JD Power Customer Satisfaction Survey Results: Dealer Service

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by The Detroit News Auto Insider »J.D. Power customer satisfaction surveyLincoln dealers No. 1 in serviceFord's premium brand takes top honors for the second year in a row, edging Cadillac, Saturn.By Christine Tierney / The Detroit NewsOwners of Ford Motor Co.'s premium Lincoln brand were the most satisfied with their dealer service for the second year in a row -- the first time a domestic brand has won top honors in two consecutive years, according to marketing consultants J.D. Power and Associates.Three of the four top-scoring brands were domestic, as General Motors Corp.'s Cadillac and Saturn were ranked second and third by customers who took in vehicles for maintenance or repairs during the first three years of ownership.Toyota Motor Corp.'s premium Lexus brand was the highest-rated import marque. But the automaker's Toyota-brand dealer service was ranked below average, although its score improved slightly in J.D. Power's 2005 Customer Service Index study over last year.Lincoln's CSI score rose to a record 915 points from 912 last year, with customers praising the fairness of prices charged for repairs and maintenance and the timeliness.The top-rated domestic brands' strong showing is welcome news for Detroit's automakers. This week, GM and Ford reported losses for the second quarter on North American automotive operations.According to J.D. Power, high satisfaction levels with dealer service helps manufacturers by bolstering their customers' loyalty."We have direct research that tells you that if you take care of the customer and do it quickly and efficiently and right the first time, they're loyal," said Al Giombetti, president of Ford's Lincoln Mercury division.The big challenge for Detroit's automakers now is to recapture lost customers and draw new ones."The domestics are pretty strong on loyalty but relatively weak on conquest, and it's the combination of loyalty and conquest that determines your market share," said Chris Denove, a partner at J.D. Power.Among the report's findings was that recalls provide an opportunity to boost customer satisfaction when dealers carry out repairs or parts replacements promptly."As negative as recalls are for manufacturers, they provide dealerships with opportunities to excel in service and make a positive impact on their customers," said Steve Witten, executive director of J.D. Power's auto retail research."When a vehicle is fixed quickly and correctly in one visit, customers tend to walk away with higher satisfaction. This typically occurs with recall work since the dealers are prepared to work on the specific problem," Witten said.About half of the repair work cited in the study involved recalled vehicles, up from 39 percent in 2004, reflecting tighter government regulations on the reporting of safety defects. The average CSI score for 2005 -- 871 -- was up fractionally over last year. Isuzu was the lowest-scoring brand, with 810 points out of 1,000.The study's findings were based on responses from 99,550 owners and lessees of 2002 to 2004 model-year vehicles.A similar J.D. Power survey, of owners of four- and five-year-old vehicles, found high satisfaction levels with the service provided by Honda Motor Co.'s Acura, Cadillac, Nissan Motor Co.'s Infiniti and Lexus dealers. Cars of that age are typically past the manufacturer's warranty. By the time a car is five years old, only around half the owners still go to a dealer for service.You can reach Christine Tierney at (313) 222-1463 or ctierney@ detnews.com.Source:http://www.detnews.com/2005/au...1.htmRagingCommentary: From my experiences - and what others have said about their experiences - at a Toyota service department, I can't say I'm surprised they trail pretty far behind.

[ArcsVibe]

You know the import guys are going to say its rigged lol Pontiac ahead of Toyota????

[Mavrik]

At least Subaru beat out Toyota hahaha.Its all in the mods...

[ArcsVibe]

You know times are tough at VW when Kia does better than you!

[jimincalif]

Goes to show how individual dealers and customers's experiences can vary. My own, personal, not statistically valid ratings:Lexus 900Toyota 600Nissan Dealer #1 100Nissan Dealer #2 650Pontiac 500Ford (3 separate dealers) 100

[kep427]

I've had 3 toyotas before gettiing the Vibe. In Sacramento, the service at Florin Rd (and it's sister-Elk Grove) Toyota have been amazingly great. In contrast, the service at Elk Grove Pontiac has been my worst experience bar none (and I've been having cars serviced for 30 years). I started taking my Vibe to a dealer 20 miles away (Braily-Graham in Sacramento) to get decent service.These experiences do not jibe with the "all knowing" at J.D. Powers....

[Atomic]

Lincoln and Cadillac, well, OK.These aren't low dollar vehicles, so the dealers should be kissing (removed).Eight of the first nine, I can understand.SATURN? No way. We will NEVER own another one after this one pukes.Oh, wait a minute. I should have factored in the cult behaviour. LOLThe dealership we got my wife's car from, has treated us with the same disrespectful service crap that is typical of the Big Three US guys.Different kind of company? Not different enough to me.Toyota so far down? Maybe they got arrogant.And everyone had better watch the Kia's and any of the new Chinese automakers.They aren't selling their cars here, YET.I was at a customer's plant today, and saw several brochures for some of the Chinese vehicles for which they make parts.One was a dead ringer for a C-class Mercedes sedan, complete with hood ornament!I saw another for a Vibe/Matrix looking vehicle, unfortunately I can't read Chinese, so I can't relay any details. And isn't Oldsmobile dead?

[ZubenElGenubi]

Using jimincalif's system:Toyota: 850Pontiac: 100Ford: 700Toyota got bonus points for persistance on my wife's RAV4 after two separate, unrelated service issues which they eventually took care of.Ford lost points because their service turnaround is slowPontiac got points only because the Service Manager finally stepped up and helped take care of my last body repair.Hopefully, I'll find a new dealership to work with before the warranty expires in about a year.

[ColonelPanic]

What a rigged survey! They put Hyundai right under Toyota, that's just a crime! And Honda below Pontiac? Blasphemy! lmaoQuote »From my experiences - and what others have said about their experiences - at a Toyota service department, I can't say I'm surprised they trail pretty far behind.I couldn't agree with you more... I've had rotten luck with Pontiac, but with the very little I have seen with the local toyota dealers, they're actually much worse! At least with Pontiac, I've had people screw me over with a smile... Toyota has looked at me like "(removed) are you here for? Our cars don't have problems, so get out!!!" when trying to ask simple questions... lol

[Reynoma]

I find it interesting that Mercury ranked several places lower than Lincoln. I think the large majority of dealers have both, so they are servicing both. Do the dealers really treat their Lincoln customers better than their Mercury customers? Makes me think about how I get treated when I bring my Mercury Villager in for service. I was never really happy with the experience. I guess if I had purchased a Town Car, my feelings would have been different?