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An automotive industry truism is that it is easier to satisfy your grandmother than a young man.  Is this true?  At least the gender portion of the statement is accurate.

Driver satisfaction is a critical measure of vehicle acceptance.  Having a satisfied buyer results in better loyalty, better word-of-mouth, stronger image.  Satisfaction is a central building block of a brand.  AutoPacific has been measuring driver satisfaction since 1993 and it is always instructive to look at the differences between women and men drivers.

In AutoPacific’s annual 2012 Vehicle Satisfaction research, women drivers score 39 rating points higher than men – 674 over 635 in their overall Vehicle Satisfaction score.

Cadillac Tops Satisfaction Among Women While the top four brands in the satisfaction hierarchy are the same – Cadillac, Mercedes-Benz, Lexus and Lincoln – the scores given them by women are much higher.  Cadillac up 50 rating points.  Mercedes up 16 rating points.  Lexus up 41 rating points.  Lincoln up 42 rating points.  Interestingly, the rating for Fiat – perhaps the ultimate chick’s car – is at the bottom of the list among women but still higher by 29 rating points than among men.

Infiniti FX - Top in Satisfaction Among Women

Models With Touches of Luxury Score Better With Women In terms of individual vehicles the top twelve satisfying vehicles among women are:  Infiniti FX at 774 (+94 rating points higher than men), Chrysler 300 at 767 (+89 rating points), Lexus ES at 742 (+40), Cadillac SRX (+48), Mercedes C-Class at 735 (+50), Buick Enclave (+57), Honda Crosstour at 729 (+73), Lincoln MKS at 728 (+50), Range Rover Evoque at 728 (+43), Lincoln MKX at 726 (+58), Honda Odyssey at 725 (+40), Lexus RX at 725 (+43).  The lowest vehicle line among women is the Nissan LEAF at 550 rating points.  The highest scoring vehicle among men is the Mercedes-Benz ML practically tied with the Cadillac Escalade.  The lowest vehicle line among men is the Mazda2 at 502.

Women are More Satisfied With a Comfortable Stuff Hauler Women are much more satisfied with Fuel Economy (+8.3%pts), Warranty (+6.9%pts), Collision Avoidance Technology (+6.9%pts), 3rd Row Seat Comfort (+6.8%pts), 2nd Row Seat Comfort (+6.3%pts), Flexible/Changeable Seating (+6.5%pts), Rear Seat Entertainment System (+6.4%pts), Roof Rack (+6.0%pts), Price/Monthly Payments (+6.0%pts), Convertible Top (+6.0%pts).  Many of these attributes are characteristics of vehicle types very popular with women drivers like Sport Utility Vehicles and Minivans.  They want a comfortable vehicle with a good warranty that gets good fuel economy.  They want the interior to be flexible and provide entertainment for their children.  They are more satisfied with an affordable stuff hauler useful with children.