Aside from the annual vehicle reliability study that determines which are statistically the most and least dependable cars on the market, J.D. Power & Associates’ also conducts an annual survey of the most appealing brands and vehicles in the States.
The APEAL study examines what consumers like and dislike about their vehicles and how gratifying they are to own and drive based on their evaluations of more than 80 different attributes. Some findings are expected but some may come as a surprise to you.
Beginning with the brand appeal, Porsche finished first followed by Jaguar, BMW, Land Rover (despite ranking close to last in J.D. Powers’ reliability study), Audi and Mercedes-Benz.
On the other side of the fence, Suzuki, Subaru, Jeep, Nissan and Honda (in that order) were the least appealing brands.
There are plenty of surprises when it comes to individual models, the biggest one being the Hyundai Equus that was ranked No1 above the BMW 7-Series and Audi A8 in the large premium car segment. This is the first time ever that a model other than the BMW 7-Series, Lexus LS or Mercedes-Benz S-Class has led the overall model ranking.
Want more? J.D. Power stated that the Equus achieved the highest APEAL score of any model in the industry in 2011.
Another surprising result, albeit for different reasons, is the Suzuki Kizashi that beat the Hyundai Sonata and Kia Optima in the midsize category. The surprise here is that while Suzuki ranked last in brand appeal, the Kizashi came in first.
Overall, BMW and Dodge each took three segment-level awards with their X3, Z4 Roadster and 5 Series, and Challenger, Charger and Durango respectively. Ford and Honda captured two model-level awards each with the Fiesta and F-150, and Ridgeline and Odyssey respectively.
For a more comprehensive look at the results, check out the lists below.
