MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF AUTOTALK.CO.NZ – VOLUME 9 | ISSUE 7 | AUGUST 2018 THE VEHICLE DEALER’S NEWS SOURCE INSIDE 8 10 GLOBAL VEHICLE LOGISTICS NZ · JAPAN · AUSTRALIA · UK · EUROPE | www.autohub.co The market leader for over a decade. Shift to the Autohub Team and experience the Autohub difference. Confidence for the road ahead. Alternative car ownership options 4 Nichibo celebrates 30th anniversary 6 TSI’s new leadership team 8 2Cheap owner speaks 10 C onsumer affairs minister Kris Faafoi is wary of a plan that would allow wholesalers to purchase alpha Takata airbag-affected vehicles from dealers. The plan, being devised by the Im- ported Motor Vehicle Industry Association (VIA), would allow dealers to sell the ve- hicles to wholesalers. The wholesalers would then sit on the vehicles and re- pair them as parts become available. At the moment dealers are banned from selling the affected vehicles as part of the compulsory alpha Takata airbag recall imple- mented by Faafoi. The minister says he hasn’t seen the details at this stage but is cautious about the concept. “That scenario hasn’t been brought to me. I would be very concerned if that had any fish hooks that put con- sumers at risk.” VIA chief executive David Vinsen says the plan is still being worked through but there is no date for sub- mitting it yet. Faafoi cautious about airbag plan Kris Faafoi T he Ministry for Primary In- dustries (MPI) is confident the long-awaited new Import Health Standard for vehicles brought in from Japan will be announced later this week. However, the used import industry in particular does face some challenges with the new IHS set to be announced on August 9 before coming into force on September 1 – in line with the new brown marmorated stink bug season. MPI confirmed to AutoTalk that issues like the kiwifruit industry winning a high court case which held the Crown partly responsible for the introduction of PSA, and a Japanese government appeal to the World Trade Organisation about the HIS, are unlikely to delay its introduc- tion. “We have carefully reviewed all the relevant documents related to the IHS to ensure the correct process has been followed and the biosecurity risks have been appropriately assessed,” an MPI spokesperson says. “The approved treatment options are fumigation with methyl bromide or sulfuryl fluoride and heat treat- ment. We expect most of the imports from Japan will undergo heat treatment, as that’s going to be available through the local MPI- approved systems, and Japan has restrictions on some fumigants.” MPI says it is aware of industry concerns regarding timing of the IHS implementation. However, Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association chief executive David Vinsen says MPI has been mov- ing “far more conservatively and slowly than we would like”. As a result, MPI’s three border inspection agencies (BIOs) – Jevic, Automotive Technologies Limited (ATL) and Auto Terminal Japan (ATJ) - have New IHS imminent but challenges remain Continued on page 22 David Vinsen
Transcript
MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF AUTOTALK.CO.NZ – VOLUME 9 | ISSUE 7 | AUGUST 2018
T H E V E H I C L E D E A L E R ’ S N E W S S O U R C E
INSIDE
8 10
GLOBAL VEHICLE LOGISTICS NZ · JAPAN · AUSTRALIA · UK · EUROPE | www.autohub.co
The market leader for over a decade.Shift to the Autohub Team and
experience the Autohub difference.
Confidence for the road ahead.
Alternative car ownership options 4Nichibo celebrates 30th anniversary 6TSI’s new leadership team 82Cheap owner speaks 10
Consumer affairs minister Kris Faafoi is wary of a plan that would allow wholesalers to
purchase alpha Takata airbag-affected vehicles from dealers.
The plan, being devised by the Im-ported Motor Vehicle Industry Association (VIA), would allow dealers to sell the ve-hicles to wholesalers.
The wholesalers would then sit on the vehicles and re-pair them as parts become available.
At the moment dealers are banned from selling the affected vehicles as part of the compulsory alpha Takata airbag recall imple-mented by Faafoi.
The minister says he hasn’t seen the details at this stage but is cautious about the concept.
“That scenario hasn’t been brought to me. I would be very concerned if that had any fish hooks that put con-sumers at risk.”
VIA chief executive David Vinsen says the plan is still being worked through but there is no date for sub-mitting it yet.
Faafoi cautious about airbag plan
Kris Faafoi
The Ministry for Primary In-dustries (MPI) is confident the long-awaited new Import Health
Standard for vehicles brought in from Japan will be announced later this week.
However, the used import industry in particular does face some challenges with the new IHS set to be announced on August 9 before coming into force on September 1 – in line with the new brown marmorated stink bug season.
MPI confirmed to AutoTalk that issues like the kiwifruit industry winning a high court case which held the Crown partly responsible for the introduction of PSA, and a Japanese government appeal to the World Trade Organisation about the HIS, are unlikely to delay its introduc-tion.
“We have carefully reviewed all the relevant documents related to the IHS to ensure the correct process has been
followed and the biosecurity risks have been appropriately assessed,” an MPI spokesperson says.
“The approved treatment options are fumigation with methyl bromide or sulfuryl fluoride and heat treat-ment. We expect most of the imports from Japan will undergo heat treatment, as that’s going to be available through the local MPI-approved systems, and Japan has restrictions on some fumigants.”
MPI says it is aware of industry concerns regarding timing of the IHS implementation.
However, Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association chief executive David Vinsen says MPI has been mov-ing “far more conservatively and slowly than we would like”.
As a result, MPI’s three border inspection agencies (BIOs) – Jevic, Automotive Technologies Limited (ATL) and Auto Terminal Japan (ATJ) - have
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More OEMs than ever are offering ex-tended warranties
on their new vehicles, but what’s their real value to the customer?
It depends on which brand you ask.
Mitsubishi Motors New Zealand chief operating of-ficer Daniel Cook says its 10-year or 160,000km pow-ertrain warranty and its five-year or 130,000km warranty for the rest of the car shows how confident the marque is in its product.
“For us the extended war-ranty is proof of our vehicle performance and reliability. We are the only OEM pre-pared to cover our vehicle and customers out to 10 years.
“We can do this because of our very high build quality and reliability. Our custom-ers tell us they love the warranty cover they receive and its an additional peace of mind that comes with own-ing and driving a Mitsubishi.
“There are still a number of brands that have regular product issues and can’t af-ford to offer a longer war-ranty.”
Ford New Zealand spokes-man Tom Clancy says the brand thinks its new five-year or 150,000km warranty will be compelling for customers.
“It is straightforward, has minimal conditions or quali-
fications and is available to all buyer types.
“It’s part of our ongoing efforts to build and improve our overall after-sales care package for customers.”
That includes access to loan cars, vehicle report cards and a roadside as-sistance extension when customers service with a Ford dealer.
However, Holden New Zealand general manager - customer experience Phill Haynes says the brand doesn’t see extending the warranty beyond three years or 100,000km as a huge incentive for customers.
“Our customers perceive more value in our three-year, scheduled servicing programme rather than an extended warranty,” he says.
“The servicing side of things we introduced a while back certainly offers a lot of value for them, as opposed to something longer than a three-year warranty.
“You expect cars these days to last a lot longer.”
Toyota New Zealand has a standard three year/100,000km warranty for new vehicles, but it does use the offer of an extension as a sweetener for potential customers.
“Toyota often applies an extended warranty packages to improve the total cost of ownership equation in some
sales situations,” spokesman Morgan Dilks says.
“Our current Drive Happy project will ensure a cus-tomer who regularly services with a Toyota store for the duration of warranty cover automatically receives a free two-year warranty extension to make the total coverage five years or 150,000km.
And is the extended war-ranty worth it for the cus-tomer?
“Fundamentally cars are more reliable, but the more sophisticated technology built into today’s cars means they are safer and more environmentally friendly but can also can make even in-nocuous failures potentially expensive to repair.”
Kia Motors New Zealand says it has offered an extend-ed five-year or 100,000km for 15 years because three years isn’t enough.
“Five years was deemed to fit into the car-buying pattern much better and it was also a reflection of how new cars and SUVs were becoming more reliable.
“Kia’s Incident Care will also make sure the car gets back on the road fast after an accident. It even helps com-plete the claim forms, pro-vides owners with a courtesy car and makes sure their own vehicle is repaired to exacting standards.”
Extended new car warranties - marketing tool or added value?
Alternative options to traditional ve-hicle ownership are
being proposed as part of a broader programme to keep low income New Zealanders out of debt.
The three models - affordable financ-ing, social leasing and community-based ride sharing – were proposed at the Financial Inclusion Industry Forum.
