Customers expressed strong satisfaction with the sales process at Chevy dealerships per the new J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study, ranking the Bow Tie brand 11 points above average.
Chevy scored 812 points of a possible 1,000 in the SSI study, exactly the same rating it had in 2023, though better competitor performance this year put it in sixth place rather than third place like last year.
The overall average of customer satisfaction with the buying experience rose year-over-year from 796 to 801, when considering both luxury and mass-market brands together. The mass-market segment where Chevy operates has an average sales satisfaction of 798 points, meaning the Bow Tie brand performed even better when compared to the typical mass market brand.
While it didn’t rate at the top in any specific vehicle type category, Chevy still outperformed other popular, above-average mass-market brands such as Ford, Jeep, Dodge and Ram. Meanwhile, two other GM brands – Buick and GMC – were above it in the top five, along with non-General Motors brands MINI, Subaru, and Nissan.
Data showed that customers are more satisfied with the sales experience this year, using ratings for the delivery process (most important), personnel at the dealership, negotiations, paperwork, and the facility and website (least important). However, most satisfaction appears to come from more robust inventories driving down prices and offering a greater variety of models.
Just 8 percent of buyers are now paying above MSRP versus 15 percent back in 2023, thanks to the aforementioned rising inventory driving down prices. EV buyers are less satisfied with the sales process than ICE purchasers, but the gap appears to be narrowing. A total of 34,596 customers weighed in on their experience through the study, a sampling that includes both buyers and rejecters (those who broke off the sales process to buy somewhere else).
While price and selection are boosting sales satisfaction, other areas could use more work. “This year’s study shows satisfaction with other parts of the sales experience has not improved nearly as much,” J.D. Power vice president Stewart Stropp said. He summed up the situation by saying, “plenty of opportunity remains to optimize the path to purchase.”
Comments
The low ranking of Toyota makes me wonder how this survey was concocted. I’m a GM guy, but there’s something wrong here when Toyota and Honda are below average.
There is a REASON why Toyota and Honda are ranked average. I think that:
A) the recent scandal they had which cost their reputation by a substantial amount- Mr Akio Toyoda faced heavy criticism.
B) The blowing up engines in the Tundra with their 25k plus repair bill replacements does not help, nor thar 24s and hybrids are affected…the Tacoma transmissions and overall issues are also shocking and serious
C) More expensive than ever before. Honda and Toyota produced great quality models in the 80s , 90s and 00s ( to an extent in the 10s as well) which had good fuel economy and/or were great value for money plus were simple. Now, they are largely living off their reputation- one look at the resale values of Tundras produced recently can show that. Now, it does not help when greedy dealers slap markups, and this is MADE WORSE when the dealers are rude and not willing to compromise on price for budget conscious buyers ( with the exception of the standard Corolla and Camry ).
It may be ranking high, but without a longer bed and saying that can’t put the 3.0 Duramax in here. I will never think of buying another Canyon or Colorado. This thing barely gets better mileage than a full-size, no matter who builds it, let alone if it’s towing!
Chevy always surveys about the dealership experience after I buy but they never ask me about the vehicle. The dealership experience is irrelevant to me, that’s only a function of price. But after a month or so I could send them some pretty good opinions about the vehicle but they never ask.