Asian-brand dealers are happiest, survey finds
Mark Rechtin | |
Automotive News | 6:00 am, July 31, 2006
LOS ANGELES -- Domestic-brand dealers are unhappy with the state of their franchises, according to the latest Dealer Attitude Survey conducted by the National Automobile Dealers Association.
The only domestic brands that finished above average in the survey were Hummer, Saturn and Cadillac.
The survey, taken last winter, measures franchised dealers' satisfaction with their manufacturer's policies, field and headquarters staff and franchise value.
Ford and most of its luxury brands took a pounding, with Ford, Lincoln-Mercury and Jaguar at the bottom of the franchise standings. By contrast, major Asian brands grabbed the top seven spots.
In a recent interview, Cisco Codina, Ford's group vice president of North American marketing, sales and service, said improving dealer profitability is Ford's most pressing concern regarding its retailers. The average profit of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury dealers fell nearly 10 percent during the first four months of 2006 compared with the same period of 2005.
While there is "no silver bullet here," Codina said, Ford is working on a number of ways to improve retail sales and overall results. He was not speaking specifically of the NADA survey results.
According to NADA's published report of the rankings in AutoExec magazine, GM's brands may have been the victim of bad timing. Dealers got the surveys during the sales backlash after the employee-pricing program ended.
Satisfaction scores of Chrysler group brands fell because the factory forced excess inventory onto dealer lots.
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Domestic doldrums
Here’s how dealers graded their franchises in the latest NADA Dealer Attitude Survey. The scores are on a 100-point scale.
Lexus 96
Scion 90.9
Toyota 88.1
Honda 85.1
Acura 83.1
Hyundai 80.5
Nissan 80
Hummer 78.9
BMW 76.4
Suzuki 75.8
Infiniti 75.7
Land Rover 75.5
Saturn 75.3
Cadillac 74.3
Volvo 74.1
Mazda 73.5
Porsche 71.5
Industry avg. 71.2
Jeep 71.2
Kia 70.9
Chrysler 70.8
Mini 70.6
Mercedes-Benz 70.5
GMC 70.1
Subaru 70
Dodge 69
Chevrolet 68.1
Saab 67.9
Mitsubishi 66.8
Pontiac 65.8
Buick 65.5
Lincoln-Mercury 63.8
Ford 63.7
Audi 63.5
VW 57.8
Jaguar 56
Isuzu 42.9
Source: NADA
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With sales of Japanese and Korean brands surging, it was little surprise that those brands dominated the top of the survey.
Finishing a surprising second place in its debut performance was Scion, Toyota's youth brand. In finishing behind Lexus and ahead of the Toyota Division, Scion showed that a low-volume, low-margin brand could make dealers happy.
Scion Vice President Mark Templin said the brand's low-pressure, one-price policy "has become a much easier way to deal with customers."
Another big improvement came from Suzuki, which vaulted seven positions in overall attitude.
In most cases, sales performance had a lot to do with where a brand finished. High-flying brands often did well, although Kia, Mini and Mercedes-Benz all finished below average in the overall standings.
You may e-mail Mark Rechtin at mrechtin@crain.com
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