It was led by com-merce and consumer affairs minister Kris Faafoi and social development minister Carmel Sepuloni at Manukau Institute of Technology in
south Auckland last month.The Car and Car Finance
session was led by Financial Services Federation (FSF) executive director Lyn Mc-Morran, whose membership includes many of the major automotive lenders.
McMorran says she is
particularly excited by the social leasing and community ridesharing options.
Under current regula-tions, it can be difficult for FSF members to lend to low income people.
“In the past, you might have done something a bit
outside the box.“You can’t do that
anymore. With the way the regulations are, they will come down on top of you.”
As a result, low income people are forced to borrow from “dodgy lenders”.
“They’re using car finance to buy dodgy vehicles that are not safe or road worthy,” McMorran says.
“Affordable options will get them into safe, reliable vehicles.”
But how do you get safe, reliable vehicles at a rate people can afford?
McMorran says some great ideas were fleshed out at the forum.
The affordable finance option would allow the purchase of selected vehicles from certain financiers and dealers, while the social leas-ing option would cover basic costs, including insurance and maintenance.
“If they don’t own the car, they don’t have to make loan repayments.”
The community rideshar-ing model in particular offers real benefits, with the poten-tial to offer everything from small hatchbacks to large people-movers.
“With the ridesharing model, they have access to a
vehicle when they need one.“It gives them access to
the right kind of vehicle at the right time.”
Faafoi says at the moment some vulnerable consumers only have bad options avail-able to them.
“We’re committed to mak-ing sure these ideas have a life outside this forum.”
Faafoi has also promised to look at regulatory issues that impede organisations from providing low-
cost lending.“We’re looking at different
ways to get consumers good quality cars. We want people to be able to afford safe cars and safe lending.”
Faafoi is hoping the alternative social leasing and community-based ride sharing models will make difference, once they come to life.
He acknowledges the importance of reliable private transport options for low income people in particular.
“It’s their ability to get to work and pay the bills, run the kids around for school. [They need] the transport that suits their needs.
“For some of those low-income families, they are more than likely not owning a home, so buying a car is their biggest financial deci-sion.”
Low-interest finance schemes like the Community Finance between the Ministry of Social Development, BNZ, Good Shepherd, the Salva-tion Army and Vaka Tautua are also important, Sepiloni says.
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A huge dealer and indus-try contingent joined the Nichibo Trading
team in Auckland on Friday night at a black-tie function to celebrate the firm’s 30th anniversary.
Nichibo managing director Nobu Yamanaka launched the firm into the used import trade in the late 1980s, seeing the opportuni-ty while here on buying trips for his seafood importation operation.
A video shown to the crowd told the story of the company, including the early days of Yamanaka attending auctions by day, and typ-ing export documents in the evening. Before the inter-net, vehicles were selected from auction catalogues, and students would retype their details into the Nichibo tender list.
Memories were shared of the early days and buy-ing trips by the “Tauranga Mafia” group of dealers, including Yamanaka staying by the bed of a dealer struck by appendicitis to translate.
In 2000, Robert Young relocated to New Zealand and established a local office. From there the company continued to grow, with Auto Advance launched to provide finance to dealers in 2005, and the Fast Track compli-ance joint venture with Peter Johnston Genuine Vehicle Imports began in 2006.
In 2006 the firm’s head office moved to Tokyo, and it expanded into agriculture and a ski lodge in northern Japan. The firm held steady during the global financial crisis, and with the withdraw-al of many finance firms from New Zealand in its wake,
established Auto Finance Direct.
Today Nichibo and its subsidiaries - now part of Optimus Group - employ 450 people in New Zealand, and 600 worldwide. In his speech, Yamanaka explained New Zealand remains home.
“I would say definitely; New Zealand is home. Nichi-bo is home,” he explained. “We’ve been striving to serve the New Zealand pub-lic with our dealer custom-ers for many years.”
He acknowledged many
Dealers acknowledged as Nichibo celebrates 30 years
people and organisations, most notably Peter Johnston of Genuine Vehicle Imports and Rod Milner of Rod Milner Motors for their work to launch the Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association to protect the market; Mark Ching of Armacup; and David Vinsen of VIA.
He explained that Japan has excellent train systems that provide transport for its people. He believes Nichibo has done the same for New Zealand - giving freedom to buyers by offering them an affordable transport option.
Yamanaka told the crowd he and Young decided to go into business to-gether while sitting on the bonnet of a car in an auction yard. “Since 2002 Robert Young actu-ally took over the “Mr Nichibo” title from me.”
He acknowledged his staff - both here and in Ja-pan - and their work growing the business.
Robert Young began by noting the challenges the in-dustry has faced over the last 30 years - including “those bloody bugs”.
“I’m convinced whoever coined the phrase ‘change is the only constant’, was talk-ing about our industry.
“And the fact that Nichibo managed to survive these 30 eventful years is firstly due to our loyal customers; sec-ondly to the loyalty, integrity, and determination of our own 600 employees based here in New Zealand, Japan,
and around the world; thirdly, to the support of our friends, families, and business partners. And last but not least, to the vision and generosity of Nobu Yamanaka, Nichibo’s founder.”
Samurai swords were presented to seven Nichibo customers to recognise their long-term business with the company. Gary Milne of Drive Town, Mike Elliot of Mo-tor One and Neil Blackford of Summit Motor Company, were acknowledged for 15 years. Bryan McKenzie of BMM Imports, Rod Milner of Rod Milner Motors, Peter Johnston of GVI and Trevor Lee of Trevor Lee Autos were all noted for purchasing cars for well over 20 years.
Hidemi Daikyu, who has arranged the shipping of hun-dreds of thousands of cars from the Japanese office was
also noted. Young told the crowd he refers to Daikyu as “my honey”.
Johnston took the chance after receiving his sword to talk to the crowd, noting Nichibo’s early back-ing of the dealers behind the IMVIA.
“We put a lot of time and effort and money in - we spent $1 million on crash testing. And Nichibo has al-ways been behind us, helping us, supporting us,” Johnstone explained. “There were many agents around in those days, but there’s the good, and the bad, and the ugly.”
“Nichibo were the good. And they supported us Kiwis.”
Automotive software house TSI Group is taking a team approach to its new management structure.
Tracey Atkins has recently taken on the role of Systime general manager, looking after the Autoline DMS and IMS products; while Raju Bhana is now SAM general manager, leading the workshop and fleet management system side of the business.
The pair, together with group finan-cial controller Simone Vidal, collectively have almost 60 years with TSI and are now responsible for group decision making.
It is a good change for the business, and is working well, Atkins says.
“Previously decisions were made on a business unit basis. Now a group ap-proach exists that leverages a broader knowledge base resulting in much bet-ter decisions.
“It’s about sharing ideas, across both our businesses and our products, to ensure that our customers and indus-try associates benefit from the broad understanding of the market that we collectively share.
“What functionality can we add? We are constantly looking at ways we can improve our customers’ business and enhance their experience, including de-veloping partnerships with third-parties.
Bhana says TSI’s focus on customer service has strength-ened since the new leadership structure.
“Our KPIs are still in place. We are constantly reviewing our internal processes using KPIs and metrics to ensure the very best level of responsiveness for our customers.
“It’s all about personal ser-vice. We have sales people on the ground and a support team with some of the best experience in the industry”.
Atkins has been with the company for 28 years, Bhana for 20 years and Vidal for 10 years.
Retention of staff is one of the main reasons for TSI’s success, Atkins says.
“We’ve gone from 11 staff to 52, with offices in Auckland, Christchurch and Sydney.”
TSI has been in its current building for 10 years, occupying the entire ground floor for the last 12 months following a round of renovations.
“It’s an area conducive to customer support, complete with specialised sound proofing,” Atkins says.
“We are proud of the enhanced working environment our team now has and confidently look forward to deliver-
ing unexpected value to our existing and new customers in the years to come.”
Part of TSI’s strategy is to grow its presence in Australia.
“There’s a wealth of knowledge we can export over there,” Bhana says.
“We have many happy customers on both sides of the Tasman, with plenty of untapped potential in Australia right now.”
The group is attending several trade shows in Australia in the coming months to showcase products and new offerings.
These include the Australian Au-tomotive Dealer Association (AADA) National Dealer Convention and Expo on the Gold Coast from September 4-5 and Xerocon in Brisbane from Septem-ber 4-6.
TSI’s new management team are Raju Bhana, Tracey Atkins and Simone Vidal.
New leadership team at TSI Group
An increase in business, staff and overall growth has seen Kiwi Car Loans move into a larger office.
The bigger team and general busi-ness growth meant shifting the com-pany to its new location at 692 Great South Rd in Penrose, Auckland – not far from its previous location – was a necessity.
