The unusual car brand has the most satisfied customers

For a long time, Subaru has had the most satisfied owners. KIA has been second and Toyota third. But now the order has changed - quite a lot, too.

Seat has sailed up

For the first time, Seat is the winner in our consumer survey about which car brand has the most satisfied owners. In the survey, over 1,000 car owners were asked to rate their car on a scale from 1 to 10, where 10 is the best. 95 percent of Seat owners gave a rating between 8-10, a degree of satisfaction the brand had not previously been close to.

- Seat is taking a giant step forward and can now boast of having Sweden's most satisfied car owners, says Daniel Odsberg, Kvdbil sales manager.

In second place comes Mercedes (94%), which is also improving significantly. But while Seat is a relatively uncommon brand, Mercedes cars are a common sight on Swedish roads. Other brands in the top 5 are BMW (88%), Nissan (87%) and Volvo (84%). In total, 79 percent give their car a rating between 8-10.

Previous favorites have fallen

Subaru, which has long had the most satisfied customers, is falling on the list. When the last survey was conducted, three years ago, fully 95 percent of Subaru owners stated that they were very or fairly satisfied with their car ownership – by far the most. Now it is only 77 percent who give a rating between 8-10, which places Subaru first in eleventh place. Toyota (78%) and Kia (76%), which then held the places behind Subaru, also drop sharply, to ninth and twelfth place respectively. At the bottom are Citroën (62%), Ford (67%), Renault (70%) and Audi (70%).

- There are very big upheavals and several favorites fall heavily. Exactly what it is due to is difficult to say. It is possible that previous top positions have turned up expectations. That customers have become more discerning, says Daniel Odsberg.

Women and the elderly most satisfied

The answers show that owners of plug-in hybrids and electric cars are generally more satisfied than those who have petrol or diesel cars. But there are still subtle differences. More remarkable is the low rating gas car owners give their cars – only one in two is satisfied. Women and the elderly also tend to be more satisfied. 83 percent of women are satisfied compared to 73 percent of men. In the 56-79 age group, 86 percent are satisfied, compared to 68 percent among 18-34-year-olds.

The most satisfied car owners in Sweden

Percentage (%) who rated their car 8-10 on a 10-point scale, where 10 is the best. Previous placement in brackets.

Listing. Some brands had a 100%satisfaction rating, including Tesla and Mini. However, the number of respondents was too low (fewer than 10) to make it onto the list.

About the survey
The survey was conducted in Kantar Sifo's web panel during the period 12–16 January 2023. A total of 1020 people aged 18–79 were interviewed, all of whom have access to a car. The web panel is nationally representative recruited based on random selection. There is no self-recruitment in Kantar Sifo's web panel.