Industry Report Part 3: Toyota and Lexus Take 7 First Place Finishes in J.D. Power VDS

At the top of the heap, the Premium Luxury Car category was once again overwhelmed by the Lexus LS 430. The 2nd place

The Premium Luxury Car category was once again overwhelmed by the Lexus LS 430. (Photo: Toyota Canada)

finishing Infiniti Q45 was a repeat too, while the BMW 7-Series was run out of town by the Cadillac Eldorado (now out of production).

Moving over to Compact Van segment (otherwise known as minivans) it's all about the Japanese again, despite Chrysler Group having laid claim to inventing the genre and continuing to outselling all competitors. Taking top honors is Honda's Odyssey, followed by the Mazda MPV and Toyota Sienna. The Sienna at least is still on the list but hasn't managed to move up since its 3rd placement last year, but the Plymouth Voyageur that was 2nd in the 2003 VDS, and Nissan Quest-based Mercury Villager that won the category are no longer on the top 3 list. There is no Full-Size Van category in the 2004 VDS.

While minivans seem all but passé, SUVs are still the rage. Becoming more and more popular with each hike in gas prices is

Taking top honors in the Compact Van segment is the Honda Odyssey. (Photo: Honda Canada)

the Entry SUV segment, which almost always come with standard 4-cylinder powertrains. This year's and last year's winners and runners up swapped places, with Honda's CR-V now in the number 1 position and Toyota's RAV4 bumped down to 2nd. In 3rd is the Suzuki Grand Vitara-derived Chevy Tracker, replacing the discontinued Jeep Cherokee in the process.

Midsize SUVs are still extremely popular, with the category that bears the same Midsize SUV name continuing to be headed by the Toyota 4Runner. The same brand's Highlander came in 2nd while the Mercury Mountaineer achieved 3rd. Last year it was the Nissan Pathfinder in 2nd and the Oldsmobile (R.I.P.) Bravada taking 3rd.