I always thought Chevy was the "Heartbeat of America"

 

They're still the top-ranked brand on JD Power, so I'm not sure how they "paid" for it in the past.

 

Yeah, exactly!

 

I don’t think Lexus pays for their advertising anymore. But they do pay for the post sale research.

Last time I was at the auto show, they had all their early 1990s awards on display. Nothing modern

 

They don't, but thats the point, Lexus is still #1 despite not paying.

 

But they did pay for it in the early days, to advertise that they were the JD power leader. I don’t think JD power has any value to the Lexus brand, when it comes to sales and marketing

This is the biggest issue with JD power

Come along Hyundai, who now pays for their advertising. It’s all a big joke in my opinion

I think the only research of value is the reliability reports from consumer reports. Their reviews don’t matter

 

The point is, the data is relevant whether the carmakers are paying or not. If performance in the surveys was driven by whether or not a carmaker pays for the advertising, Lexus wouldn't continue to be #1.

 

Lexus does pay for the data. Even today. There is no such thing as not paying for JD power data. Lexus just doesn’t pay to advertise it on their commercials, like they once did back in the past in the early 1990s. (Maybe they still do but I haven’t seen a commercial in a long time with that)

 

Of course, it’s a data service.

 

The new Acura MDX looks great and has always been a great soccer mom SUV.
Also can’t go wrong with Lexus RX or GX.

All those should de in $550-650 range or so.

 

They literally have it on their website.

https://pressroom.toyota.com/lexus-t...ability-study/

Paying JD Power for consumer data doesn't equate to paying for awards like some people here likely to falsely claim.

 

The guy emailed me a few offers, actually even lower lease on the CX9, around $450 vs ~$600 she is paying now, but not sure how well it is equipper. Her current CX-9 is loaded with leather, nav, all the bells and whistles. I'll update this thread once its finalized.

 

Those lease numbers look better. Particularly in the current market. The CX-9 doesn’t have the space or practicality of its closest competitors but it does have them beat for ride and in particular handling (the ones that haven’t been in an accident at least). If your friend likes the CX-9 it might be the best option. Take a look at the signature trim mentioned earlier. It makes the car feel a lot more premium than the base and lower trim levels.

 

I'm helping one of my agents shop to replace her CX-5 lease right now, I tell you its tough. Mazdas have a ton of premium feel for the money and really anything that feels AS nice is $10-15k more expensive. The only other non luxury brand she's looking at is the Toyota Venza.

 

i don't think the cx5 interior has a 'premium feel'.

no digital gauges. small screen tacked on top of a very dull dash top, those climate rotary dials look ancient, etc.



compare it to a subaru outback - blows it away.