Why Volkswagen, Mercedes, Honda and Porsche Are Cars with APEAL

By Bengt Halvorsen

Porsche (POAHF.PK) ranks as most appealing nameplate for the fifth consecutive year. That's according to J.D. Power and Associates' 2009 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, which was just released.

Yet Porsche only had one top-placing model in Power's study, the Cayenne. Across all models, the 2009 Mercedes-Benz S-Class (Daimler (DAI)) receives the highest APEAL score for 2009, for a third consecutive year.

The study measures how satisfied new owners are with their vehicles after the first three months of ownership, with questions regarding more than 90 attributes. It covers more than 80,000 purchasers and lessees of 2009 model-year vehicles, with responses gathered between February and May of this year.

Porsche also recently ranked as the top premium brand in AutoPacific's 2009 Ideal Vehicle Awards (IVA), which, like APEAL, considers a wide range of attributes.

Other repeat segment winners in Power's APEAL include the

Chevrolet Avalanche (GM), Dodge Challenger, Hyundai Genesis (Hyundai (HYMLF.PK)) and MINI Cooper (all for the second year), while both the 2009 Honda Odyssey (Honda (HMC)) (also an IVA winner) and 2009 Honda Ridgeline receive segment awards for the fifth consecutive year.

The Odyssey and Ridgeline are the only two models to rank at the top of their class in both APEAL and Power's latest Initial Quality Study (IQS), which was released last month.

Volkswagen (VLKAY.PK) had the most segment-leading models in APEAL, including the CC, GTI, Passat, and Tiguan; both the 2009 Nissan Armada and 2009 Nissan Maxima (NSANY) placed at the top of their respective segments, and the Mercedes-Benz SLK also placed at the front.

Although APEAL looks at specific models, Jaguar, Cadillac, and Audi (AUDVF.PK) trailed Porsche at the top on a brand-by-brand basis, while Suzuki (SZKMF.PK), Jeep, and Subaru ranked at the bottom. Toyota (TM) also ranked near the bottom of the rankings, as did Saab, which is viewed by some as a premium brand.

There's also some good news for the domestic automakers. Even if there weren't a lot of domestic vehicles at the front of their respective segments, four domestic brands—Dodge, Pontiac, Buick, and Cadillac—were the most-improved for 2009. And the gap between domestics and imports has closed from 15 points last year to just five this year.

"This is very important for manufacturers because high levels of APEAL drive a faster selling rate, higher margins on the vehicles, and also means that in general vehicles require lower incentives," commented J.D. Power vice president David Sargent, in a video companion to the press release.

The overall level of APEAL scores has risen quite significantly this year—up 15 points on Power's 1,000-point scale—due mainly to some successful product introductions and much better buyer satisfaction with fuel economy. The latter is rising, according to Power, thanks to lower gas prices, a movement into other types of vehicles, and quick movement from manufacturers to address the issue. J.D. Power reports that more than half of the vehicles in the 2009 study were four-cylinder engines, versus 39 percent in 2008.

Among the individual vehicles with improvements in satisfaction with fuel economy are the Cadillac Escalade, Dodge Ram, Ford F-150 (F), and the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta; Volkswagen introduced a fuel-efficient new TDI version of the Jetta for 2009, while GM introduced a 2009 Cadillac Escalade Hybrid.

Comments

[Jeff B.:]

Although I think most "car guys" would agree with the view that M-B, Porsche, VW and Honda are desireable cars, the basis of these "first 90 days of ownership" studies is suspect at best, and downright misleading in some ways. Most modern vehicles are not going to experience a lot of problems in the first 90 days, but after the new-ness wears thin, and you experience the dealer customer service (an M-B weakness) or lack thereof, these opinions change. A much better gauge is looking at repeat buyers or owner satisfaction after two or three years -- at which point the Chevy Avalanche would have been recalled five or six times and be worth about as much as a Grande Cappuccino at Starbucks.

Jul 20 01:04 PM

[Eye Forget:]

Let me provide another viewpoint.

We've owned 5 BMW's, 2 MB's and a Porsche in the last 12 years. We currently have one of each.

BMW #1: ABS never worked. More niggling problems that I could ever recap here. Sold after 5 years with less than 10,000 miles on it.
BMW #2: HVAC never worked and was sent back to the leasing company early.
BMW #3: No problems.
BMW #4: Over an inch thick stack of work orders including a new engine.
BMW #5: Squeaks and rattles throughout.
BMW All: Wretched service. MB is phenomenal versus BMW.

MB #1: A two inch stack of work orders.
MB #2: Entire front suspension replaced, at least a once a year problem, usually electrical/electronics and usually +$1,000.

P #1: Engine failure (at 35 mph) within 10,000 miles. More rattles than shaking a can of nails.

I now buy my own cars. Since I no longer get a free status trip (which is what sells these cars) I will no longer be looking at German cars.

These surveys are worthless. When people stop buying status they will buy based on word-of-mouth. Try to find a German car buyer that believes he got his money's worth.

Fortunately for the Germans, there are plenty of developing markets where they can foist their cars.

