure of how many > problems end users reports back to the dealer. While no measurement of > quality will ever be perfect, it sure is a good proxy. Again you need to balance severity of issues vs. expectations. > As of late, the car has generally been much better after the repeated fixes > at the dealer, the suspension is still a frequent source squeaks and > squeals. The front struts have already been replaced with brand new ones > once, but still produce noise. I'm considering just biting the bullet and > swapping on the Konis with the H&R springs. The interior is filled with > little squeaks and rattles, a further sign of poor design quality. But again, things that a Saab owner will report, and which a, say, Kia owner, will not. Sense of perspective, that's what I'm saying. That said, I like my c900 more than anything Saab has made since.
