The report, based on transaction data from September 2024 to August 2025, reveals that fewer customers are returning to the same brand for their next vehicle, with the majority now opting to switch.
The decline follows a brief increase the previous year, when overall loyalty reached 51%. JD Power attributes the shift to several factors, including wider model availability, varying product age, and more aggressive incentive strategies across the industry. Despite the downturn, several brands have maintained strong repeat business in specific segments, with loyalty rates well above the industry average.
The study breaks down customer behavior across five main vehicle categories: premium cars, premium SUVs, mainstream cars, mainstream SUVs, and trucks. Each segment reveals different patterns of loyalty, with some brands clearly outperforming their competitors.
Porsche and Lexus Secure Premium Loyalty
Porsche led the premium car segment with a loyalty rate of 58.2%, ahead of Mercedes-Benz, which posted 49.7%. These results reflect the ability of certain high-end manufacturers to maintain a strong repeat customer base. According to JD Power, the figures are calculated based on whether a returning buyer chose the same brand again.
In the premium SUV segment, Lexus ranked first with 57.4% loyalty, followed by BMW at 54.0%. The data shows that premium SUV buyers, in particular, tend to exhibit higher brand retention than premium car buyers.
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Japanese Automakers Dominate Mass-Market Loyalty
In the mainstream car category, Toyota held the top position with 62.0% loyalty, despite a slight decline of 0.5% compared to the previous year. Honda followed with 55.5%. The mainstream SUV segment showed even stronger results, with Honda again in first place at 62.0%, and Subaru in second with 60.6%.
These figures suggest that mainstream brands—especially Japanese automakers—continue to attract repeat buyers at higher rates than many of their competitors.
Ford Strengthens Its Lead in Truck Loyalty
Ford recorded the highest loyalty rate across all categories, with 66.6% of truck owners choosing the brand again, an increase from 65.1% in 2024. Toyota ranked second in the truck segment with 61.2%, ahead of more established truck makers like Chevrolet, Ram, and GMC.
As noted by Tyson Jominy, senior vice president of data and analytics at JD Power, the overall drop in brand loyalty reflects changing dynamics in the market: “Changing market conditions, such as increased availability of models, varying age of products, and more aggressive incentive offers, have also brought brand loyalty back below 50 percent.”
