The Saturn Ion had the most loyal buyers in the compact cara class, according the 2004 Polk Automotive Loyalty Award released yesterday. Overall, for the fifth consecutive time, General Motors had the most return customers of all automakers. The Detroit Free Press reports that "65.1 percent of households owning a new GM vehicle returned to the same model or make when purchasing or leasing their next vehicle."

The Polk Automotive Loyalty Award is based on actual model-year purchase/lease activity and recognizes manufacturers for superior performance in customer retention—a critical aspect of building and maintaining market share. Customers of these manufacturers had such a positive overall experience that they came back to buy another vehicle of the same model, make, or manufacturer. The Polk Automotive Loyalty Award is the only award in the industry based on consumer loyalty. Awards are based on actual consumer transactions, with over 6 million household records per year being analyzed to determine the winners. It is based on the census of information obtained from state registration and lease transaction information.

"General Motors' success can be partially attributed to the wide range of vehicle offerings," Polk CEO Stephen R. Polk said in a statement to the Detroit Free Press. "The more vehicle choices an automaker provides a returning customer, the more likely the customer will remain within the manufacturer family."

Winners (with loyalty percentage) according the Detroit Free Press:

• Small Car: Saturn Ion (30.6%)
• Midsize Car: Toyota Camry (28%)
• Large Car: Buick LeSabre (41.2%)
• Luxury Car: Cadillac DeVille (40.9%)
• Prestige Luxury Car: Lexus LS 430 (32.7%)
• Sports Car: Ford Mustang (15%)
• Prestige Sports Car: Jaguar XK (22.8%)
• Minivan: Chrysler Town & Country (25.8%)
• Compact pickup: Ford Ranger (18.2%)
• Full-size pickup: Ford F-Series (42.7%)
• Compact SUV: Subaru Forester (25.2%)
• Midsize SUV: Mercury Mountaineer (32.9%)
• Full-size SUV: Ford Expedition (27.1%)
• Prestige SUV: Land Rover Range Rover (33.9%)

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Source: Detroit Free Press, R. L. Polk