MG Motors beats Toyota in JD Power Consumer Satisfaction Index

One of the newest entrants in the passenger vehicle segment in the country, MG India, has secured the top rank in the J.D. Power 2021 India Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study. The British carmaker, which has gradually become a prominent SUV maker in just three years in India, has scored 881 points on a 1,000-point scale.

MG India has surpassed the two consistent brands in this Index, Toyota and India, to secure the first rank in J.D. Power 2021 SSI Index. While Toyota has come a close second with 877 points, Hyundai ranked third with a score of 875. MG made its debut in the Indian car market in 2019, with the midsize SUV Hector being its first-ever product. MG further expanded its portfolio with premium SUVs across various segments, such as Gloster, ZS EV, Hector Plus and Astor. Currently, MG is working on introducing an all-new compact electric vehicle, which will be based on SAIC-GM-Wuling’s Global Small Electric Vehicle (GSEV) platform and will launch sometime in 2023.

J.D. Power 2021 India SSI Study

In 2021, J.D. Power India Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study considered the responses of 5,593 car owners who purchased vehicles in the calendar year of 2021 (January-December 2021). However, due to lockdown imposed during the second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak, the second quarter of 2021 (April-June, 2021) was excluded from the study. Most of the car owners included in the study were those people who bought their cars in September-December 2021.

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The study included ranking the carmakers operating in India based on six different factors, which are namely delivery process (20 per cent), dealer facility (18 per cent), paperwork completion (17 per cent), working out the deal (15 per cent), sales consultant (15 per cent), and brand website (14 per cent). The study included only those carmakers operating in the mass-market segment and not those existing only in the premium luxury segment.

In the study, it was revealed that 85 per cent of the new car buyers did research online before considering buying a new car. However, 68 per cent of the car buyers still preferred to physically visit the showrooms at least once. Further analysis revealed that new car customers expect to get a prompt response from the car companies while they research online for a particular model. Other reasons which impact the car buying experience are recommendations of family members and friends, proximity to a sales or service outlet and earliest possible delivery.

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