Quality Study Shows Better New Cars, More Frustrating Technology

Some In Car Technology Frustrates New Car Buyers

Bruce Sheridan

Tech improvements

There is very little doubt that one of the most important factors and selling points for new vehicles is the in car technology. Every year our cars get smarter and more advanced than ever before. The recent 2012 JD Power and Associates Initial Quality Study revealed something very interesting about our new technological toys, however.

For the first time in the history of the quality study, the number one reported problem most drivers had with their new cars was with in car technology, specifically the audio, navigation and entertainment systems. More than 16% of new car drivers had complaints about their technology, which is 8% more than last year and 45% more than 2006.

You would think these numbers would bring the overall quality scores down, but they were actually up 5% across the board. Cars are getting better, it's apparently just the added on technology that is not quite up to par.

What's the deal

The number one reported problem? Hands free devices just can't comprehend what people are saying. Given that over 80% of new vehicles are reported to have hands free technology, you can easily see how this would affect quality scores.

One manufacturer who took a considerable hit from this very problem was Ford. The MyFord Touch system needed a software upgrade to fix certain problems, but Ford wasn't able to distribute it in time for the study. This skewered Ford's numbers to especially low figures; 118 problems per 100 vehicles sold. Even so, Ford dealers have not seen any decline in sales as of yet.

Technology is a much more important issue for younger drivers, and younger drivers also have much higher expectations on what their technology can do and how fast it can do it. Also, sometimes the only people who are capable of understanding and utilizing the technology are younger people who are more familiar with them.

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