[JayPrashanth]

Consistent Service Quality. This is one major pillar in Tata Motors's four pronged HORIZONEXT strategy for its passenger car business. Through the HORIZONEXT program, Tata Motors plans to revamp its image to one that is highly attuned and responsive to the car buyer's needs. After sales service, being a crucial aspect that makes or breaks the car ownership experience in the long term, will be given due focus in this strategy.



Also, the customer staying with the brand during subsequent purchases is largely determined by the quality of after sales service rendered previously. Dealers for their part make big money not just by selling cars, but also by dispensing service to cars already sold. In essence, after sales service is a factor that no car/two wheeler brand can choose to be laid back about, especially in the face of ever increasing competition.

While industry leader Maruti Suzuki is known for its good after sales service, Tata car owners are known to often complain about inconsistent service experiences. Tata Motors's HORIZONEXT strategy plans to improve after sales service through a slew of measures at the dealership/authorised service center level. Tata Motors's dealership subsidiary, Concorde Motors, will lead the car maker's push for better after sales service.

Team-BHP has scooped one such initiative. Tata Motors has modified Super Ace pick up trucks to serve as doorstep service dispensing vehicles. These pick up trucks will go to the customer's doorstep, either at homes or offices, for scheduled maintenance of Tata cars. A team of specially trained mechanics will handle the doorstep servicing of cars.

By introducing the doorstep service initiative, Tata Motors is venturing into an area that has thus far seen players operating mainly in the luxury car and high end motorcycle space. For instance, DSK-Hyosung has a doorstep service initiative for its high end range of motorcycles while Suzuki too has a similar service initiative in place for motorcycles such as the Bandit, GSX-R and Hayabusa. Doorstep service initiatives also exist for high end luxury and sportscar brands. If Tata Motors's Doorstep Service Initiative becomes a hit, many other car makers could soon follow suit.

[parrys]

A very good initiative, but I doubt on how well they would function.

Fleet / cab owners will definitely be happy about this and schedule a service of all their cars in a day, if possible.

As an individual, I would still prefer the car being driven to the dealership and serviced in a secure environment than the parking spot in a building.

Funny incident: Once I was out with a Tata Venture, and for some reason the car refused to start. Called the help-desk and they sent support in a Maruti Omni

I hope these Super Ace pick up trucks again go through a complete testing phase with all the modifications done. It won't surprise me if I see the mechanics repairing these mobile service stations more than the customer vehicles.

TATA needs new cars, not new services for old-outdated-boring looking cars. PERIOD!

[chennai-indian]

More than these initiatives, Tata needs to concentrate on improving quality and service levels at their dealerships/service centers first. I know of at least 4 people who did not buy a Tata car (Vista/Manza) just because of horror stories they heard about pathetic Tata service though they actually liked the car.

[i74js]

Originally Posted by chennai-indian

More than these initiatives, Tata needs to concentrate on improving quality and service levels at their dealerships/service centers first. I know of at least 4 people who did not buy a Tata car (Vista/Manza) just because of horror stories they heard about pathetic Tata service though they actually liked the car.

I too am a party, I have a Indica in house and am looking for a replacement now, but the previous experiance essentially with Sanya Motors and Autolinks in Delhi was BAD.

They are for looting customers with unnecessary changes, while the recent experiance with Concorde though cannot be classified as GOOD, but was okay.

If they improve, they have on repeat cutomer. I am considering Indigo eCS - CR4 VX version, just want to get some report on the new cable based F type gear box (I am not sure of life of such cables when they operate under pressure), the only parallel I can draw is the gear wire set of our scooter and they kept on breaking atleast once in a year and I cannot afford to have same scenario with my car ! Though link based gear mechanism is not smooth (in existing cars) but it works and you are not stranded on the road for want of a gear cable.

Any inputs TATA?

You have made these changes and talked a lot about smooth gear shift in the face lift versions.

What is your take on reliability of such mechanisms?

[jeeva]

Originally Posted by i74js

I am considering Indigo eCS - CR4 VX version, just want to get some report on the new cable based F type gear box (I am not sure of life of such cables when they operate under pressure), the only parallel I can draw is the gear wire set of our scooter and they kept on breaking atleast once in a year and I cannot afford to have same scenario with my car ! Though link based gear mechanism is not smooth (in existing cars) but it works and you are not stranded on the road for want of a gear cable.

Infact, there are a lot of cars that have cable-gear shift mechanism, which have been working flawlessly. Example: Hyundai Accent, Santro, Palio etc..
The cables need to be the least of your worries, being a TATA.

