Tesla Owners Stay True To Their Cars, While GM Retains The Most Loyal Customers

General Motors GM consumers are most loyal to the manufacturer while Tesla Inc. TSLA vehicle owners are most loyal to the vehicle make, according to automotive research firm S&P Global Mobility.

What Happened: S&P Global Mobility announced the winners of its automotive loyalty awards earlier this week based on a review of 13.1 million new retail vehicle registrations in the U.S. from January to December 2024. Overall, loyalty rates increased year-on-year for the third time in a row in 2024, the firm said. More consumers are remaining with their previous brand when purchasing a new vehicle, the firm noted.

While GM won the award for overall loyalty to the manufacturer, Tesla won the award for overall loyalty to the make. Both companies are repeat winners, having bagged loyalty awards in 2023.

Lincoln Corsair, manufactured by Ford Motor Co. F, won the award for overall loyalty to the model.

Why It Matters: "While brand loyalty is still below pre-pandemic levels, we are starting to see a consistent trend of customers going back to the brands they are familiar with," said Joe LaFeir, President, Automotive Insights, S&P Global Mobility. "This will be important as we navigate a period of uncertainty in our industry assessing tariff and trade impacts on vehicle demand, making retention an even greater indicator of brand health."

President Donald Trump has proposed 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, slated to be effective on March. 4. The move is expected to impact the automotive industry significantly as GM and Ford manufacture some of their vehicles in Mexico and also have supply chains that depend on cross-border component movement.

"There's no question that tariffs at 25% level from Canada, Mexico, if they're protracted, would have a huge impact on our industry, with billions of dollars of industry profits wiped out and adverse effect on the US jobs as well as the entire value system in our industry. Tariffs would also mean higher prices for customers," Ford CEO Jim Farley said earlier this month.

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