Mar 18, 2008

Rich Car Owners Like Lexus

While brands like Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Cadillac have a great deal more heritage, Toyota’s luxury Lexus brand really brings it home when it comes to wealthy buyers. High net-worth consumers rated Lexus the auto brand that offers the best customer experience in the 2008 Luxury Customer Experience Index (LCEI) survey from the New York-based Luxury Institute.

“I have been completely satisfied with my Lexus,” said one survey respondent. “It rides beautifully, and we get excellent service.” Another respondent noted Lexus will “do anything to please their customers.” The Japanese luxury brand was rated most favorably by females under the age of 50 with a net income of $150,000 to $199,000 and net worth over $1 million. Infiniti and Acura were second and third, respectively. In all, eleven brands were studied, including -- interestingly enough -- Hyundai.

The Luxury Institute says the proprietary Luxury Customer Experience Index (LCEI) survey is the only measure of the customer experience of leading brands among wealthy Americans. A national sample of 1,636 wealthy American consumers, with an average income of $349,000 and average net worth of $3.7 million, was surveyed online. Survey results are weighted to match demographic and net-worth profiles of the same audience, according to the latest Survey of Consumer Finances from The Federal Reserve.