[greenhorn]

for most cars, service is just an oil change and some filter changes. for tata cars though, you would need a lot more fixes and parts, as something always tends to go wrong every six months

[kaviprem]

Originally Posted by parrys

Funny incident: Once I was out with a Tata Venture, and for some reason the car refused to start. Called the help-desk and they sent support in a Maruti Omni

I dont understand whats "Funny" here. Whitefield Honda in Bangalore has TATA SUMO and XENON as their service vehicles.
So, would you conclude HONDA vehicles are unreliable/untested ?

Lets give an opportunity for a new initiative to be launched/function before we comment/conclude anything !

Prem.

[1100D]

Originally Posted by kaviprem

I dont understand whats "Funny" here. Whitefield Honda in Bangalore has TATA SUMO and XENON as their service vehicles.
So, would you conclude HONDA vehicles are unreliable/untested ?

Lets give an opportunity for a new initiative to be launched/function before we comment/conclude anything !

Prem.

Why its not "funny" in case of Honda is because it does not have a corresponding vehicle in its lineup to the Sumo/Xenon.

So if he made a light-hearted comment having seen an Omni, when there are countless other Tata options, lets just take it that way, lightly.

Probably the decision to use the Omni is due to its low procurement cost, it could probably be a used one as well.

[ACM]

Yep when I used their 24X7 service under warranty period for the Aria it was a Maruti Van that was sent and it sure was in a shabby condition.

While they are announcing these initiatives there are in real time so many customers who are just not being responded to or serviced well in their current service centres. The TATA front line managers on the service side need to be held accountable for every escalated complaint. Also complains that receive very low scores (implying an irate customer) should be automatically escalated. And if the customer is not prepared to revise the score even later after rework is done then it must again be automatically escalated further. The escalation matrix is quite poor.

[greenhorn]

my money is on the metrics tata uses to calculate customer satisfaction. Unlike maruti's SQS, tata does not do any sort of long term follow up after services. Feedback is collected upto a week after service, after which further developments are treated as new and separate incidents, so service advisors try some jugaad to ensure that recurring issues don't show up within a week, because after that its another issue, and there are no procedures to handle recurring issues

[girishglg]

Surely these are initiative that are aimed at generating more positive sentiments towards the brand and inspire some confidence that they are with the customer in need and at their door step or where ever they are stranded.

But more importantly their cars should gain more reliablility and not break down at the first place and as said earlier every service call should be just made to change the consumables and not address a major breakdown or replacement.

This peace of mind would actually get customers back to their fold even if they do not have the latest models in their inventory. Not very sure how the reliability of the vehicles have improved after these relaunches. Only time will tell.

[parrys]

Originally Posted by kaviprem

I dont understand whats "Funny" here. Whitefield Honda in Bangalore has TATA SUMO and XENON as their service vehicles.
So, would you conclude HONDA vehicles are unreliable/untested ?

What's funny is why not use your own car for services being offered, any reason why you should not do so?

Elaborating on the incident: We were stuck in Kharghar - Navi Mumbai, and called the Mumbai help desk. Then the lady asks us to call the Pune help desk assuming that they would reach us quicker than the Mumbai support team. The functioning when a customer is stuck was poor. Then all of a sudden a Omni stops by to help, isn't that funny? It was just a light hearted comment.

Hyundai uses the Santro as their support vehicle in multiple dealerships. Doesn't make sense?

Honda using Tata vehicles, I assume it is to maintain the premium stand, just a thought. I may be wrong here.

About giving a chance, I agreed that it is a good initiative; but the functioning inside Tata is what bothers me. Why? Because I have worked with the company for 3 months as a intern. Heard feedbacks from customers which are enough for potential buyers to shy away from the brand regardless of these services on offer.

[man_and_machine]

Will this initiative work against TATA? Well, seeing too many of this "car ambulances" on the roads might give a negative advertisement that there are lot of "sick" TATA cars. Not every one will understand that the service vehicle is actually a good health indicator. This is similar to seeing a flatbed, but here only the broken car is not in sight. Majority of our public is driven by perception. Seeing too many TATA service cars might on the one hand give you a sense of "prompt customer support" on the other hand will immediately remind you of a broken down TATA car (while there might be none!). Hope they are figured this out

[dkamath]

Originally Posted by 1100D

Why its not "funny" in case of Honda is because it does not have a corresponding vehicle in its lineup to the Sumo/Xenon.

Originally Posted by ACM

Yep when I used their 24X7 service under warranty period for the Aria it was a Maruti Van that was sent and it sure was in a shabby condition.

As far as I know, the breakdown service Dept. has an arrangement with MyTVS. So, it wouldn't be funny even if we are attended to, by technicans riding a TVS moped as well!

That apart, got to try this service, if and when it is offered in B'lore.

[avingodb]

this could work in Delhi if indeed they are able to offer good service at doorstep.
Here a few prominent dealerships have closed down over the last few years. The nearest good Tata service centre is 25 kms from where I stay!