IRVINE, Calif. — The brands seeing the biggest upswing in owner loyalty during the initial aftermath of the Toyota recalls are Korean and Big 3 automakers, according to Kelley Blue Book's Kbb.com, which also pointed out that brand consideration and loyalty for Toyota has eroded.

More specifically, Kia and Hyundai appear to show the steepest upward movement.

Specifically, consideration for Kia among owners is currently at 56.1 percent, up 17.1 percentage points from the fourth quarter of 2009.

Hyundai's consideration among its own customer base is up 10.5 percentage points to 56.5 percent.

Meanwhile, Chevrolet's loyalty has climbed to 52.5 percent, an upswing of 6.5 percentage points from the fourth quarter. Ford is at 48.9 percent, a 4.6-point gain.

"The latest Kelley Blue Book Market Intelligence data from Kbb.com suggests great news for Korean and domestic American automakers which are now seeing the initial signs of more repeat customers and increased brand loyalty," stated James Bell, executive market analyst for Kbb.com.

"Current owners of vehicles from the likes of Kia, Hyundai, Ford and Chevrolet are likely impressed with the latest round of new models they see debuting from these manufacturers, and this indication toward increased loyalty should translate well to the bottom line of these manufacturers in the near future," he added.

Conversely, Toyota has seen a drop-off not only in the level of loyalty from Toyota owners, but in owners of other brands looking to buy a Toyota.

Loyalty among Toyota owners has dipped to 51 percent, a 6.5-percentage-point decline. 

Meanwhile, consideration for Toyota among other brands' owners has fallen anywhere from 5 to 8 percentage points.

As far as current Toyota owners, KBB Market Intelligence suggested that they are becoming more interested in Ford, Hyundai and Kia instead of Toyota. Interestingly enough, though, they are also becoming less interested in rival Japanese brands like Honda or Nissan.

"This finding is the most interesting of all," explained Jack Nerad, executive editorial director, KBB and Kbb.com.

"One might have guessed Toyota owners would switch their allegiance to other Japanese brands, but instead they seem to be turning away from Japanese brands as a category," he added. "It's just another indication of the far-reaching effects of these recall-related issues."