Top 10 Brands With the Lowest Quality in 2021 According to J.D. Power

J.D. Power recently published its 2021 Initial Quality Study (IQS) with Ram, Dodge, Lexus, Mitsubishi and Nissan making up the top 5, but which brands ranked at the bottom?

Just so you know, the IQS considers the number of problems per 100 vehicles based on the responses from more than 110,000 purchasers and lessees of new 2021 model-year vehicles who were surveyed after 90 days of ownership.

Overall, mass-market brands continue to outperform premium brands, mostly because the latter tend to equip their vehicles with more and more complex technology, which can cause problems for some owners. 

Check out the top 10 brands with the lowest initial quality in 2021 according to J.D. Power. Some of them might surprise you.

10th Place – Subaru
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 182

9th Place – Mercedes-Benz
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 193

7th Place (tie) – Acura
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 200

7th Place (tie) – Land Rover
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 200

6th Place – Alfa Romeo
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 204

5th Place – Volvo
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 210

4th Place – Volkswagen
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 213

3rd Place – Tesla
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 231
*Note: Tesla is not officially ranked due to a lack of data. The company has slightly improved its position from last year when it finished dead last.

2nd Place – Audi
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 249

1st Place – Chrysler
Number of owner-reported problems per 100 vehicles: 251