MUMBAI, OCT 25: Honda Siel Cars has raced ahead to bag the top spot in the 1999 India Customer Satisfaction Study conducted by JD Power & Associates pipping to the post Daewoo Motors India, Maruti Udyog and General Motors. Telco, which developed the first indigenous car, failed to meet the aspirations of the customer and was placed at the eighth spot, just above Hindustan Motors in the India Customer Satisfaction index of 1999.Honda Siel scored a customer satisfaction index (CSI) of 121, Daewoo 116, Maruti 112 and GM 109. Hindustan Motors managed a CSI of 89 and Telco 98. The HM rating, however, does not include the consumer satisfaction for the Mitsubishi Lancer. Ford, which topped the satisfaction rankings for two consecutive years, has been relegated to the fifth position with a CSI of 104, Mahindra & Mahindra 103 and Fiat India 101.
However, Mitsubishi Lancer has been adjudged winner in the 1999 JD Power India Initial Quality Study, pushing last year's winner Honda City to the second spot. The Lancertopped the league with 124 problems per 100 vehicles, followed Honda City 151 problems, Daewoo Matiz 153 problems, Santro 193 problems and Fiat Siena 202 problems. Indica from Telco was at the bottom of the table, ranking much lower than Maruti 800, Zen, Maruti Omni and even Tata Sumo with 396 problems per 100 vehicles. The industry average is 319 problems per 100 vehicles.
JD Power & Associates, a pioneer in drawing up satisfaction index in the automobile industry, evaluates the automobile companies and vehicles based on four crucial parameters - problems experienced, service advisor, service performance, service timing and facility appearance. The 1999 survey evaluated responses from 2,200 self-driven customers who purchased their cars between January and September last year.
The "problems experienced" category has been given the maximum weightage with 35 per cent, followed by service advisor 28 per cent and service performance 26 per cent. The survey provides a weightage of six per cent on servicetiming, while facility appearance has been accorded a five per cent weightage.
Honda has topped four out of the five parameters that determine the CSI ranking with a 73 per cent owners confirming that the car had not faced repair problems during the first 12-18 months of ownership. Daewoo Motors, however, took the prime slot in the "service advisor" category, which conveys that the first point contact person in the organisation played a pivotal role.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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