FOR THE fifth consecutive year Lexus has topped the brand league in the influential JD Power and Associates/What Car? magazine 2005 Car Customer Satisfaction Index.

But Honda's Jazz topped the model table for the second year running, helping the car-maker with substantial British production to third place overall, behind Skoda.

Mini, which is included in the study for only the second year, is the most-improved brand with an increase of 19 index points in its total score, taking it to sixth place in the overall rankings.

Owners of the Mini, built in Oxford, report substantial improvements in the brand's quality and reliability.

Mini is one of five British-built cars in the top 20, matching the number of Japanese-built models ranked at the top of the study.

With a score of 848 index points (on a 1,000-point scale), Lexus retains its position as the most satisfying brand to own. Czech carmaker Skoda closely follows Lexus in second place with 847 index points.

Honda ranks third with 843 index points, a 14-point increase from 2004.

In the model rankings, the Honda Jazz ranks as the top model for the second consecutive year, scoring significantly higher than any other model.

Three other Honda models place in the top 20, including the Swindon-made Civic and CR-V. The Lexus IS 200/300 was placed second among the 124 models, and the Toyota Yaris ranked third.

Japanese brands do not dominate the 2005 model rankings as they have in previous years, with ten Japanese models ranking in the top 20, compared to 14 in 2004.

"This year's results show that the competition is getting tighter," said Dave Sargent, executive director of European operations at JD Power and Associates.

"While Lexus still leads, other brands are improving quickly, and many of the best performances this year are achieved by models from brands such as Honda, Toyota, Skoda, Mini and Kia.

"It is encouraging for UK motorists that good-quality, satisfying cars come in all shapes and sizes and at all price levels.

"Also, many of the leading models, including some from Japanese brands, are built right here in the UK."

Among the 17 brands ranked above the overall industry average, seven are nameplates from Japan, with other nameplates from the UK, Germany, Sweden, Czech Republic and Korea also ranking above the average.

The 2005 JD Power and Associates/What Car? study is based on the evaluations of more than 23,000 owners of 52 and 03 registration vehicles after an average of two years of ownership.

The study includes 32 brands and 124 models. Owners provide detailed evaluations of their vehicles and selling dealers, which covers 77 attributes grouped into four main factors of satisfaction.

The importance of each factor is shown as a percentage:

n Quality and Reliability (30%).

n Vehicle Appeal (28%) includes performance, design, comfort and feature.

n Dealer Service Satisfaction (22%).

n Ownership Costs (19%) includes fuel consumption, insurance and costs of service/repair.

The annual JD Power and Associates/What Car? study is designed to help manufacturers provide high levels of satisfaction to their customers, and gives consumers access to reliable and accurate information about many different vehicle models.