Who knew that JD Power had a study for measuring automobile excitement and emotional attachment? Who knew you could actually measure that type of thing? Nonetheless, here we are with its Automotive Performance, Execution, and Layout Study. It has the whole rundown of which car brands lead in excitement and emotional attachment. 

This is part of JD Power’s Initial Quality Study and measures 37 different areas for attributes new car buyers found after purchase. They range “from the sense of comfort and luxury they feel when climbing into the driver’s seat to the feeling they get when they step on the accelerator,” the study says. 

The two main categories are for “Premium Brands” and “Mass Market Brands”

The two main categories of cars are for “Premium Brands” and “Mass Market Brands.” Tesla was not included because it doesn’t allow permission to survey owners in 15 of the 50 states. Based on the 35 states that JD Power was allowed to contact owners the results would have put Tesla in the first place. 

JD Power received 87,282 responses from 2020 vehicle owners 90 days after purchase. The study ran from February to May of this year. The 2020 winner for Mass Market brand was Dodge. It is the first domestic brand to earn both this title and the top brand in its quality study. Congratulations to Dodge!

Dodge has two things that stand out for a study like this

Dodge has two things that stand out for a study like this. First, it is selling fast, powerful muscle cars that live up to their hype. Second, the Dodge Challenger and Charger have been based on the same platform for 13- and 16-years respectively. That’s a lot of time to hone a vehicle to meet certain expectations. 

For the top brand in Premium vehicles, Porsche was the winner, followed by Lincoln and then Cadillac in third. Porsche was also the winner last year. Neither Audi nor Mercedes-Benz made the Top 10 list while BMW came in fourth. The rest of the Premium Top 10 in order included Land Rover, Genesis, Lexus, Volvo, Jaguar, and Infinity. 

Ram trucks came in second this year

Ram trucks came in second this year. It topped the 2019 appeal rankings. So Fiat Chrysler got the top two places. Following Ram in order is GMC in third, Ford, Mini, Kia, Mazda, Nissan, Honda, and Hyundai. Toyota was 17th while Jeep followed in last place. 

JD Power started this study because it felt that this category is just as important to manufacturers as quality issues. “The goal of the automakers is to delight customers on all these dimensions,” said JD Power’s VP Dave Sargent. Some companies as a whole did better than others.

Hyundai had the most awards for a single brand with five. They are Genesis, Hyundai Sonata, Hyundai Veloster, Kia Stinger, and Kia Telluride. Both BMW and Nissan had four each. Chevrolet had three models.