Could the American love affair tied in to the purchase of a new car be losing some of its luster? Perhaps, it seems, as ever-increasing gas prices impact U.S. driver's pocketbooks, J.D. Power and Associates is reporting a decline in new car owner satisfaction for the first time in five years. Despite the fact that consumers have been reporting mileage numbers in line with the EPA's newly-revised ratings, the cost of filling up the tank is doing nothing but increasing. Interestingly, though, it is not the fuel-sippers that are scoring the highest. Luxury and performance brands are still getting the highest overall marks. We surmise that this could have something to do with the fact that those individuals who can afford a Porsche or BMW can probably afford to put gas in its tank.

Overall, the average score for all new vehicles dropped by two points to 770 out of 1000 possible points. Porsche was the highest ranked brand, while Ford's redesigned small car, the Focus, posted the largest single-model increase in owner satisfaction and Buick make the largest brand-wide increase. Be sure to click past the break to see more specifics.

[Source: J.D. Power and Associates]

Click above for a high-resolution gallery of the 2007 Toyota Prius Touring.

J.D. Power and Associates' 2008 UK Customer Satisfaction Index Study, produced along with What Car?, indicates that owners of the Prius are rather happy with their cars. For the second consecutive year, the second-generation of Toyota's iconic green machine, the Prius, has won the award as the highest scoring model in the U.K. on the Customer Satisfaction Index Study, setting the gold standard with a score of 901 of 1,000 possible points. Owners reported high quality and reliability when polled.

Miguel Fonseca, Managing Director for Toyota in the U.K., said: "We place a high emphasis on customer satisfaction in every aspect of the ownership experience. For us, the findings of the J.D. Power and Associates study and the award for Prius are a vindication of the work done throughout our company and our center network to support great products with exceptional service. I view this as an endorsement by customers of hybrid technology as a powertrain for today as well as the future." So, not only is the vehicle an excellent choice because of its green credentials, but also for its reliability. Score one for Toyota.

[Source: JD Power / What Car?]

JD Power is a very large and influential service that monitors almost everything, then puts the information down in a relatively easy-to-read manner. Many people out there use JD Power's information to make an informed decision when it comes to purchasing a car. So, it was with interest that I read what responders to a survey by JD Power had to say when it came to the top five things wrong with cars by country of origin. Not surprisingly, American cars were blasted for reliability and fuel economy and technology. I was a bit surprised to see that European vehicles, (brands like BMW, Mercedes, VW, Porsche, Jaguar... Ferrari) scored better on fuel economy. Perhaps they do in Europe, where diesel vehicles are widespread, but not necessarily here in the States, which is where this survey was conducted. Or maybe it's just that shoppers for European vehicles in the States are not as concerned with fuel economy? What do you think?

[Source: autospies.com]

We love what Audi has done for the image of the modern diesel engine, and even though their state-side offering isn't the greenest stable on the block, they pulled a respectable 533 in J.D. Power and Associates' Automotive Environmental Index (AEI). That was good enough to place them 13th on the inaugural list just after the Mini. Speaking of the Mini, where would Audi have placed if they offered a small, economical A1?

Motor Trend is reporting that Audi is aiming to present six new vehicles for release in the next three years. Whether or not they'll hit their timetable is one matter up for discussion, but what we're particularly interested in is the fact that they included the A1 on their list. It was "a well-placed member of [Audi's] marketing department" who informed the magazine that Audi chief Martin Winterkorn is an admirer of BMW's Mini which the A1 would presumably target. There is, however, a fine line between admiration and jealously. Winterkorn insists that the car will not be a clone of the Mini as he calls the U.K. icon "an accident that came out of BMW's ill-fated British adventure." One other point that Winterkorn makes is that the Mini's American success was also an accident. He says, "U.S. sales aren't a priority for us... [Y]ou can't design a small car with U.S. success as the object."

This, of course, gets our green blood boiling, but does Winterkorn make a good point? Outside of our major metropolitan cities is there a market for small, economical cars? The Mini has obviously done well, but is that only because of the brand's iconic status? And how will the most diminutive of cars, the Smart ForTwo, sell in the states? Is Audi's premium-brand status a factor in Winterkorn's remark? Then again, the last time I checked, VW has yet to export the Polo to our shores. As always, sound off in the comments section. We're particularly interested to hear what you think about the American market for small, economical cars.

[Source: Motor Trend]

That upswing we saw just over a week ago in customer interest in large pickups and SUVs is real. While last week the numbers came from the types of cars people were searching for online, news out yesterday from J.D. Power and Associates finds that sales of large pickups and SUVs has increased. The increase (J.D. doesn't say how much of an increase, but the Big Three must be thrilled at any number that doesn't feature a minus sign) started just as the national average gas price dropped to $2.66 a gallon in the seven weeks from the middle of August to the beginning of October, down from $3.04 a gallon in the seven week period before that. J.D.'s numbers looked at "owner retention", which means finding out if a customer traded in his or her vehicle for a new one in the same size category. J.D. tells us that "four of six high-volume large pickup models, four of five large utilities and seven midsize utilities all have experienced increases in owner retention during the same time period (mid-August to early October)."

Related:

• Consumers already forgetting high gas prices, online searches for large vehicles increase

[Source: J.D. Power and Associates]

What if I told you that the director of one of the most influential think tanks in the country once predicted that hybrids would account for as much as 90 percent of the U.S. automotive market by 2025? Seems overly optimistic, doesn't it. Almost silly. Well, it's true and it was Philip Gott of Global Insight. According to the LA Times, he has since retracted that forecast and reduced it to 12 to 15 percent by that time. His new numbers lie much closer to J.D. Power and Associates' prediction which were released back in August with the Automotive Environmental Index (AEI).

Gott made his comments back in 2001, and believed that hybrids "were going to be the panacea." Because reports began to show that hybrids got, on average, 20 to 30 percent lower mileage than EPA estimates, U.S. consumers realized that their gas savings would not be as high as they once expected, even though they were still 25 to 30 percent more efficient than their gasoline counterparts.

Gott now believes that diesels will be the fuel efficient choice of most automakers in the next decade. He predicts that sales of diesel-powered vehicles will reach 12 percent of the U.S. market by 2026.

[Source: LA Times]