(March 24, 2011) SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (PRNewswire) — Toyota's Perceived Quality Score rose four percent over the last six months and Lexus once again captured the luxury category's highest Perceived Quality rating in 2011, according to the Spring 2011 Perceived Quality Study (PQS) from ALG, a subsidiary of DealerTrack Holdings, Inc.

The study also shows that Land Rover (up 2.5 percent) and Kia (up 5.6 percent) experienced the biggest gains in perception among luxury and mainstream brands respectively.

"The continued rebound of Toyota is a testament to the brand's solid reputation for quality and ownership loyalty. Toyota isn't out of the woods yet, however, as the company faces the repercussions of another large recall earlier this year," states Eric Lyman, director, Residual Value Solutions, ALG. 

"We also see the success of Land Rover being fueled by the growing popularity of its driver-oriented Range Rover Sport and the Evoque, helping the brand slowly notch perception improvements. For Kia, the consumer quality recognition is the payoff for a recent revolution in product quality and design supported by aggressive marketing campaigns."

For its PQS, ALG surveys approximately 3,000-4,000 U.S. consumers twice a year to gauge perceptions of a number of luxury and mainstream automotive brands. According to Lyman, "Perception is a powerful force in consumer buying behavior. Our PQS has become the barometer by which the automotive retail industry measures consumer perceptions and beliefs.  A negative perception can dramatically affect a brand's entire lineup, while a positive perception can boost sales tremendously."

Additional highlights from the survey include: in the luxury category, Lexus topped the charts with an overall PQS of 83 (out of 100) followed by Mercedes (82.7 and -1.4 percent vs. the Fall 2010 Study), BMW (80.2; +1.7 percent), Porsche (79.7; - 0.6 percent) and Acura (78.1; +0.9 percent).

Honda (81.2; -0.2 percent) once again led the mainstream brands and Toyota (73.5; +4.0 percent) rebounded from a firestorm of negative publicity early last year to finish the year strong.  Ford Trucks (71.2; +1.9 percent), Subaru (70.6; +2.5 percent) and Nissan (69.8; +1.2 percent) finished third, fourth and fifth, respectively, in the mainstream category.

The complete list with scores and details is available at ALG.