[THE INVESTOR] Kia Motors, the nation’s second-largest carmaker, and Genesis, a luxury sedan brand under Hyundai Motor, have become the industry’s top brands in a quality test conducted by a US research firm, beating German high-end brand Porsche, the company said on June 22.

Kia, a sister company of Hyundai Motor, topped the list for the second consecutive year, J.D. Power and Associates, a US-based marketing information service company, said in its 2017 US Initial Quality Study. 

Genesis ranked second, taking the position previously held by Porsche in the test that measured the number of problems that emerged per 100 vehicles in the first 90 days of driving. Genesis was tested for the first time, the company added.

Cars with lower scores, meaning fewer problems, take higher positions in the test. A total of 32 brands were tested in the study.

Kia’s score lost 11 points from the previous year, with fewer problems found in five Kia models including the Forte, Soul, Niro, and Cadenza. Hyundai Motor, meanwhile, ranked sixth along with BMW and Chevrolet.

Hyundai and Kia are the flagships of Hyundai Motor Group, the world’s fifth-largest automaker. 

Nearly 80,000 drivers who recently purchased or leased new 2017 model-year cars participated in the survey.

By Cho Chung-un/The Korea Herald (christory@heraldcorp.com)