Aug. 18--Consumer satisfaction with domestic automobiles is at an all-time high, and now equals satisfaction levels for Japanese products, according to the latest check by a University of Michigan group.

The American Customer Satisfaction Index, based on a survey in April, May and June nationwide of about 10,000 respondents, checks in on the automobile industry in the second quarter of each year. The quarterly update also measures satisfaction on other goods such as appliances, TVs and personal computers.

Customer satisfaction with automobiles jumped two points to an all-time high of 84 on a scale of 100. Ford, up five points, enjoyed the greatest gain, followed by Chrysler, up four points, and General Motors up two points.

Meanwhile, Cadillac, along with Lexus, led the industry in customer satisfaction with a high score of 89, with Cadillac gaining almost 5 percent and Lexus gaining 2 percent.

"Rising contentment with the automobile industry led the way for an increase in the overall index, particularly among the American brands, which now equal Asian vehicles for the first time in a decade," according to the researchers' analysis of the survey results.

If it seems odd that customers would seem so satisfied at the same time that two of Detroit's Big Three automakers were working through bankruptcy issues, the researchers have a theory.

Part of the reason satisfaction has improved so dramatically is that a good number of the domestic lines lost at least half of their customers last year, including Buick, Cadillac, Lincoln, Mercury, Jeep and Chrysler.

With fewer customers, the domestics had more time and energy to zero in on a smaller, more satisfied base of customers that's "easier to defend against competitive brands," according to the Michigan researchers.

The shift also may help prepare the automakers for the future. The domestic brands are all basing plans for survival and profitability based on much lower production figures.

With lower plant capacity left after a series of closings and actions taken during the recession and bankruptcy proceedings, lower wages paid to fewer workers and lower "legacy costs" such as health insurance for employees, it should be easier for the Big Three to make a profit.

That will leave more resources for continued improvements in quality control, more money for customer service programs, and more time and energy that can be focused by dealers and service departments taking care of fewer automobiles, said David Van Amburg, managing director of the study.