Are Korean Cars Better Than Japanese Ones

You’ve probably seen a lot of posts recently comparing Japanese and South Korean automobiles. More and more articles like this will be published in the coming days, with the most prominent websites and blogs emphasizing how much worse South Korean brands are compared to their Japanese counterparts. Hyundai and Kia, two South Korean automakers, have both gone a long way in recent years, and are now often compare favorably to leading global competitors in terms of design, interior quality, and standard equipment. Although it is undeniable that many people’s minds still wander back to the early models that arrived on our market 15–20 years ago. The propaganda keeps bringing up the Korean automobiles of the ’90s and ’00s to scare people. Are Korean Cars Better than Japanese Ones.

Are Korean Cars Better than Japanese Ones

The Notices

Particularly noteworthy is the fact that over half a million automobiles manufacture in Korea (Kia and Hyundai) were brought back due to fire hazards. Yes, but what about the recalled Japanese automobiles?

In May of this year, Toyota stated that they will be recalling 43,221 Yaris hatchbacks in the United States due to a potential wiring issue that might prevent the side and curtain airbags from deploying in the case of an accident.
After 6 unanticipated driver air bag deployments occurred in March, Honda recalled 118,000 2019 CR-Vs to replace steering wheel wire harnesses and supplemental restraint system cable reels.
In April 2019, Daihatsu, a Japanese carmaker, stated it would recall 1.92 million vehicles in Japan owing to problems with the vehicles’ braking systems.
In the same month, incorrect product checks cost Suzuki a particular loss of about 80 billion, leading to the recall of 2 million automobiles.
Famous Japanese carmaker Honda recalled 1 million vehicles in the United States and Canada in March 2019 due to faulty airbags.
To repair potentially lethal Takata front passenger air bag inflators, Toyota announced a recall of 1.7 million vehicles in North America in January 2019.
Toyota recalled its all-new 12th-generation Corolla hatchbacks in Australia in December 2018. There was a recall involving over 2,640 brand new Corolla hatchbacks powered by a 2.0-liter gasoline engine.
More than 400,000 Subaru and Toyota vehicles were recalle in November 2018 due to a valve spring issue that might cause engines to stall, increasing the likelihood of an accident.
About 2.4 million Prius and other Toyota hybrids were recalle in October 2018 because they could suddenly stall while driving.
Nearly 240,000 Nissan vehicles were recalle worldwide in September 2018 owing to fire concerns, and the company later said it will recall another 150,000 vehicles in Japan due to faulty testing and inspections at its plants.
In September of 2018, Toyota recalled 1.03 million vehicles worldwide due to a potential fire hazard associated with the engine wire harness. This recall include the Prius, which was sold in Japan, North America, Europe, ASEAN, and other territories.
Because of an oil level issue that could cause engine damage, Honda recalled 130,455 CR-Vs in China in May 2018.
All of the affected vehicles have 1.5-liter turbocharged engines. As a result of the Chinese watchdog’s rejection of Honda’s intention to recall 350,000 vehicles (including the Honda Civic) to correct a fault, the carmaker was forced to cease sales of new CR-Vs in China.
Oversized pistons were the reason for the March 2018 recall of 1,730 Toyota Camry automobiles in the United States, all of which had 2.5-liter four-cylinder engines.
Because the nuts used to modify the rear wheel alignment weren’t tightene properly, Toyota had to recall 337,000 vehicles in the United States in August 2016 due to a shaky rear suspension. If the rear wheel alignment nuts aren’t tightene properly, Toyota discovered rust could form on the threads of the suspension arms. It’s possible that if the suspension arm comes loose, the driver will lose control of the vehicle.
Just a “few” of the recent recalls affecting Japanese autos can be found here. Maybe it’s not fair to make fun of South Korean vehicles for having a few recalls, but it doesn’t mean they’re perfect.

Scandals involving Japanese dishonesty

Suzuki, Mazda, Nissan, Subaru, Mitsubishi, and Yamaha are just some of the Japanese automakers who have admitted to falsifying emissions test results. The data manipulation scandal damaged Japan’s automobile industry’s image as a leader in product quality and efficiency. Takata, a Japanese car part manufacturer, was also caught in the crossfire after it was found that millions of airbag inflators may explode into dangerous shrapnel if expose to even moderate humidity. Kobe Steel, a Japanese supplier, has acknowledged to lying about metals it sold to several car companies.

