US Brand Prestige Rankings (to Wobbles)

"Wobbles the Mind" (wobblesthemind)
03/26/2016 at 19:59 • Filed to: Brands

Note: This isn’t a ranking of how awesome the brands are. Instead imagine if every brand made the exact same car (features, engine, materials...everything), the only difference being the brand it came from. Below is my personal ranking for which brands would charge you the most (hence, the highest premium).

The sectioning is where my mind says, “this is no longer a premium brand, this is a luxury brand.” So Toyota is the absolute highest you can go before turning into a premium brand.

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Opulent Brands

Bugatti
(Koenigsegg)
(Pagani)
Ferrari
Lamborghini
Rolls Royce
McLaren
Aston Martin
Bentley

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Luxury Brands

Porsche
Maserati
Land Rover
Jaguar
Mercedes
BMW
Lexus
Audi
Cadillac
(Alfa Romeo)
Volvo
Infiniti

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Premium Brands

(Genesis)
Acura
Lincoln
GMC
MINI
Buick
Jeep
Chrysler
smart
FIAT

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Commodity Brands

Toyota
Honda
Ford
Chevrolet
Hyundai
Subaru
Mazda
Kia
Nissan
Dodge
Mitsubishi

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Defunct Brands (Recent-ish)

Hummer
Scion
Saab
Mercury
Pontiac
Saturn
Suzuki
Isuzu
Oldsmobile
Plymouth

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If any French Brands (DS, Citroen, Peugeot, Renault) came back to the US, they would automatically be placed in the Premium Group for me.

I’m not sure where I view VW, Ram, or Tesla. They jump up and down for me.

DISCUSSION (18)

Amoore100 > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 20:03

I’m surprised Volvo is actually ‘Luxury’, I would have thought Premium. Also, isn’t Saab a recently defunct brand last time I checked? ;)

Wobbles the Mind > Amoore100
03/26/2016 at 20:10

I knew I was going to forget a few! I forgot Hummer as well. Yep, I honestly think Volvo has moved into the luxury sphere entirely and has between Infiniti and Genesis already. I go by whether a smaller model can command the same price as a larger vehicle from another brand. So I can see the midsize S90 asking more than an Infiniti Q70. I also see it compared to the RLX rather than TLX and Kia K900 which is a huge gap. Volvo is kicking some butt, seriously. If I made this last year, I would have said they were just under Infiniti.

Slant6 > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 20:28

I would move Jeep to commodity. They’re pretty cheap.

Slant6 > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 20:30

What about VW?

not for canada - australian in disguise > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 20:35

Never really thought of GMC as a “premium” brand, but it does make sense, considering they have Denali and such and most GMC dealers are attached to Buick dealers, and Buick is a premium brand.

Wobbles the Mind > Slant6
03/26/2016 at 20:44

I can’t place VW or Tesla right now. I have no idea how I see either compared to everything else.

Wobbles the Mind > Slant6
03/26/2016 at 20:46

Thats just an FCA thing to me. But if you had a compact sedan with a Mitsubishi, Mazda, Buick, Jeep, or MINI badge, I would see the Jeep asking more but staying under the MINI badge price.

Bytemite > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 20:46

Volvo? Not Luxury. Genesis and Infiniti should be above Volvo... Volvo is more like Acura’s competitor.

Seriously, a FWD economy platform sharing brand is “Luxury”? That is Premium like Buick and Acura.

Wobbles the Mind > Bytemite
03/26/2016 at 20:55

The products beg to differ. The S90 definitely competes with the Genesis G80 and Infiniti Q70. The fact that a FWD midsize sedan starts at nearly the same price as the RWD midsizer from Infiniti tells me Volvo is out of the premium group. Especially when the Acura RLX is a larger end fullsize sedan, same with the Continental. When smaller vehicles command the same price as larger vehicles, there’s your premium.

Wobbles the Mind > not for canada - australian in disguise
03/26/2016 at 20:59

It helps to keep Buick and GMC together, then their model lineups make sense. Same goes for Ram-Jeep-Chrysler and Jaguar-Land Rover. Honestly Toyota could do the same thing and split the 4-runner, Sequoia, Land Cruiser, Tacoma, and Tundra into their own brand and be successful (not that Toyota would ever do that).

Bytemite > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 20:59

The S90 is their fullsize...and they are competing in the premium tier because first of all, they dont have any semblence of performance like the Luxury brands do. Second, their prices are exactly in line with Premium full size sedans, not Luxury fullsize. The entire brand is about safety first, everything else second philosophy. Thats fine and all but thats not luxury and no enthusiast is going ooooh lala such safe cars, how enthusiastic!

Wobbles the Mind > Bytemite
03/26/2016 at 21:15

Considering that Mazda, Volvo, and Subaru are the most beloved brands by the enthusiast on this site, I can’t agree with your assessment. Especially since all three lack a strong performance lineup. In the US, Audi’s performance arm is only in line with Lexus and Cadillac. I think in the US that Jaguar, BMW, and Mercedes offer vehicle variants that exceed the Luxury class. Considering the price of the Volvo still runs in line with the Genesis and Q70 while being FWD biased and 4-cyl only is an exceptional premium. The S80, I completely agree with you. However, with the XC90, S90, and V90, Volvo is low-end luxury rather than high-end premium now.

Bytemite > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 21:22

Maybe in your biased eyes? Mazda? They have the Miata so of course enthusiasts love them. Subaru, same thing, WRX and STi. Volvo? You might be overestimating the number of people on this site that thinks Volvo is anything more than an interesting fringe player.

But fact of the matter is, not one buyer cross shopping in the BMW-Lexus-Audi-Mercedes segment will be considering a Volvo.

Now if you take a Acura buyer and show him a Volvo, that is a likely comparison test.

Wobbles the Mind > Bytemite
03/26/2016 at 21:39

I’m thinking Polestar and 400hp hybrids. They have a 300hp 4-cyl as a midtier engine. An AMG performance-focused 4-cyl makes only 10% more over Volvos top tuning. Like I said, I agree with you, but not with the new product line. Things have and are changing too quickly to allow preconceptions to remain prevalent. I do believe the XC90 is hitting more X5 and GLE buyers than MDX and MKX buyers. The S90 pairs too well against the A6, Q70, and E-Class. Volvo is a luxury brand. Even Mercedes and BMW don’t yet offer a 4 seater large SUV to simulate the limo SUV experience of a Range Rover and Bentayga. That’s more telling than a 450hp compact car. Lexus, Audi, and Jag don’t offer currently that in the US either.

GE90man > Wobbles the Mind
03/26/2016 at 22:59

I'd move Audi way up, maybe it's just because I'm a VAG, fanboy but depends I guess

Wobbles the Mind > GE90man
03/26/2016 at 23:54

Not until they give the US all of the good cars! I want an RS3 and RS6 Avant and the RS7 Performance soooo badly! I want a homicidal 5-cylinder engine more than anything right now though. They say the RS3 is on its way though.

the_zuki_driver > Wobbles the Mind
03/27/2016 at 02:41

Actually as far as I can tell you can buy the rs7 performance here, they at least have it on Audi USA so I'm assuming that means you can

Poache E (O)\===/(O) > Wobbles the Mind
03/27/2016 at 13:10

The company that produces the 918 is a luxury brand, not an opulent brand.

The company that produces the cayenne is not a commodity brand.

Discuss!