Daihatsu, Alfa Romeo and Mercedes Top Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study in Germany

For the first time since the launch of the study in 2002, Daihatsu has claimed the top spot in J.D. Power and Associates' redesigned 2009 Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study (VOSS) in Germany with a total score of 843 on a 1,000-point scale. The Japanese brand was followed by Alfa Romeo and Mercedes-Benz that tied in second place with 835 points, BMW was third with 834 points and Audi and Toyota that tied in fifth place with 831 points.

On the other side of the scale, Ford (796 points), Opel, Kia and Peugeot that tied with 790 points, Fiat (778 points), Chevrolet (775 points) and Smart (772 points) occupied the last five places in J.D. Power's 2009 German vehicle ownership satisfaction study. The industry average is 814 points.

Model-wise, Daihatsu's Sirion captured the top rank position in the small car category while Toyota received awards for the Aygo city car and the Corolla lower medium car. In the upper medium segment, Renault's Laguna finished first while Mercedes-Benz topped the executive / luxury and sports car segments with the E-Class and CLK Class models respectively.

Also receiving segment-level awards are the Skoda Roomster in the MPV group and the Nissan Qashqai in the SUV category.

J.D. Power and Associates' finding are based on 16,200 online interviews with German vehicle owners after an average of two years of ownership. According to the firm, German owners are asked to provide detailed evaluations on their cars and dealers covering 67 attributes grouped in four measurements of satisfaction including: vehicle appeal (32%) which covers performance, design, comfort and features; vehicle quality and reliability (26%); ownership costs (22%) including fuel consumption, insurance and costs of service/repair; and dealer service satisfaction (20%).

Daihatsu Launches New Move, Claims Title of Japan's Most Fuel Efficient Non-Hybrid Passenger Car

Toyota Motor Corp's small-car making subsidiary, Daihatsu, has unveiled a new generation of its Move mini in Japan. The five-door hatchback has been redesigned from the ground up and is claimed to be the most fuel efficient, non-hybrid, gasoline passenger car in Japan achieving up to 27.0km/liter, which is equal to 65.5 mpg US and 3.7 lt/100km.

The pint-sized model from Daihatsu measures just 3,395 mm in length (the new Fiat 500 is 3,546mm) with a wheelbase of 2,455 mm. The Japanese maker said it has shaved 35 kg or77 pounds over the previous model through a series of measures such as reducing the weight of instrument panel and door trim as well as CVT unit and other components.

The 2011 Move is offered with a newly developed second-generation KF engine equipped with what Daihatsu describes as the world's first i-EGR system that detects the combustion state using ions as well as Japan's first plastic electronic throttle body. The 0.66-liter unit, which features a start-stop system as well, is rated at 52HP and 60Nm (44.3 lb-ft) of torque, and is linked to a revised CVT.

Daihatsu offers the new Move in both front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive confrontations with retail prices (excluding tax) in Japan ranging from 1.066 million Yen to 1.372 million Yen (US$12,700-16,310) for the standard Move and from 1.247 million Yen to 1.534 million Yen (US$14,830-18,250) for the more hip Move Custom. The automaker said the monthly sales target for Japan is 12,000 units.