Consumers in the market for a car will understand if some vehicles are more technologically capable than others, but virtually all of them will expect the quality of the vehicle itself to be superlative. However, J.D. Power found that new-vehicle quality in 2019 stayed flat compared with 2018, marking the first year without improvement since 2014. In this year's study, only 13 brands improved, while 18 worsened. Initial quality was measured by the number of problems experienced per 100 vehicles during the first 90 days of ownership, with the industry average being 93 problems experienced per 100 vehicles. "Automakers continue to make progress in areas like infotainment that attract a lot of consumer attention. However, some traditional problems crept up this year including paint imperfections, brake and suspension noises, engines not starting and the 'check engine' light coming on early in the ownership experience," Dave Sargent, vice president of global automotive at J.D. Power, said in a statement. "Also, more people are having issues with their advanced driver assistance systems, which are critical for building consumer trust in future automated vehicles."

Trust in the brand

While certain brands faltered this year, others are shining in comparison. The following are key findings of the 2019 study:

• The gap between Korean brands and others continues to widen;
• Overall, domestic-branded vehicles perform close to the average in most areas; and
• All European brands are below average.

With this in mind, here are the 10 most reliable automotive brands, according to J.D. Power. Related: 10 brands ranked highest in overall vehicle dependability: J.D. Power