• by Tanya Gazdik , August 4, 2022

Porsche and Dodge once again finished at the top the J.D. Power study measuring owners' emotional attachment to, and level of excitement with, their new vehicle.

Now in its 27th year, the J.D. Power Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study complements the J.D. Power U.S. Initial Quality Study (IQS) and the J.D. Power U.S. Tech Experience Index (TXI) Study. 

The APEAL Study asks owners to consider 37 attributes, ranging from the sense of comfort they feel when climbing into the driver's seat to the exhilaration they get when they step on the accelerator. Vehicle owners' responses to queries about these attributes are aggregated to compute an overall APEAL Index score measured on a 1,000-point scale.

Porsche ranks highest among premium brands, followed by Genesis and Cadillac. Dodge ranks highest among mass market brands, followed by Ram and GMC.

Dodge is the highest-ranked mass market brand in APEAL for a third consecutive year with a score of 882, identical to its score a year ago. Porsche, a perennial top-performing premium brand in APEAL, ranks highest among all brands with a score of 888, a six-point improvement from 2021. 

“While these brands are very different, both Dodge and Porsche owners identify strongly with their vehicles,” said David Amodeo, director of global automotive at J.D. Power. “That certainly contributes to their stellar APEAL Study results.”

Satisfaction with fuel economy/range is typically stronger among owners of gas-powered vehicles than satisfaction with range/charging speed among owners of battery-electric vehicles, according to the study.

This year, while BEV owners have a similar, albeit slightly lower, level of satisfaction with charge times and driving range than they did a year ago, high gas prices have led to a noticeable decrease in fuel economy/range satisfaction among owners of gas-powered vehicles.

The gap between economy/range is only 7 points (on a 1,000-point scale).

The drop in satisfaction with economy/range also has contributed to a one-point decline in overall new-vehicle satisfaction, the first decline since 2014 and only the fifth year-over-year decline in the 27-year history of the study.

“The most important factor leading to the industry decline this year is owners’ perception of their vehicle’s fuel economy,” Amodeo says. "The study was fielded as fuel prices were experiencing a meteoric rise, and that pinch at the pump is conveyed in lower vehicle satisfaction. Battery-electric vehicles have not been negatively affected by the increase in fuel costs, but do have issues related to battery range and charging time.”

Newcomers to the market that top their segments are the Jeep Wagoneer large SUV, Jeep Grand Wagoneer large premium SUV, Kia Carnival minivan, Genesis GV70 compact premium SUV and Hyundai Santa Cruz midsize pickup.

Jeep is the biggest gainer in the mass market rankings, placing seven rank positions higher than in 2021. Cadillac, Mercedes Benz, Jaguar and Infiniti gain the most in the premium brand rankings, up three places year over year. Infiniti is the biggest gainer in terms of points, improving 24 points from a year ago.

The 2022 U.S. APEAL Study is based on responses from 84,165 owners of new 2022 model-year vehicles who were surveyed after 90 days of ownership. The study was fielded from February 2022 through May 2022, based on vehicles registered from November 2021 through February 2022.