[Concorde]

Originally Posted by JohnyBoy

Concorde, same experience and feeling for me in Mumbai also.
Went there as I had to change tyres and the place was bad - bad location, all dirty and unclean in a very narrow lane. They are sharing space with Force service centre. In this case, benefit of doubt cannot be given to Fiat. I am surprised no one from Fiat visited the place before allowing Balaji to start the centre. (If they have approved this after visiting the place, then there is no hope for fiat).

It's sad really. New taglines, movie tie-ups, swanky showrooms, beverages, match telecasts - all good. What I do not understand is are car companies like Fiat, Skoda really so obtuse to understanding that the key to survival is customer satisfaction which eventually comes from one thing alone - good aftersales. Customers would expect that the money they've spent is respected by these companies. There is hardly any company that comes to my mind (in any industry) which truly cares about aftersales. Absolutely shameless, unethical people and the only reason they cannot be bothered more is because of a solid legal framework. There are consumer courts but very few are effective, if any. Not any I know of. Or are there and I'm just being too ignorant?

Question: Can team-bhp, which is one of the most respected, followed and unbiased portals have a separate section dedicated only for consumer grievances? There would be some lawyers here as well who can advice how to make the process more effective.

[StarrySky]

With Fiat's current position in the market, I guess they have trouble attracting the better dealers to open Fiat exclusive service centers. I think in some cases, Fiat may be facing a difficult choice between not having a dealer at all (and no sales) or having an inefficient dealer. They should know by their earlier experiences that inefficient dealers are probably more damaging to sales in the long run. I hope they will act on customer complaints and force the dealers to provide good service.

[JohnyBoy]

Originally Posted by StarrySky

With Fiat's current position in the market, I guess they have trouble attracting the better dealers to open Fiat exclusive service centers. I think in some cases, Fiat may be facing a difficult choice between not having a dealer at all (and no sales) or having an inefficient dealer. ...

Right. In today's market condition, it is unlikely that new (and good) players will come forward for dealerships and service centres. I believe most of the exclusive dealerships are taken by Tata dealers, opening a separate shop (and may be separate company) for exclusivity. Example, Balaji Motors who were tata-fiat has opened fiat exclusive in Thane. Their first service centre is not bad. But the second one they opened is bad. We won't feel like going there.

Originally Posted by StarrySky

...They should know by their earlier experiences that inefficient dealers are probably more damaging to sales in the long run. I hope they will act on customer complaints and force the dealers to provide good service.

If only people (and companies) learn from experience !!

Originally Posted by Concorde

...
Question: Can team-bhp, which is one of the most respected, followed and unbiased portals have a separate section dedicated only for consumer grievances? There would be some lawyers here as well who can advice how to make the process more effective.

This will be good. I'm sure that most, if not all, companies are following team-bhp discussions and take the inputs. But will they act on it, especially today when the sales are down and investments are not easy to find.

[Concorde]

Originally Posted by StarrySky

With Fiat's current position in the market, I guess they have trouble attracting the better dealers to open Fiat exclusive service centers. They should know by their earlier experiences that inefficient dealers are probably more damaging to sales in the long run. I hope they will act on customer complaints and force the dealers to provide good service.

I agree but I am not sure if Fiat or any car manufacturer having one or two service centers are in a position to force them. Example - Skoda which has given exclusive dealership rights in most cities. The same dealer may have more than one service center but the attitude remains the same.

Originally Posted by JohnyBoy

This will be good. I'm sure that most, if not all, companies are following team-bhp discussions and take the inputs. But will they act on it, especially today when the sales are down and investments are not easy to find.

Manufacturers do take inputs and bring in necessary changes in the product. But that's just one part of it. Coming back to Skoda. Just read the threads on team-bhp about how they fleece customers and the pathetic aftersales. The utter disregard for customer's hard earned money and love for their automobiles is sometimes disconcerting, sometimes infuriating. They are just not bothered. Unless there is a possibility of penalties, cancellation of licenses or other such steps which will affect their profits, chances are slim that things will change for the better. If some of us are thinking competition will change things, think again. Competition is more than ever before and aftersales has never been worse. The way I see it, plunging sales is an opportunity for them to create brand differentiation. But then, the 'experts' would know better.

[ezhil_18]

Today i have been there to Ramkay Fiat velacherry main road. overall expericence is quite good. showroom is almost 3 floors an quite spacious and looks premium too. Please check this http://ramkayfiat.com/ link for address of showroom and workshop. good to see 2nd fiat showroom in Chennai.

