A survey of more than 80,000 car buyers found that Korea's Kia had the fewest problems per 100 vehicles at 83.

DETROIT — Despite adding sophisticated electronic safety features and touch screens that once were prone to glitches, most automakers improved their reliability scores this year in an annual survey of new-car buyers.

The latest survey by the J.D. Power consulting firm determined that quality improved for 21 of 33 auto brands in the survey. This year’s scores improved 6 percent over 2015, double last year’s increase and the biggest jump in seven years. And for the first time in 27 years, a brand for the masses led the pack as Kia edged out Porsche as the automaker with the fewest problems.

U.S. nameplates collectively scored better than foreign-based competitors for just the second time in the survey’s 30-year history. For the first time since 2006, mainstream brands had fewer problems than more premium brands.

The 2016 survey of more than 80,000 car buyers from February through May found that Korea’s Kia had the fewest problems per 100 vehicles at 83. It was closely followed by Porsche at 84, Hyundai at 92, Toyota with 93 and BMW with 94. The survey asked about problems in the first 90 days of ownership. The worst-performing brands were Smart, Fiat, Volvo, Land Rover and Mini, according to the survey.

The Chrysler and Jeep brands showed the most improvement. Chrysler’s problems fell from 143 to 114, boosting the brand from 31st place in 2015 to 20th this year. Jeep rose from 29th place to 18th, improving its problems per 100 vehicles from 141 to 113.

General Motors led all manufacturers with seven top finishers by segment, followed by Toyota with six.

Chevrolet Spark led the city car segment, and the Buick Cascada convertible tied with the Scion tC for top sporty car. GM’s Chevy Equinox and GMC Terrain tied for top compact SUV, and the Chevy Tahoe was the most reliable large SUV. Chevrolet’s Silverado won in both the light duty and heavy duty large pickup categories.