Porsche Again Leads J.D. Power APEAL Study

Porsche surpasses all other vehicle brands sold in the U.S. this year in new-car appeal, according to the J. D. Power 2013 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout Study.

This is the ninth consecutive time Porsche has topped the 18-year-old annual ratings.

This year's redesigned APEAL survey ranks nameplates according to how new owners assess 77 attributes ranging from style and performance to "value" and dealership experience.

Volkswagen AG's Porsche brand, with a score of 884 of a possible 1,000, beat second-place Audi (another VW Group marque) by 27 points. This year's industry average was 795. The two lowest-scoring makes were Smart (739) and Mitsubishi (749).

Power says specific vehicles that score at least 100 points above the average for their market segment sell quicker and command a selling price at least $1,800 higher than lower-rated models. The firm adds that 64% of owners of high-scoring brands repurchase another vehicle from that marque compared with only 55% of owners of low-scoring makes who do so.