J.D. Power: GM division beats Toyota and Mercedes. About half of all car owners buy same brand. December 31, 2003: 11:05 AM EST
By Peter Valdes-Dapena, CNN/Money Staff Writer
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - When most Chevrolet owners go shopping for another vehicle, they buy another Chevy, according to a new study from J.D. Power and Associates. In fact, Chevrolet had a higher customer retention rate than Toyota, a car brand known for its happy owners.
Overall, 60.8 percent of Chevy owners bought another Chevy, putting it at the top of J.D. Power's 2003 Customer Retention Study. Toyota came in second at 59.4 percent. Mercedes-Benz was the third stickiest brand, with 58.7 percent of Mercedes owners buying another.
Autos
36 month new
5.91%
48 month new
5.98%
60 month new
6.03%
72 month new
3.78%
36 month used
6.31%
Another GM division, Oldsmobile, came in second-to-last, retaining just 11.7 percent of owners. Only Isuzu did worse, by a wide margin, with a 3.5 percent customer retention rate.
The Chevrolet model with highest customer retention rate was the Chevrolet TrailBlazer. Almost three-quarters of TrailBlazer owners bought another Chevrolet model.
One of the most common reasons for buyers to switch brands is simply that the company that made their current vehicle doesn't offer the type of vehicle they're shopping for.
"Chevrolet is an example of a broad product line that offers customers many options that fit their needs," said Joe Ivers, a partner at J.D. Power.
Among other top reasons car owners switch brands are appearance preferences and perceptions of quality. More than half of those who switch brands say they did so because they liked the way the new vehicle looked or because its manufacturer had a reputation for quality.
The J.D. Power study was based on responses from 177,000 new-vehicle buyers. Of those, 106,418 had replaced a vehicle they had originally bought new.