Mazda tops satisfaction survey again

MAZDA has been named the most satisfying brand among new-vehicle owners in Australia for the second consecutive year.

The nation’s fourth most popular vehicle brand edged out fellow Japanese company Honda to claim the top ranking in JD Power’s 2009 Australian Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study.

Mazda and Honda, which achieved respective overall index scores of 782 and 779 on a 1000-point scale, were the only two brands to rank above the industry average of 761, while Toyota was third with 760 points.

Narrowly behind Australia’s top-selling vehicle brand was Hyundai (757 points), Subaru 755) and Mitsubishi (753), with Kia (745), Nissan (742), Ford (738) and a distant Holden (725) rounding out the top ten.

JD Power says Mercedes-Benz, Peugeot, Suzuki and Volkswagen were also surveyed but not ranked due to their small sample size. The study was done in January and is based on responses from 3051 new-vehicle owners.

Due for release tomorrow (June 3), the second annual JD Power satisfaction survey gauges new-vehicle ownership satisfaction in Australia in the first 36 months of ownership by measuring customer experiences in the areas of vehicle quality and reliability, vehicle appeal (satisfaction with the design, style, performance and comfort of the vehicle), dealership service and ownership costs.

JD Power said Mazda performed particularly well in the areas of quality, reliability and vehicle appeal, while Honda attracted strong results for ownership costs and service.

“Mazda has a reputation in Australia for producing high-quality vehicles,” said JD Power and Associates Australia and New Zealand managing director Brian Fine.

“Mazda’s strong performance, along with Honda’s rank in the top two, indicates that Japanese auto-makers have done well in satisfying Australian new-vehicle owners.” Mr Fine said the study also found that new-vehicle owners with higher levels of satisfaction were more likely to purchase the brand again and to recommend the brand to others.

According to JD Power, satisfaction scores average 811 points among new-vehicle owners who say they “definitely will” recommend the brand to others, while satisfaction averages only 614 points among new-vehicle owners who say they “probably will not” recommend the brand.

“Improving customer satisfaction can have a positive impact on both loyalty and advocacy, which ultimately benefit the bottom line,” said Mr Fine.

“By focusing on the key factors driving customer satisfaction, manufacturers can increase considerably the likelihood that customers will purchase and recommend their vehicles.” JD Power’s latest satisfaction study results shows that according to the new-vehicle owners, overall quality had declined slightly, with the number of problems per 100 people (PP100) increasing from 129 in 2008 to 134 this year.

However, the JD Power survey shows overall satisfaction among new-vehicle owners in Australia remained stable at 762 points.

Vehicle appeal, including satisfaction with the design, style, performance and comfort, attracted the highest weighting (37 per cent) of the four factors that contribute to JD Power’s overall customer satisfaction ranking, followed equally on 25 per cent by ownership costs (servicing, repair, insurance and fuel efficiency) and vehicle quality and reliability, with dealership service satisfaction accounting for 14 per cent of the total score.

Read more:

Jaguar and Buick most dependable, survey finds