ShareThisThere was little to celebrate in the March report for domestic auto sales -- despite the fact that March sales were up industrywide 25 percent from February's figures.
Compared with sales in March 2008, however, sales last month were down 45 percent at General Motors Corp., 41 percent at Ford Motor Co. and 39 percent at Chrysler LLC from a year ago. In fact, no manufacturer reported a sales increase for the month.
So Hyundai Motor Co.'s 4.8 percent drop in sales stood out from a crowd largely reporting double-digit declines.
"We are satisfied with our overall performance in this difficult business climate," said Dave Zuchowski, Hyundai Motor America vice president of national sales. "The fact that we experienced only a nominal decline from an all-time March sales record in 2008 is acceptable to us. Even with continued economic stress and industry uncertainty, this performance is a clear indication that the Hyundai brand is sustaining its momentum and expanding its relevance."
How is Hyundai keeping from being swept away in the recession? By sticking to its formula: Offer more value than your competitors at a lower price.
But perhaps most importantly, Hyundai understood consumers' concerns and was the first automaker to offer them a break if they lost their jobs. GM and Ford have since followed suit.
"Obviously, the Hyundai story is likely to be a case study for future business schools. It's the turnaround story, a company that had struggled in this marketplace, pulled out and essentially redefined (itself)," said Jeff Schultz, executive director of forecasting for J.D. Power and Associates. "If you look at what they have been able to do as part of a rebirth in a relatively short period of time, it's quite a story."
The Santa Fe, introduced for the 2001 model year, was a watershed product at the time, making Hyundai a player in the U.S. market, analysts say.
Then, in 2006, Hyundai unveiled a completely new Sonata in the important family car segment. Its styling and quality made it a strong competitor to the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord.
That was followed by other noteworthy models, such as the redesigned Santa Fe, the Accent and the Genesis.
But what really put Hyundai on the map was its 100,000-mile, 10-year, limited powertrain warranty and 60,000 bumper-to-bumper warranty, Schultz said.
"When we offered those warranties, we knew we would have to have great quality or we could have gone out of business from the warranty claims from a financial standpoint," Hyundai Motor America CEO John Krafcik said.
He said Hyundai researchers ripped apart the best cars in the world, "seeing what they did right and wrong, and in every case, designing the best possible system at a reasonable price that people could afford."
More recently, Hyundai introduced the AssurancePlus program, in which jittery customers concerned about losing their job could feel better about buying a new Hyundai because if they lost their job during the year, the company would take the car back without affecting a customer's credit ratings. The only exceptions are if there is excessive mileage or if there is damage or abuse to the car.
(E-mail Don Hammonds at dhammonds(at)post-gazette.com)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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