It is often said that drivers have a love-hate relationship with their car: love the freedom, hate the payments. But it goes much deeper to whether the car lives up to expectations and satisfies your ever-changing needs. To keep pulse on how satisfied owners are with their cars, Consumer Reports conducts a large-scale annual survey that asks: Would you buy your car again?
The answers based on about 350,000 vehicles are illuminating. We typically find the cars that inspire the strongest consumer loyalty are those that are either fun to drive, deliver great fuel economy, are fashionably green, or envelop owners in a high-tech, luxurious driving environment. This year, the Tesla Model S all-electric luxury sports sedan, which provides all of those attributes, tops the ratings.
Owners of the Tesla Model S gave it the highest owner-satisfaction score Consumer Reports has seen in years: 99 out of 100. Coincidentally, the owner-satisfaction score matches the near-perfect 99 overall test score for the Model S.
Models that topped their categories in Consumer Reports’ latest owner-satisfaction ratings include the Porsche Boxster sports car, Audi A6 luxury sedan, Mazda6 midsized sedan, Subaru Forester SUV, Dodge Charger (V8) large sedan, and the diesel-powered Volkswagen Golf TDI compact car.
Other perennial favorites that pleased their owners include the BMW 3 Series, Chevrolet Corvette, Ford Mustang (V8), Jeep Wrangler, Lexus LS, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Porsche 911, and Toyota Prius. Year-in and year-out, these models almost always rank among the most beloved.
At the other end of the spectrum was the subcompact Nissan Versa sedan, which garnered the lowest score for the second year running. Only 45 percent of its owners said they would definitely get the bargain-priced sedan again. Other models that didn’t generate much enthusiasm in their categories are the Nissan Rogue and Jeep Compass small SUVs, Acura ILX compact luxury sedan, Kia Optima Hybrid, four-cylinder Chrysler 200, Kia Sedona minivan, and Nissan Armada large SUV.
See our full report on car owner satisfaction. More detailed owner satisfaction information is available on the car model pages.
Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers or sponsors on this website. Copyright © 2007-2013 Consumers Union of U.S.
