Auto Suppliers Have Low Level of Trust in Big Three

[Dover]

Auto Suppliers Have Low Level of Trust in Big Three

By Dee-Ann Durbin Associated Press Writer
Published: May 31, 2005


DETROIT (AP) - Auto-parts suppliers' trust in General Motors Corp. is at its lowest level in 15 years, according to a survey by a Michigan consulting firm.
Eighty-five percent of the suppliers questioned who work with GM reported a poor working relationship and just 3 percent said they have a good or very good relationship. Fifty-three percent of suppliers said they prefer not to work with the world's largest automaker, saying the company has little regard for suppliers' financial stability.

Planning Perspectives Inc. questioned 259 suppliers in March and April about whether automakers help or hinder them, how well they communicate and how much potential they have to make a profit. The employees questioned were generally sales people who work directly with automakers. Planning Perspectives President John Henke said the company has been studying automaker-supplier relations since 1990. The latest survey is to be released Tuesday.

The results weren't much better for Ford Motor Co. or DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group. Seventy-eight percent of suppliers said they had a poor relationship with Ford and 66 percent said they had a poor relationship with Chrysler.

..snip..

Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. fared best in the survey. Sixty-three percent of suppliers have a good or very good relationship with Toyota and 53 percent say the same about Honda. Results for Nissan Motor Co. were mixed; 75 percent have a poor or adequate relationship and 25 percent have a good or very good relationship.

Just 3 percent of the suppliers who work with Toyota and Honda said they would prefer not to do business with those companies, compared to 36 percent of those who work with Ford and 29 percent of those who work with Chrysler. ...cont'd

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGB84ITLD9E.html

[NJCher]

1. personal experience backs that up

My first job out of college was working for one of the "Big Three." I was a district manager and in fact the first female district manager in the automotive industry. I wasn't all that enthralled with cars but I had something I wanted to figure out: why the American car manufacturers can't make a decent car. Why was Japan beating our socks off?

The answer I finally came up with is that the industry is run by crappy people. They have no understanding whatsoever of the role of human relationships in making a good product. Their prescription for profit is reduced to one word: muscle.

To be fair, later experience I had with BMW was just as bad. These people think it's such a thrill for you to work with them that you should forego all profit just for the privilege of the association.


Cher

[reprobate]

2. Cher, they're both a reflection of the corporate mindset.

[Dover]

3. I bought my first American car 6 years ago and will NEVER make

that mistake again. It's not so much that the car was a problem as it was the service and the people. It filled me with dread just to drive or call in with a problem because of either incompetence in repairs, a lack of honesty (kinda made my skin crawl with their shiftiness), or their attitude in general.

They have recently been trying to get me to trade in my vehicle by having individuals (sales or repair personnel) act as if they are admiring the car (when there's clearly nothing special about it) and then telling me they would really like to buy it from me.
I KNOW this is actually a learned sales technique because it has happened three times, each time with a different dealership employee at different dealerships. They must be desperate because I was coming out of a convenience store the other day and was approached by someone who I thought was admiring my vehicle and wondered if I'd thought about selling it. It turns out it was yet ANOTHER dealership person looking to do some business on a tradein. Oiy!
And when I've turned each of them down, suggesting to them that I would only trade in on a gas efficient model such as a Toyota Prius, they actually laughed at me and made jokes about buying "plug-in" cars, etc. Now there's a great sales technique.......mock the customer! Sheesh.....

So it doesn't surprise me that these arrogant and unfriendly attitudes persist throughout the industry. And the more desperate they become the worse it seems to get.

[losdiablosgato]

4. I have a standard rule about car dealerships

NEVER TRUST A SMILING SALES DROID!!!!!