These are the Most Appealing Makes and Models of 2020

After publishing its 2020 Initial Quality Study a few weeks ago (surprisingly led by Dodge in a tie with Kia), J.D. Power is now revealing the brands and models consumers find the most appealing and exciting this year.

The APEAL Study (Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout) is based on responses from 87,282 owners of new 2020 model-year vehicles who were surveyed after 90 days of ownership. It measures their emotional attachment and level of excitement with their new vehicle across 37 attributes, ranging 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.

On the mainstream side, the top 5 brands are Dodge, Ram, GMC, Ford and MINI (the only non-American of the group). Kia, Mazda (which made the biggest jump this year), Nissan, Honda and Hyundai come right after. Conversely, owners seem to find little appeal and excitement in products from Jeep, Toyota and Chrysler. Surprised?

Photo: Porsche Cars North America

When it comes to luxury brands, Porsche remains the leader, followed by Lincoln, Cadillac, BMW and Land Rover. Tesla would have ranked first overall but it failed to meet all of J.D. Power’s eligibility criteria. Oddly enough, Audi is last.

Now, if we look at vehicle categories, the following models are the most appealing and exciting according to the 2020 J.D. Power APEAL study:

What do you think of these results? Feel free to let us know.

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