Mercedes A300

Since its inception, Mercedes-Benz had maintained a reputation for its quality and durability. Objective measures looking at passenger vehicles, such as J. D. Power surveys, demonstrated a downturn in reputation in these criteria in the late 1990s and early 2000s. By mid-2005, Mercedes temporarily returned to the industry average for initial quality, a measure of problems after the first 90 days of ownership, according to J. D. Power.[25] In J. D. Power's Initial Quality Study for the first quarter of 2007, Mercedes showed dramatic improvement by climbing from 25th to 5th place and earning several awards for its models.[26] For 2008, Mercedes-Benz's initial quality rating improved by yet another mark, to fourth place.[27] On top of this accolade, it also received the Platinum Plant Quality Award for its Mercedes’ Sindelfingen, Germany assembly plant.[27] J. D. Power's 2011 US Initial Quality and Vehicle Dependability Studies both ranked Mercedes-Benz vehicles above average in build quality and reliability.[28][29] In the 2011 UK J. D. Power Survey, Mercedes cars were rated above average.[30] A 2014 iSeeCars.com study for Reuters found Mercedes to have the lowest vehicle recall rate.[31]