“Our huge web presence and growth has seen plenty of leads feed-ing into our dealers,” general manager Aaron Rate says.
“Our exclusive finance products are
not available to other brokers or the general public, and have helped almost double our dealer introducer numbers over the last 12 months.
“Similarly, staff numbers have fol-lowed this trend.”
Rate says Kiwi Car Loans is see-ing more dealers utilising a broker to assist with finance requirements for customers rather than trying to do it all themselves.
“The broker is effectively the busi-ness manager for the dealership,” Rate says.
“Using Kiwi Car Loans saves the dealers time and offers a seven-day per week service.”
Contact Aaron Rate on 027 600 0995 or email: [email protected] to find out more.
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Seven years since it was founded by Eugene Williams and his business partner David Sena, 2CheapCars
has grown from one dealership in East Auckland to a nationwide network of 17 yards. After a period of consolidation, it is again in growth mode, with a second brand - Best Auto Buy - and a dealer-ship set to open in Canada.
Chief executive Williams acknowl-
edges the dealership is not where they expected it to be when they launched.
“In terms of size we’re importing around 11 to 12,000 cars a year, so that would probably put us on par with Ford in terms of import numbers in New Zealand,” Williams explains. “We’re hoping to get towards 15 to 16,000 in the next financial year.”
“To be honest, we thought we would be a little bigger than what we are now,” he says. “All the processes weren’t in place. So we had cars going out that shouldn’t have gone out, and it’s just having all the checks and balances in place.”
Though that figure comes from a period of getting the mod-el right - with Williams claiming the firm brought in new managers - including from Toyota. Part ofthis was to raise quality and makeprocesses more efficient.
“We’re running really ef-ficiently and bringing a quality product to the consumer, but still at the same time we’re sort of not moving away from our Jetstar mentality,” Williams says.
Jetstar mentality? This is how he describes the firm’s model - no band expander, no English manual, no tank of gas with the car. He says it works for their customers.
He also believes this approach means they have not taken away from existing dealers, and grown the dealer segment - drawing customers from the back-yard trader market.
While Williams is pretty clear on what the market for 2Cheap-Cars is, he still struggles to convey the difference their new brand Best Auto Buy represents.
“It’s just to get better cover-age throughout New Zealand. At the moment we would say we don’t have a great market share. We’re hoping with a secondary brand we can sort of gain more market share.”
“It’s our secondary brand, so the focus on advertising is going to be less but pretty much ... the
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same Japanese imports, coming from different sources in Japan.”
Though he wouldn’t explain what those differ-ent sources are. The group sources from importers and has its own team of Kiwi buy-ers based in Japan as well.
Northern exposureThose buyers will also
be sourcing vehicles for the soon-to-open Canadian branch of the company, which will serve the Vancou-ver area.
“So we don’t see it as be-ing a large market. But we do see a great opportunity to bring Japanese cars into Canada for people that are that are JDM enthusiasts,” he explains.
“Beyond Canada, we’re
sort of looking at America as well. America has a small but vibrant JDM scene. So we’re sort of basing ourselves in Vancouver at the mo-ment but looking to expand throughout North America.”
“Canada I think is similar in terms of culture to New Zealand so the learning curve there wouldn’t be as great as going to somewhere say, like Russia.”
While Canada is a go, 2Cheap’s much-lauded entry into parallel imported “new” vehicles is not so much of a clear venture any more.
“We still bring in those
near-new imports but the market size wasn’t as great as we anticipated which sort of proves that new cars in New Zealand aren’t being sold to the public but more towards corporates and government,” Williams says.
“Going forward I think that is still something that we want to do and we always look at those opportunities.”
“We’ve looked at buying a franchise dealership, but the profitability of new car dealerships isn’t as great as what we thought so we’ll sort of, I think, stick to our core business.”
Also on the scrapped pile is the plan for an initial public offering. Williams says access to capital locally has been excellent over the last few years - the company has a funding deal with ASB Bank.
“The idea of an IPO is good, but I guess at the moment, the necessity of an IPO isn’t there. And David and I don’t have any plans of exiting the business anytime soon.”
Courting controversyWe asked Williams if at
times he has tried to “shake things up” and be controver-sial for attention.
“Ah, to a certain point, yes,” he says. “That’s just me personally.”
Attracting attention is part of the business, and Williams admits this was an element of its stake in now defunct Kiwi Regional Airlines.
“So with the airline, that was a bit of a publicity stunt, and I think the amount of publicity that we got out of it, I think it worked pretty well in
our favour.”
The death of the $3999 car?One of the eye-catching
things 2CheapCars does is its advertised specials - fresh imports splashed across TV screens for $3999 or at times even lower. However, by 2020 Williams suggests their time could be over.
The next stage of the electronic stability control regulations in 2020 will significantly impact on the kind of vehicles 2Cheap moves - smaller sub 2-litre models. Williams believes the business - like most import-ers - will adapt and survive. He notes the firm started in the wake of the three-digit emission code era and the industry survived the woes predicted at the time.
“There will be an effect but probably for a lim-ited time - New Zealanders always find a way to carry on,” he notes. “The makes and models that we see on the road will slightly change - post-2020 we’re prob-ably going to see a lot more Priuses on the road.”
“I think you know when you look at the current regulation, we can bring in a 2004 Honda Fit, and in real-ity, I think that car is maybe a little bit too old to be a first-time registered car used.”
“For the first couple of years after the new regula-tions, the starting price point might change to $5999 or $6999 and then after two years, three years we’ll creep back down, and we’ll just go through the same cycle again and I think our industry sort of works on cycles and it’ll just be another cycle from start to end.”
Canada and controversyContinued from page 10
For our full interview with Eugene Williams, you can watch the video at the Auto Media Group Youtube channel, or for the podcast version, check out our channel on Soundcloud - search Auto Media Group.
Trade Me Motors will soon display dealer ratings and reviews via Mo-torcentral’s BuyerScore service.
In much the same way private sellers can display customer feedback on their Trade Me profile page, the addition of
BuyerScore will similarly allow dealers to publish their feedback directly on Trade Me.
“We’re proud to be displaying Buyer-Score reviews”, says Alan Clark, head of Trade Me Motors.
“Trade Me’s experience as well as consumer surveys always shows that trust in the seller is a critical factor when buying a car - so we’re looking to strengthen that trust through the addi-tion of BuyerScore ratings and reviews.”
Easily comprehensible “five-star” ratings will be displayed for each dealership, with factors like overall experience, customer service, level of expertise and the quality of the facilities experienced by customers.
Motorcentral general manager Mark Greenfield, says he believes BuyerScore ratings on Trade Me will be the biggest win for the auto sales industry this year.
“Every day we’re seeing cus-tomers having genuinely good experiences at dealerships and its important the New Zealand public are hearing those stories and understanding that buying from a dealer tends to result in a quick, hassle-free and safe transaction”, says Greenfield.
“Partnerships like this allow us to begin spreading that message en masse - something we’re very thankful to Trade Me for wanting to be a part of.”
Although an official launch date has yet to be set, dealers are being urged to join the BuyerScore ser-vice as early as possible so they can begin collecting as much feedback as possible prior to it “going live”.
“Some of our earliest adopters have close to a thousand pieces of feedback now, which we expect to be highly influential come launch date”, says Greenfield.
“Likewise, not having a Buyer-Score rating ready when this does go live, we feel could be quite unfavourable to a dealership.”
To learn more or to subscribe to the BuyerScore service dealers are being advised to contact the Motorcentral dealer solutions team on 0800 623 687 or via email on [email protected].
Japan has been Nigel Grindall’s second home for the last six
months.The Automotive Tech-
nologies Limited (ATL) and Moana Blue chief executive has spent many weeks out of New Zealand in recent times sorting out how to ship used imports safely following the stink bug threat which hit the auto-motive industry so hard in February.
Heat treatment is the option ATL chose early on to treat used imports in Japan, recently receiving Ministry for Primary Industries accredita-tion to use the tech-nology.
The ministry is yet to announce its preferred option for treating used imports as part of the Import Health Stand-ard review, but ATL’s heat treatment facilities are ready to go, he says.
ATL is not the only one preparing facilities, with Jevic and Auto Terminal Japan (ATJ) also confirming they will offer heat treatment facilities.
Grindall says spending so much time in Japan recently has been an eye-opener for many reasons.
“We have been up in Japan five times this year sitting in the rain and the heat, becoming experts on heat treatment.
“The challenge is doing heat treatment effectively and within the guidelines MPI
have provided.“Heat treatment
adds another level in terms of com-plexity and time. That’s both the human resource and the natural resource.”
