Monday 21 September 2009

Workshop for all car makes draws mixed reactions

Parallel importers hail launch but authorised agents express doubts

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Guanyu said...

Workshop for all car makes draws mixed reactions

Parallel importers hail launch but authorised agents express doubts

By Christopher Tan
19 September 2009

A motor distributor has broken ranks to offer workshop services to cars of all makes, including models sold by parallel importers - bitter rivals of authorised agents.

Vantage Automotive, the Ford, Peugeot and Land Rover agent belonging to Malaysian conglomerate Sime Darby, has set up QuickLane, a workshop that is open to all makes of cars.

QuickLane, with two inspection bays and 10 servicing bays, is situated in Vantage’s sprawling Alexandra Road facility.

Mr. Say Kwee Neng, managing director of Vantage Automotive, said that since its opening last month, response has been very encouraging, especially from residents and businesses in the neighbourhood.

He said the centre services between 10 and 20 cars a day, and receives up to 60 inquiries daily.

Mr. Say said QuickLane is an initiative by Ford Motor and ‘brings in an additional revenue stream’.

The American manufacturer supplies Vantage with the business model and accessories, from windscreen wipers to batteries.

‘The batteries come with a three- year warranty, the longest offered here,’ he said.

The new workshop is expected to accelerate the earnings of Vantage, which has seen its new car sales dipping in recent years, partly because of the shrinking vehicle market.

‘With a drop in COE (certificate of entitlement) numbers, people will keep their cars a bit longer,’ Mr. Say said. ‘And for the longest time, many parallel import customers did not have a proper and reliable workshop to go to.’

He said he has big plans for QuickLane, with a goal to set up outlets in ‘all the major town centres in Singapore’.

‘We’re trying to grow this as another wing of our after-sales business,’ he added.

Vantage’s move, however, may make fellow authorised agents a little hot under the collar.

Mr. Michael Wong, general manager of Isuzu agent Triangle Auto, said: ‘Nowadays, modern cars need sophisticated software and hardware to be serviced.

‘Ultimately, it boils down to the question of whether customers are comfortable with its (QuickLane’s) level of service.’

Triangle’s parent, Dah Chong Hong Holdings, also represents Opel commercial vehicles and China’s Foton brand.

Ms Tan Kheng Hwee, president of the Motor Traders Association, which represents authorised agents, said: ‘It’s a free market. Companies are free to offer services to anybody they want.’

Parallel importers were more positive about the new venture.

Mr. Raymond Tang, secretary of the Singapore Vehicle Traders Association, which represents parallel importers and used car dealers, described QuickLane as ‘a good move’.

‘It gives consumers better confidence in parallel-imported cars,’ he said. ‘At least now they have a recognised workshop to go to.’

Vantage’s Mr. Say said ‘our rates are competitive, although we may not be as cheap as some of the mom-and-pop workshops out there’.