Gas Prices Cause Americans to Love Their Vehicles Less
June 26, 2008
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. - Thanks to soaring gas prices, Americans aren't as thrilled with the new cars and trucks they buy as they used to be, according the J. D. Power and Associates 2008 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study released Thursday morning.
Despite the general decline with customer "delight," big winners were Honda, Porsche, Toyota and Volkswagen.
Less Delighted by Gas Prices
In a reversal of a steady upward trend from previous years, new owners generally were less delighted by their vehicles due to concerns about fuel prices.
The study, now in its 13th year, measures owner delight with the design, content, layout and performance of their new vehicles whereas J. D. Power's Initial Quality Study, released earlier this month, measures problems in the early days of ownership. APEAL examines how gratifying a new vehicle is to own and drive based on owner evaluations of 10 measures, encompassing more than 90 vehicle attributes. Vehicle models achieving high APEAL scores have been shown to benefit from faster sales, reduced need for consumer incentives and higher margins on each vehicle sold, J.D. Power contends.
The industry APEAL score in 2008 averaged 770 on a 1,000-point scale -- a two-point decrease from a year ago. A significant decrease in owner delight with fuel economy accounts for more than one-half of the overall decline.
"Average prices at the fuel pump have increased by 27 percent in the period between the 2007 and 2008 APEAL studies, creating heightened sensitivity to fuel economy among new-vehicle owners," said David Sargent, vice president of automotive research, said in a statement.
"Even though more consumers are now achieving the gas mileage they expect compared with previous years, the increased cost of filling their vehicles still leads to a greater level of dissatisfaction with fuel economy than in the past," Sargent added.
He pointed out that manufacturers delivering more fuel-efficient vehicles and integrating alternative fuel technology into their designs stand a better chance of delighting their customers and being successful in this rapidly changing marketplace.
Newer Not Necessarily More Delightful
The study also found that, in a departure from previous years, models that have been mildly refreshed achieve higher APEAL scores, on average, than all-new or redesigned models.
"Historically, all-new vehicle models have been more successful in delighting customers than refreshed models, but this year, launching appealing new models has been more difficult for manufacturers," said Sargent. "The long-term success of a model can be predicted partially from how well it launches, which underscores the importance of a strong debut. Those automakers that manage to achieve high levels of both appeal and initial quality in their models can expect to benefit not only from customer acclaim, but also increased profitability."
Simple Technology Delights
The study also found that overall scores for most APEAL performance measures have either stayed the same or declined since 2007; only performance in the area of audio, entertainment and navigation improves slightly.
"Manufacturers are working to increase customer delight by introducing entertainment and navigation technology that owners find particularly appealing," said Sargent. "The key to doing this successfully is to develop technology features with the needs and wants of the user in mind--most importantly, ensuring that technology is designed to be consumer-friendly and intuitive to use. Technology that is overly complicated to operate runs the risk of disappointing the customer."
Most APEALing Brands
Porsche was the highest-ranking nameplate in APEAL for a fourth consecutive year; Porsche also ranked first for the third consecutive year in J.D. Power's IQS survey.
Among the 36 ranked nameplates, 20 experienced a decline in index scores since 2007, while 15 improved.
Domestic brands comprised the eight most-improved nameplates. Buick posted the largest improvement, followed by Chrysler, Ford, Mercury and Dodge, respectively. A majority of the most-improved models were also from domestic manufacturers, including the redesigned Ford Focus, Dodge Grand Caravan and Chevrolet Malibu.
Of the 36 brands, 20 were above the 770-point industry average. They were, in order: Porsche, Jaguar, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Cadillac, Mini, Audi, Infiniti, Land Rover, Acura, Lincoln, Volkswagen, Saab, Volvo, GMC, Hummer, Scion, Mazda and Buick.
The remaining 16 ranked below average. They were, from best to worst: Mitsubishi, Ford, Saturn, Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Chrysler, Chevrolet, Mercury, Dodge, Hyundai, Kia, Pontiac, Jeep, Subaru and Suzuki.
Most APEALing Models
Honda captured three model segment awards -- more than any other vehicle nameplate this year. They were: the Fit (for a second consecutive year); Odyssey (for a fourth consecutive year); and Ridgeline (for a fourth consecutive year).
Porsche, Toyota and Volkswagen each received two awards.
Porsche models receiving awards were the Cayenne and Cayman (for a third consecutive year). Toyota earned awards for the FJ Cruiser and Sequoia. Volkswagen receives awards for the GTI/R32 (for a second consecutive year) and the Passat. The Honda Fit and Toyota Sequoia are the only two models to rank highest in their segments in both the APEAL and IQS studies.
Individual models also receiving awards were: BMW 5 Series, Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Avalanche, Dodge Magnum, Land Rover Range Rover, Lexus IS, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and MINI Cooper.
Car Category Winners
APEAL has nine car categories and J. D. Power lists the top three scorers in those categories. They are as follows (with the highest-ranked model in bold):
Sub-compact car: Honda Fit; Toyota Yaris; Scion xD
Compact car: Mini Cooper; Volkswagen Rabbit; Ford Focus
Compact Sport Car: Volkswagen GTi/R32; Saturn Sky; Scion tC
Compact Premium Sporty Car: Porsche Cayman; Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class; Audi TT
Entry Premium Vehicle: Lexus IS250/IS 350/IS-F; BMW 3-Series Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Midsize Premium Car: BMW 5-Series; Mercedes Benz E-Class; Audi A6
Large Premium Car: Mercedes-Benz S-Class; Lexus LS; Jaguar XJ
Midsize Car: Volkswagen Passat; Chevrolet Malibu; Honda Accord
Large Car: Dodge Magnum; Dodge Charger; Toyota Avalon
Truck/Multi-Activity (MAV) Category Winners
APEAL has eight car categories and J. D. Power lists the top three scorers in those categories. They are as follows (with the highest-ranked model in bold):
Compact MAV: Toyota FJ Cruiser; Mazda CX-7; Nissan Rogue
Midsize MAV: Buick Enclave; Mazda CX-9; Hyundai Veracruz
Large MAV: Toyota Sequoia; Nissan Armada; Chevrolet Tahoe
Midsize Premium MAV: Porsche Cayenne; BMW X5; Audi Q7
Large Premium MAV: Land Rover Range Rover; Mercedes-Benz GL-Class; Lincoln Navigator
Large Pickup: Chevrolet Avalanche; Toyota Tundra; GMC Sierra LD
Midsize Pickup: Honda Ridgeline; Ford Explorer Sport Trac; Toyota Tacoma
Van: Honda Odyssey; Nissan Quest; Toyota Sienna
About APEAL
The 2008 APEAL Study is based on responses gathered between February and May 2008 from more than 81,500 purchasers and lessees of new 2008 model-year cars and trucks who were surveyed after the first 90 days of ownership.
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