AutoPacific Announces 2008 Vehicle Satisfaction Award Winners

Cadillac Top Brand, Mercedes-Benz S-Class Top Car, Toyota Sequoia Top Truck and Top Vehicle

TUSTIN, Calif., May 29 -- A study released today by noted automotive consulting firm AutoPacific, Inc. summarizes the results of its 2008 model year vehicle satisfaction research. AutoPacific's Vehicle Satisfaction Award (VSA) is an industry benchmark for objectively measuring how satisfied an owner is with their new passenger car or light truck.

In a year that promises to be the toughest in a decade, owner-based awards like AutoPacific's Vehicle Satisfaction Award will help customers make their purchase decisions.

The brand with the highest satisfaction rating is Cadillac. The vehicle -- car or truck -- registering highest overall satisfaction in 2008 is the new-for-2008 Toyota Sequoia Large Sport Utility Vehicle. The passenger car with the highest overall satisfaction score is the Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

There are twenty-eight Vehicle Satisfaction Award categories. At the manufacturer level, multiple top ranked award winners include: General Motors (eleven categories), Toyota (nine categories), Ford (six categories), Volkswagen (four categories), Honda (three categories) and Hyundai (two categories).

"Cadillac wins the Vehicle Satisfaction Award as the top brand in a close race. Strong satisfaction performance by Cadillac cars and trucks has Cadillac winning over other leading luxury marques including Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW says AutoPacific president George Peterson. "Top ranked finishes by Cadillac's Escalade, CTS and DTS helped cement their industry topping position."

Peterson continues, "Vehicles that are all new received top rankings in several categories: Cadillac CTS, Honda Accord, Mitsubishi Lancer, Scion xD, Toyota Sequoia, Audi Q7, Buick Enclave, Hyundai Veracruz, GMC Acadia, Saturn Vue and Nissan Rogue. These new-for-2008 vehicles were strongly rated by their owners showing that the industry continues to improve as new vehicles are added to the hotly contested American car and light truck markets."

  Top 2008 model year performers are:

  BRAND:                            Cadillac

  PASSENGER CARS:

  Premium Luxury Car                Mercedes-Benz S-Class
  Aspirational Luxury Car           Cadillac CTS
  Large Luxury Car                  Cadillac DTS
  Large Car                         Toyota Avalon/Ford Taurus
  Luxury Mid-Size Car               Lexus ES350
  Premium Mid-Size Car              Honda Accord
  Mid-Size Car                      Volkswagen Jetta/Mercury Milan
  Image Compact Car                 Chevrolet HHR/Volkswagen GTi
  Compact Car                       Mitsubishi Lancer
  Economy Car                       Scion xD
  Premium Sports Car                Audi TT
  Sports Car                        Saturn Sky
  Sporty Car                        Scion tC

  LIGHT TRUCKS:

  Large Light-Duty Pickup           Cadillac Escalade EXT/Lincoln Mark LT
  Large Heavy-Duty Pickup           Chevrolet Silverado HD
  Compact Pickup                    Ford Explorer Sport Trac/Honda Ridgeline
  Luxury Sport Utility              Cadillac Escalade/Cadillac Escalade ESV
  Large Sport Utility               Toyota Sequoia
  Premium Mid-Size Sport Utility    Ford Explorer
  Mid-Size Sport Utility            HUMMER H3/Kia Sorento
  Compact SUV/Off-Road Vehicle      Toyota FJ Cruiser
  Premium Luxury Crossover SUV      Audi Q7
  Luxury Crossover SUV              BMW X3/Acura RDX/Buick Enclave
  Large Crossover SUV               Hyundai Veracruz/GMC Acadia
  Premium Mid-Size Crossover SUV    Ford Edge/Suzuki XL-7
  Mid-Size Crossover SUV            Saturn Vue/Toyota RAV4
  Compact Crossover SUV             Nissan Rogue
  Minivan                           Toyota Sienna

In addition to identifying category winners, VSA also establishes numerical satisfaction ratings for virtually every passenger car and light truck in the North American market. Owner satisfaction is measured across 46 specific areas related to a vehicle's operation, comfort, safety and the overall purchase/lease experience. The 2008 ratings reflect input from buyers and lessees of new vehicles acquired September through December 2007.

AutoPacific is a future-oriented automotive marketing and product-consulting firm. Every year AutoPacific publishes a wide variety of syndicated studies on the automotive industry. The firm also conducts extensive proprietary research and consulting for auto manufacturers, distributors, marketers and suppliers worldwide. Company headquarters and its state-of-the-art automotive research facility are in Tustin, California, with an affiliate office in the Detroit area.

Additional information can be found on AutoPacific's websites: http://www.autopacific.com/ and http://blog.vehiclevoice.com/.