But he’s confident the trips have been worth it, with eight chambers for treating cars set across three locations at ports in Tokyo, Kobe and Nagoya.
“We’ve measured three times and cut once to come up with a heat treatment fa-cility that is both efficient and can be easily replicated.
“They’re all fully portable and can move to a different place where we need them to be.
“We will have enough capacity to do double the volumes we’re doing now – about 4500 to 5000 cars per month.”
However, the trip to Japan also highlighted challenges the backlog of cars destined
for New Zealand and other markets is causing.
“One major challenge is yard space. There’s unprecedented numbers going from Japan to other markets.
“Yard space is getting tighter and tighter. Normally it would have eased by now.
“But from a freight for-warder’s perspective, New Zealand has the lowest rate for freight forwarding by 30 to 40% so the cost of for-warding in Japan will prob-ably increase as a result.
“With the requirement to store vehicles in an MPI-approved location post heat treatment and prior to ship-ping, so they don’t get re-contaminated, suitable land will be required to process vehicles bound for NZ.
“While there will be chal-lenges with providing the correct amount of storage in Japan, we have taken steps to ensure that we can accept and handle any additional volumes.”
As for supply chain costs, it’s inevitable they will eventually rise because of the heat treatment issue, he says.
“There will be bunker fuel adjustment (BAF) surcharge coming which will further increase the costs of ship-ping vehicles.
“We’ve done a lot of work for free. We’ve put the heat treatment chambers in place and at the same time, moved vehicles around Ja-pan when vehicles weren’t loading and placing them into temporary storage until vessels were ready to load.
“The recent BMSB crisis has cost tens of millions of dollars across the logistics supply chain. Whilst we are here to keep the industry going during these challeng-ing times, we can’t continue to incur the increasing costs of servicing the NZ market indefinitely.”
Grindall says the in-creased cost could be “a few hundred dollars” per vehicle.
But the alternative for dealers doesn’t bear thinking about, he says.
“If companies can’t get cars through the heat pro-cesses, then they can’t be shipped, and in that case how are traders going to stock their dealerships?
“It’s hard to measure the total impact of these addi-tional services and costs will have on pricing, but it will be across the board for every-one and eventually passed on to the consumer.”
Heat treatment ready for stink bug season
Nigel Grindall
16 | AUTOTALK AUGUST 2018 | www.autotalk.co.nz
SHIPPINGSHIPPING AND LOGISTICS FEATURE
An International Maritime Organization (IMO) target to ban
ships using fuel with more than 0.5% sulphur content by 2020 could cost the industry billions, a research report says.
The IMO announced the target two years ago which slashes the current limit of 3.5% of sulphur in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Global energy consultan-cy group Wood Mackenzie is predicting the IMO 2020 cap could cost the global ship-ping industry US$60 billion annually as a result of higher crude prices and tight avail-ability of alternative fuels.
Fuel oil, which is high in sulphur content, has tradi-tionally been used by the shipping industry as bunker fuel. Global demand for high-sulphur fuel oil stood at almost 70% of overall bunker fuels in 2016.
However, the industry will soon have to decide whether it switches to alternative fuels, such as marine gas oil (MGO) or ultra-low sulphur fuel oil (ULSFO) or install scrubber systems which remove sulphur from exhaust gas emitted by bunkers.
Wood Mackenzie senior research analyst Iain Mowat says installing scrubbers may be an “economically attrac-tive option”.
“Although there is an initial investment, shippers can expect a rate of return of between 20% and 50% de-pending on investment cost, MGO-fuel oil spread and
ships’ fuel consumption. “However, the penetra-
tion rate for scrubbers could be limited by a number of factors, including access to finance, scrubber manufac-turing capacity and dry-dock space.
“Switching to MGO is a more costly solution, and in full compliance, would probably see freight rates increase, perhaps by around $1 a barrel,” Mowat says.
Demand from the bunker fuels market will total about 5.3 million barrels per day in 2020, according to Wood Mackenzie forecasts.
Based on pure ULSFO refinery streams, available ULSFO volumes in 2020 will total about 1.2 million barrels per day.
This could be boosted by further blending UL-SFO with vacuum gas oil (VGO) streams, but VGO is a valuable feedstock for the production of other lighter refinery products, and may not be readily available, the
report says. “It is likely that MGO
will help meet additional demand from the shipping sector. Wood Mackenzie estimates that this will see MGO demand rise by over 1 million b/d in 2020 in our base case outlook.
“Meeting this demand will require higher crude runs with residue upgrading units, particularly in the US and China, supporting an uplift in refining margins,” Mowat says.
“While there is a risk that this fuel specification change could be disruptive, the anticipated market reaction could benefit refiners with deep conversion/distillate oriented configurations. It also provides refiners, par-ticularly in the US and China, the opportunity to capture the value of their ULSFO component streams and increase their share of the global bunker market.
“Some refiners should see better profit margins as in-
cremental demand for MGO rises, pushing up its price. Higher refining runs, required to meet additional MGO de-mand, could potentially push global gasoline market into surplus weakening gasoline prices.
“This could mean that the gasoline pain for some refiners could be more acute than the impact of weaker HSFO prices. Overall, we expect a material impact on refining economics post IMO and refiners must ensure they have a robust IMO strat-egy in place.
“We also expect a shift in bunkering locations based on compliant fuels availabil-ity. Singapore, for exam-ple, could potentially lose some of its market share for bunker fuels to China as shippers look for alternative locations with a surplus of compliant fuels.
China, with ample MGO supply, is well positioned to attract shippers,” Mowat says.
Fuel sulphur cap set to shake shipping industry
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Volkswagen New Zea-land is starting sales of its new Touareg
off with a dealer tour of New Zealand - although arguably the strategy is a necessity.
While the brand has big plans for the model, it has only just man-aged to land two units in the country. More stocks does arrive for a further six weeks, so the tour allows the model to get maximum exposure to customers with just two in the country.
It is not the first time the company has used such an approach - it did a similar tour with the Tiguan as a way to speak directly to customers in the wake of ‘diesel gate’.
General manager Tom Ruddenklau says getting people along to check out the vehicle is not difficult.
“When you have an estab-lished nameplate like Touar-eg - and particularly when you have a lot of imports and the model is established and well known - it is easier to get people to turn up,” Rud-denklau says.
“The Tiguan roadshow was phenomenal, it was hugely successful,” he ex-plains. “We only had one car here early, so it was easy to roll it around the country.
The Touareg is set to top a relatively full range of SUVs. Tiguan and Allspace are doing well - though are restricted by volume - while the T-Rock small SUV will
arrive here shortly in one R-Line model for $51,990. It remains a five-seater, al-though Volkswagen does not
see that as a problem - citing the Tiguan’s popularity over the Allspace model.
It will go up against the Discovery, Range Rover Sport, XC90, X5 and GLE - a list of cars that mostly offer the third row.
That is not to say Eu-ropean Motor Distributors would not like a seven-seat-er. Alongside Australia, they have asked for the US-mar-ket only Atlas.
“Between us and the Australian we would love to get it, but it seems very much only an American thing and left-hand drive,” Ruddenklau says.
The Touareg itself has grown. IT is 77mm longer and 44mm wider, though a little lower. Interior space has
improved, as has the booth - up 16% to a massive 810 litres.
It is, however, 106kg lighter, thanks to a mix of aluminium and high strength steel. It is also stiffer.
The powertrain is diesel-only. Available so far are a pair of six-cylinder turbo-charged diesels, at 170kW and 500Nm for the stand-
ard model, and 210kW and 600Nm for the S. An eight-speed automatic is standard, which uses a new shift-by-wire setup. A V8 diesel will arrive next year.
Towing capacity remains at a hefty 3500kg - no need to drive a ute to tow the boat.
The TDI V6 model is priced at $92,990, while the TDI V6 is $107,990.
Standard specifications are high - expect a full safety suite including adap-tive cruise control, collision warning and autonomous emergency braking and a lane-keeping system. LED headlights, rearview camera, park assist, two-zone climate control, keyless entry and start and leather also make
the grade.Some of the best new
technologies for the vehicle are, however, on the options list - especially for the stand-ard model.
The new Innovision Cock-pit, which replaces the dash and most switches with two huge touchscreens - 12 and 15-inch in size - is a $6500 option on the standard car, though fitted to the S. A heads-up display is $2200 on the base.
LED matrix headlights are a $6000 option on that model as well. A night vi-sion system is not available without the S’s Innovision Cockpit and costs $3000.
Air suspension is a $6000 option on the S, and active roll stabilisation, as seen in the Audi Q7, with a 48-volt supercapacitor system and all-wheel steering is a fur-ther $10,000.