Oh, and they all handled and drove beautifully. But, how much of a market is that?

Jul 20 07:08 PM

[Pstoneki:]

I have purchased a lot of German / European cars and always feel I got my monies worth. However, I buy them Certified Pre-Owned rather than new. I've bought 2 M-Bs (S-600, 320 TE), 1 Porsche (911), 3 Audis (RS-6, Allroad, RS4), plus 2 Volvos (XC90, 960). Had a great experience with all of these cars except the Porsche. When it ran I was in heaven. Unfortunately, I spent a lot of time in hell with that car and sold it with 40k on the clock.

Overall, much better experiences than I have every had with the 4 GM vehicles I have owned (purchased new), each of which suffered catastrophic failures (engines, transmissions) before the warranty periods ran out.

The key is to buy well, follow the maintenance cycles religously, and do not let minor things go. If you follow that advice your car experience will be as good as mine.


On Jul 20 07:08 PM Eye Forget wrote:

> Let me provide another viewpoint.
>
> We've owned 5 BMW's, 2 MB's and a Porsche in the last 12 years. We
> currently have one of each.
>
> BMW #1: ABS never worked. More niggling problems that I could ever
> recap here. Sold after 5 years with less than 10,000 miles on it.
>
> BMW #2: HVAC never worked and was sent back to the leasing company
> early.
> BMW #3: No problems.
> BMW #4: Over an inch thick stack of work orders including a new engine.
>
> BMW #5: Squeaks and rattles throughout.
> BMW All: Wretched service. MB is phenomenal versus BMW.
>
> MB #1: A two inch stack of work orders.
> MB #2: Entire front suspension replaced, at least a once a year problem,
> usually electrical/electronics and usually +$1,000.
>
> P #1: Engine failure (at 35 mph) within 10,000 miles. More rattles
> than shaking a can of nails.
>
> I now buy my own cars. Since I no longer get a free status trip (which
> is what sells these cars) I will no longer be looking at German cars.
>
>
> These surveys are worthless. When people stop buying status they
> will buy based on word-of-mouth. Try to find a German car buyer that
> believes he got his money's worth.
>
> Fortunately for the Germans, there are plenty of developing markets
> where they can foist their cars.
>
> Oh, and they all handled and drove beautifully. But, how much of
> a market is that?

Jul 21 12:44 PM

[Zenfuego:]

Eye Forget
BOY DO I AGREE! I currently own my last German car- an Audi Allroad. Runs about $3000- $4000 a year in repairs. Major problems before 60,000 miles, including a new torque converter ($2600), and a new air spring ($1000). Driver's window is now out, and there are yet more tranny problems. Each time I conquer a check engine light by throwing money at it, a new one comes on. Hard to sell a car where you can't get it to stop screaming that it is broken. My last car was an early Lexus LS 400 with 150,000 miles on it- NEVER, ever had a problem with the car over 60,000 miles of ownership. Brilliant car. I am going back, though it means risky driving in the Winter in the Oregon mts. with no AWD. My father bought a BRAND NEW Mercedes C class two years ago. He owns a garage lift, so he put it up to check out a rattle- it came NEW with used parts on it- From Mercedes America. Seriously. The dealership claimed it had nothing to do with it, and had received the car straight from Mercedes US- he threatened to sue and they took the car back- after three or four months of haggling with Merc US. Appealing? Try driving one for a year, see how "appealing" it feels when you are spending money you should be using on your children, on your frigging car.

Jul 22 11:37 AM

[Pstoneki:]

What makes you think there were used parts on your new car? Did you by a demonstrator? I have been on the manufacturing side of this industry (GM and Nissan plus a little time at M-B and BMW) for 20 years and no where in the manufacturing or delivery chain is there any point where a used part can be installed. This makes no sense.


On Jul 22 11:37 AM Zenfuego wrote:

> Eye Forget
> BOY DO I AGREE! I currently own my last German car- an Audi Allroad.
> Runs about $3000- $4000 a year in repairs. Major problems before
> 60,000 miles, including a new torque converter ($2600), and a new
> air spring ($1000). Driver's window is now out, and there are yet
> more tranny problems. Each time I conquer a check engine light by
> throwing money at it, a new one comes on. Hard to sell a car where
> you can't get it to stop screaming that it is broken. My last car
> was an early Lexus LS 400 with 150,000 miles on it- NEVER, ever had
> a problem with the car over 60,000 miles of ownership. Brilliant
> car. I am going back, though it means risky driving in the Winter
> in the Oregon mts. with no AWD. My father bought a BRAND NEW Mercedes
> C class two years ago. He owns a garage lift, so he put it up to
> check out a rattle- it came NEW with used parts on it- From Mercedes
> America. Seriously. The dealership claimed it had nothing to do with
> it, and had received the car straight from Mercedes US- he threatened
> to sue and they took the car back- after three or four months of
> haggling with Merc US. Appealing? Try driving one for a year, see
> how "appealing" it feels when you are spending money you should be
> using on your children, on your frigging car.

Jul 23 09:21 AM