Lexus dealers top
August 28th, 2009 by Richard Aucock
WHICH? Car’s annual dealer satisfaction survey has rated Lexus top of the class for the 5th year running.
The consumer body says Lexus dealers are virtually untouchable, both in sales and servicing.
Indeed, one customer, it reports, said ‘even the coffee was great’.
But equally praised was Daihatsu in second place; showing, said Which? Car, ‘that size isn’t everything’. Honda was a reliable third, fittingly – its cars top the reliability tables.
And the last-place brands for sales and service? Well, it’s bad news for Chrysler, Jeep and Fiat car dealers…
The survey doesn’t just rate owner satisfaction, though. It also looks at prices.
Here, Which? has found something contrary to yesterday’s Vauxhall MasterFit news, too – independents are both ‘usually cheaper’ than main dealers, while owners are ‘almost always more satisfied with a local garage.’
Indeed, Vauxhall was singed out for criticism – owners were said to rate independents ‘much better than the brand’s main dealers’… 15 percent higher, in fact.
Not that this was a worry for Daihatsu owners. They were just as happy using franchised service outlets as independents. But they were the only ones…
Which? Car editor, Richard Headland, said that ‘after a house, a car’s the next biggest purchase you’re likely to make in your lifetime, so you’ve a right to expect a high level of service.
‘Lexus works hard to give its customers what they want, and staff go out of their way to be helpful. If they can do it, there’s no reason why other brands can’t follow suit.’
His advice for servicing was even more blunt; ‘the message for drivers is simple – if your main dealer lets you down, why not try a good independent garage instead?’
Maker disproves service ‘myth’
Tags: aftersales, chrysler, daihatsu, Fiat, Honda, jeep, lexus, wich car