A number of factors affect a car buyer’s decision to purchase a new vehicle including price, safety, offered features, and quality.  However, according to a recent survey from Consumer Report, one very important factor often overlooked is brand loyalty.  Research indicates that car buyers don’t switch brands easily.  After 1,700 interviews with adults who own at least one vehicle, 73 percent said they were somewhat likely or very likely to purchase the same brand they currently drive. Gender and age have a noticeable influence on brand loyalty.  Women are more likely to be brand loyal.  54 percent of women compared to 43 percent of men state they are very likely to purchase another car of the same make they currently own.  Loyalty is just as strong with older drivers.  Among drivers 35 and older, at least 50 percent plan to stick with the brand they already own.  Only 41 percent of drivers aged 18 to 34 years old felt the same way.  If they were to be convinced to change car brands, different factors work to influence men vs. women. Women are most drawn to better fuel economy (76 percent), a better safety record (72 percent), and more standard equipment (65 percent).  Men had similar priorities but those features had a lower percent of influence.  Overall, both men and women respondents were attracted by quality.

Honda and Ford  now lead the Top 5 automakers in brand loyalty.  The once untouchable Toyota fell to third after losing 13 percentage points over four months. Ford’s ever improving reputation for vehicle quality moved the brand up to second.  The new leader according to Consumer Report is Honda, which traditionally has also been known for fuel efficiency.  Overall, survey respondent claim that the top influencers for brand loyalty are cars that can save money up front, save money during ownership and save money in the long run with high resale value.  To best way to experience the latter is to take good care of the car, but for the former – saving money up front – take a moment to review how BestPriceExpress.ca works for new car buyers.