rumble
10-31-2005, 01:18 PM
This on DealersEdge.com today...................
SEMA Show: Will automakers' embrace of aftermarket ease dealers' fears over warranty issues?
The annual Specialty Equipment Marketing Association's (SEMA) convention has attracted growing participation over the years by vehicle manufacturers and their franchised dealers. Yet a major legacy lingers-the fear of aftermarket parts voiding a new vehicle warranty, says a report on the Auto Channel.
"My experience has been that consumers and car dealers are misinformed about the sort of warranty that comes with specialty equipment," says SEMA president Chris Kersting. "And they are misinformed about the notion that a specialty part or accessory will lead to a voided vehicle warranty."
Mr. Kersting hopes to change those notions with the launch of the SEMA Warranty Assurance Initiative at this year's show. Designed to plug the warranty gap by covering the products of around 50 manufacturers with a three-year/36,000-mile SEMA-backed warranty, it is a pilot program limited to products sold and installed in select dealerships in Southern California.
"If the new vehicle warranty does not apply because the specialty equipment caused the problem, this warranty will protect the consumer." In either case, Mr. Kersting says, the consumer will get his vehicle repaired.
These days more and more dealerships are tuning into the aftermarket. Galpin Ford, the largest-volume Ford dealership in the world, is building a 7000- square-foot facility to handle aftermarket parts and services. Superior Nissan in California, estimates revenue from its performance parts division has grown by seven times from five years ago.
Even these dealerships tread lightly when it comes to installations that might void a manufacturer warranty, though. They are even careful when talking about it.
Galpin Ford general manager Steve McCord resorts to a circuitous chain of PR-speak, insisting in one long breath that 1) Galpin only deals with reputable aftermarket brands, 2) abusive driving is more often than not at fault for most parts failures, and 3) Galpin will always back its parts and work. Superior Nissan's Mikey Jurado says Superior steers clear of anything that would void the manufacturer warranty altogether.
SEMA's Warranty Assurance Initiative program could open a path for dealerships like Galpin and Superior to broaden their parts catalogs and services. And it would be a way for SEMA's aftermarket member companies to enter dealerships and reach a new audience...................... ....
The report goes on to talk about Honda and some other uninteresting stuff.
Hey, who knows???? Although this looks like it's just a pilot program
for Southern Ca. it could blossom. Stranger things have happened.
SEMA Show: Will automakers' embrace of aftermarket ease dealers' fears over warranty issues?
The annual Specialty Equipment Marketing Association's (SEMA) convention has attracted growing participation over the years by vehicle manufacturers and their franchised dealers. Yet a major legacy lingers-the fear of aftermarket parts voiding a new vehicle warranty, says a report on the Auto Channel.
"My experience has been that consumers and car dealers are misinformed about the sort of warranty that comes with specialty equipment," says SEMA president Chris Kersting. "And they are misinformed about the notion that a specialty part or accessory will lead to a voided vehicle warranty."
Mr. Kersting hopes to change those notions with the launch of the SEMA Warranty Assurance Initiative at this year's show. Designed to plug the warranty gap by covering the products of around 50 manufacturers with a three-year/36,000-mile SEMA-backed warranty, it is a pilot program limited to products sold and installed in select dealerships in Southern California.
"If the new vehicle warranty does not apply because the specialty equipment caused the problem, this warranty will protect the consumer." In either case, Mr. Kersting says, the consumer will get his vehicle repaired.
These days more and more dealerships are tuning into the aftermarket. Galpin Ford, the largest-volume Ford dealership in the world, is building a 7000- square-foot facility to handle aftermarket parts and services. Superior Nissan in California, estimates revenue from its performance parts division has grown by seven times from five years ago.
Even these dealerships tread lightly when it comes to installations that might void a manufacturer warranty, though. They are even careful when talking about it.
Galpin Ford general manager Steve McCord resorts to a circuitous chain of PR-speak, insisting in one long breath that 1) Galpin only deals with reputable aftermarket brands, 2) abusive driving is more often than not at fault for most parts failures, and 3) Galpin will always back its parts and work. Superior Nissan's Mikey Jurado says Superior steers clear of anything that would void the manufacturer warranty altogether.
SEMA's Warranty Assurance Initiative program could open a path for dealerships like Galpin and Superior to broaden their parts catalogs and services. And it would be a way for SEMA's aftermarket member companies to enter dealerships and reach a new audience...................... ....
The report goes on to talk about Honda and some other uninteresting stuff.
Hey, who knows???? Although this looks like it's just a pilot program
for Southern Ca. it could blossom. Stranger things have happened.