In the most recent J.D. Power studies for 2020, Lincoln’s performance has left a little to be desired. First, the luxury automaker ranked below the industry average in the Initial Quality Study, followed by a similarly disappointing finish in Automotive Brand Loyalty Rankings. But now, Lincoln is redeeming itself somewhat with a very strong second place finish in J.D. Power’s 2020 APEAL Study.
The J.D. Power 2020 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study is used to measure the “joy” a vehicle provides its owners, particularly to the point where it overshadows any potential problems they might experience with those vehicles. This is an interesting phenomenon that drives sales and generates brand loyalty and advocacy.
The latest version of this study is based on the responses gathered from 87,282 owners of new 2020 model-year vehicles who were surveyed after 90 days of ownership, conducted from February through May, 2020.
The 2020 APEAL Study has received some updates in this, its 25th year. It is designed to complement the Initial Quality Study and the Power Tech Experience Index Study by measuring owners’ emotional attachment and level of excitement with their new vehicle across 37 attributes.
Those qualities 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 gas pedal. These attributes are then used to compute an overall APEAL index score, which is measured on a 1,000 point scale.
When the dust settled in the luxury segment, Porsche took the top spot with a score of 881. Lincoln, however, finished a close second with a score of 876, which is rather impressive for a brand with a lineup that consists of nearly all SUVs and crossovers at this point.
Cross-town rival Cadillac came in third with a score of 874, followed by BMW (869) and Land Rover (866). Lexus, Volvo, Jaguar, Infiniti, Acura, and Audi all finished below the industry average, with the latter surprisingly coming in last place.
Clearly, Lincoln has developed a rather strong emotion bond with its owners, and that only figures to help it in other areas moving forward.
We’ll have the latest on all notable automotive studies in the future, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for the latest Lincoln news and continuous Ford news coverage.
Comment
Good for Lincoln considering it really doesn’t listen to its customers or build A Flagship Sedan that everyone has been waiting for since 2002, 18yrs and waiting