Ovaltine Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 (edited) Interesting info regarding Hyundai/KIA's warranty claims dropping....... Keep in mind my previous statements on here about perception lagging reality by about 5 years, as well as my prediction that Hyundai/KIA's long-term quality numbers will be way up by around 2008-2009 due to all of the new vehicle launches over the past 3 years. http://www.thecarconnection.com/Auto_News/...175.A10493.html "....... A ten-year warranty was critical to Hyundai's turnaround, acknowledging longstanding quality problems and customer dissatisfaction. It generated plenty of press, but also risked running up billions of dollars in additional repair work. As it turns out, asserts Krafcik, the " America 's Best Warranty" program was a sound, economic bet. "Our warranty costs are falling off the chart," he said, currently running "30 to 40 percent" what they were when the program began and half as much as in 2002. That's more impressive given the flood of new products, which have been launching without many of the expected launch problems. There were some initial start-up issues in Alabama , but Hyundai trimmed line speed to focus on quality concerns - or so it claims. The test will come, later this month, when J.D. Power & Associates releases its closely-watched Initial Quality Survey. Other recent industry studies have been favorable, including AutoPacific's Vehicle Satisfaction Award, where Hyundai was barely nudged out as Best Mainstream Brand by Honda. Hyundai still took two segment awards with its Santa Fe and Azera. The driving goal is to exceed Toyota , long the benchmark of quality and productivity. While the Korean brand isn't quite there yet, its rival is facing a rash of problems lately that could hurt its image, even as Hyundai rebuilds its own. Various industry studies show that less than one in four American new car buyers would consider a Hyundai. That's echoed by Hyundai's own data, though Krafcik pointed to a steady rise in the number of current and potential Toyota and Honda owners shopping the Korean maker's stores." -Ovaltine Edited June 6, 2006 by Ovaltine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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