Nissan Leads All Automakers for Dealership Customer Satisfaction
According to the latest J.D. Powers 2003 Customer Service Index Study the need to repair new cars on warranty has lessened.
This is good news for the consumer, relieved of the hassle of repair work, and manufacturer, who has to pay the brunt of the costs via warranty programs, but dealers have had to rely more on income generated by routine maintenance - which is hardly as lucrative.
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| Nissan's luxury brand, Infiniti, snatched top stop from Saturn, who was last year's leader. (Photo: Nissan Motors) |
The numbers are as follows: routine maintenance has increased to 57 percent of total dealership service trips compared to 47 percent in 1999. This might have a fair bit to do with dealership customer satisfaction levels increasing too, up 8 points from 843 in 2002 to 851 this year. This is the fourth consecutive year of improvement in this sector.
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| Suzuki was named most improved nameplate for 2003, followed by Audi, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Mitsubishi. (Photo: Suzuki) |
Last year's highest ranking brand in dealership customer satisfaction was Saturn, which slipped to second place in 2003 behind luxury brand Infiniti, a division of Japanese number 2 automaker Nissan. Premium brands Acura (Honda), Lexus (Toyota) and Lincoln (Ford) are in a dead heat for third place.
The most improved nameplate for 2003 is Suzuki, with Audi, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Mitsubishi not far behind.