Cadillac rated slightly below average in the JD Power US 2023 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, which measures owners’ emotional attachment to and level of excitement with their new vehicle.
In conducting the study, participants were asked to consider 37 individual attributes of their vehicle, from the comfort felt when climbing into the driver’s seat to the excitement when pressing the accelerator. Responses were collected from 84,555 owners of new 2023 model year vehicles after 90 days of ownership, and the study was conducted from February to May 2023, based on vehicles registered from November 2022 to February 2023. The automaker was then rated on a 1,000-point scale, and it’s worth noting that this year, the premium segment averaged 871 points, representing a one-point decrease year-over-year. year basis.
With that in mind, Cadillac earned an APEAL score of 865 points, ranking 8thth of 14 competitors. While the luxury marque beat the Lexus 864 score, it ranks below cross-town rival Lincoln, which earned 873 points in the study. Jaguar leads the premium segment with 887 points, followed by Land Rover in second place with 883 points, followed by Porsche in third place with 883 points.
Significant findings produced this year include the fact that electric vehicles closed the gap in terms of performance in the APEAL study, with the average score for BEVs increasing two points year-over-year to 840 points, trailing ICE-powered vehicles by three points. Additionally, owners were more satisfied with the efficiency of BEVs than ICE vehicles, outperforming their fuel-powered counterparts for the second year in a row.
However, owners cite things like issues with the vehicle’s infotainment system, features like wireless smartphone charging pads, and other novelties, that may be to blame for the slight decline this year overall.
“Despite the technological and design innovations that manufacturers put into new vehicles, owners don’t really care about them,” said Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking at JD Power. “While innovations such as charging pads, in-vehicle applications and advanced audio features should enhance the owner experience, this is not the case when experiencing problems. This decreased satisfaction should be a warning sign to manufacturers that they need to better understand what owners really want in their new vehicles.”
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