How much do people like their cars? It depends on whom you ask. The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) surveys owners of various consumer products, including computers, major appliances and automobiles. Conducted during the second quarter of every year since 1994, the survey asks car owners how satisfied they are with their vehicles, regardless of length of ownership. Cadillac and Lexus lead the pack with an 89-percent satisfaction rating, followed closely by Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and Volkswagen, all with 86 percent. U.S. automaker Chrysler came in at 84 percent, tied with Saturn. At the bottom of the ACSI rankings were Kia and Mazda (81 percent) and Nissan (78 percent). A spokesman for the ACSI says that customer satisfaction leads to higher repeat purchases.

Not so says Leasetrader.com. It is dealer incentives and other programs, such as Cash for Clunkers, that lead to brand retention. The company allows people to trade their leased vehicles before the contract expires by matching them with a credit-qualified person who takes over the remainder of the lease. With no dealer involvement, Leasetrader transactions do not include incentive payments. Most reports say the industry average for customer retention is 48 percent. Leasetrader says the figure is more like 22 percent. According to its data, the brand-retention leaders are Mercedes-Benz with 53 percent, Honda with 51 percent and BMW with 50 percent. At the bottom are Saturn with nine percent, Mercury with eight percent and Pontiac with seven percent.