Owners of a "green" car have kept not only environmentalists happy but themselves as well, vehicle satisfaction figures released yesterday showed. Toyota's hybrid Prius, which runs on petrol and electricity, was joint top in a customer satisfaction study from JD Power and Associates and What Car?magazine.
The study was based on the evaluations of more than 18,000 British car owners after an average of two years of ownership. A total of 113 models belonging to 33 different vehicle companies were assessed.
The third best car in the model table was the Honda Jazz, followed by the Lexus RX, the Skoda Octavia and the Honda Accord.
Bottom of the model table, with 716 points, was the Smart Roadster, with the Chrysler Voyager/Grand Voyager, the Ford Ka, and the Alfa Romeo only a few points off last position.
For manufacturers rather than individual models, the best company - for a seventh successive year - was Lexus, with a score of 862, followed by Honda and Skoda in joint second place, and Toyota fourth.
Chrysler was the company with which owners were least satisfied.
Mercedes was the most improved company, with other notable improvements including Citroën, MG Rover and Land Rover. "It is also particularly notable to see a hybrid car perform so well, and that the increasing popularity among UK consumers for the green credentials of this car seems to be matched by levels of ownership satisfaction," said Frank Parisi, director of European automotive research at JD Power.