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2023 J.D. Power APEAL Study shows new-car customer satisfaction scores slip

J.D. Power survey results have been slightly up but mostly down for automakers this year, literally. In February, the 2023 Vehicle Dependability Study showed an overall decline compared the 2022 a month before the Customer Service Index Study did the same. The trend reversed in June with a better overall score on the 2023 U.S. Electric Vehicle Consideration Study than in 2022, then declined again the same month on with a lower overall score on the 2023 Initial Quality Study. The declines continue with the 2023 J.D. Power U.S. Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, overall satisfaction among the 84,555 respondents down two points overall compared to 2022, to 845 out of 1,000 points. Because last year's score dropped compared to 2021, this year marks the first consecutive decline in the study's 28-year history. The study tries to "[measure] owners' emotional attachment and level of excitement with new vehicle" after 90 days of ownership by asking new owners to rate 37 attributes in 10 areas around the vehicle, such as the feeling they get when they hit the accelerator. Satisfaction with nine of the attributes is down this year versus last, fuel economy the only segment to show better results with 15 points more satisfaction. Styling and infotainment are big drags on satisfaction. Responses to new car exterior looks tallied 888 points, down from 894 last year, the largest drop in this year's study. On the digital side, less than half of those surveyed this year said they prefer using a manufacturer's built-in infotainment. From 70% of respondents in 2020 preferring to use a manufacturer's in-house software to play audio instead of Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, that's 56% in 2023. Going all-in on Google appears to have the best effect. J.D. Power said that vehicles with both Google's Android Automotive Operating System (AAOS) and Google Automotive Services (GAS) "score higher in the infotainment category than those with no AAOS whatsoever. AAOS without GAS receives the lowest scores for infotainment of the three categories."  Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking at J.D. Power, said, "Despite the technology and design innovations that manufacturers put into new vehicles, owners are lukewarm about them. While innovations like charging pads, vehicle apps and advanced audio features should enhance an owner’s experience, this is not the case when problems are experienced.

Second part of Forza Horizon 3 car list revealed early

We previously brought you the first portion of Forza Horizon 3's list of 350 cars last week, and today we're bringing you part two. Apparently Fairfax Media in Australia had the list and images early and published them on The Sydney Morning Herald's website . We say early because the publication's story reveals that Playground Games, the developer of the game, plans to make the official announcement on the Forza website this Wednesday. This set of virtual machinery brings us closer to the full list, which will continue to be revealed over the coming weeks. While this part is smaller than the first one, it still features a number of notable automobiles, including the Bugatti EB110 Super Sport, GMC Syclone and Ferrari Dino 246 GT. This list also adds more vintage Aussie machines, including the very cool 1974 Holden "Sandman" HQ panel truck. Fans of the Mad Max movies may remember Max's Sandman truck from the original film. Check out the list of new cars from The Sydney Morning Herald below and take at look their article for new images and insight on what the developers' goals were for the game. 2007 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione 1970 AMC Rebel "The Machine" 1998 Aston Martin V8 Vantage V600 2011 Audi RS 5 Coupe 2011 BMW X5 M 1981 BMW M1 1992 Bugatti EB110 Super Sport 1970 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 1966 Chevrolet Nova Super Sport 2008 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR 1969 Ferrari Dino 246 GT 1968 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 2011 Ferrari FF 1978 Ford Mustang II King Cobra 1956 Ford F-100 1991 GMC Syclone 2016 Holden Special Vehicles GTS Maloo 1951 Holden 50-2106 FX Ute 1974 Holden Sandman HQ panel van 2012 Infiniti IPL G Coupe 2015 Jaguar XFR-S 1997 Lamborghini Diablo SV 2014 Lamborghini Urus 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged 2005 Lotus Elise 111S 2013 Mazda MX-5 1990 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.5-16 Evolution II 2013 Mercedes-Benz E 63 AMG 1999 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI GSR 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X GSR 2000 Nissan Silvia Spec-R 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am 2010 Renault Megane RS 250 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STi Related Video: News Source: The Sydney Morning HeraldImage Credit: Playground Games/Microsoft Auto News Bugatti Ford GMC Holden Technology video games forza motorsport forza horizon 3

GM claims it's first to sell million 30+ mpg vehicles

As we continue to put together all the data for the year-end edition of By The Numbers, General Motors has announced that it sold more than a million vehicles in the US last year that achieved at least 30 miles per gallon on the highway. More impressively, GM managed this feat using multiple strategies including small vehicle size, turbocharged engines and hybrid or plug-in technologies across four brands (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC) accounting for 13 separate models. This number will grow even more in 2013 thanks to cars like the all-electric Spark, the diesel Cruze, the range-extended Cadillac ELR and the Buick Encore compact CUV.
GM's small car sales were up 39 percent last year helping to attain this million-sales mark for 30-mpg models, and almost 40 percent of all GM sales consisted of cars with fuel-efficient I4 engines. In regards to more advanced means of improving fuel economy, GM says that it plans on having 500,000 vehicles with "some form of electrification" on the road by 2017.
Scroll down for the full list of GM's million 30+ mpg cars as well as an informative press release.