RE: Audi quality

[Franklin Fasano <FFASANO@VASALES.LEGENT.COM>]

  >         I didn't see the survey, but I think the dealer was quoting a JD 
Power
  > survey of quality problems after 5 years and said Audi was 3rd, after
  > Cadillac(1) and Mercedes(2).  Did anyone see that survey?

Yes, I received a copy of the report in the mail from Audi.  It was based on 
the 1989 model and Audi did extremely well for the long term (top 5 in most 
categories as I recall).  It's probably available if you call and ask for 
it.

Also, someone sent this to me a while ago.  It seems Audi is also doing well 
initial satisfaction too.
__________

J.D. Power and Associates announced their 1994 Customer Satisfaction Index
yesterday (7/6/94).  This is a survey that measures buyer satisfaction with
vehicles and dealers in the U.S. after one year of ownership.  Here are the
rankings (highest possible score is 202):

         1. Lexus               176
         2. Infiniti            171
         3. Saturn              155
         4. Acura               150
>>         5. Audi                148
         6. Toyota              146
         7. Honda               145
         8. Lincoln             144
         8. Volvo               144
        10. Cadillac            143
        10. Jaguar              143
        12. Buick               141
        12. Mercedes-Benz       141
        14. Saab                140
        15. Subaru              139
        16. BMW                 138
        17. Oldsmobile          137
        18. Mercury             133
        18. Plymouth            133
        20. Chevrolet           132
        20. Chrysler            132
        20. Nissan              132
        23. Pontiac             127
        24. Dodge               126
        24. Mitsubishi          126
        26. Ford                120
        26. Volkswagen          120
        28. Mazda               119
        29. Geo                 118
        30. Eagle               116
        31. Hyundai             110
        32. Suzuki              108

        Note: Alfa Romeo, Isuzu, and Porsche were not ranked because of
        insufficient sample size.

        ASIAN AVERAGE           140
        EUROPEAN AVG.           139
        INDUSTRY AVG.           135
        BIG THREE AVG.          132

Other interesting things from the article:

* General Motors cars averaged 136, the first time in the history of the 
survey
  that a U.S. car maker was higher than the industry average.

* The Big Three average in 1986 was only 94.

* Asian brands, including Korea's Hyundai, scored an average of 140, 18 
percent
  higher than in 1986, and the Big Three scored 132, a gain of 51 percent. 
 The
  European average was 139, up 30 percent from 1986.

* Overall improvement for the European brands reflected that Yugo, Renault,
  Peugeot and Sterling were no longer sold in the U.S. market.  Those cars 
did
  not compete well on quality or customer satisfaction and they pulled down
  the European average in earlier surveys.

* The survey scores are based 60 percent on owners' satisfaction with 
vehicle
  repairs and reliability, and 40 percent on how they were handled by 
dealers.
  25,000 owners were surveyed.