Car Owner Satisfaction Owners Tell Us Whether They Would Buy Their Cars, Suvs, Or Trucks Again
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CONSUMERREPORTS.ORG December 2015 Car Owner Satisfaction Owners tell us whether they would buy their cars, SUVs, or trucks again By Jon Linkov ven with national gas prices at a six-year low, fuel economy still • Compact luxury sedans have been a hot-selling category. But the ro- plays a key role in owner satisfaction. Whether they are driving an mance quickly wears off, with just 67 percent of owners saying they SUV or a family sedan, drivers continue to prize gas mileage, ac- would buy one again. Typical complaints: The vehicles were too Ecording to the results of Consumer Reports’ annual owner-satisfaction small and did not deliver on their expected luxury promise and survey, which covered about 230,000 vehicles less than 3 years old. cachet. But car lovers still value strong performance and responsive han- dling, and luckily, there’s no need to sacrifice fun for frugality. Plenty of • Safety is key: Subaru Outback and Legacy owners lauded the op- sporty and high-performance models are capable of returning good tional EyeSight safety features, which can be had on most trim lev- fuel economy and delivering grins. els, not just the pricey versions. This year, we revised our annual survey to provide deeper under- standing about what makes a car satisfying to own. We asked sub- • Only four of the 186 rated models were regarded as so bad that few- scribers whether they would get the same vehicle if they had the deci- er than 50 percent of owners said they would purchase them again: sion to make again. Plus, we asked them to report their satisfaction the Kia Rio, Nissan Sentra, and the Jeep Patriot and Compass. About when commuting, on long trips, driving locally, and carrying cargo. two-thirds of the small cars rated below the overall average of 72 percent. Owner Satisfaction Highlights • Although pickups and minivans are obvious choices in cargo haul- • Tesla is tops, with 97 percent of Model S owners saying they would ing, standout models in all vehicle categories—such as the Honda definitely purchase it again. They love the car’s performance and Fit and Chevrolet Impala—have flexible cargo areas, innovative low operating costs, returning the equivalent of 84 mpg. The Tesla seating configurations, and roomy, cavernous trunks. dominated the lists of how satisfied owners were when using their cars for specific tasks. It had the highest score for cargo carrying • Commuting owners preferred the Model S, Volt, Nissan Leaf, and (100 percent) and tied with the Chevrolet Volt for best in local driv- Ford C-Max, while the Toyota Prius ranked eighth. Similarly, in local ing (98) and commuting (97). But it ranked 40th in satisfaction for driving, the Volt, Model S, and C-Max were at the top, with the Leaf use on long trips (86 percent). in eighth place. The common thread: All are energy efficient. • Rounding out the top five is the Chevrolet Corvette and a trio of • The Audi A6 was best for long trips in a group dominated by luxury Porsches: the Cayman, Macan, and 911. Each was praised for its han- and large sedans. The light-duty Ram, Chevrolet Silverado, and GMC dling, performance, and relative fuel efficiency. It may seem incon- Sierra pickups, and the Jeep Grand Cherokee stood out for their tow- gruous that cars such as the Model S, Corvette, and Macan have be- ing ability and comfortable cabins. low-average reliability yet have such high satisfaction scores. But like all cars in this analysis, they are still under warranty—meaning If you’re shopping for a new car today, consider this: Look beyond repairs don’t cost owners any money. As for the hassle of a dealer the cool tech and new features, and focus on how well it can handle visit, Tesla will pick up and return the car when service work is your needs down the road. completed. Comparing Cars by Category • Across all vehicle types, the average satisfaction rate was 72 per- cent, with sporty cars (81), wagons (80), and full-sized pickups and Performance, luxury, utility, and fuel economy are all key factors in hybrids/electrics (both at 78) leading the way. As we’ve seen before, making Consumer Reports’ subscribers happy. When we broke down owners like vehicles that highlight their own personalities. At the owner satisfaction results, the six most satisfying brands delivered bottom? Compact and luxury compact cars (both 67 percent), small some—or all—of those qualities. Tesla, Porsche, Audi, and BMW offer SUVs (64), and subcompact cars (58). performance, a certain pizzazz, luxury accommodations, and even the PRINTED COPY FOR PERSONALfuel economy that satisfies READING owners. Subaru makes ONLY. reliable, fuel-effi- • Poor fuel efficiency can be a crushing blow, however. Owners ex- cient models that, along with Ram trucks, are versatile haulers. The pressedNOT disappointment FOR with theDISTRIBUTION mileage in almost every one of the other top-scoring mainstream makes were Toyota, Chevrolet, Honda, 10 least-satisfying models. Small cars that are not the most fuel ef- Chrysler, Mazda, and Ford. Reliability is a big concern for owners: ficient in their class also got hit. Among the bottom brands, Fiat and Jeep were also the worst perform- ers for new cars in our Reliability survey. PAGE 1 OF 2 70 CARS /Owner Satisfaction Small SUVs Most and Least Satisfying Cars Most Satisfying (descending order) Make & Model Definitely Buy Again 1. Tesla Model S 2. Chevrolet Corvette 3. Porsche Cayman* Subaru Forester 80% 4. Porsche Macan* Mazda CX-5 74% 5. Porsche 911 Subaru XV Crosstrek 72% 6. Acura MDX* Honda CR-V 72% 7. Ford Mustang* 8. BMW 2 Series* Volkswagen Tiguan 68% 9. Subaru Outback* Toyota RAV4 67% 10. Volkswagen Golf* Mitsubishi Outlander Sport 67% Nissan Rogue 65% Least Satisfying (ascending order) Ford Escape 63% 1. Kia Rio* Jeep Cherokee 62% 2. Nissan Sentra 3. Jeep Compass* Kia Sportage 59% 4. Jeep Patriot Nissan Juke 53% 5. Hyundai Veloster Jeep Patriot 46% 6. Dodge Journey Jeep Compass* 46% 7. Nissan Versa Note *Data based on one model year only. 8. Nissan Juke 9. Fiat 500L 10. Nissan Pathfinder *Data based on one model year only. Reprinted with permission from ConsumerReports.org © 2015, Consumer Reports. PRINTEDThis reprint does COPY not imply an endorsement FOR orPERSONAL sponsorship of any product, service,READING company, or organization. ONLY. Consumer Reports is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping consumers make informed choices about products, services, and safety. NOTFor complete FOR reviews, articles, DISTRIBUTION tips, and recommendations go to www.ConsumerReports.org or call 800-333-0663 to subscribe. Do not edit or alter this reprint in any fashion. Reproductions are not permitted. PAGE 1 OF 2 PAGE 2 OF 2.