| BillB,
I think it's easy to confuse the meanings of "quality" and "reliability." A car that has good performance and can keep up with a Merc S500 might increase its owner's satisfaction. The owner would believe that he paid less money, got a lot of value for the money, and is very happy overall with his decision and with the product. This is what JD Power calls "Initial Quality Survey" and it includes such factors as "Most Appealing Car" or "Highest Owner Satisfaction Rating." These are all QUALITY factors.
Reliability, however, is something different. Reliability is a measure of problems and breakdowns in the car. Poor reliability certainly impacts the perception of quality! And conversely, high reliability equates with high quality, but whereas "quality" takes many factors--both subjective and objective--into account, reliability is a quantitative assessment of the type and frequency of problems. | 
