I'm not a huge fan of JD Power. I always get a laugh out of their initial quality satisfaction surveys. Last time I heard GM was in that list of high initial quality satisfaction. Which is a joke to me for a couple of reasons; first, most people evaluate first years in cars by taking a look at items which don't necessarily indicate how long a vehicle will really last or how reliable it will really be. Second, initial quality is subjective. You are generally going to like what you buy unless you went to the car lot and said to the dealer, "give me whatever you want". Fit and finish, ride comfort and amenities are usually the items which people think to about initial quality. Funny because GM uses the least expensive plastics and chooses lower grade finish materials than other companies. There is just a cheep feeling in most GM built vehicles. So, I'm confused how they can be highly ranked for initial quality when their competition eclipses them in just about every way you can think.

The press release from JD Power doesn't indicate what imperical evidence they used to create the numerical conclusions about who will have market share or how popular hybrids will be. They are giving out market share to those who are essentially non-players and totally ignoring current market players (GM vs. Ford). Toyota market share will slip, which I actually believe as more players enter the market, but how much is not something they should predict without loosing face. Unfortunately, everyone will forget their conclusions in a short period of time, so their feet will never be held to the fire about making conclusions with weak or unavailable data.

So, I disagree with most of their conclusions. They are assuming too much, and from bad data or no data. Bad JD Power, bad survey group!

It has been said:
Hybrid drivers come in 3 flavors, greenie, techie and cheapie. Pick any 2.
2005 Prius, Melinium Silver over gray, package 5 (AI)