PRIMEDIA's IntelliChoice announced Oct. 29 the winners of the fifth annual ranking of certified pre-owned vehicle programs. The list of winners reveals that manufacturers are responding to consumers' desire for quality pre-owned cars, according to Intellichoice.

Overall, Honda Certified Used Cars was judged the best Non-Luxury program and Jaguar Select Edition the best Luxury program. This is the fifth year in a row that Honda has had the best program in the Non-Luxury class. Jaguar has achieved this honor in four out of the past five years.

Programs are evaluated based on how well they match up with consumer preferences, according to Intellichoice. Major areas of analysis include the inspection lists, warranties, title verification, availability of special financing, roadside assistance benefits, and return/exchange policies. Since the target markets are different between Luxury and Non-Luxury vehicles, the 24 different manufacturer sponsored programs available have been split into two classes - Luxury and Non-Luxury.

Top Certified Pre-Owned Programs - Luxury

1 Jaguar

2 Volvo

3 Lincoln

4 Acura

5 Saab

Top Certified Pre-Owned Programs - Non-Luxury

1 Honda

2 Volkswagen

3 Chrsyler/Dodge/Jeep

4 Ford/Mercury

4 Mazda

The most important considerations for consumers shopping for certified pre-owned vehicles are the warranties and inspections offered by the manufacturers, according to Intellichoice. In the luxury class, Jaguar was named Best Warranty, and tied with Land Rover for the best inspection list. In the Non-Luxury class, Volkswagen has the Best Warranty and Ford and Mercury tie for the best Inspection.

"We continue to improve the quality of this analysis," said Dave Wurster, publisher of PRIMEDIA's IntelliChoice. "This year we've incorporated new consumer research to better reflect the program attributes that are most valued by consumers."

In addition to Honda and Jaguar, other notable performances include:

• Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep is the top ranked Non-Luxury domestic program for the second year in a row.

  
  

  
  

  
  

• Ford Motor Company has six brands ranked among the leaders. There are three in the Luxury class (Jaguar, Volvo, Lincoln) and three in the Non Luxury class (Ford, Mercury, Mazda).

  
  

  
  

  
  

• Volkswagen, based on the strength of their warranty and inspection list, has moved into the second spot in the Non Luxury class.

  
  

  
  

  
  

• Both American Honda brands (Honda and Acura) are among the leaders in their respective classes.

  
  

  
  

  
  

• Saab has moved into the top five for the Luxury class in the first year the IntelliChoice has included them in its analysis.

  
  

  
  

  According to John Cobb, PRIMEDIA's vice president general manager automotive and action sports interest group, "It's very important that consumers understand the value of the manufacturer sponsored Certified Pre-Owned Programs. This continues to be a growing trend in the marketplace. We are happy to be able to provide this information on over 50 sites throughout the PRIMEDIA Automotive Network including www.motortrend.com add www.automobile.com."

  
  

  PRIMEDIA's IntelliChoice maintains a summary of the 24 evaluated programs on its Web site at www.intellichoice.com/preowned/pre-main.cfm.

  
  

  About PRIMEDIA's IntelliChoice

  
  

  Founded in 1986, PRIMEDIA's IntelliChoice develops and distributes consumer automobile ownership data, ratings of vehicles based on their consumer value, leasing cost data and Certified Pre-Owned Program analysis.

  
  

  More information can be found at www.intellichoice.com.

  
  

  About PRIMEDIA

  
  

  PRIMEDIA is a targeted media company with positions in consumer and business-to-business markets.

  
  

  With 2002 sales from continuing businesses of $1.5 billion, PRIMEDIA bills itself as the #1 special interest magazine publisher in the U.S. with more than 250 titles.

  
  

  More information about the company can be found at www.primedia.com.