In a turmoil stricken year for the automotive industry it will likely come as no surprise that there was a monumental shift in the Total Value Award winners compared to just a year ago. Strategic Vision announced their new list of winners and it is hard to find much in common with last year’s list that was dominated by Toyota , Honda and Chevrolet .
For 2009 the winners circle was dominated by VW and Ford – each with five total awards. Although VW and Ford each obtained a total of five awards, Ford won five different award categories and VW won four categories with the mid-size car award being awarded to both the Jetta and Passat sedans in a statistical tie.
The biggest surprise was likely the total absence of Toyota and Lexus from the list – compared to their dominant list of 10 combined awards out of the 23 categories just a year ago.
The shift from Japanese import dominance can largely be explained by their replacement by VW and Ford counterparts. The Prius was replaced by the VW Jetta and Passat sedans (tie). Ford replaced the Yaris hatchback with the Focus coupe, the Solara converible with the Mustang convertible and the Sequoia with the Expedition. Ford’s Flex also obtained an award for the mid-size crossover utility and the F250 and F350 Superduty variants bumped the GMC Sierra for Ford’s final award.
Honda has retained a spot on the podium with four TVI awards across their lineup. The new Insight took the small car award, the Accord Coupe received the mid specialty award, the Odyssey obtained the minivan award and the Ridgeline brought home the standard pickup award.
Chevrolet ’s Avalanche obtained the full-size pickup award and the Corvette brought home the premium coupe award for a total of two awards for 2009.
Strategic Vision’s awards were established by polling buyers (48,228) who bought their 2009 models between September 2008 and March 2009. The calculations are based on clear statements made by the owners in regards to value (expected reliability, expected fuel economy, price paid, expected resale value, innovation, etc.) and then Total Value incorporates the importance of the variables that decide the ownership experience to determine the “True Value” based on the worth of each attribute weighted against the costs.
