Japanese car companies took the top 3 spots for customer satisfaction in Germany, beating out the Germans on their own turf. In the land of Mercedes and BMW, the Top 10 customer satisfaction rankings go mostly to foreigners. Achtung! Pass the beer stein and welcome to the real world.
JD Power, the auto sales survey people, just reported that Honda topped the list and edged Toyota out by a single point in customer satisfaction among German car owners in Germany.
BMW came in at the number 4 spot and is the top-ranked German model but even they are behind Subaru, who holds the #3 ranking.
The customer satisfaction index (CSI) tracks how satisfied customers are for 27 car brands and 112 individual models in Germany. The results were published on the Web site of Automobilwoche, a sister publication of Automotive News Europe.
German luxury brand Audi came in at #7 and Mercedes came in near the bottom at #8. So in Germany, the Germans are happier with their Honda than their Mercedes. Shucks, they are even happier with a Subaru ... and just think of the money they are saving!
The only thing Volkswagen had to show for itself was winning the "most improved" ranking for this year, jumping to #12 from #23 last year. But then again when you are #23 on a list of 27, there's a lot more room to go up than there is to go down.
And the tail end of the list? That honor goes to Chevrolet at #27 and the cute little Smart car at #26.
Not only do the Japanese manufacturers lead quality surveys and customer satisfaction surveys in the US, they do it in Europe too. That only proves that people are the same pretty much everywhere. When it comes to buying a car, they just want something that runs right and that the manufacturer will stand behind. Hey, Detroit, is that too much to ask for?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Known nationwide as a leading Lemon Law attorney, Ronald L. Burdge has represented literally thousands of consumers in "lemon" lawsuits and actively co-counsels and coaches other Consumer Law attorneys. From 2005 through 2018, attorney Ronald L. Burdge has been named as the only Lemon Law Ohio Super Lawyer by Law and Politics magazine and Thomson Reuters Corp., Professional Division. Burdge restricts his practice to Lemon Law and Consumer Law cases. The Ohio Super Lawyer results are published annually in the January issue of Cincinnati Magazine. Ronald L. Burdge was named Consumer Law Trial Lawyer of the Year 2004 by the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the nation's largest organization of consumer law private and government attorneys. "Your impact on the auto industry has been magnified many times over because of the trail you blazed for others," stated NACA's Executive Director, Will Ogburn. Burdge has represented thousands of consumers in Ohio, Kentucky and elsewhere since 1978 and is a frequent lecturer to national, state and local Bar Associations and Judicial organizations. Burdge is admitted to Ohio's state and federal courts, Kentucky's state courts, and Indiana's federal courts. Other court admissions are on a "pro hac" temporary, case by cases basis.