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"GM, Hyundai Top Quality Study   General Motors vehicles led in 11 of 19 segments (five ties) on Strategic Vision&amp;#039;s 2004 Total Quality Index, the San Diego-based research firm said in a press release.   The TQI measures new vehicle owner satisfaction, and assesses new buyers&amp;#039; responses to the complete ownership experience, including buying, owning and driving their new vehicles. The calculations also include the emotional response to that experience, Strategic Visions said.   Among GM brands, led with four wins (1 a tie), followed by Cadillac (3 wins; 1 a tie), Saturn (tied in 2 segments) and Buick (tied in 1 segment).   &amp;quot;GM has been saying for some time that it&amp;#039;s improving its products,&amp;quot; says Strategic Vision vice president Daniel Gorrell, &amp;quot;so they should be proud that many of their buyers agree. The challenge will be to continue this momentum and regain the trust, and then the hearts and minds, of the U.S. car and truck buyer.&amp;quot;   In addition to the &amp;#039;s repeat win in the small SUV segment, Hyundai&amp;#039;s Elantra and Sonata were co-leaders in their segments. Nissan Motors also had three wins (2 were ties), two for Infiniti and one for Nissan. The other domestic manufacturers each had two wins, as did Honda (with one for each a tie). The Lexus LS430 was Toyota&amp;#039;s only top scorer.   Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz were the highest scoring brands, while Cadillac continued in second place, tying with Jaguar and Lexus. Mitsubishi and Dodge were the most improved brands. &amp;quot;The real challenge for GM and other brands who are turning their products around,&amp;quot; says Gorrell, &amp;quot;is to convince potential buyers, particularly entrenched Toyota and Honda owners, to take a look.&amp;quot;   The highest scoring model was the . Buyers loved its power, style, craftsmanship and handling, and found it well above the segment in innovation and quietness. It delivered a strong sense of esteem in being fun to drive, exciting and making its owners proud. The convertible made owners feel a sense of individuality and refinement in a finished, sophisticated vehicle.   Korean manufacturer Hyundai gained ten points for the brand. Even in segments it didn&amp;#039;t win, it scored in the top five. &amp;quot;Hyundai&amp;#039;s ascent,&amp;quot; says Gorrell, &amp;quot;is nothing short of amazing. We measure their products against the best in the business, and they score well. People are no longer buying their vehicles just for price or warranty.&amp;quot;   Volkswagen kept its place as the top-scoring full-line corporation, followed by Nissan, Honda and General Motors, which ranked above Toyota. &amp;quot;General Motors is the really big story for 2004,&amp;quot; continues Gorrell. &amp;quot;Just to turn, let alone turn around, such a giant is a major victory.&amp;quot;   Data came from more than 39,290 buyers who bought 2004 models in October and November of 2003. &amp;quot;Their responses go into complex calculations that mirror the way people really respond to the vehicle ownership experience,&amp;quot; says Dr. Darrel Edwards, Strategic Vision president and founder. &amp;quot;Accurate measures of customers&amp;#039; reactions have to include the emotions generated by the experience.&amp;quot;   Buyers rated the following vehicles tops in their segments: (closely ranked scores, if the differences are not statistically significant, are considered ties)   Small Car \u2014 Hyundai Elantra/Saturn Ion(a) (tie) \u2014 867/867 Compact Car \u2014 Chevrolet Malibu/Hyundai Sonata (tie) \u2014 883/882 Mid-Size Car \u2014 Acura TSX \u2014 888 Larger Car \u2014 Buick LeSabre/Chrysler Concorde (tie) \u2014 851/851 Small Coupe less than $25,000 \u2014 Mini Cooper(a) \u2014 903 Small Coupe greater than $25,000 \u2014 Chevrolet Corvette \u2014 905 Mid-Size Coupe \u2014 Chevrolet Monte Carlo \u2014 885 Near-Luxury Car \u2014Infiniti G35(a)/Cadillac De Ville (tie) \u2014 900/899 Luxury Car \u2014 Lexus LS430 \u2014 922 Convertible (greater than $30,000) \u2014 Cadillac XLR \u2014 928 Minivan \u2014 Mercury Monterey/Honda Odyssey(a) (tie) 863/861 Small SUV \u2014 Hyundai Santa Fe(a) \u2014 868 Mid-Size SUV \u2014 Nissan Murano/Saturn Vue (tie) \u2014 876/876 Large SUV \u2014 Ford Excursion(a) \u2014 885 Near-Luxury SUV \u2014 Infiniti FX \u2014 912 Luxury SUV \u2014 Cadillac Escalade \u2014 899 Compact Pickup \u2014 Dodge Dakota \u2014 834 Large Pickup \u2014 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500(a) \u2014 888 Heavy Duty Pickup Chevrolet Silverado 2500/3500 \u2014 863   (a) 2003 Total Quality Award(TM) winner   Tips for Safe Night Driving   If you plan on driving after the sun goes down, it&amp;#039;s important to remember that driving at night presents different challenges than driving during the day, says the Motor Vehicle Lighting Council.   Traffic death rates are three times greater at night, yet many of us are unaware of the hazards that night driving poses or effective ways to handle them.   