Hyundai Motor India is right on top with 852 points in the Dealer Satisfaction Study 2023 of the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA). In second place is Maruti Suzuki India with 791 points.
Hyundai’s dealers were happy with how it was taking care of its inventories and planning according to market demands while Maruti’s new launches have created a buzz among its retail fraternity.
Mahindra & Mahindra was in the third position with 774 points while Honda Cars India reported a jump of 153 points to finish in the fourth slot with 763 points. Kia Motor India, which had been heading the charts for two consecutive years, lost 115 points and slid to the fifth position with 756 points.
Manish Raj Singhania, President, FADA, said lack of new launches and forcing new dealer principals to invest heavily in larger infrastructure led to Kia’s tepid showing. Meanwhile, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Tata Motors and Renault followed with 732, 728 and 724 points respectively. All in all, 1800 dealer principals were part of the survey with nearly 3500 dealerships.
The study was carried out in collaboration with Singapore-based PremonAsia, a leader in consumer insights and advisory services. According to FADA, the study offers an ‘unparalleled look’ into the auto retail landscape.
HMSI, VECV Retain Leadership
On the two-wheeler side, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India carried forward its leadership position from last year and finished on top with 797 points while VE Commercial Vehicles, likewise, held on to its top slot from last year with 812 points in the commercial vehicle space.
At the aggregate industry level, the average dealer satisfaction score has seen an encouraging increase of 48 points YoY to a score of 767. 'Product' stands out as the highest- scoring factor across all categories. This trend, says FADA, underscores the industry's commitment to meeting contemporary consumer demands with world-class products.
Despite a marked improvement from the previous year, the 'business and viability' criterion remains the lowest-scoring factor, signalling a critical area for greater attention and development. In the CV category, the study highlights an increased level of satisfaction, particularly in business viability.
This is significant, given the industry's recent transition to BS VI-compliant vehicles. However, concerns remain about deadstock management and OEM inventory buyback policies.
Concerns Remain
On four wheelers, dealers have expressed ‘high satisfaction’ with product reliability but remain concerned about deadstock and inventory buyback policies in addition to the extent of dealer involvement in policy-making decisions with OEMs.
Two-wheeler dealers, meanwhile, are generally satisfied with product reliability and range but worried about OEM buyback and deadstock policies along with dealers’ participation in decision-making.
The study points out that there is a consensus on the need for more supportive measures in inventory and carrying-cost management. Initiatives like active dealer advisory councils could play a pivotal role in driving satisfaction, particularly by involving them more closely in decision-making processes.
Singhania said that auto dealers are increasingly optimistic, concerns related to viability and policy collaboration with OEMs require immediate attention. Going forward, high-impact areas such as unsold inventory clearance and actions against multi-brand outlets offer ample scope for improvement, he added.
Rahul Sharma, PremonAsia Director and COO, said dealers continue to assign higher importance to after-sales and business viability related issues. While there have been improvements made by OEMs in all areas, the expectations on ensuring dealer viability, particularly related to OEMs buyback /deadstock inventory and understanding the dealer cost structure are still concern areas. These can be addressed by involving dealers in policy making and managing expectations better, he added.
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