Polk Loyalty Awards Puts GM and Ford At the Top
R. L. Polk & Co.'s annual Loyalty Awards are out, and American makes have done well once more in the measure of how many customers return to buy another vehicle from them. The overall leader among automakers was General Motors which, says Polk president Stephen R. Polk, is due in part to the company's broad offerings. "The more vehicle choices an automaker provides a returning customer, the more likely the customer will remain within the manufacturer family." The Ford brand of Ford Motor Company was the single brand luring the highest percentage of buyers back to its fold, an honor the brand has won each year since Polk began handing out the awards in 1996. New brands in the winner's circle include Jaguar and Land Rover, which put their XK coupes and Range Rover SUV at the top of their respective segments. Six category winners repeated in 2004, including the Chrysler Town & Country, Ford Ranger, Ford F-Series, Subaru Forester, Mercury Mountaineer and Ford Expedition.
Loyalty Award Winners - 2004 Model Year
Manufacturer General Motors
Make Ford Division
Small Car Saturn ION
Mid-size car Toyota Camry
Large Car Buick LeSabre
Luxury Car Cadillac DeVille
Prestige Luxury Car Lexus LS 430
Sports Car Ford Mustang
Prestige Sports Car Jaguar XK
Minivan Chrysler Town & Country
Compact Pickup Ford Ranger
Full-Size Pickup Ford F-Series
Compact SUV Subaru Forester
Mid-Size SUV Mercury Mountaineer
Full-Size SUV Ford Expedition
Prestige SUV Land Rover Range Rover
P.S. If you will notice that only 3 "Foreign" Car Makers Inspire Loyalty in their Customers.