[vj123]

Component shortage has been a known issue for a couple of years in the auto industry and manufacturers are offering credits for features which are being deleted. Credits offered to customers are no where near the value of deleted features especially when compared to what OEMs used to charge for the same features in the past.

Audi has started documenting these deletions as "Semi conductor shortage package" in the window sticker for the US market.

[Mr.Boss]

Originally Posted by vj123

Credits offered to customers are no where near the value of deleted features especially when compared to what OEMs used to charge for the same features in the past.

Few reasons,
- Higher price in past is as good as "make hay while the sun shines"
- Feature deletion requires some additional re-designing & investment which is again taken from customer's pocket
- Feature deletion from a already developed product cannot eliminate 100% of related parts for various reasons, for which the customer is still paying

[vj123]

Originally Posted by Mr.Boss

Feature deletion requires some additional re-designing & investment which is again taken from customer's pocket

With the amount of electronics involved, building vehicles with a missing module is a lot more easier. Unless its a safety critical component (which would prohibit manufacturers from selling those vehicles) appropriate modules can be removed by coding the vehicle control module and might not required a lot of resources to redesign or revalidation.

[GTO]

I feel one must get what one has paid for. If I've paid for the top variant, I'm not looking at "credits"...I want the feature! So to me, any kind of credit will be insufficient for an incomplete trim level. Two more points:

1. I don't like how some manufacturers are using the chip shortage excuse to delete unrelated features. I'm looking at you, VW-Skoda.

2. If a commitment is made to the customer for adding back the feature at a later date, please uphold that commitment. Don't make your customer run around in circles.

[ninjatalli]

The dynamics of such 'deals' should always be looked at with a reverse lens - what would you (buyer) have to shell out if you were the one short of what you promised (say on car loan payments or choosing to buy that extended warranty much later)?

The answer - you always end up paying more.

Same should be the case with the automobile brand when they come up short. If they promised a feature that you paid for to which they didn't deliver, the compensation should be worth more that what that feature costs (if looked as an extra accessory).

Making sure the feature is installed later is just the bare minimum. What else can they offer on top of that for the inconvenience?

[vj123]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Making sure the feature is installed later is just the bare minimum. What else can they offer on top of that for the inconvenience?

AFAIK, Porsche is the only manufacturer who offered to retrofit power adjustable steering column module on vehicles which were built during component shortage. Wish more manufacturers follow this route than taking the easier route by offering minimal credits to customers.

[SR-71]

Atleast in the west the fear of being sued makes them publish this information and offer due credits. In India, feature deletion is ad-hoc and not transparently conveyed, let alone offer some rebate. To top this, manufacturer jack up price in the blink of an eye. Right now for most cars we are paying 2x what the west pays but with lesser features and even lesser transparency! Point in case the Q5 listed above which is ~40L INR but we pay ~82L INR (OTR Bangalore).

[vj123]

Adding window stickers of few BMW models (228, 340,740) which shows component deletion credits in US market.

[Cresterk]

Originally Posted by SR-71

Atleast in the west the fear of being sued makes them publish this information and offer due credits. In India, feature deletion is ad-hoc and not transparently conveyed, let alone offer some rebate. To top this, manufacturer jack up price in the blink of an eye. Right now for most cars we are paying 2x what the west pays but with lesser features and even lesser transparency! Point in case the Q5 listed above which is ~40L INR but we pay ~82L INR (OTR Bangalore).

That price is mostly because of taxes though. I don't think we can blame automakers for that. The feature deletions with no excuses however, are completely blameable, especially when they keep jacking up the price.

[Surya1]

At least in Poland Mercedes has deleted the LTE module, navigation from most of their cars. And I don't see any discount or credit from their part. Such an expensive car with not even basic features.

[car-go]

I recently bought Jeep Compass Sport petrol DDCT. They have jacked up the price (effective Apr) by INR 25,000 across the range; removed fog lamps (facelift Sport model); added TPMS (very recently; even the facelift did not have it till Dec'21/Jan'22 as far as I know). Not sure how to equate the plus and minus, however there is no transparency in WYGWYB (what you get when you buy).

[Floyd de Souza]

The facelift Compass Sport never had fog lamps right from launch. They haven't deleted any features but added TPMS with the price increase.