J.D. Power and Associates to Release 2009 Vehicle Launch Index on Wednesday, July 22

WestlakeVillage, Calif., July 16 -- J.D. Power and Associates will release the results of the inaugural 2009 Vehicle Launch Index (VLI) at 8 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, July 22.

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The inaugural Vehicle Launch Index quantifies how well new vehicle models perform during their launch year and examines various factors that are critical to launch success, including turn rate, credit quality, residual value, dealer gross profit, vehicle revenue and incentive spend. In addition, VLI includes factors of vehicle quality and design, based on the J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Study (IQS) and Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout Study (APEAL) The Vehicle Launch Index is designed to assist automakers with planning successful vehicle launches in order to maximize dealer revenue and dealer gross profits, minimize incentive spending and maintain high residual values during their models' lifecycles.

  For more information, please contact:
  John Tews; Troy, Mich.; (248) 312-4119; john.tews@jdpa.com

Syvetril Perryman; Westlake Village, Calif.; (805) 418-8103; syvetril.perryman@jdpa.com

About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, Web intelligence and customer satisfaction. The company's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For more information on car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance, cell phone ratings, and more, please visit JDPower.com. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2008 were $6.4 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/.

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