JD Power’s 2012 China New Automobile Quality Study SM (IQS) Report was announced earlier this week showing some surprising results, Chinese manufacturers have constantly improved their quality over the past few years. BYD SUV model, the S6, has been a strong seller since its introduction earlier this year with sales continuing to climb, according to the quality report the S6 is one of China’s best models.
In terms of company brands, the standard of mainstream joint venture brands is about 160PP100. The IQS
of the BYD brand is 187PP100, 60PP100 lower than in 2011 and approaching the level of mainstream joint ventures. In terms of individual products, the score of the S6 fell to 109PP100. It is the only indigenous brand amongst the top 10 SUVs. Quality satisfaction is already approaching that of the Kia Sportage-R and the Subaru Forester, has exceeded the Korean Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage and the German VW Tiguan, and is far superior to indigenous models such as the Great Wall Haval H6 (249). This shows development of the quality of the BYD S6 has been effective. The S6 has already reached the level of mainstream joint venture models to become the no.1 indigenous SUV brand.
BYD cites its partnership with Mercedes as one of the major catalysts behind its recent increase in quality, along with cooperation with major suppliers such as Nokia, Apple, Samsung, Bosch and PPG. BYD also bought in foreign technology such as the Japanese die factory of Ogihara at Tatebayashi which has over 40 years of history, BYD further invested almost 100 million RMB introducing 24 painting robots.
Bullshit !!! The image of chinese cars as low class transportation still remains in the minds of the savvy buyers.
Prior to this the BYD F6, with 160PP100, made it onto the list of top three rankings per segment back in 2010. So although it did not take a segment prize this year, in getting down to 109PP100 with the S6, it’s definitely making progress toward the kind of quality it needs to get back in the running.
Chinese cars will match Korean and Japanese car quality within 5 years, you’ll see.
I don’t know…It will indeed be difficult to match Korean runaway quality…..
Four million quality-built Hyundais chosen by Chinese buyers, now that’s something to beat..
This isn’t really all that suprising…….well, maybe a little! The simple fact is that the S6 IS a nice SUV – I’ve seen it up close, and it simply DOES NOT LOOK CHEAP OR SHODDY. The same (in my opinion) can be said for the e6 as well…….and yes, I FINALLY had the chance to ride in one in Shenzhen a few weeks ago – one of the taxis. One word – AMAZING. It is quiet, QUICK (it EASILY overtakes other cars in lane changes with power to spare), it handles well – my driver was somewhat “aggressive” with his lane changes, but the e6 kept a very even posture with almost no sway at all. It is also comfortable, with incredible front and rear seat legroom…..and the instrumentation is complete and comprehensive (all the bells and whistles too – G{S/DVD, CD changer with USB input for MP3 players, automatic climate control, etc.). A big surprise for me, but I came away VERY impressed with the e6 overall……and yes, I did look at the overall fit and finish – high marks there as well.
Can the chinese catch the koreans and japanese cars in overall quality? Probably not………but if the e6 is any indicator of how much chinese cars are improving, then I say it will be DAMN close in 5 years – maybe chinese cars won’t be better, but they will be close enough in quality to merit some SERIOUS comparisons.
Is the E6 power steering electric instead of hydraulic? It sounds like a robot arm when turning.