ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, June 19, 1996 TAG: 9606190051
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MEGAN SCHNABEL
MORE INFORMATION from the media and Net raised auto consumers' demands, a survey says.
Auto dealers take note: Car-buying Americans aren't as happy with you as they used to be.
J.D. Power and Associates, an independent marketing firm that sells information to the auto industry, last week released the results of its 1995 survey of consumers' satisfaction with their dealership experiences. The numbers suggest consumers are getting harder to please.
The average score this year was 119 points, down from 122 a year ago. The survey was started in 1987, with an average industry score of 100.
It's only a three-point drop, but this was the first time in the 10 years Power has conducted the survey that overall satisfaction has declined. The study measures satisfaction with the salesperson, the delivery and the condition of the car upon delivery.
Saturn and Lexus buyers reported the best experiences at dealerships last year; each earned a score of 154. A total of 21 automakers ranked above the industry average, while 16 fell below the average.
According to Power, the new report is "the first measurable indication of consumer frustration with the traditional approach to new vehicle sales."
One reason consumers are less satisfied, Power says, is that they have access to more information on new cars and prices today than they used to, thanks to the media and the Internet. So consumers are more likely to know - even before they walk through the dealership door - what model they want and how much they're willing to pay for it. If a salesman doesn't meet their expectations, consumers get frustrated.
Consumers also may have visited used-car superstores such as CarMax, a unit of Circuit City Stores Inc. that operates used-car superstores in several Southeastern cities. These stores, which are more like Wal-Mart than neighborhood dealerships, offer low-pressure, no-haggle used-car buying.
But another reason, said Fred McElmurray, sales manager of Saturn of Roanoke Valley, is that customers are demanding more.
"As we do better, we make their expectations higher," he said. "You kind of reach a plateau."
Saturn, known for its no-haggle pricing policy and low-pressure sales, also was ranked No.1 last year but with a higher score of 160.
Some automakers and dealers had been slowly implementing changes in the way they do business before the survey results ever were released.
The Infiniti division of Nissan Motor Corp., for instance, announced last week that it will be working with its dealers to meet Internet and superstore challenges. The drive, which is accompanied by a new "Thinking of You" ad campaign, includes:
* Expansion of roadside assistance and service loaner car support;
* A policy to assure consumers that, if the nationally promoted price of a new vehicle is reduced within 30 days after purchase, the difference will be refunded; and
* More training for salespeople.
Infiniti - No.5 on the Power survey, with a score of 145 - also is introducing a "consumer-based" pricing plan to bring sticker prices into line with what people actually will pay.
Other dealers, under pressure from manufacturers, have been instituting similar no-haggle policies and refurbishing their facilities to include more comfortable waiting rooms and new play areas for kids, said Donna Reichle, a spokeswoman for the National Automobile Dealers Association, a trade group based in McLean.
"Hopefully, manufacturers will take note," said Jon Osborne, senior project director at Power. "Consumers are obviously looking for a way around the traditional buying methods."
No, it isn't just your imagination. It really is getting more and more expensive to drive every year.
According to the American Automobile Association, the average cost of owning and operating a new car is 42.6 cents per mile," up 1.4 cents from 1995. Americans will spend an average of $6,389 on new cars this year, an increase of $204, or 3.3 percent, over last year.
The biggest jumps came in the areas of depreciation, which increased $97; insurance costs, up $63; and finance charges, up $32. The cost of licenses, registration and taxes rose by $12, while total operating costs for gas, oil, tires and maintenance remained stable.
You can get a copy of the 1996 edition of AAA's "Your Driving Costs" by calling AAA at (804) 323-6535, or send a self-addressed, stamped business-size envelope to: AAA of Virginia, Public Affairs Department, P.O. Box 26705, Richmond, Va. 23261.
LENGTH: Medium: 90 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION RANKINGS MARKETPLACEby CNB