[Sommos]

Originally Posted by Concorde

I agree but I am not sure if Fiat or any car manufacturer having one or two service centers are in a position to force them. Example - Skoda which has given exclusive dealership rights in most cities. The same dealer may have more than one service center but the attitude remains the same.

I can assure you one thing here, any customer complain to Fiat is well attended. I'm saying this from my own experience of owning a Fiat, though others may have different opinion.

[Concorde]

Originally Posted by Sommos

I can assure you one thing here, any customer complain to Fiat is well attended. I'm saying this from my own experience of owning a Fiat, though others may have different opinion.

We'll know that soon enough. I just sent a copy of my complaint to service.India@fiat.com.

[JohnyBoy]

Originally Posted by Concorde

...
Manufacturers do take inputs and bring in necessary changes in the product. But that's just one part of it. Coming back to Skoda. Just read the threads on team-bhp about how they fleece customers and the pathetic aftersales. The utter disregard for customer's hard earned money and love for their automobiles is sometimes disconcerting, sometimes infuriating. They are just not bothered. Unless there is a possibility of penalties, cancellation of licenses or other such steps which will affect their profits, chances are slim that things will change for the better...

They are not just bothered. I agree completely. That's the current situation. We need to have better laws and enforcement and customer protection. Whatever small steps we take through team-bhp (discussing this here in the forum, starting a new section, opinions from lawyers here etc) will help. If not today, some time in the future. Let us not keep quiet.

Originally Posted by Concorde

... Competition is more than ever before and aftersales has never been worse. The way I see it, plunging sales is an opportunity for them to create brand differentiation. But then, the 'experts' would know better.

It is an opportunity for all of them, but how many of them are willing to take it that way instead of thinking "sales is going down, let me not put extra money/effort in services". The problem is everyone is doing the same thing and don't want to take the first step.
If anyone takes a positive approach, they will definitely gain in the long run.

[Sommos]

Originally Posted by Concorde

We'll know that soon enough. I just sent a copy of my complaint to service.India@fiat.com.

Hope Fiat responds soon.
In case they don't, then give me a PM for alternate email address.

[Achyuth Vaibhav]

The 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee and the Jeep Wrangler were spotted testing in Mumbai recently. These pictures were clicked by Samira Kelkar, a Car Dekho reader, somewhere in Mumbai. These are first spottings of the 2014 model in India!

Notice carefully and you’ll also see the 2011 Grand Cherokee testing alongside. For reference purposes, the 2011 Grand Cherokee has the number [MH 12 JM 9248] while the 2014 model goes by [MH 12 JZ 5089]. The MH 12 series is that of Ranjangaon, Fiat India’s hometown. So why is Fiat India testing both versions alongside?

Also seen in these images is the Jeep Wrangler, which will form the lineup to the brand in India.

Fiat is expected to launch the brand in India, sometime by the end of this year. Earlier on, an official from the company told us that the launch would take place in October this year. Expect the prices to start at about INR 25 lakhs for the Wrangler and about INR 50 lakhs for the Grand Cherokee.

Source: Indian Autos Blog (IAB)

[scopriobharath]

This Doesnt look like a test vehicle. It has permanent private owner plates and no sign / stickerage of "test" . Secondly, there is no masking / camouflage.

I would think some riche rich has imported the same from foreign countries for his personal use.

[infinitewheel]

There was already a news that came up in Feb regarding this.
http://www.team-bhp.com/news/jeep-wr...e-spotted-pune

[HKS]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

This Doesnt look like a test vehicle. It has permanent private owner plates and no sign / stickerage of "test" . Secondly, there is no masking / camouflage.

I would think some riche rich has imported the same from foreign countries for his personal use.

If you notice there are three cars. And MH 12 is Ranjangaon, where Fiat's plant is.

[karan561]

Fiat should bring in their 0.875L Multi Air engine;



This motor when powering the 500 propels the car from 0-100 in just about 11 secs with a top speed of 173 km/hr.

This will be a good replacement for the current NA petrols in the Fiat range (i.e. non T Jet)

In fact they could also be selling this to Maruti (the way they are selling the Multijet diesels) for cars like Alto 800 etc.

Should be quite a game changer

[rohanjf]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

This Doesnt look like a test vehicle. It has permanent private owner plates and no sign / stickerage of "test" . Secondly, there is no masking / camouflage.

I would think some riche rich has imported the same from foreign countries for his personal use.

I think we have some evidence to show that these are test vehicles indeed. A member of another forum spotted the same vehicles in Chennai and posted them here:
http://www.myfiatworld.in/showthread...by-Oct&p=16432

These photos are from that site: