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CARMAKERS RESPOND TO NADA UPGRADE REPORT

MIXED REACTIONS

As we have been reporting, one of the most contentious issues between automakers and their dealers is the requirement for upgrades and standardization of showrooms and other facilities.  The National Automobile Dealers Association recently reported the results of its study of the issue.  Among the findings--automakers need to be more responsive to the concerns of their dealers, the requirements should be scalable for smaller dealerships and there was not enough evidence that making all of a particular carmaker dealers’ showrooms alike was necessary or even preferable.

NADA has met with many of the car dealers and says the reactions of those companies have been mixed.  “We’ve had 12 meetings so far, and we’ve seen different reactions,” said NADA Chairman William Underriner.  “Some auto companies have embraced it. Some said they were too far down the road with their upgrade programs to make changes, and others said they weren’t that far down the road.”

Glenn Mercer, an industry analyst who conducted the NADA study, says that some carmakers “are a little more defensive than others, while some appreciate us sharing the results.” And he added that trying to change the policies of an auto company “can be like trying to turn around a tanker.”

Read the full story in today's Spots N Dots.