We drove a Touareg on the standard suspension on a short run across country-side south of Auckland. It immediately impressed with how its size disappeared around you - it felt light and relatively nimble for its size. Performance from the diesel engine was effortless.
The Innovation Cockpit is intuitive, and offers a wealth of information and control - it was oddly reassuring to know our altitude. Smart-phone mirroring was icing on the cake.
Volkswagen is expect-ing to shift 270 vehicles this year, and 400 in the full year 2019. The split expected is 60/40 to the base model - with 20% of sales ultimately likely to be the V8.
Early Touaregs to go on dealer tourRICHARD EDWARDS
SHOWROOMNEW VEHICLE INDUSTRY AND PRODUCT NEWS
20 | AUTOTALK AUGUST 2018 | www.autotalk.co.nz
BMW New Zealand is suitably pleased with its Mini sub-brand at
the moment. Last year was a record year, up over 10% to 668 units, while this year sales to the end of June are again tracking ahead at 374 units.
Admittedly much of this growth has come from a non-traditional quarter, the Country-man SUV, which this year makes up 41% of sales, while the Club-man wagon is also growing its stake.
“That is a phenomenal result for our two bigger cars,” head of Mini Kenny Aulia noted last week at an event to mark the launch of a “life-cycle impulse” update as the brand likes to call them, to the Cooper range of vehicles.
And even Aulia acknowl-edges that while the Coun-tryman is the hot seller, the Cooper line is close to what people think of as a Mini.
“When I think of a Mini that is what I think of.”
So what is new? Exter-nally is a new Mini logo throughout the vehicle, new colours and new front and rear light designs – includ-ing a Union Jack rear light optional on the Cooper and then standard on the S and JCW models. Inside there are new finishes as well.
The new logo is more two-dimensional in its look and is repeated around the vehicle and on the key fob. The new LED driving lights
form a complete ring around the classic Mini headlight unit.
Electronic features take a real step up, with a touch-screen navigation system and reverse camera now standard. The S and above now get Mini Connected,
upgraded to the same standard as BMW Connected – with a 4G sim embed-ded in the vehicle allowingremote services through aconnected app, and an SOSsystem where the car sum-mons emergency services toyour location at the touch ofa button – through BMW’sPhilippines-based call centre.
The old selector for “sport” mode on the vehicles moves from the base of the transmission selector to a toggle switch on the dash. The shifter itself is new as well. Apple CarPlay debuts for the brand as part of the Mini Connected system also.
The key change from a mechanical perspective is the replacement on Cooper models of the eight-speed automatic with a more ef-ficient seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. This is not new to the market, debuting in the X2 SUV with which Mini shares a platform.
Pricing does rise across the range, by $350 to
$35,900 on the Cooper, by $800 to $44,500 on the S and by $400 to $54,900 on the S. Aulia defends the rise, noting the extra value added. Add an automatic transmis-sion, and the price tag rises $3000. Want five-doors?
Just $1500 extra.“To add a reversing cam-
era and navigation, and then Mini Connected on Cooper S and above – I think that is a pretty impressive increase in value for customers.”
We drove a range of Minis for the event, and all proved to hold that firm and direct yet comfortable feel that has made BMWs take on the icon such a success.
The new 7-speed trans-mission in the Cooper works well with the charm-ing three-cylinder 1.5-litre 100kW and 220Nm petrol. It is frugal too at just 5.2-litres per 100km on a combined cycle.
The Cooper S still feels sharp and performs well with its 141kW 2-litre engine – though the edge it has had in the past has softened a little, perhaps to make more room for the zesty JCW.
If there was one thing we did note on the drive, it is how much better suited the larger Minis are to NZ condi-
tions. Both the Clubman and Countryman offered more space and rode better on typically low-quality North Island roads – no wonder so many buyers are now head-ing in the SUVs direction.
Mini Ev next year?Mini will next year launch
its new full EV model glob-ally, and BMW NZ is hoping to get its hands on it as soon as possible.
“We would hope we would get it next year,” BMW spokesperson Paul Sherley says. “But we can’t guarantee that. We will get it as soon as we can.”
The brand is already find-ing success with a plug-in, with 12.5% of Countryman buyers ordering the PHEV version.
“The Countryman is one of the big success stories here in NZ. To say that more than one in 10 Countryman is PHEV is impressive,” Sher-ley notes.
“New Zealand is one of the frontrunners when it comes to being progressive on electric vehicle technol-ogy.”
View a video from the Mini launch on our Youtube channel.
Update for Cooper as Mini proves sales successRICHARD EDWARDS
How Ford’s new per-formance vehicle, the Ranger Raptor, would
perform both on and off the road has been the subject of much speculation.
I got behind the wheel of this new breed of truck in the rugged outback of Australia’s Northern Territory.
Ever since Ford an-nounced that the Ranger Raptor’s heart would be a mere 2-litre, four-cylinder bi-turbo diesel engine, the internet has been a sea of visceral debate. But Ford has maintained it’s not just about the cubic capacity, and I can tell you Ford is correct.
The engine delivers 157kW and 500Nm of power and torque in a seemingly endless fashion, and triple-digit speed comes with ease whatever the terrain. Putting a 2-litre engine in a truck may seem like a backward step, but it wasn’t long ago that a V8 would be proud to boast these types of numbers.
As I pointed out, it’s not just about the ccs. With the Ranger Raptor, Ford’s engineers have mated the engine with a finely tuned 10-speed automatic gear-box that never appears lost when finding correct gear. Although I doubt you’d need them, there are also pad-dles on hand for the control freaks.
Underpinning it all, the Ranger Raptor’s heavy duty boxed chassis frame is stoic and unyielding. But attached to this are the other four cylinders that make this truck
so very special, namely the Fox 2.5 internal Bypass front and remote reservoir rear shocks. According to Ford, “there is so much technol-ogy in them they are a candy store for dynamic engineers”. The damping effect is similar to that of a soft closing cutlery drawer, they simply absorb whatever pressure is
inflicted.Our “Outback Attack”
experience commenced in Darwin with a sealed road drive to Tipperary Station (which we all know is a long way), the perfect way to showcase the Ranger Raptor’s on-road prowess. Even with its larger physi-cal dimensions and wider track, the truck doesn’t feel ungainly on the tar seal.
The sports seats are comfortable and supportive with side bolsters that I was thankful for later. A large array of infotainment and driver aids (although no adaptive cruise control) are at hand and the BF Goodrich high-performance all-ter-rain tyres offered very little road noise.
The near two-and-a-half hour drive included a 130km/h section that (from the engine’s point of view) went by unnoticed.
The “driveway” to the 210,000-hectare station was an unsurfaced, wide open trail, covered in red, aeolian dust (commonly called bull-dust). In other words, Ranger
Raptor territory. Once again, the combination of that tor-quey engine, strong chassis, outstanding suspension and all-terrain conquering rubber had us believing we were still on the highway (and we drove accordingly).
With three exercises to complete, our hosts split us into groups and sent us into various locations. The first for us was the quarry and a chance to use the Raptor’s 4WD modes and upgraded ground clearances. As ex-pected, the Ranger took to the gradients and loose shin-gle without breaking a sweat, unlike us as the temperature nudged past 30 degrees – this really is a capable off-roader.
Next up was the experi-
ence we’d all been waiting for, a fast-paced course including power slides, jumps and torturous ruts – time to engage Baja mode. Among other things, Baja mode tightens up steering response while loosening rear end traction. The result is a wholly engaging drive that exorcises your inner demons.
With a racing professional beside me to encourage and direct, the Raptor tore around Tipperary Station with extreme confidence. I felt in control every step of the way.
The third exercise was more a demonstration. A passenger ride in a six-minute hot lap that included air, speeds exceeding 150km/h and displays of tail wagging that would embarrass an excitable puppy. In short, it was a chance to get a real insight to the Ranger Raptor’s true performance capabilities. It was sublime. According to the drivers and technical team alike, the Raptor will take this punishment all day and seldom miss a beat. I strongly believe this to be the case.
The long “reality” drive back to Darwin was a bit of a comedown. The adrenaline-filled outback experience was one to relish and savour, with the Ranger Raptor in a class of its own.
What Ford has produced is a sheer delight to drive both in the town and out in the elements, with four cylin-ders under the bonnet and another four supplied by Fox, the Ranger Raptor is a real eight-cylinder performance vehicle.
Eight-cylinder performance - we drive the Ranger RaptorDAVE MCLEOD
22 | AUTOTALK AUGUST 2018 | www.autotalk.co.nz
NEWSTALK
NEWfranchise opportunities!
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Readership of AutoTalk grew further last month, ac-cording to authoritative Google analytics.
More than 5000 subscribers now receive auto-talk.co.nz in print and digital formats.
A record 32,876 stories were read in July with almost 18,000 readers opening the twice-weekly digital news alerts.
“No-one else has the reach or influence of AutoTalk, says Vern Whitehead, publisher for Auto Media Group.
“Our team of industry-experienced journalists are con-stantly ‘breaking’ news stories and bringing auto industry reports to life.”
The publisher says the whole AutoTalk team is deeply indebted to its loyal and fast growing readership.
“Now with the use of videos to cover events, inter-views and new models, we are continuing to deliver news in a form at that our readers demand. And we now have an all-new website to keep us even further ahead of the competition,” says Whitehead.
Subscribers to AutoTalk surging ahead
invested millions of dollars in heat treatment technology, before the new IHS has been confirmed, he says.
“The three BIOs have decided they can’t wait. The stink bugs won’t wait.”
Issues on the ground in Japan could include having enough storage space for the used vehicles once treated, consent hold-ups at both local and government level and being able to heat treat the vehicles at an appropriate pace, Vinsen says.
The VIA head adds that the Government’s focus on Takata airbags has also hurt the industry, with many traders holding on to alpha-airbag cars that they can’t sell after the manda-tory recall was implemented earlier this year.
He’s hoping the Government doesn’t make the same move with other Takata airbag – affected vehicles.
“We want to avoid a mandatory recall for the next phase. We don’t need to make it mandatory, just tidy up the existing rules.”
Overall, challenges will remain for the industry in the com-ing months, he says.
“We’ve had a series of near knock-down blows. We’re just coming to our feet again and we’re looking at a very difficult time.”
New IHS imminent but challenges remainContinued from page 1
If we are to reduce the road toll, we need to address vehicle safety, in
particular the condition of tyres.
NZTA research shows that almost one in 10 fatal road crashes are linked to some sort of vehicle fault, often worn tyres.
This is something we, as drivers, an association and an industry, can do some-thing about. As a practical first step, MTA is asking for the minimum legal tyre depth to be doubled to 3mm. We invite others in the sector to support us in this.
Safety first and always has been the principle underpinning MTA activities since the organisation was set up back in 1917. Over the last 100 years MTA has helped shape much of the legislation and regulation that governs motoring, motorists and transport in New Zealand.
It’s well known that the more tread a tyre has, the safer you’ll be if you have to brake hard, or accelerate out of a dangerous situation on the road. The New Zealand
minimum depth of 1.5mm is far too low and was set many decades ago, long before research showed us
3mm or higher is much safer and more desirable, particu-larly if you are driving in wet weather.
There needs to be more done to explain to drivers how important tyre depth
is to their safety and that of their families. We also need to encourage people, par-ticularly those driving a car
under three years old, to check their tyres regularly.
A new car bought today, won’t go through it’s first warrant inspection until August 2021. if you’re do-
ing a lot of travelling, those tyres are not going to see you safely through the next three years. Drivers need to be doing six monthly checks.
Similarly, a car that scrapes through a warrant
today with just over 1.5mm of tread is going to be driv-ing on bald patches within the next month or so.
We need to introduce a wider margin of safety – lives depend on it.
MTA is doing what it can to promote the message via its members to the public, and in our public communi-cation. We are also drawing government attention to the issue. Vehicle faults cause about the same number of fatalities as road conditions. While the government’s zero road toll initiative is providing funding to im-prove roads, no funding, or attention, is being paid to vehicle safety.
While we wait for the government to take up the message, we are encourag-ing all drivers to check their cars every six months to make sure the brakes, tyres, lights, suspension and steer-ing are all in top shape.
Last year, over half a million vehicles failed their warrant of fitness because their tyres were in poor condition – let’s work to-gether to improve safety on our roads.
By David Crawford, CEO of theMotor Industry Association of NZ (Inc).
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INDUSTRYTALK
The MIA, along with VIA, have been waiting for this Government to release its consultation docu-
ments on how it plans to reduce CO2 emissions from transport.
When the Government came to power late last year it was hustling and bustling to introduce a bundle of new policies with initial indications trans-port emissions would come up for consultation in May. This then slipped back to August/September and in mid-July we learned that the Government is no longer in a race to the finish line on this one.
It seems they prefer to take their time to look at all options with consultation now planned for later this year at the earliest and more probably early 2019.
The flow on from this delay is that any changes to legislation or transport rules will follow in 2019/2020 with 2020 being an election year. Depend-ing on the complexity of any regulatory change, and the length of time it takes to make new transport rules, usually at least 18 months, any new policies are unlikely to take effect until 2020 at the earliest, more likely 2021.
From an industry perspective, policy developed over time as opposed to a frenzied dash in haste usually results in better outcomes. So long, that is, it is not driven by ideological zealousness. The jury is still out on what the final policy mix will be.
However, we do know that Govern-ment is looking at policy directions in Australia when it comes to targeted CO2 emissions reduction interventions. We also know Government is consid-ering a fee bate system to incentivise consumers to purchase more environ-
mentally friendly vehicles. The MIA has long advocated that
emission reductions in transport must be part of an all gases, all sectors ap-proach across the entire economy. We have also long promoted that importers of vehicles, supply vehicles that people
want to buy. If you want to influence emissions from the light vehicle fleet, then controlling supply by way of a fuel economy target alone is not going to be effective. You need to change peo-ple’s minds about what it is they buy.
One thing the government can do right now, as promoted by the MIA, Drive Electric and VIA, is to reduce FBT rates for electric vehicles. Just ask my colleagues on the EV Leadership Group when we recently met, how vo-cal I am on this point, something about a stuck record.
I opined, yet again, that if I was per-mitted to do only one thing to influence the uptake of EVs it would be to reduce the FBT rate. It doesn’t even need to be a full FBT holiday, just reducing the rate from 20% to 10% will be enough to tip the purchasing decision by businesses.
Three years later these vehicles then flow into the private fleet. Why wait until 2020/21 to do this, we know it will work, let’s do it now.
On 25 July, MPI provisionally released the Import Health Standard (IHS) for Vehicles, Machinery and Equipment.
It imposes new rules on the vehicle sector around managing biosecurity risk for vehicles exported from Japan to New Zealand, compared to the rules associated with vehicles exported from Schedule 3 countries to New Zealand (USA and a range of European coun-tries).
Despite the slowness of getting the revised IHS out, and that it is still not final (still subject to challenge), it is not impacting on the new vehicle sector’s ability to meet the new regime by 1 September as much as I feared, al-though I remain distinctly nervous.
Manufacturers usually would not make an application (for an approved system) until the new IHS is officially in force, which is early August. That is less than a month for industry to complete applications, submit them and for MPI to access and approve them. However, Japanese manufacturers have taken a precautionary approach, and most have already submitted their application for an approved system.
MPI for its part is sending two staff to Japan during August to assist the ap-plication and assessment process.
MPI has also made changes to bios-ecurity measures for vehicles coming out of the USA and affected European countries. The ability to apply for an “Approved System” from these coun-tries is welcomed.
Emissions plan delayed
‘One thing the government can do right now, as promoted by the MIA, Drive Electric and VIA, is to reduce FBT rates for electric vehicles. Just ask my colleagues on the EV Leadership Group when we recently met, how vocal I am on this point, something about a stuck record.’
Successful businesses use all the tools available to maximise every opportunity and ensure they stay
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So how do you make sure you’re maximising every opportunity?
Start with what you’re offeringA clear and concise title tells buy-
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Time poor consumers are selective with what they read and you need to pack a punch in the first few seconds if you’re going keep them reading.
Great visualsOnline selling needs good pictures.
You wouldn’t put a vehicle on your yard if it hasn’t been groomed and photos are no different. The first image on your listing is key to making the vehicle you’re selling stand out in search results. Make sure the vehicle is the hero by keeping the background clean and uncluttered.
Virtually “walk” buyers around your vehicle by taking photos from all angles and include close-up shots of special features, the interior and any damage to reassure buyers that they won’t be in for any nasty unexpected surprises.
Give them all the details
A well structured description should be tailored to suit the audience by men-tioning what sort of applications it would be great for. Focus on additional extras as well as standard features. Not every-one is aware of what comes standard and if you don’t mention something that is a deal breaker to a potential buyer, you may lose their interest or not show up in the correct search results.
Remember a vehicle description should always reflect the true condition, both cosmetic and mechanical.
