Which? 2014 Survey

[eskezz]

Lexus is rated No 1 'best brand car' with a score of 88% closely followed by Honda with 87% and BMW third with 78%.

'The RX is the standout performer' says 'which'.

At the other end of the table is Chrysler with 32% just beaten by Vauxhall with 33%.

Just for info.

[scudney]

Bravo Lexus it's only a matter of time before others see the light haha

[michaelH]

Really? Where did you get this? I am looking at the Which 2014 survey now - the survey of best brands for owner satisfaction begins: 1 Dacia; 2 Porsche; 3 Skoda; 4 Lexus. As to most reliable brands the order is: 1 Honda; 2 Lexus; 3 Toyota; 4 Dacia; although the scores for Honda and Lexus were almost indistinguishable. The only individual Lexus I saw mentioned was the CT200, I think because the others do not provide a large enough sample (but they all feed into the overall Lexus sample, which is then large enough to be counted ).

Dacia scores for reliability (being relatively simple?) and value for money (being very inexpensive).

[steve2006]

James May's favourite car the Dacia Sandero?

[scudney]

Go to page 6 best car brands

[eskezz]

Lifted from the supplementary sent through the post with the usual monthly magazine as stated on Page 6.

[Bluesman]

How much advertising did they carry that month for Lexus?

[ColinBarber]

How much advertising did they carry that month for Lexus?

Which? don't have any advertising.

[Bluesman]

How much advertising did they carry that month for Lexus?

Which? don't have any advertising.

I had no idea. How on earth do they survive. Mike

[goldtop]

How much advertising did they carry that month for Lexus?

Which? don't have any advertising.

I had no idea. How on earth do they survive. Mike

Subscribers. A VERY large number of them (over a million at one point, not sure about these days).

Completely different business model to the more conventional news-stand advertising-funded publishing. And it means they always put readers/members first. Mostly. ;)

[Bluesman]

How much advertising did they carry that month for Lexus?

Which? don't have any advertising.

I had no idea. How on earth do they survive. Mike

Subscribers. A VERY large number of them (over a million at one point, not sure about these days).

Completely different business model to the more conventional news-stand advertising-funded publishing. And it means they always put readers/members first. Mostly. ;)

Is that your Gold Top? Mike

[goldtop]

Yes. Currently away being refretted. (By the world's slowest guitar tech, it seems!)

Back to Which magazine: if I recall correctly the results were broadly inline with other mass surveys on reliability and customer satisfaction (JD Power, etc).

So I'd trust these big survey results a lot more than anecdotal stories, which are still useful but for different reasons. When I was lookng for an LS400, I kept seeing VERY cheap VW Phaetons.They have even more of an image issue than Lexus! But they are a huge amount of car for the money.

Anyway, a bit of digging turned up some very scarey bills, even for the 3.0 and 3.2 models. Best example, was some fraying of a protective sheath around cables going from bootlid into the cabin. Replacement cost from VW... (are you sitting down?) ... 12000 euro. Because it is part of a much larger harness made in tiny numbers and could not be replaced separately. So, my point is that although I don't think the Phaeton is unreliable on the whole, for me, the financial risks completely outweigh the tiny chance of being affected.

Unlike the LS400. :)

[Bluesman]

Yes. Currently away being refretted. (By the world's slowest guitar tech, it seems!)

Back to Which magazine: if I recall correctly the results were broadly inline with other mass surveys on reliability and customer satisfaction (JD Power, etc).

So I'd trust these big survey results a lot more than anecdotal stories, which are still useful but for different reasons. When I was lookng for an LS400, I kept seeing VERY cheap VW Phaetons.They have even more of an image issue than Lexus! But they are a huge amount of car for the money.

Anyway, a bit of digging turned up some very scarey bills, even for the 3.0 and 3.2 models. Best example, was some fraying of a protective sheath around cables going from bootlid into the cabin. Replacement cost from VW... (are you sitting down?) ... 12000 euro. Because it is part of a much larger harness made in tiny numbers and could not be replaced separately. So, my point is that although I don't think the Phaeton is unreliable on the whole, for me, the financial risks completely outweigh the tiny chance of being affected.

Unlike the LS400. :)

Did you put too many zeros. 12K euros.

I have been very lucky with Guitar Techs, I have had the same one for 35 years and he is brilliant. What year is your LP?

I was seriously considering a Phaeton before I was bitten by the Lexus bug and thats where I will stay now. Lexus to the end, I might even see if I can be buried in her when the time arrives. Mike

[harrylime]

I recently cancelled my Which membership, as it is a total waste of time and money. Often, the sample sizes of products are too small to be taken seriously. I was in the market for a new boiler and they seem obsessed with Worcester Bosch, which gets all the plaudits. Why the focus on one company, who knows? It is so obvious it makes you wonder what they get out of it. This fixation with W. B. flies in the face of all my research and conversations with gas engineers, who talk of a significant drop in quality (although they do , apparently, have excellent customer service). After extensive research, I went for a Veissman, which are frequently cited as being very good by engineers and for a reasonable fee, comes with a 10 year guarantee,the only one available to my knowledge. This is a major selling point for a boiler (some come with 2 year warranty), and makes them worth looking at, you would think. Veissman were not even tested by Which.They will select products as Best Buys, and often their readers' experiences of that product will have been awful, so totally contradictory. They will test electrical items, but often the reviews are so out of date, that particular model is obsolete. The only way to test something properly is long term ownership, so I look elsewhere for feedback, including forums. I hate to admit this, but I sometimes look on Mumsnet (don't know if there is a Dadsnet)

I research everything, so thought that Which magazine would be right up my street. It is a shame, it could be so much better.

[ColinBarber]

they do explain why all the Worcester boilers get best buy - it is because as a brand they received the higher customer satisfaction score from their readers.

They currently list 28 Viessmann reviews.

Boilers are one product category that Which? don't really do thorough testing anymore. This is because of regulations that mean all boilers on sale have to meet a high efficiency rating, making them all very similar so you can really only score them on reliability and customer satisfaction.

[eskezz]

Yes absolutely right .28 Viessmann boilers have been reviewed but none made it into the 'best buy' list but that's not to say they ain't good.

My original post was that as a Lexus owner I am happy to see the brand highly rated no matter where it's published.There are many Vauxhall owners who are no doubt thrilled with their cars who will never know they are rate at 33% compared to Lexus 88% by Which.

You pays your money......................................