Looking for the brands delivering the highest levels of initial quality? Lexus and Nissan rose to the top in this year’s J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, while General Motors had more top-ranked models than any other manufacturer. There were some surprises in this year’s IQS by Jaguar and Ram. But, yet again, motorists pointed to onboard technology as the biggest source of trouble. More from Headlight.News.
Lexus was the top-ranked brand overall in the 2025 JD Power IQS.
Ask the typical motorist what they like about today’s newest vehicles and they’re likely to include all the digital technology. Ask what causes them the most headaches and you’ll get the same answer, according to the 2025 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study.
Faulty voice and touchscreen systems, in particular, generated plenty of complaints, though this year’s study found some improvements in overall vehicle quality during the first 90 days of ownership.
In terms of the highest-ranked brands, Lexus took the top spot both in the luxury category and overall among the 33 marques included in the 2025 IQS. Nissan jumped to number one among mainstream brands and second overall. General Motors had two of the top 10 brands, meanwhile, and the most winners in individual product segments. Porsche had the highest-ranked vehicle in the entire study, the iconic 911.
The good and the bad
Infotainment screens were the biggest source of owner complaints this year.
Power tracks a wide range of “problems” buyers report during their first 90 days of ownership – everything from electronic gremlins to defective powertrains. These are tallied up by the number of problems per 100 vehicles, or PP100 in Power-speak. “A lower score reflects higher vehicle quality.,” the research firm explains.
This year saw a modest improvement in such issues, with an industry average 192 PP100, down from 194 in last year’s IQS. Highest-ranked Lexus had just 166 PP100.
On the whole, traditional mechanical issues have become relatively rare. Today, infotainment issues are the big headache, even “While customers do find the larger touchscreens visually appealing,” said Frank Hanley, Power’s senior director of auto benchmarking. “Owners find these things to be overly complicated and too distracting to use while driving. By retaining dedicated physical controls for some of these interactions, automakers can alleviate pain points and simplify the overall customer experience.”
One of the big surprises: owners reported a number of complaints about cupholders, even though “it seemed like manufacturers had cupholders figured out,” Power said in a summary of this year’s study. The problem: motorists want them to be more flexible to handle all different sizes of beverage containers.
Winners and Losers
Nissan was the top-ranked mainstream brand and second overall this year.
There were a significant number of changes in this year’s Power IQS when compared to the 2024 results. Among those moving up the ranks:
- Lexus rose a full seven spots to come out the overall winner and top-ranked luxury brand this year;
- Nissan rose four spots to become the top-ranked mainstream brand, a surge that could help polish the image of the struggling manufacturer;
- Ram was the big loser this year after topping the chart in 2024. The brand suffered a number of problems with the complete makeover of its 1500 pickup;
- Dodge, another Stellantis brand, scored the industry’s biggest turnaround. It was dead last in the 2024 IQS but surged to seventh this year – though Power didn’t include the troubled Hornet in this year’s study.
Among this year’s surprises, Jaguar came in second among luxury brands, with a score of 175 PP100. It nudged out Genesis, a frequent leader in quality studies, the Korean brand coming in third.
Two all-electric brands were left out of this year’s ranking due to limited data. Based on the information Power was able to track, however, Rivian would have come in dead last among the 33 brands, with a score of 274 PP100. Tesla, which has long lagged at or near bottom, would have moved up sharply. The partial results showed it with a score of 200 PP100 – 62 fewer problems than in the 2024 IQS.
More Quality News
The Porsche 911 was the most trouble-free model overall, according to Power.
By the model
Power tracks results in 22 separate vehicle segments, such as compact car, large SUV and minivan.
By manufacturer, General Motors had the most segment winners, a total of five, with Ford landing four and Honda three.
Among individual brands, Ford had four, including the Super Duty pickup in the large heavy duty pickup segment. Its F-150 tied with the Chevrolet Silverado in the large light duty segment. Chevy had three of GM’s four segment winners, the other nabbed by Buick.
Volkswagen had the top-ranked vehicle of all, the Porsche 911 with a score of 116 pp100.
For a full list of segment winners, Click Here.
Tesla had a significant improvement in quality, owners reported.
Hybrids and EVs
Battery-based vehicles have become increasingly common in today’s automotive market but quality varies depending on the type of electrified model.
- With an average 196 PP100, conventional hybrids had slightly more problems than gas models which averaged 184 problems;
- Unexpectedly, plug-in hybrids recorded an increase in problems this year, averaging a score of 237 PP100. Several factors contributed, including a rise in the number of PHEVs available;
- BEVs, for the first time, had fewer problems than plug-ins, averaging 212 PP100. The primary reason: the improvement in initial quality reported by Tesla owners.
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