Fulfilling the promise
HICOM-Chevrolet is serious about making its customers happy.
Its pledges are finally coming to fruition for Chevrolet car owners.
IT HAS been a regular practice for many car companies to offer spare parts at discounted prices from time to time to reward their customers but HICOM-Chevrolet Sdn Bhd had taken an approach that will endear it to customers.
You can now get Chevrolet parts at up to 67% lower than previously and that is not an offer but a permanent feature.
An example: Yukontorn showing a tail light assembly that is among many Chevrolet parts that are now cheaper. And the price cuts cover some 88% of the parts for all current Chevrolet models such as the Captiva, Optra and Aveo, as well as earlier models such as the Nabira and Lumina.
HICOM-Chevrolet chief executive Yukontorn Wisadkosin said the price reduction was possible since the company was able to source parts directly from General Motors operations in Thailand, Europe and South Korea.
“As direct sourcing will allow us to keep our costs down, the savings will be passed to our customers.”
The price reduction is part of the overall strategy by HICOM-Chevrolet to enhance the brand value and desirability of Chevrolet cars in Malaysia, a promise made by the company when it took over the local distributorship last year.
Yukontorn said pricey spare parts have always been an obstacle in retaining the residual value of a car.
“By making spare parts cheaper, the cost of ownership can be reduced and hence improve resale values,” she said.
With the new pricing, Yukontorn said the maintenance costs of Chevrolet models were now much lower than competitors.
She said the maintenance cost at 100,000km for the Captiva sports utility vehicle was RM5,700, while a rival’s was higher at RM8,000.
For the Aveo model, the cost at 100,000km was RM3,600, compared to a rival’s RM3,670.
“Also, all our cars have service intervals of 10,000km, allowing owners to keep their cars longer on the road and spend less time in service centres,” she said.
There is more good news coming. HICOM-Chevrolet may use local vendors to produce original equipment parts for Chevrolet cars, a move that could further bring down prices of spares.
“We know that Malaysia has a strong pool of vendors who are already producing OEM parts for other car makers. So, why not take advantage of them?
“As long as they are able to design to our specifications and meet our quality standards, we should be able to consider them.”
From Aug 1-31, HICOM-Chevrolet is giving customers an extra bonus.
Customers will get a 25% discount on parts such as air, oil, air-conditioner and fuel filters, and spark plug sets – on top of the already reduced spare parts prices.
The “Customer Appreciation Day” campaign also comes with a free 36-point inspection. HICOM-Chevrolet has six dealers operating nationwide. All dealers have 3S centres.
“There are some 15,000 Chevrolet cars on the Malaysian roads but the retention rate for servicing at our centres is still not to our expectation especially when we lost some customers during the transition period from the previous distributor.
“With this new move, we hope to build trust with Chevrolet car owners and get them to frequent our outlets for their maintenance needs,” she said.
source: star motoring
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