Brands from South Korea Japanese Products Get Crushe

In March of this year, the South Korean Genesis line bested more established German competitors to win Consumer Reports’ award for best automobile brand in the United States for 2018. Since it does not take advertising and actually purchases the vehicles it reviews for their driving, interior finish quality, safety, and dependability, Consumer Reports is a credible resource for product recommendations. The report card compiles data from reviews of individual models across 34 automakers, as well as subscriber feedback in the form of satisfaction questionnaires.

In June of 2018, J.D. Power released its 2018 Initial Quality Study, which found that South Korean brands significantly outperformed competitors. For almost three decades, the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS) has been the gold standard for measuring customer happiness with their new car. It evaluates over 200 different aspects of a car and measures the frequency and severity of issues observed by verified owners in the first 90 days of ownership. Quality at launch is measure in terms of PP100, or issues per one hundred vehicles. A lower PP100 indicates better quality. Genesis topped the list, followed by Kia in second and Hyundai in third; all three brands hail from South Korea.

iF’s Annual Awards

Kia, a South Korean carmaker, won three iF Awards in February 2019, making it the third year in a row that it has won three iF Awards. Kia has had at least one model win an iF Design Award every year since 2010. Eighteen iF Design Awards have been given to Kia vehicles so far. For the fifth year in a row, Hyundai has taken home the iF Design Award. Since its inception over 64 years ago, the iF Design Award has been honouring the best work of designers all across the globe.

The event is hoste by Hanover’s iF International Forum Design GmbH, widely regarded as the world’s oldest independent design institution, and awards the greatest designers from a wide range of fields with a distinguished medal. A total of 6,400 products from companies in 50 countries were submitte for consideration by a jury of 67 worldwide design professionals for the 2019 award.

Different Prizes

The 2019 Car of the Year Award in Canada has been share by the Kia Stinger and the Forte. U.S. SUV of the Year for 2019 goes to the Hyundai Santa Fe. Despite being smaller in number than the number of Japanese vehicle manufacturers, the Korean brands continue to worry the Japanese ones, as seen by the long list of honours which the Korean automobiles have won over these years in various markets. And when it comes to guarantees, Korean products are unbeatable. Korean automobiles have an advantage in some areas due to their longer and more generous warranty coverage (up to seven years and unlimited miles). More so than Japanese automakers in Pakistan, Kia provides a 4-year/100,000-kilometer warranty on its vehicles.

Is it going to make a difference?

But, one must wonder, is it really worth it to engage in such verbal combat? It’s not true, period. The underlying question is whether or not the “Japanese vehicles” offered in Pakistan are actually the same as those marketed in Japan. We should all know the solution by now. A zero-meter Japanese car produced in Pakistan is often regarde as inferior than a ten-year-old used Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) vehicle in terms of specifications, features, and construction quality. Do we have the guts to call Korean cars inferior when they have such questionable quality that they can’t even be exporte to African nations? Do we have the guts to call Korean cars inferior when they have zero safety, poor QC, misaligne tail lights, improper paint & finish, and obsolete Euro-II technology and models that have been mostly retire from the rest of the world?

FAQs

Which cars are better Japanese or Korean?

Even though Korean automobiles are visually appealing because of their cutting-edge technologies and stylish designs, Japanese automobiles are the safest on the road. Japanese automobiles are lauded for their reliability by many drivers. Many automobiles can be driven for a decade with only routine maintenance.

Which Korean car brand is best?

Are Korean cars good quality?

Actually, you can get some of the most secure automobiles on the market today from Korean manufacturers. Over example, late-model KIA vehicles equippe with features such as Forward Collision Warning and Light Emitting Diode Headlights have been consistently recognise as IIHS “Top Safety Pick +” winners for the past few years.

Are Korean car brands reliable?

In fact, three of the top five spots in the updated J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study went to the automakers Kia, Hyundai, and Genesis (VDS). After three years of ownership, Toyota and Buick were likewise found to be among the most trustworthy brands.