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Highest Honor in Customer Satisfaction Awarded to Pioneer for Its Outstanding Navigation System

DETROIT--Pioneer Automotive Technologies, Inc. was recognized for having the highest customer satisfaction in a factory-installed navigation system for the Lincoln Zephyr according to the 2006 J.D. Power and Associates Navigation System Usage and Satisfaction StudySM. As the undisputed brand leader in aftermarket in-dash navigation systems with more than 60 percent market share in the United States, Pioneer hit a home run with its first factory-installed system designed for a specific North American vehicle. In addition to receiving the highest ranking for the Lincoln Zephyr, three additional Pioneer navigation systems, out of four tested, ranked among the top 20 in the nation. The study looked at ease of use, routing, system appearance, speed of system, voice directions and navigation display screen.

Navigation systems are the future of in-car entertainment and information, said Steven Moerner, president and COO of Pioneer Automotive Technologies, Inc. Our planning and development team worked very closely with Ford Motor Companys engineering team in tailoring our product for their specific Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles. We are extremely pleased that the owners of the Lincoln Zephyr rated their Pioneer systems so well and we hope that many more consumers will soon be able to experience the benefits of having a navigation system from Pioneer in their vehicle.

The navigation system in the Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ includes the following:

  • DVD-based system covers the entire United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands
  • 6.5-inch high quality touch screen display with enhanced graphics
  • Voice recognition capability
  • Millions of points of interest (POI) in 42 different categories including ATMs, restaurants and gas stations
  • Voice street prompts for audible pronunciation of specific street names during planned routes
  • Automatic rerouting

Exceptional remarks were also given to three additional Pioneer navigation systems. The Ford Freestyle, Ford Explorer and Ford Five Hundred with navigation systems supplied by Pioneer were among the top 20 ranked for high customer satisfaction.

Our passion at Pioneer is to provide the very best experience for navigation consumers, whether they purchase a new vehicle with our J.D. Power and Associates recognized factory-installed system or add one of our aftermarket navigation products to a vehicle they already own, adds Moerner.

The Pioneer brand was the first navigation system for cars in 1990 with the AVIC-1. The original CD-based unit has since been surpassed by DVD-based and hard drive navigation systems, which offer much faster routing and increased feature content for consumers. Some of Pioneers navigation products also feature real-time traffic information to help users avoid congestion from road closures, accidents and heavy traffic.