6:03 pm, June 28, 2023
Toyota has topped the annual Car Dealer Power survey – rising an impressive seven places up our table.
Knocking Kia off the top spot after a three-year winning streak, the Japanese brand took first place in our survey that asks car dealers which manufacturers they think are the best to represent.
Toyota pleased its partners across the board, notching up best-in-survey scores in five categories – finance, warranties, aftersales, new car supply and brand requirements.
British car brand Jaguar, on the other hand, has finished rock bottom once again.
Dismissal scores across 13 categories respondents ranked their brands in saw the luxury car firm finish bottom of our survey for the second year running.
Toyota, though, was delighted with its win.
Mark Roden, Toyota director of operations, said: ‘This is fantastic news and it’s brilliant from our point of view to win such an accolade and I hope our retail partners will be just as pleased too.
‘We like to foster a close, open, honest and transparent relationship with our partners.
‘We are not retailers, they have that experience, so I think they appreciate the ability to help contribute to solutions. Their input is critical to that.’
Steven Eagell, boss of the eponymous dealer group, said he wasn’t surprised Toyota had risen to the top.
He told Car Dealer: ‘We genuinely work together as partners. We can discuss and debate things and we’ve got the same aspirations.
‘Toyota deserve the win. Yes, there have been tougher times, but we’ve been through them together and the network’s performed extremely well.
‘It helps that the products have been brilliant and the communication from the brand and feedback is always strong. They’ll be absolutely delighted they have won.’
At the other end of the survey, Jaguar dealers lashed out at the recent upheaval at the brand, which has seen JLR confirm it will be slashing dealer numbers as it switches strategies.
Earlier this year, Car Dealer reported on news that Jaguar dealers had been told their numbers could be cut as low as 20 within two years.
This came after dealers had invested millions in huge Dual Arch showrooms.
Jaguar scored the worst marks in eight of the 13 categories its dealer partners rank them in, including forward planning, manufacturer requirements and return on investment.
In this post, you can view all the manufacturers that received the minimum number of responses (10) to be included in the survey.
Manufacturers that did not receive the minimum number of responses are not included.
Scores in each category are taken into account to give manufacturers their overall rating to one decimal point. The manufacturer’s rise or fall in position is included in brackets.
Car Dealer Power 2023: Where did your manufacturer rank?
1 Toyota (+7) 91.5 per cent
Shooting up the chart to take first place in 2023 is Japanese brand Toyota. Its dealers gave it the highest marks in our survey for its warranty, aftersales, finance offers, new car supply and manufacturer requirements. It also scored joint top scores for its forward planning, tied with second-placed Kia.
2 Kia (-1) 90.2 per cent
Knocked off the top spot after three years in the number one slot, Kia has fallen back as the brand moves through a change in representation in some parts of the UK. It received best-in-survey scores for its return on investment, bonus structure and its marketing. It also scored a joint top score for its website, but despite these small wins it’ll be a painful fall down the chart for the Korean firm.
3 BMW (+3) 87.8 per cent
Leaping up the chart for a place on the podium this year is German brand BMW. Last year, it dropped out of the top three, so the move back up the chart will be a cause for celebration. The manufacturer secured a top score in the used car and brand awareness categories and equally impressive scores for forward planning and its warranty.
4 Suzuki (-1) 82.8 per cent
Dropping one place and out of the top three in 2023 is Suzuki. Despite securing top marks in the manufacturer accessibility category – largely thanks to its often open and frank boss Dale Wyatt who is often chatting to dealers on LinkedIn – the brand missed out with a low score for new car supply and used cars.
5 Nissan (+8) 79.8 per cent
Rising up the chart from 13th in 2022 is Nissan. Good scores for warranty, finance and the accessibility of its management helped the brand leap up the table. Its lowest score was recorded in the used car department, but forward planning, manufacturer requirements and bonus structure were not far behind.
6 Honda (+15) 77.5 per cent
The highest riser in our Car Dealer Power survey in 2023 is Honda. Leaping an impressive 15 places up the chart, the firm is the fourth Japanese brand in the top six. It scored its best marks for its warranty, beating the score of two firms above it in the table in that category. Manufacturer requirements is where the firm lost the most points.
7 Audi (+8) 76.9 per cent
Audi dealers are clearly happier with their manufacturer in 2023. Last year it failed to move in the survey. Last year it was new car supply that its partners were the most unhappy with, but this year that falls on its finance offers, closely followed by its return on investment and forward planning. It picked up the most points for its website.
8 Mazda (+11) 76.8 per cent
A narrow eighth place for Mazda sees it march back up the table in 2023 after a dramatic fall from grace in 2022 (Mazda was the winner of the Power survey in 2019). This year the car maker’s partners were most happy with its warranty and new car supply. It dropped marks for its brand awareness, used cars and manufacturer requirements.
