Cars Brands With the Happiest Drivers

Toyota drivers have been consistently pleased with the performance of their vehicles for more than two decades. Since the ACSI began publishing satisfaction scores in 1995, Toyota has always outperformed the industry standard, doing so again in 2019 with a score of 81. Though most brands would be pleased with a score of 81 out of 100, it represents Toyota’s lowest ever ACSI score.

Cadillac is the only General Motors brand to rank among the car brands with the happiest drivers. Cadillac is tied for the 10th highest score of all car brands with an 81, a slight decline from the previous year.

In 2018, Volvo tied with Lexus for the highest customer satisfaction score of any major automaker in the American market, at 85. In 2019, the Swedish automaker fell into a seven-way tie for the third highest score, an 82. The 3.5% decline in score represents the steepest decline of any car brand to still rank among the brands with the happiest drivers.

Subaru ranks among the best car brands in terms of customer satisfaction. This should come as no surprise given the high marks it has received in expert testing. Subaru had the highest overall score among car brands in the most recent Consumer Reports brand report card, and it received a 9 out of 10 from J.D. Power for overall dependability.

Lincoln’s ACSI index score of 82 represents its lowest score in over a decade. The Ford brand is also struggling with declining sales figures. After falling from sales of over 111,000 in 2017 to less than 104,000 in 2018, Lincoln is on pace for another sales slump in 2019.

Of the four major Volkswagen Group-owned automakers, Audi is the only one to rank among the car brands with the happiest drivers. The German car company is one of seven to score an 82, outpacing the industry-wide score of 79.

In 26 years of ACSI satisfaction benchmarks, Honda has never scored lower than an 80. Its most recent score of 82 ties it with a host of other automakers for the third highest score of 2019.

For the third straight year, BMW received a score of 82 from the ACSI, tying it for the third best among automakers. As its score has remained consistent, its sales have grown steadily in the past two years.

As the overall satisfaction score for the auto industry fell over the past year from 82 to 79, a 3.7% decline, Infiniti’s score improved. The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance automaker had by far the largest increase in its satisfaction score, going from 78 to 82.

Though Mercedes-Benz has consistently performed well in the ACSI index, scoring an average of 83 over the past three years, its sales have not reflected that. The German luxury automaker’s sales fell by nearly 8% in the first half of 2019 as compared to the same period the prior year.

Despite a slight drop in its score from 2018, Lexus still ranks as the car brand with the most satisfied customers, with a score of 84. Toyota’s luxury brand has not only bested the competition, but also it is one of just three automakers that have scored above the industry average each of the 26 years the ACSI has published the satisfaction index. It has never scored lower than an 84.