QOTD: Does Brand Experience Matter When You Buy a Car?

Tim Healey
by Tim Healey

A week or two ago, a friend dropped me a line on GChat (oh sorry, it’s Hangouts now). She told me she and her husband were expecting their first child and they were going to trade one of their cars for a crossover/SUV. She wanted my recommendations.

I tossed out the usual suspects in the two-row and three-row categories (and in the $20K-$40K price range), based on what I’ve driven. I also mentioned a few models I have yet to drive that have been highly recommended throughout the automotive press.

I was intentionally a little vague because, as I told her, the final decision would come down to variables unique to her and her husband – what they feel is best for their finances, how they both like driving each individual car, their styling preferences, what features they want, et cetera. But a day later, something popped into my head. I realized I hadn’t considered a key factor: the brand, or more accurately, the brand/dealer experience.

My friend had mentioned maybe shopping for an unspecified Lexus (probably the RX) in passing, and I started thinking – if a car buyer is shopping along the price line that divides “mainstream” from “entry luxury” and “luxury,” does the perceived experience of owning a luxury car matter?

I don’t just mean image – most people would rather say “I own a Lexus/Acura/Infiniti” instead of “I own a Toyota/Honda/Nissan.” I’m thinking in terms of the actual customer service experience. Dealers that represent luxury brands tend to offer more perks in the service department (such as putting greens at some Lexus shops), and often have a reputation for being friendlier/more honest/more customer focused/whatever than the “mainstream” brands. And some “mainstream” brands have better reputations for same than others.

It’s a tricky question. Dealers, of course, operate independently of the OEMs they rep, and the experience can vary vastly even among dealers that rep the same brand and/or are located near each other. Not to mention many car buyers never visit a dealership for any service that isn’t warranty-related and never interact with the dealer or the OEM once they take possession of the car.

Note that I’m not necessarily talking about a brand’s reputation for reliability and quality here, although that’s obviously a factor, too. Same goes for tangible offerings such as maintenance plans – obviously, these may factor in, but I’d like to dig deeper into the overall relationship you may or may not have with your brand and its dealers as a vehicle owner.

So, I am asking you, Best and Brightest, does the brand experience matter to you after you’ve done your shopping and signed the papers? If so, why? Is it just about image? Are you concerned about reliability? Or is it just about how you’re treated when you return to the dealership (assuming you do) and/or have to deal directly with the manufacturer regarding some sort of issue?

What say you?

[Image: Lexus]

Tim Healey
Tim Healey

Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.

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  • TW5 TW5 on Mar 08, 2018

    The only customer service gimmick that made me happy was Carefree Maintenance. It's nice to get dealer service and onboard diagnostic information at no additional cost, and leveraging the purchasing power of the manufacturer/dealer works out well for everyone. For instance, Jiffy Lube knows 95% of people are going to pick conventional; therefore, that's where their purchasing leverage lies. Also, Jiffy Lube couldn't care less what is best for your vehicle. The manufacturer has an interest in providing good stuff, and VW was using 5W 5,000 synthetic 15 years ago, which as quite good for it's time. It's too bad more service can't be carefree like belts, tires, brake pads, etc. You have to buy extended package plans now, and without the price of the plan rolled into the MSRP, it has become a profit center for dealers. The only other gimmick that interests me is all of the new smart apps. Unfortunately, the dealers will be GPS datalogging your vehicle and relaying information to advertisers, and I doubt they offer the raw OBD code. Anyway, customer service is dead.

  • Cimarron typeR Cimarron typeR on Mar 09, 2018

    I think it matters. I 'll not likely go to a restaurant again if my initial human interactions are poor. We like to buy 1 year old cars /CPO cars.It seems the family owned stores always want to go the extra mile, regardless if its a premium brand /pseudo premium /high volume domestic I remember being treated like a rock star by the local Infin. dealer for service of my g37S sedan manual because it was one of only a handful in KC. The locally owned Toyota dealer has been polite and helpful, but the service area for waiting isn't as nice, but it's clean, so that's all that matters to me. Not so much at the Hendrick GM dealer for the Enclave we had for a while.I'd buy another Buick, but at a different store, so I guess in the end it doesn't really affect my car buying.

  • JTiberius1701 Middle of April here in NE Ohio. And that can still be shaky. Also on my Fiesta ST, I use Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires for the winter and Bridgestone Potenza for my summer tires. No issues at all.
  • TCowner We've had a 64.5 Mustang in the family for the past 40 years. It is all original, Rangoon Red coupe with 289 (one of the first instead of the 260), Rally Pac, 4-speed, factory air, every option. Always gets smiles and thumbs ups.
  • ToolGuy This might be a good option for my spouse when it becomes available -- thought about reserving one but the $500 deposit is a little too serious. Oh sorry, that was the Volvo EX30, not the Mustang. Is Volvo part of Ford? Is the Mustang an EV? I'm so confused.
  • Mikey My late wife loved Mustangs ..We alway rented one while travelling . GM blood vetoed me purchasing one . 3 years after retirement bought an 08 rag top, followed by a 15 EB Hard top, In 18 i bought a low low mileage 05 GT rag with a stick.. The car had not been properly stored. That led to rodent issues !! Electrical nightmare. Lots of bucks !! The stick wasn't kind to my aging knees.. The 05 went to a long term dedicated Mustang guy. He loves it .. Today my garage tenant is a sweet 19 Camaro RS rag 6yl Auto. I just might take it out of hibernation this weekend. The Mustang will always hold a place in my heart.. Kudos to Ford for keeping it alive . I refuse to refer to the fake one by that storied name .
  • Ajla On the Mach-E, I still don't like it but my understanding is that it helps allow Ford to continue offering a V8 in the Mustang and F-150. Considering Dodge and Ram jumped off a cliff into 6-cylinder land there's probably some credibility to that story.
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