Technology Ezine and Directory

The Mitsubishi Electric Navigation System Supplied to the Mitsubishi Lancer Ranks Highest among Factory-Installed Navigation Systems

Navigation System Owners Maintain High Loyalty Levels Despite a Considerable Increase in Problems

The Mitsubishi Electric navigation system in the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer ranks highest in customer satisfaction with factory-installed navigation systems, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2008 Navigation Usage and Satisfaction Study released yesterday. This marks the first time since the inception of the study that a system supplied to a non-premium model has ranked highest.

Now in its 10th year, the study identifies six factors that contribute to overall customer satisfaction. In order of importance, they are: ease of use; system routing; system appearance; voice directions; navigation display screen; and speed of system. The study also measures quality by examining problems per 100 (PP100) navigation systems, in which a lower score reflects higher quality.

The Mitsubishi Electric navigation system in the Mitsubishi Lancer performs particularly well in the ease-of-use and speed-of-system factors. Owners of the navigation system use it more frequently compared with owners of other navigation systems, with 70 percent of Lancer owners reporting usage at least one to two times per week. The Xanavi navigation system supplied to the Infiniti G35 Sedan and the Mitsubishi Electric navigation system in the Mercedes-Benz C-Class rank second and third in overall customer satisfaction, respectively.

The study finds that the average number of reported problems across the industry has increased considerably from 2007—up 36 PP100 to 206 PP100 in 2008. Compared with 2007, more consumers indicate problems with the accuracy of their systems (accuracy of address information, accuracy of route). Regardless of the increase in quality issues, loyalty among navigation system owners is still particularly high. In 2008, nearly 75 percent of owners say they would recommend their navigation system to a friend or family member regardless of problems experienced.

“Nearly two-thirds of customers also indicate that not having a navigation system as an option in their next vehicle would negatively impact their purchase decision,” said Mike Marshall, director of automotive emerging technologies at J.D. Power and Associates. “This speaks highly to the desire that navigation system users have for owning this technology in the future.”

More than 50 percent of owners report having navigation systems that are equipped with voice recognition, according to the study. While this feature has a relatively high volume of owner-reported problems, owners with voice recognition report much higher overall satisfaction levels compared with customers whose navigation systems do not have the feature. Additionally, customers with voice-recognition systems are also willing to pay a higher price for their next navigation system.

The study also finds the following navigation system-owner behavior trends:

The price that customers are willing to pay to update their navigation system with new maps, point of interest data, etcetera, has decreased from the 2007 study. In 2008, customers are only willing to pay $55 to update their system annually with new information—down from $69 in 2007.

Customer demand for more advanced functionality within their navigation systems remains particularly high, with the ability to automatically avoid traffic congestion; provide speed limit information; and speed and stop light camera alerts being among the most desired features for a future system.

The 2008 Navigation Usage and Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 15,463 owners who recently purchased or leased new 2008 model-year vehicles with factory-installed navigation systems. The study was fielded from September to October 2008. For more info visit jdpower.com.