9 Peugeot (-2) 76.3 per cent
After a nine-place jump up the table last year, Peugeot falls back again in 2023, but only just. It was just a fraction off the two firms placed above it. Its warranty score was particularly impressive, second only to the first placed Toyota. However, a low score for new car supply was damaging.
10 Ford (+8) – 76.2 per cent
After last year’s worrying fall, Ford moves back into the top 10 thanks to an understandably-impressive score for brand awareness. The car maker was just a fraction behind Peugeot too, showing just how competitive this section of the survey was. Ford dropped the most marks in the used car and manufacturer requirements categories.
11 Mini (New) – 75.1 per cent
A new entry for 2023 is Mini after the minimum number of dealers for the brand to be included in our survey completed our questions. It picked up the most points for its warranty, brand awareness and aftersales. Dealers were most miffed about its forward planning and manufacturer requirements – a category that damaged several car makers in our survey.
12 Volkswagen (+2) – 74.7 per cent
After a drastic fall down the survey last year, VW is beginning to creep back up with a rise of two places in 2023. However, a poor score for new car supply saw it drop the most marks while it lost others for its bonus and manufacturer requirements. Its best score was in the brand awareness category where it notched up a joint top score with the first three placed car firms.
13 MG (-2) – 74.5 per cent
MG has recovered from finishing last in our 2020 survey, ending up mid-table in recent years – and it’s much the same for 2023. Dropping two places on last year’s survey, its dealers scored it down for used cars, aftersales and its bonus structure. The best score came in the new car supply category, which will be mostly thanks to its plentiful supply of EVs.
14 Volvo (-9) 73.9 per cent
A worrying plummet for the Swedish car firm, dropping nine places on last year’s top five finish. There were no real stand-out sore points for its dealers with pretty consistent mid-level scores across the board. Dealers are most happy with the car maker’s warranty, brand awareness and return on investment.
15 Skoda (-3) – 71.7 per cent
After falling one place last year, Skoda drops another three in 2023. The firm was scored down the most in the new car supply, bonus structure and return on investment categories. On the flip side, dealers were happiest with its warranty, finance offers and aftersales.
16 Renault (-12) 69.4 per cent
The second biggest faller in our survey is Renault, dropping a disappointing 12 places from fourth in 2022. Strangely, last year the car maker was our biggest riser, so it’s a worrying switch in fortunes for the French firm. It scored poorly for its new car supply, nearly halving last year’s score, as well as poorly for manufacturer requirements and return on investment.
17 Hyundai (-15) 69.1 per cent
A devastating drop for Hyundai in this year’s survey – our biggest faller, dropping 15 places. Last year the Korean firm was narrowly behind sister maker Kia (which has dropped just one place). In 2023, its dealer partners were particularly unhappy in the used cars, manufacturer requirements, new car supply and manufacturer accessibility categories. It picked up some redeeming points in the warranty stakes.
18 Vauxhall (-2) 67.1 per cent
After a bounce back up the chart last year, Vauxhall slips back two places in 2023 with a 3.7 percentage point drop in its overall score. Dealers were most displeased with its new car supply, used cars and return on investment. The car maker picked up the most marks for its finance offers, closely followed by its website.
19 Mercedes (-10) 65.4 per cent
It’s little surprise that Mercedes has fallen a whopping 10 places in our survey after switching to agency sales at the start of the year. It scored poorly for its manufacturer requirements and its bonus structure, pointing to dealer concerns over those new agreements. It did pick up points in the warranty category and for its brand awareness.
20 Subaru (+2) 64.8 per cent
Moving out of the bottom three, Subaru is the worst performing Japanese brand with its rivals dominating the top half of our survey. Poor scores for return on investment, used cars, and brand awareness cost it dearly. There were some redeeming marks for its aftersales and the accessibility of management, though.
21 Land Rover (-11) – 62 per cent
Just like a toddler – one minute they’re up, the next they’re down, as Land Rover tumble 11 places in 2023. Worrying scores for its forward planning suggest its dealers aren’t particularly convinced by its much-hyped ‘Reimagine’ strategy. It also got a kicking for its brand requirements, new car supply and aftersales.
22 Citroen (-2) – 53.6 per cent
In the relegation zone, the scores for the bottom two car makers are desperate with Citroen nearly 8.4 percentage points adrift of the 21st placed Land Rover. It scored dismally for manufacturer requirements and new car supply, with bonuses and return on investment also a concern. Its only redemption came from its used car score, but this still wasn’t much to write to Paris about.
23 Jaguar (+1) – 48.4 per cent
Up one place, but only as we have one less car maker in the survey, British brand Jaguar is rock bottom. Recent uncertainty in the dealer network along with no new cars has damaged its relationship with its partners. It got woeful scores for its forward planning, brand requirements and return on investment – all understandable considering the upheaval as the car maker looks to slash its dealer numbers and completely switch its focus.
Manufacturers not listed here did not reach the minimum threshold of responses in our survey to be included. In 2022, 24 manufacturers were included in the Car Dealer Power survey.
