Who’s got the best automotive brand perception for 2010? Toyota locked it up for another year as reported in Consumer Reports 2010 Best Car Brand Perception Survey. Keep in mind – this is brand perception – as judged by the consumer’s viewpoint; real-word production quality does not apply.

The categories for “perception judging” included:

• Safety

• Quality
• Value
• Performance
• Design/Style
• Technology/Innovation
• Environmentally friendly/Green

Interesting note: Safety ranked as #1 most important category.

Toyota sits confidently at the #1 spot on the list; Ford saw incredible movement upward on this year’s list as its “perceived” value skyrocketed 32 points – putting them at the #2 position. This move up knocked Honda from the #2 position it earned last year.

The biggest jump, a 39 point upward movement, came from Subaru. I think its safe to say Ford’s social media efforts and even Subaru’s viral efforts had something to do with the increase in perceived value. I know it affected my perception.

When asked to name a brand to a specific category, survey responses included:

• Safety: Volvo (73 percent)
• Quality: Toyota (30 percent)
• Value: Honda, Toyota (statistical tie at 26 percent)
• Performance: BMW (29 percent)
• Environmentally friendly/green: Toyota (51 percent)
• Design/style: Lexus, Cadillac, Mercedes-Benz (tie at 23 percent
• Technology/innovation: Toyota (32 percent)

The Top 10 Best Overall Car Brand Perception Rankings:

• Toyota: 196
• Ford: 141
• Honda: 135
• Chevrolet: 124
• Volvo: 92
• Mercedes-Benz: 92
• BMW: 90
• Cadillac: 87
• Subaru: 81
• Lexus: 80

What’s your perception?

[/caption] Who's got the best automotive brand perception for 2010? Toyota locked it up for another year as reported in Consumer Reports 2010 Best Car Brand Perception Survey. Keep in mind - this is brand perception - as judged by the consumer's viewpoint; real-word production quality does not apply. The categories for "perception judging" included: Safety Quality Value Performance" data-image="http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0cSBc6ofxgb96/150x95.jpg" data-site="Auction Direct Used Car Blog">