Auto companies often make use of awards and quality ratings — when they’re good at least — to attract car buyers. The most important brand quality surveys are performed by research firm J.D. Power, Consumer Reports, and the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI).

The new ACSI survey results are generally bad for the industry. The authors of the report said, “Car buyer satisfaction is down for a third straight year as prices rise and recalls continue, according to new data from the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Customer satisfaction with automobiles falls 3.7 percent to 79 on ACSI’s 100-point scale.” Satisfaction is at its lowest level since 2004.

Click here to see the ratings of every major car brand.

According to the research firm, “Among 27 nameplates tracked by the ACSI, 15 lose ground in customer satisfaction and only 2 improve from a year ago – both foreign-made. Foreign-made cars have a significant advantage in customer satisfaction and 77 percent of the above-average nameplates in the ACSI are imports. The highest-scoring automakers remain Japanese and luxury brands in general. Considering domestic automakers only, Ford, which includes the Lincoln nameplate, is the sole manufacturer maintaining overall customer satisfaction (81). General Motors (NYSE: GM) slips to 79 (-3%) and Fiat Chrysler falls to 75 (-5%).”

Fiat Chrysler (NYSE: FCAU) brands, which include Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, and Fiat, did poorly in this survey and also in the J.D. Power 2015 U.S. Vehicle Dependability StudySM (VDS). However, this has not stopped the parent company from posting strong sales for several years in a row. In other words, it is hard to connect research on quality directly to purchase decisions. In 2014, U.S. Fiat Chrysler sales rose to 2.09 million units from 1.80 million in 2013 and 1.65 million in 2012.

ACSI bases its ratings on 4,294 surveys completed in the second quarter of this year. The new report covers car buyer satisfaction each year from 1995 to 2015. The ACSI provides rankings for a range of industries, including health care, financial services, and the energy sector. The ACSI also produces an annual rating of car brands, which is carefully followed by car companies — and by consumers.

These are the highest and lowest rated car brands.

1. Lexus
> 2015 ACSI score: 84
2015 YTD sales: 95,821
YOY Change: 1.2%

Lexus was created by Toyota (NYSE: TM) to compete with BMW, Mercedes, Lincoln, and Cadillac in the United States.

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2. Acura
> 2015 ACSI score: 83
2015 YTD sales: 102,002
YOY Change: 12.8%

Honda (NYSE: HMC) launched Acura because it did not have a premium car brand in the United States.

3. Lincoln
> 2015 ACSI score: 83
> 2015 YTD sales: 56,648
> YOY Change: 8.1%

One of Ford’s (NYSE: F) oldest brands, Lincoln has struggled in the United States to match sales of German leaders in luxury brands, BMW and Mercedes.

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4. Mercedes-Benz
> 2015 ACSI score: 83
> 2015 YTD sales: 192,496
> YOY Change: 7.7%

Mercedes has perennially been the leading premium car in the U.S. market, often changing places with BMW for the honor.

5. Subaru
> 2015 ACSI score: 82
> 2015 YTD sales: 322,935
> YOY Change: 13.8%

Subaru was long considered an also-ran among Japanese car companies. That perception has changed somewhat as sales increased in recent years.

6. BMW
> 2015 ACSI score: 82
> 2015 YTD sales: 195,593
> YOY Change: 6.4%

BMW is the world’s largest luxury brand based on unit sales.

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7. Toyota
> 2015 ACSI score: 82
> 2015 YTD sales: 1,448,621
> YOY Change: 4.9%

Year after year, Toyota is the leading Japanese car company in the United States.

8. Hyundai
> 2015 ACSI score: 81
> 2015 YTD sales: 442,163
> YOY Change: 10.6%

Hyundai is one of the two large Korean brands sold in the United States.

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9. Cadillac
> 2015 ACSI score: 80
> 2015 YTD sales: 95,053
> YOY Change: -4.2%

Like Lincoln, Cadillac sales have failed to keep up with the leading German imports. General Motors, which is the largest U.S. auto maker, manufacturers Cadillac.

