(July 8, 2015) TUSTIN, Calif. — The Kia K900 was named the Most Satisfying Vehicle Overall in AutoPacific's 19th annual Vehicle Satisfaction Awards (VSAs), identifying the most satisfying vehicles on the market.

Korean automakers moved to the top of the awards, an industry benchmark for measuring how satisfied an owner is with his/her new vehicle, VSAs are based on survey responses from over 66,000 owners of new 2015 model year cars and light trucks.

“2015 represents a year of diversity,” says George Peterson, president of AutoPacific. “Competition is fierce and no one automaker dominates the results.” The 2015 winners are spread across nearly every manufacturer, with wins by 9 out of 11 automakers.

General Motors received the most wins with five, followed by Kia and Nissan, with four and three wins, respectively. Honda, Toyota, FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobile), Volkswagen and Ford followed with two wins each. Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Hyundai each took home one win.

“For the 2015 model year, there are 274 models and 33 brands from which to choose a new vehicle,” says Peterson. “It can be daunting for consumers to sort through all of those options and try to predict which one will work best for them in the long run. AutoPacific VSAs help to give them a strong starting point.”

The average VSA score for 2015 is 25-points higher than in 2014 confirming products and customer handling are improving markedly. The brands with the greatest year-over-year improvements are Jaguar, improving eleven positions; Volkswagen, improving ten positions; and Ford, improving nine positions.

The Kia K900 — Kia’s range topping luxury car — set an all time high and won AutoPacific’s President’s Award. This award is given only when the overall score tops the previous high score. Interestingly, the all-new aluminum bodied Ford F-150 would have won the award if the Kia was not in the running. The previous President’s Award winners were the 2014 Mercedes S-Class and the 2010 Hyundai Sonata.

With five winning vehicles, including the top ranking Kia K900, Korean manufacturers Kia and Hyundai come out on top in combined average score, taking over the position previously held by European manufacturers. “Kia and Hyundai are continually improving owner satisfaction in key areas like reliability and quality, yet are also hitting the mark with safety, braking, handling, styling and seat comfort, not to mention a very satisfying warranty program,” explained Peterson.

AutoPacific’s Vehicle Satisfaction Awards objectively measure owner satisfaction with 50 separate attributes ranging from interior comfort and styling to fuel economy and performance.

“In many cases, an extremely satisfying vehicle is not the car or truck that has the best absolute build quality or the best safety rating,” says Peterson. “VSAs look at the big picture, which includes owners’ experiences with their vehicle’s quality and safety, but also goes deeper into the heart of the ownership experience.”