Price and payment optionsPrice plays a big role in the decision
process of most buyers. Advertising that you offer finance options helps broaden your audience by appealing to those who may now be able to afford a vehicle by paying smaller weekly payments rather than a large once off amount.
Show buyers that they can customise their payments with their own terms and deposits to add to the appeal.
Everyone loves a great deal so tell buyers about your price reductions - it’s a great draw card!
Give buyers the full pictureAnswering buyers concerns about
the history of the vehicle like if the vehicle is stolen, has money owing on it, is a damaged import or has been re-registered, helps potential buyers buy with confidence and gives them peace of mind. Another great way of bolstering buyer confidence is to give buyers ac-cess to relevant reviews about the type of vehicle you’re selling. Buyers look for as much information as possible and may shy away from listings that don’t provide it.
What other options have you got?Play all your cards, you’ve got their
attention so give them all the options. Just like walking your customer around your yard if they’re not sure what they’re looking for, a virtual showroom could help them find their dream car with you instead of another seller.
Make it easy for buyers to find you.Stand out with strategically placed
branding and give buyers easy access to all the information they need to call, email or check out your company web-site. If it’s too complicated to find your information you’ll end up in the “too hard basket” - and that’s not where you want to be if you’re selling vehicles.
If you’re serious about sales then investing in the right tools for your business and maximising each tool to get the most out of it is fundamental to ongoing success.
Ange HumbleNorth Island sales managerTrade Me Motors09 924 [email protected]
Matt Darby works for AutoPlay which specialises in pre-sale lead management tools. To find out more about AutoPlay services email [email protected] or visit www.autoplay.co.nz
The weather may have taken a turn for the worse re-cently, but lead, test drive and sales activity remains buoyant. Following a strong May, June 2018 saw the
number of leads generated increase by 6.2%, test drives in-crease by 5.9% and sales by 1.2%.
For the second consecutive month the number of leads from the web – dealer source decreased – by 1.2% from May to June.
As expected with Fieldays activity we experienced a 30.8% increase in the number of leads generated to dealers by their brand.
After a significant increase in leads from web classified sources last month, this source again accounted for the 3rd most leads and increased by 5.7% from May to June 2018.
After the volume of test drives from the web – dealer source decreased in May, the source rebounded to increase by 17.3% from month to month.
Test drives attributed to the direct source again occupied second spot and increased by 7.8% from May to June. Test drives from brand-generated leads did increase – by 4.9% - but perhaps less than expected from the higher volume of Fieldays leads.
This potentially means that Fieldays activity has been a bit slow to translate to test drives, and potentially means we may
Top 3 Sources of leads, test drives and sales June 2018 (vs May 2018)
see a proportionate increase in test drives from the brand source in future months.
In June 2018 there was a change in the status quo for sales tracking. Whilst web – dealer retained the top spot and increased by 8.9% from May to June, 2018.
However, whilst in May repeat and direct accounted for the 2nd and 3rd most sales by source, these sources were overtaken by web classified (up 27.4% from May 2018) and brand (up 32.9%) respectively.
Make sure to check in next month to find out the top sources of leads, test drives and sales for dealers in July. Lead source reports are just one of the reports available to dealer-ships and OEM’s who use AutoPlay Sales Pipeline.
To find out more about the range of reports available via AutoPlay contact us on [email protected] or +64 9 361 1505.
Over the past few days I have spent time trolling through
a wide selection of both franchise and non-franchise dealership Facebook sites both in NZ as well as several overseas vehi-cle markets. This search produced a mixed bag of Facebook page layouts as well as an apparent bias towards either customer or product content.
We are too well aware of the relentless push by car buyers to gather as much online information as they can prior to any visit to a dealership location.
This information is gathered from a number of online sources ranging from a dealer’s own website, third party listing providers, manufacturers, motoring road tests, plus a range of social media with Facebook the most popular source.
In order to assess the marketing effectiveness of a dealer, Facebook is a good start point to come up with a defined set of measure-ments.
In previous articles I have referenced the contributions of an expert I have worked with on the subject of Face-book marketing, Kathi Kruse. Kathi is an automotive social media marketer, blogger, speaker, coach, author and founder of Kruse Control Inc based in Orange County.
In a July 6 Digital Dealer magazine article it set out
10 searching reasons why a dealership Facebook page can fail and the tips to make the page work for you rather than against you.
1. You don’t publish regularly
Users need to see your posts in their newsfeeds for you to stay relevant. Incon-sistent posting a few times per month is not going to capture anyone’s attention.
2. Your page lacks the human touch
Facebook pages fail because posts focus on products rather than people. Facebook is first and fore-most a social network not a billboard. Highlight content that demonstrates why peo-ple choose you.
3. You’re not using the 3-geared approach to content
There is a need to pro-duce high-quality, original content on a consistent basis that has the ability to reach customers at all stages of the buying cycle. Your page must entertain, educate and excite.
4. Your posts look and feel counterfeit
People are more at-
tracted to organisations that communicate exactly who they are and what impact they wish to have on their customer’s lives. Publishing
benign content that can be found anywhere is the shortest distance to the bottom.
5. You don’t fully understand your target
Facebook’s deep data allows dealerships to laser-target ideal users. Building target audience profiles improves your Facebook marketing ten-fold. Useful, high-quality content increases engagement and builds your social presence.
6. You don’t regularly conduct a Facebook page
Whether your social me-dia marketing is in-house or outsourced, it’s often difficult to know where the gaps are between your current suc-cesses and where you need to be. Given today’s acceler-ated rate of potential failure with Facebook marketing, a social media audit will help your page work harder and achieve goals faster.
7. You’re ignoring comments and messages
Facebook is a communi-cation channel just like email and the phone. If you don’t have a process to moni-tor, listen and respond to messages you’re dead in the water, as nobody likes the feeling of being ignored.
8. You have no defined goalsHigh-converting Face-
book pages have clear, well-defined marketing goals, like
Attract. Likeability and rel-evancy are huge in attracting new and existing customers to your Facebook page.
Engage. Many companies fall flat when determining what to do with their fans once they connect.
Convert. Attracting the right audience and engaging them lays the groundwork. Drive conversions by provid-ing information and value that helps them finalise their purchase decision.
9. You’re not leveraging the power of Facebook ads
No Facebook page will work without Facebook ads. Why? Because you must pay Facebook in order to reach your target audience and de-liver the right content to the right customer at the right time. No pay, no play.
10. You’re not measuring and analysing results
Facebook Insights (your page analytics tool) is your best friend. It gives you all the metrics you need to judge how your page is do-ing, which content got the most organic and paid in-teraction, what you did right and what didn’t work so well.
Vinsen’s ViewThe monthly update from VIA chief executive, David Vinsen
AUGUST 2018
ADVANTAGE
WHAT DO WE DO?
Advice and advocacy for the used vehicle industryIf you have technical questions, compliance problems, consumer complaints, staff issues — we can help.
For more information: www.via.org.nz | Free phone: 0800 842 842 | Phone 09 573 3058
Continued on page 29
There’s no such thing as a free dinnerO
n a crisp evening in mid-July, VIA welcomed senior
industry representatives and Government officials at The Grounds Eatery in Hender-son for our annual Vehicle Industry Dinner. With the now-customary address by our Minister of Transport, the Hon Phil Twyford, the event lived up to its growing reputa-tion as “the” industry event of the year.
While it is always a convivial affair, with outstanding food and a relaxed ambience, this perhaps belies its strategic intent and impor-tance to our organisation. The most ob-vious general benefit to those attending is networking. It’s fair to say that a lot of key figures in our industry have been around for a wee while now – but with the robust competition at play, it is not always easy or appropriate to mingle. Our events, which also include our AGMs and the sponsors’ end-of-year Christmas function, are often the only chance that some of our stakeholders get to socialise – and photos are not always welcome!
Acknowledging our sponsorsAmong several key reasons for hold-
ing our Vehicle Industry Dinner is to acknowledge the invaluable support of our sponsors and corporate members. While they share the same voting rights in the association as all members, these companies (and often the individu-als who run them) provide substan-tial financial support to our activities throughout the year.
The importance of this cannot be underestimated. The industry, as a whole, relies on our pooled resources to address mission-critical issues like the stink bug crisis, the Takata airbag recall and the many others that came before; not to mention the significant, and in some cases still unknown, chal-lenges that lie ahead. To recognise this extra level of contribution, we extend
the invitation to key events, as part of a suite of benefits.
Building relationships – before we need them
As well as welcoming long-standing members and associates, our mid-winter dinner gives us the opportunity to invite new officials or market players into our network. There are obvious tangible benefits to them, whether it be familiaris-ing themselves further with our industry’s workings, meeting particular contacts, or putting
faces to names after working together at a distance.
