Customer contentment with U.S. automakers improves sharply as Asian brands drop.
Americans' satisfaction with domestic vehicle brands increased in the second quarter of this year, while contentment with all but two Asian nameplates dropped from a year ago, according to the University of Michigan's Consumer Satisfaction Index, released today.
The study is the latest sign that Detroit's carmakers are gradually gaining ground with U.S. consumers who have long believed that Asian-made cars and trucks are better and more reliable than homegrown models in such measures as quality and reliability.
Happier shoppers are good news for the economy and especially the auto industry, which has been suffering amid declining demand for cars and trucks nationwide.
Several brands owned by Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. sharply improved their rankings, while the Toyota, Honda and Nissan nameplates all declined.
A number of domestic brands, however, still rate below average, including Ford, Chrysler, Jeep and GM's Saturn.
Ford nonetheless showed the most improvement in the survey, gaining 3.9 percent, while Toyota fell furthest with a 3.4 percent drop.
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