10. Buick
> 2015 ACSI score: 80
> 2015 YTD sales: 127,105
> YOY Change: -3.5%

Buick is one of the model lines GM decided to keep when it dropped Pontiac and Saturn.

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11. Honda
> 2015 ACSI score: 80
> 2015 YTD sales: 899,325
> YOY Change: 2.7%

Honda is one of the traditional big three Japanese car companies in addition to Toyota and Nissan.

12. Mazda
> 2015 ACSI score: 80
> 2015 YTD sales: 185,665
> YOY Change: 0.3%

Mazda is another Japanese car company that tried to venture into the United States but with little success.

13. Volkswagen
> 2015 ACSI score: 80
> 2015 YTD sales: 205,742
> YOY Change: -1.9%

Volkswagen, the largest car company in the world, has struggled to gain market share in America.

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14. Volvo
> 2015 ACSI score: 79
> 2015 YTD sales: 34,985
> YOY Change: 2.2%

Volvo nearly disappeared from the U.S. market when Ford dumped it in 2010 It is now owned by Chinese car company Geely.

15. Chevrolet
> 2015 ACSI score: 79
> 2015 YTD sales: 124,2409
> YOY Change: 6.7%

Chevrolet is GM’s largest division by far, with vehicles aimed at the middle of the U.S. car market.

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16. Ford
> 2015 ACSI score: 79
> 2015 YTD sales: 1,459,704
> YOY Change: 2.1%

Ford’s flagship brand markets the best selling vehicle in America — the F-Series pickup.

17. GMC
> 2015 ACSI score: 78
> 2015 YTD sales: 313,490
> YOY Change: 12.1%

GMC is GM’s division devoted to pickups and SUVs.

18. KIA
> 2015 ACSI score: 78
> 2015 YTD sales: 367,263
> YOY Change: 5.0%

Kia faced severe public backlash a few years ago when the EPA found that it and parent company Hyundai had misrepresented the fuel efficiency of several of its vehicles.

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19. Audi
> 2015 ACSI score: 78
> 2015 YTD sales: 111,269
> YOY Change: 12.4%

Audi, manufactured by Volkswagen, is rapidly becoming a direct competitor to Mercedes and BMW as its sales have recently climbed more rapidly than it competitors’ sales have.

20. Infiniti
> 2015 ACSI score: 77
> 2015 YTD sales: 74,713
> YOY Change: 10.1%

Nissan hoped to have the same success with Infinity as Toyota had with Lexus, but sales figures bear out the fact that the strategy has not worked.

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21. Mitsubishi
> 2015 ACSI score: 77
> 2015 YTD sales: 57,412
> YOY Change: 24.8%

Mitsubishi recently shut its only plant in the United States as sales have faltered.

22. Nissan
> 2015 ACSI score: 77
> 2015 YTD sales: 792,642
> YOY Change: 4.6%

Nissan is traditionally the No.3 Japaneses brand it the United States.

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23. Dodge
> 2015 ACSI score: 76
> 2015 YTD sales: 294,791
> YOY Change: -16.0%

Dodge is Fiat Chrysler’s sports car brand, selling the Challenger and Charger.

24. Mini
> 2015 ACSI score: 76
> 2015 YTD sales: 35,451
> YOY Change: 18.3%

Mini is BMW’s downscale answer to the low prices, high gas mileage segment.

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25. Jeep
> 2015 ACSI score: 75
> 2015 YTD sales: 474,905
> YOY Change: 21.0%

Due in part to the resurrection of the Grand Cherokee, Jeep is Fiat Chrysler’s most successful division.

26. Chrysler
> 2015 ACSI score: 74
> 2015 YTD sales: 195,970
> YOY Change: 19.0%

The Chrysler flagship brand is aimed at the mid market, with most of its sales coming from its 200 and 300 nameplates.

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27. Fiat
> 2015 ACSI score: 73
> 2015 YTD sales: 250,333
> YOY Change: -13.0%

Fiat Chrysler has tried to sell Fiat as a low priced, high gas mileage car. So far, the company has not had much success.

 

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