• April 19, 2010

Ford Motor Co. says it now has the highest customer satisfaction with vehicle quality among all major automakers. That's according to a Global Quality Research System (GQRS) study for Ford by Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based RDA Group.

The study claims that 84% of customers who purchased 2010 model-year Ford, Lincoln and Mercury cars and trucks are satisfied with the quality of their vehicle, a 4% improvement since the fourth quarter of 2009.

The Dearborn, Mich.-based automaker says customer satisfaction is higher for Ford than for all other full-line automotive manufacturers, including Asian and European automakers. Ford says the data suggests it has the fewest number of vehicle defects or "things gone wrong" among all full-line manufacturers in the first three months of ownership.

Ford says it also has a 23% year-over-year improvement in the resale values of its vehicles with 1-5 years on the road -- outpacing the industry average by 4%.

The study is conducted on a quarterly basis with scores assessed from survey responses collected from owners of vehicles purchased "within specific time frames," per the company.--Karl Greenberg