At night, vision is severely limited. Drivers lose the advantage of color and contrast that is available during the day and depth perception and peripheral vision are also diminished.   To improve your night vision and driving ability after sunset:   Use your lights courteously. Turn your headlights on one hour before sunset to make it easier for other drivers to see you in early twilight. Keep your headlights on at least one hour after sunrise. Refrain from flashing your high beams at a vehicle with its high beams on, this will only increase the chance that two drivers will not be able to see. In fog, use only your low-beam headlights; high beams reduce your own ability to see and may temporarily blind other drivers. If your vehicle is equipped with fog lamps, use them with your low beams only when there is fog or inclement weather.  Make it easy for others to see you and be sure all exterior vehicle lights work properly. In case of a vehicle breakdown, pull completely off the road beyond the end of the guardrail, if possible, and turn on emergency flasher.  Avoid glare. Instead of looking at oncoming headlights, look toward the right side of the road and watch the white line marking the outside edge of the traffic lane. When headlights from vehicles following you reflect in your rearview mirror, use the &amp;quot;day-night&amp;quot; feature on the mirror or adjust your mirror to cut out as much of the light as possible.  Adjust your vehicle&amp;#039;s interior lighting. If streetlights cause a lot of glare, dim your dashboard lights and use your sun visor. Avoid using any other light inside your vehicle.  Keep all windows and headlights clean. Dirty windows can increase glare, making it more difficult to see, while dirty headlights can reduce efficiency by as much as 90 percent. Be sure to clean the inside and outside of your windshield as well as your headlights.  Keep your eyes moving. Look for flashes of light at hilltops, curves and intersections that may indicate the headlights of other vehicles.  Increase your following distance. Increasing your distance by four to five seconds can make it easier to spot potential problems on and along the roadway and give you more time to respond. In addition, proper lighting will enable you to react quicker and stop at a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you.  Regulate speed. Driving too fast is more dangerous after dark than during the day because of decreased visibility. Traveling at high speeds doesn&amp;#039;t allow you enough time or distance to stop when you see something dangerous on the road ahead.  Prevent fatigue. Night driving can be tiring, so ensure good ventilation inside the vehicle and take frequent refreshment breaks to give your eyes a chance to recover. Take a short nap or a brisk walk, or have some caffeine to help you stay alert.  Use vehicle mirrors to your advantage. Exterior mirrors that are properly aligned not only reduce blind spots, they also reduce glare from vehicles behind you. The outside rearview mirrors should be adjusted so that the body work of the vehicle is just outside of the driver&amp;#039;s view. In addition, the rearview mirror can be flipped to its &amp;quot;day-night&amp;quot; setting which changes the angle of the reflective surface and appears to dim the mirror.    In addition there are also some general practices you can follow to help ensure safe night driving:   Align your headlights correctly. Properly aligned headlights will help you see the road better and will help other drivers avoid glare. If you live in a state that requires regular safety inspections, ask the service technician to check and correct the aim of your headlights. If your state doesn&amp;#039;t require such an inspection, take your vehicle to a dealer or repair shop at least once a year for a headlight checkup.  Have your vision checked regularly. The American Optometric Association recommends that everyone under the age of 40 have a thorough eye exam at least every three years; drivers 41-60 every two years; and drivers over 60 every year. Age can make eyes more sensitive to glare. In addition, certain medical conditions, such as encroaching cataracts, will increase eye sensitivity.  Look into anti-reflective eyeglass coating. Many eye care professionals strongly recommend eyeglasses that have an anti-reflective (AR) coating. This ultrathin film reduces internal reflections in the lenses. AR-coated glasses actually transmit more light than regular lenses, which improves vision at night and helps distinguish fine details during the day.    MVLC affiliate members include three of the nation&amp;#039;s top auto and lighting research organizations: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Transportation Lighting Alliance (TLA) and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI). Other affiliate members include DENSO Corp., GE Lighting, OSRAM Sylvania and Philips Automotive Lighting. - Primary members are Automotive Lighting Corp., Decoma International Corp., Guide Corp., Hella Lighting Corp., II Stanley Co., Inc., North American Lighting, Inc., Valeo Sylvania and Visteon Corp. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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