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J.D. Power 2020 Initial Quality Study puts Dodge and Kia in first place

For the first time ever, an American automaker is ranked at the top of J.D. Power's yearly Initial Quality Study as Dodge tied with Kia for the top spot. Kia landed in first from second place last year — though it's Kia's sixth consecutive year as the top-ranked "mass market" brand — while Dodge jumped an impressive seven spots to move into a tied first from eighth in the 2019 edition of the study. Dodge is one of seven domestic automakers that find themselves in the top half of J.D. Powers' 34th consecutive IQS study. Dodge and Kia's score of 136 problems experienced per 100 vehicles (PP100) puts them ahead of Chevrolet and Ram (141 PP100), Genesis (142 PP100), Mitsubishi (148 PP100) and Buick (150 PP100), which make up the top five after accounting for tied scores. GMC, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Jeep and Lexus round out the top 10. As you probably noticed, Mitsubishi and Lexus are the only Japanese brands to make it into the first 10 spots, and Genesis took home the award as the top-ranked premium brand. This is the first year that J.D. Power released data on the survey results from Tesla owners, and it's not good news for the California-based electric vehicle manufacturer. With an adjusted score of 250 PP100, Tesla is in dead last place on the 2020 IQS Study, just behind Land Rover's score of 228 PP100. It's worth noting that Tesla's score isn't an official entry into the IQS study because surveys were only available in 35 states as the company is the only automaker that has not granted J.D. Power permission to survey Tesla owners in the 15 other required states. According to J.D. Power, about a third of all problems reported by owners of 2020 model-year vehicles within the first three months of ownership relate to issues with infotainment and technology. In many cases, the high-tech systems aren't broken, but are difficult for owners to use or don't work as well as they should. Those issues are "just as severe as other problems," according to Dave Sargent, vice president of automotive quality at J.D. Power, especially since a "customer is stuck with this [issue] for the rest of the time they own the vehicle." J.D. Power surveys the owners of new cars with a questionnaire that covers 223 problems organized into nine categories: climate, driving assistance, driving experience, exterior, features/controls/displays, infotainment, interior, powertrain and seats.

Tesla's Musk Paid $70,000 Salary In 2013

Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk was paid just under $70,000 in 2013. But he could be in line for much, much more. According to a Tesla filing with regulators Thursday, Musk made a base salary of $33,280 in 2013. That was the minimum he was required to make under California law. He got an additional $36,709 in company bonuses. Tesla says Musk, the billionaire founder of PayPal and rocket-building company SpaceEx, only accepts $1 and returns the rest to the company. Musk could someday rake in much more from the company he helped found in 2003. Under a compensation package approved in 2012, Musk was awarded options to buy nearly 5.3 million shares of Tesla stock at $31.17 each. The stock closed Thursday at $207.86, making those shares worth about $900 million. The plan is supposed to compensate Musk over a 10-year period, but only if the company meets performance goals. Musk can't exercise all the shares, for example, unless Tesla's shares reach a total value of $43.2 billion. The company's shares are currently worth $25.6 billion. Musk would also have to meet milestones for production of Tesla's planned Model X electric SUV and its Generation Three vehicle, which will cost around $35,000. Right now, Tesla only makes the Model S sedan, which starts at $70,000. Tesla said in its filing that some incremental stock value goals have been achieved, but the operational milestones, while probable, have not been reached, so none of Musk's shares have vested. Related Gallery Tesla Model S Wins Coveted 'Car Of The Year' Awards

Tesla Model Y and Cadillac CT5 | Autoblog Podcast #573

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski and Associate Editor Joel Stocksdale. They catch up on the Tesla Model Y, as well as the Cadillac CT5 and the brand's new naming structure. Afterward they talk about our driving the 2019 Mazda3, 2019 Volkswagen Golf GTI and 2019 Ford Ranger. Finally, the three editors take a lap around eBay looking for the best ways to spend $15,000 on a car. Autoblog Podcast #573 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Tesla Model Y unveiled Cadillac CT5 and Cadillac's new badging strategy Cars we're driving: 2019 Mazda3 2019 VW Golf GTI 2019 Ford Ranger How we'd spend $15,000 on eBay Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: