2024 Honda Owners Are Happier Than Toyota Customers in 1 Important Area
Honda and Toyota are two of the most celebrated automakers on the market due to their unparalleled reliability. However, Honda owners happen to be happier than Toyota owners when it comes to dealership experience.
Of course, both Honda and Toyota rank high for dealership experience, but the latter falls behind. This may not be the first thing people consider when buying a car, but how the dealership treats its customers is important and could help or hurt the brand. Here’s a look into how Honda and Toyota compare in dealership experience.
2024 Honda Owners have better dealership experience than Toyota Owners
J.D. Power evaluates dealership experience scores in a couple of different ways. Perhaps the most important factor is how dealerships treat customers during the car buying process. Additionally, J.D. Power also looks at the dealership’s customer service when you go back for any maintenance the vehicle may need. For these scores, the organization uses lessees from the last 1 to 5 years from franchised dealerships.
Regarding Toyota and Honda dealership experience, the latter is ahead but not by much. J.D. Power gives Honda 80 out of 100 in this regard. Not far behind, Toyota has a 76 out of 100. For context, both automakers had the same ranking for 2023.
Honda also had an 80 in 2022, but Toyota had a 77 out of 100 that year. This means that both Honda and Toyota owners have been highly satisfied for a few years now.
How Honda and Toyota dealership experience compares to other automakers
We know that Honda and Toyota both have excellent dealership experience ratings from J.D. Power, but how do these two powerhouses compare to some of their luxury counterparts? For 2024, Lexus has a 90 out of 100 rating, which means Lexus owners are highly satisfied with their treatment at dealerships. Acura has an 81 out of 100 in the area, which puts it only one spot above Honda.
For 2023, Lexus and Acura both remained unchanged for dealership experience. However, Lexus showed a slight improvement from 2021, as it had an 89 for the year. Luxury car buyers should note that Lexus is the highest-rated automaker in its class for dealership experience, which means these franchises go out of their way to please customers. Porsche happens to be the second-best luxury option in this regard.
Of course, Honda and Toyota are both Japanese automakers, and some of their biggest rivals are Mazda, Nissan, and Subaru. Though both Honda and Toyota dealership experience ranks high, its Japanese rivals beat both of them. For 2024, Mazda has an 88 out of 100. Subaru has an 87, and Nissan has an 82.
As far as American automakers go, Chevrolet, which is one of the most well-known, has an 85 out of 100. Another popular American automaker, Ford, is right behind Honda with an 80 out of 100.
Why dealership experience matters
As mentioned, customers having negative experiences with dealerships can cause them to look elsewhere when it’s time to buy a new vehicle. This is because these customers associate the automaker with the dealership instead of viewing them as separate.
Of course, this is fair because customer service during the car buying and maintenance processes is paramount. Customers should feel comfortable when they are making such a massive investment. Notably, it’s easy to see a parallel between high dealership experience scores and popularity.
