WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. -

Most problems new-car buyers report in the first 90 days of vehicle ownership deal with design, according to J.D. Power and Associates, which said these types of issues are significantly harder to fix when the consumer comes into the dealership than defect-related issues. 

But in a silver lining, one piece of the J.D. Power 2013 U.S. Initial Quality Study showed the direct role dealers can play  in preventing certain problems

The firm said that many of the 113 problems reported per 100 vehicles — the industry average — deal with the driver interface; meaning things like voice recognition or hands-free technology, Bluetooth pairing for mobile phones, and the navigation system.

The good news? If the dealer shows the customer how to use the technology, they can nip the problem in the bud at the time of purchase, says David Sargent, J.D. Power’s vice president of global automotive. Software changes may also do the trick.

That said, when a vehicle feature is cumbersome or located in an inconvenient spot, the owner may always have problems with the car.

“Owners desire, and in some cases are demanding, more content in their new vehicles, especially technology-related features, and automakers are trying to provide it,” said Sargent.

“The majority of owners don’t experience problems, but those who do are frustrated. That’s understandable, especially when owners often keep their new vehicle for five years or more. In contrast, when consumers have a problem with their smartphone, they are likely to replace the phone much sooner.”

Going back to design issues, J.D. Power illustrated just how big the issue is: “Nearly two-thirds of the problems experienced in the first 90 days of ownership are related to the vehicle’s design, as opposed to components that malfunction. For example, the component may be working as designed, but owners deem it a problem because it may be difficult to understand or operate.”

Since it’s not a breakdown or malfunction that causes design issues, less than a tenth of these are brought to a dealership within 90 days, J.D. Power said.  And even when the car is brought back to the store, design-related issues are only fixed 13 percent of the time.

But if the problem is a defect or malfunction, the owner brings it back within 90 days 28 percent of the time. And for those that do bring it in, it’s fixed 42 percent of the time.

“Automakers are investing billions of dollars into designing and building vehicles and adding technologies that consumers desire and demand, but the risk is that the vehicle design, or the technology within the vehicle, in some cases may not meet customer needs,” said Sargent.

“Keep in mind that automakers are trying to design vehicles that appeal to a broad array of consumers, and what works for the majority may not work for all. The successful companies will be those automakers that find a way to give customers the technology they want while at the same time making it sufficiently intuitive so all customers find it easy to use.”

This was just some of the analysis gleaned from the IQS released Wednesday. The report also ranked brands for initial quality, as measured by problems per 100 vehicles.

While Porsche led the pack as the top brand (80 PP100), General Motors stole the show with two brands in the top five: GMC in second place with a score of 90 and Chevrolet in fifth with a score of 97.

What’s more, GM earned eight model-level awards.

“Nothing energizes us more than receiving the verification of quality from our customers,” said Alicia Boler-Davis, vice president global quality and U.S. customer experience at GM. “The overall ownership experience of the people who buy our cars and trucks is founded on providing vehicles with innovative technologies, while ensuring highest levels of initial and long-term quality and services they can rely on.”

By individual brands, Chevrolet took home five awards: Avalanche (tie), Camaro (tie), Impala, Silverado HD and Tahoe.

Earning two apiece were:

— Honda: Civic and CR-V
— Kia: Soul and Sportage (tie)
— Mazda: MAZDA2 and MX-5 Miata
— Porsche:  Boxster and 911.  

The model with the best score overall was the Lexus LS (59).

The nameplate rankings and segment rankings are below, as provided by J.D. Power: