In a surprising revelation, Fiat stood second to Maruti in an independent customer satisfaction study conducted by JD Power and Associates. While Maruti holds its position for the 11th consecutive year, Fiat has gained tremendously after being on the wrong side for reasons as poor after-sales and service support. Maruti held the row at the top spot with 849 points, well above the industry average of 812 points. Fiat is followed by Honda and Hyundai. However, despite an improvement of around 40 points in 2010 as compared to 2009, manufacturers like Fiat, Hyundai and Skoda continue to aspire for higher scores.
Rating is based on evaluation in five fields covering service quality, vehicle pick-up, service advisor, service facility and service initiation. Mahindra-Renault, which is still in the poll, is at the bottom of the chart. Their rankings should improve as Mahindra has taken control over the Logan brand.
On the 27-point-rise in the national average over last year, J.D. Power Asia Pacific executive director Mohit Arora said that it reflected the success of manufacturers in India in enhancing the customer experience at their dealerships.
JD Power also said that highly satisfied customers with overall service performance show more loyalty to both dealerships and the brand. The study this year is based on responses from over 5,800 owners of more than 60 different models. It was conducted between May and August this year and includes customers, who had purchased their vehicles between May 2008 and August 2009.
