Who’s got the Best Car Brand?

Kelley Blue Book announced, for the third year, the 2010 Brand Image Awards recently. Consumer perceptions for the rankings were based on various categories from their KBB Market Intelligence Brand Watch:

• Comfort
  
• Performance
  
• Family-Friendliness
  
• Prestige

So, here’s the winners of the Best Car Brand Winners – those brands who simply did the best job of clearly marketing their messages to consumers and improving their brand image.

Best Comfort Brand: Lexus

“Known from the very beginning for their quiet, comfortable highway rides, Lexus vehicles continue to offer more and more occupant-coddling amenities. Combined with renowned reliability and consistently high dealership ratings, the Lexus brand delivers a relaxing ownership experience.”

Best Performance Brand: Porsche

“Porsche is an automaker so uniquely focused on performance that when it announced it had an SUV in the works, it sparked disbelief, confusion and even anger in some circles. The dust from that disturbance settled years ago, and Porsche continues to design and build cars (and SUVs) that deliver a unique driving experience built not just on numbers, but on feel. he new four-door Panamera only adds to the mystique.”

Most Rugged Truck Brand: Ford

“When the Ford F-150 was named Most Rugged Truck Brand in 2009, we noted that it had been the best-selling vehicle in the country for 27 years in a row. Make it 28 years in a row and another Brand Image Award. And while the newest F-150 is surely the toughest yet, it’s also the smoothest-riding and most feature-packed Ford pickup in history. ”

Most Family-Friendly Brand: Ford

“In 2009, Ford attracted a lot of attention and accolades with a slew of family-style vehicles like the redesigned Fusion, three-row Flex crossover and a new, more relevant version of one of the all-time great family sedans — the Taurus. Combined with world-class reliability ratings, the Ford product renaissance is proving especially popular with families.”

Coolest Brand: Porsche

“In 2009, the Brand Image Awards for Coolest Brand, Best Performance Brand and Best Exterior Design Brand (Luxury) went to one automaker: BMW. This year, all three again go to one automaker: Porsche. Performance and cool have forever gone hand in hand, and Porsche’s uncompromising, laser-like focus on driver enjoyment makes its cars distinctively desirable.”

Best Exterior Design Brand — Luxury: Porsche

“When your lineup includes the most iconic design in the history of the automobile, you get an automatic bid into any design conversation. The same evolutionary approach that’s helped turn the 911 into a legend carries through the lineup, as Porsche continues to eschew design fads or gimmicks in favor of confident consistency.”

Best Exterior Design Brand — Non-Luxury: Chevrolet

“Chevy’s designers are on a roll. The styling renaissance that started with the latest Tahoe SUV and continued with the current Malibu sedan continues to evolve in the form of new cars like the Chevy Equinox crossover, Chevy Traverse three-row crossover and, of course, the new Chevy Camaro. Even the Corvette looks better than it has in decades. Backed up by a newfound, pervasive feeling of quality, we wouldn’t be surprised to see Chevy win more Brand Image Awards in the coming years.”

The 1979 Camaro is a great example of how their older themes and accents still influence today’s models in subtle ways.

Best Interior Design Brand: Lexus

“Lexus interiors aren’t extravagant, plush or boundary-pushing, but the fit, finish and attention to detail deliver long-term allure. Clean, comfortable and simple define the typical Lexus interior, which remains user-friendly even as it continues to host more and more technology.

Best Prestige Brand: Mercedes-Benz

“Kelley Blue Book visitors have named Mercedes-Benz the Best Prestige Brand three years in a row, and we suspect the streak will continue for the foreseeable future. While its competitors push varying combinations of performance, precision and style, Mercedes-Benz remains the luxury brand of luxury brands.”

Anyone left out? Who would you add? Delete?

[/caption] Who's got the Best Car Brand? Kelley Blue Book announced, for the third year, the 2010 Brand Image Awards recently. Consumer perceptions for the rankings were based on various categories from their KBB Market Intelligence Brand Watch: Comfort Performance Family-Friendliness Prestige So, here's the winners of the Best Car Brand Winners - those brands who simply did the best job o" data-image="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Lexus_LF-A_I_LA_Auto_Show_08.jpg/300px-Lexus_LF-A_I_LA_Auto_Show_08.jpg" data-site="Auction Direct Used Car Blog">