This is a perfect example of someone reviewing a product or service without
any knowledge of the product being sold.JD Powers serves are a reflection of
the consumers perception of the product. If the company does not purchase
the survey, they don't get ranked. JD Powers does not need to bias the
survey to be able to sell their service.

In 2002 Gould didn't like JD Powers but for a completely different reason.
It appears that Gould has had incorrect knowledge of JD Powers for a long
time. Gould wrote the following: The disciples of JD Powers will be
interested to know that the latest ratings
are now available.

In a press release dated Aug. 27, some of the claims made by Powers include:

1)" Bass and Ski/wakeboard boat owners report highest product satisfaction
and
fewest problems."
(Duh. Is that because these are the simplest boats?)

"Bass and ski/wakeboard boat owners reported experiencing an average of
fewer
than three problems with their boats during the first year of ownership,
while
cruiser boat owners report an average of nearly five problems in the first
year
of ownership.

(translation: bass boat owners had three "problems" and cruiser boat owners
had
four)


2) Ranger, Chaparral, Cobalt, Sea Ray, Grady White, Bennington and Correct
Craft rank highest for overall satisfaction in seven major boat segments.

3) Chaparral ranks highest in the small runabout segment, Bennington in the
pontoon boat segment, Correct Craft in the ski/wakeboard boat segment and
Sea
Ray in the express cruiser segment.

4) As with the 2001 study, the biggest quality concerns are associated with
the engines that power the boats. One third of new boat owners report engine
problems. While many of these problems are related to engine defects such as
oil leaks or difficult starts, consumers frequently cite that the engine
doesn't have enough power for the size of the boat. The study finds that
consumers who choose their own engines are significantly more satisfied with
engine performance than those who buy the boat-engine package.

(translation: Powers still doesn't realize that the same company is making
most
of the engines in boats. Powers does consider a boat with an undersized
engine
to have a "problem," and study results will imply that the boat itself is
somehow defectively built when the issue is really a question of the poor
choice of a cheaper, underpowered engine.)

5) Ranger ranks highest in the bas boat segment for the second consecutive
year, while Cobalt and Grady White repeat as the highest-ranked boats in the
large runabout and coastal fishing boat segments repsectively. Triton and
Skeeter closely follow Ranger in the Bass boat rankings. Crownline and Four
Winns follow Cobalt in the large runabout rankings, repsectively. Grady
White
is followed in the coastal fishing boat segment rankings by Scout and Boston
Whaler.

AND HERE'S A SHOCKER! (Probably relates directly to the number of people
who
are unhappy with the amount of HP the boat came with.....)

ONLY ONE-THIRD of all boat buyers reported "test driving" their boat before
purchase! Two-thirds do not! (No wonder they're so mad at the salespeople.
When
the boat turns out to be less powerful than expected, the situation has to
be
blamed on somebody, right?)