Auto dealerships are receiving steadily improving marks among new-car and light-truck shoppers, according to independent national surveys.

A 2002 Consumer Reports annual reader survey on dealership satisfaction, published in a spring edition of the magazine, found that 93 percent of new-car buyers ranked their overall buying and dealership experiences from "very" to "moderately" satisfied. The new survey shows a 9 percent gain in customer satisfaction since 1995, and a 1.2 percent climb from last year.

This upward trend is also reflected in surveys conducted by the Gallup Organization and Wirthlin Worldwide. Together, the two polling groups found that more than 90 percent of new-car buyers were satisfied with their dealership experiences in 2001 - up from 85 percent in 1998.

These positive findings for the auto retail industry stand in contrast to the "rampant" problem of poor customer service in many retail and service industries, as reported by the research group Public Agenda in a survey this year.