Domestic Brands Narrow Satisfaction Gap with Imports

Overall U.S. customer satisfaction with carmakers has dropped for the second consecutive year, but the gap between domestic and foreign brands narrowed this year.

So says the Ann Arbor, Mich.-based American Customer Satisfaction Index, which tracks new-car purchases within the past three years.

The 20-year old survey reports "pervasive" slippage across both groups in 2014, with 80% of nameplates posting lower scores.

Mercedes-Benz continues to lead with a score of 86 (down two points) out of 100. Other top scorers are Subaru (83), Lexus and Volkswagen (tied at 84) and Toyota and Honda (tied at 83).

This year's industry average is 82. Buick (83) is the only domestic brand to place above average. Chevrolet (up 3 points) and GMC (down 3) each scored 82, Ford and Chrysler tied at 81 and Cadillac fell five points to 80.

Anchoring the bottom of this year's ratings are Acura (77, down 6 points), Dodge (78) and Jeep and Audi (tied at 79).

ACSI says owners whose vehicles were subject to at least one recall rated their cars six points lower than owners who hadn't experienced a recall. But the report notes that GM (82) outranked Ford (81) this year in spite of a record number of high-profile recalls.