Each year J.D. Power & Associates does a study that examines the most appealing cars to consumers and this year there is one big surprise. The Hyundai Genesis sedan topped the BMW 5 Series and Jaguar XF in the mid-sized luxury segment for the 2009 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study.

The APEAL Study is based off of owner evaluations of over 80,900 new car consumers from February to May 2009 and takes into account over 90 factors and generally evaluates how those buyers or leasers feel about their car new car.

Other winners include the VW Passat in the Mid-sized car segment, the Nissan Maxima in the Large Car segment, the Honda Odyssey in the Minivan Segment, a tie between the Ford F-150 and Chevrolet Avalanche in the Pickup Truck segment and the Smart fortwo in the Sub-compact Car segment. And on that note, we urge you to take the list with a grain of salt, as the Smart beat out cars like the Honda Fit.

In terms of manufacturers, Porsche topped the list for the fifth consecutive year, while domestic brands like Dodge, Pontiac, Buick and Cadillac showed the most improvement. As a manufacturer Cadillac placed third overall.

Overall, scores for 2009 improved over 2008, due mostly to improvements in the fuel-economy segment. J.D. Power lists three contributing factors to this increase: improved fuel-economy of the vehicles; an increase in ownership of fuel-efficient cars, with over 50 percent (as compared to 39 percent in 2008) of the surveyed vehicles powered by four-cylinder engines; and a drop in fuel prices that has also meant consumers are less interested in fuel economy.

One other trend that has emerged is the increasing appeal of domestic brands, as they ranked, on average, just five points below import brands. This compares to a difference of 15 points last year and 27 points in 2007.

GALLERY: J.D. Power 2009 APEAL Study

Official release:

The Lexus LS460, Rated the Best Overall Car by Consumer Reports for 2008

Consumer Reports has just released its list of the best cars in each class and the Japanese are dominating with 8 vehicles (out of 10) in the top spots. CR says it bases its results on three variables: Road Tests, Reliability and Safety.

For a car to be a top pick it must have ranked at the top of its class in an overall test score, which includes 50 individual tests. A Car must also have an average of better predicted reliability rating and must perform “adequately” in safety tests by the NHTSA or IIHS. Consumer Reports also stipulates that for any car to be a top pick it must have stability control (ESC).

And The Winners are:

Best Overall: Lexus LS460

-powerful, good fuel-economy,uncompromising luxury

Best Family Sedan: Honda Accord

-Roomy, well-rounded and fun to drive, plus ESC (Altima bested Accord in most tests but not all Altimas come with ESC)

Best Pickup Truck: Chevrolet Avalanche

-functional and comfortable

Best Small SUV: Toyota Rav4

-roomy and quiet, good on gas with 4 or 6-cyl, third row seat available

Best Midsized SUV: Toyota Highlander

-quiet, three rows of seats, decent fuel economy, versatile, AWD optional, Hybrid available

Best Minivan: Toyota Sienna

-versatile, seating for 8, rivals luxury cars for interior, AWD optional

Best Small Car: Hyundai Elantra

-comfortable and roomy wih good fuel economy, ESC on SE model

Best Green Car: Toyota Prius

-Prius wins six years running

Best UpScale Sedan: Infiniti G37

-Agile, great interior, AWD optional, luxury and sport all in one.

Best Fun to Drive Car: Mazda MX-5 Miata

-Tied Boxster in testing but costs half as much

[Source: Consumer Reports]