More importantly for us, it fosters the strength of VIA’s network. Barrie Saun-ders, an expert in government relations who has given me excellent advice over the years, has always counselled to “build relationships, before you need them”. It’s difficult if you only meet people – especially officials or politi-cians – when you suddenly have a crisis or request. Far better to have a good working relationship with them already, forged under positive circumstances and with a mutual appreciation of each other’s roles.
Advice and advocacy for the used vehicle industry
CORPORATE PARTNERS
UPDATE
Are you prepared for the new Health and Safety framework?
By 2020, the Government aims to achieve a 25% reduction in workplace injuries. Are you ready?
VIA is here to help, with industry-ready Procedures Kits for workshops, car yards and compliance shops – developed in conjunction with experts HRtoolkit.
For more information, contact: Malcolm Yorston, Technical Services Manager on 0800 046 842 or DDI 09 573 3243
Keeping the doors open throughout the supply chain
Another interesting fact about our Vehicle Industry Dinner is that, from the business side, it tends to draw much more heavily on service providers to the industry than the dealers themselves. To a large degree, this is down to the makeup of our sponsor and corporate member cohort. However, it’s also true that events like this serve the particular purpose of strengthening our supply chain across its entire reach – within New Zealand and beyond.
Taking the stink bug issue as an ex-ample: Whilst our wholesale and dealer network felt the full force of the impact, addressing the immediate and longer-
term protection measures falls largely with the shippers, accredited Biosecu-rity Inspection Organisations, compli-ance shops and transport companies – working closely alongside Govern-ment agencies like MPI. While that initial crisis is at bay, for the moment, com-plex prevention planning is very much ongoing, and it is beneficial for all the parties involved to work on their own relationships and meet others who may potentially help them in the future.
Naming rights: Event sponsors welcome
As is the case with most of our activi-ties, VIA’s Vehicle Industry Dinner would not be possible without the support of our sponsors. As this is a high-profile
event, VIA welcomes particular in-volvement from any of our sponsors or corporate members who wish to help cover the costs involved, and be acknowledged to a greater or lesser extent as they prefer. This year, Provi-dent Insurance generously sponsored the event, in partnership with their client company Stadium Finance, while last year’s dinner was jointly sponsored by JEVIC and VINZ.
Such is the stature of this event that we are already accepting proposals from organisations wishing to sponsor it next year! This is surely the highest praise we could hope for, and a trib-ute to all those who have made these events such a rewarding experience for us all.
The latest draft of the Import Health Standard (IHS) has been released by the Ministry for Primary Indus-
tries (MPI), for review by all parties who made submissions during the drafting phase.
The IHS has been under review since late 2017, but the process was extended significantly by the advent of the BMSB (brown marmorated stink bug) crisis in February. In response to this threat, and to deal with future seasons of the pest making their way to New Zealand by way of imported machinery, MPI de-cided to extend the IHS update to cover preventative measures.
The latest review period gives submit-ting parties, including VIA, 10 work-ing days (from Wednesday, July 25) to provide feedback to MPI. This includes the option of requesting an independent review on any point of concern.
“While we are not able to comment specifically on the content, a number of options for eliminating live stink bugs are up for consideration,” says VIA techni-cal manager Malcolm Yorston. “These
include heat treatment at varying temperatures and durations, fumigation, and other alternative processes that have already been approved by MPI for other products.”
“The options for new vehicles may be different than those for used,” con-tinues Yorston. “Different options may also be available for various sorts of vehicle or machinery, including electric vehicles which are of particular interest to our industry.
“The industry recognises the neces-sity of updating the IHS, and in fact welcomes further explicit direction from MPI on complying with biosecurity requirements,” Yorston adds. “How-ever, the delay has meant considerable uncertainty for biosecurity inspection organisations, who in many cases will need to invest significant sums in order to be ready to treat and inspect when the next stink bug season arrives on September 1.”
MPI has restated its commitment to issuing the updated IHS before the offi-cial start of the next stink bug season.
Import Health Standard now out for review
JAPANESE MARKET REPORT
30 | AUTOTALK AUGUST 2018 | www.autotalk.co.nz
BY GRAEME MACDONALD
The two-pedal differ-ences in the Japanese domestic and New
Zealand import marketplaces were clearly evident during July.
Demand for later-model vehicles through the Japanese auction system continues unabated, with pricing structures for most popular makes and models now seemingly defying the traditional seasonal dips and peaks that the New Zealand import market for so long utilised to enable smarter buying.
Instead, the theme for 2018 (and most of 2017) has been one of pricing consist-ency - a market command-ing top prices for desirable stock no matter the time of year, leaving Kiwi buyers no option but to look at both landed and retailed costs to deliver either acceptable market values, or a reduc-tion in margins to enable a consistent flow of sales.
The Auckland regional fuel tax hikes have seen a defini-tive increase in buyer interest in fuel-efficient choices, and while the EV marketplace increases as supply allows, those New Zealand dealers with the wisdom to stock up with hybrid models in advance were able to reap the benefits from riding the
initial public wave of senti-ment towards ditching gas-guzzling models in favour of hybrid models from Toyota and Honda in particular.
Demand in Japan for these models - Toyota Aqua, Toyota Prius, Honda Fit Hybrid, Toyota Estima Hybrid in particular - has continued to increase in export markets like New Zealand, even as the waves of trade-ins by Japanese owners updating in also on the rise.
This demand has pushed more and more Kiwi buy-ers to compete for the same stock, leading to auction values pushing up for the most suitable examples. If fuel price rises continue to concern the Kiwi public and influence buying decisions, this may well place additional pressure on prices paid in Ja-pan simply to secure saleable stock.
Pure EV models, particu-larly the Nissan Leaf 30kW and new 40kW range, have come back into the auction line-ups now that it appears the software patch rework by Nissan will quell fears of premature battery degrada-tion. With this return, prices obtained have also risen back up.
Once again, given the sluggish new sales of pure EV models in Japan compared to hybrids, the New Zealand appetite (and targets!) for
pure EV numbers in our fleet, may rapidly run up against a supply issue as we absorb every possible used Leaf 24kW, 30kW and 40kW that appears in the auction lanes for sale.
Commercial vehicles – vans - are proving very dif-ficult to buy at present, with prices already peaking or be-yond a profitable exercise to stock, yet demand continues unabated in New Zealand leaving dealers the unenvi-able choice of buying down - rough or higher-than-normal mileage, or buying up - and absorbing the margin compressions.
Given that it is now well over half way through 2018, we tend to forget that a 2010 model vehicle is now eight years old, and earlier vehicles are now mere auc-tion lane stuffing with values in many cases well under the Y100,000 bid level.
While certain vehicles still have a strong market follow-ing and demand from Kiwi consumers, it is no surprise to see the retail asking prices in New Zealand fall rapidly away to the point where they are no longer commercially viable. It is noted that no particular skill is required to purchase mid-mileage 2007-2009 vehicles in auction, given the volumes available, but moving in to the 2010-plus category has in turn
increased in difficulty.Of more concern in July,
and to be reported on in more detail during August, are the well-publicised changes to the Import Health Standard require-ments for New Zealand, and the structural changes to be made to transitional facili-ties across Japan.
These changes, and the initial period leading up to and immediately following the September 1 implemen-tation date, are likely to have a greater impact upon the supply of vehicles out of Ja-pan to New Zealand than any auction pricing concerns. While it is not expected to cause long-term delays to the shipping timelines, short-term indications are that the capital and investment “bun-gee cords” between Japan and New Zealand may once again be tested as the dwell time on wharves and transi-tional facilities are stretched. This may influence auction pricing of certain models popular to Kiwi buyers over a short time - if, and only if, these delays prove longer than expected, and cashflow once again becomes prob-lematic.
August and September could prove to be pivotal months for the supply side of the industry into New Zealand if these timeline fears are realised.
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Heiwa auto group to hold World Cup function
With a large number of Kiwis expected to head to Japan
next year for the rugby World Cup - including a team from AutoTalk - dealers are likely to be there as well.
Vehicle exporter Heiwa
Auto Group such as Heiwa Auto, Enhance Auto and Auto Portal are making the most of the visit - inviting customers to a function on Septem-ber 21, 2019 while they are in the country.
In the run-up to the event, a promotion has also been launched that can see cus-
tomers who purchase cars from now until the end of July next year qualify for up to $10,000 cash back.
For more informa-tion contact your Heiwa, Enhance Auto, Auto Portal agent.
Vehicle sales up in July, down for the year
New vehicle sales in Japan were up in July, with a 5.1% gain
in registrations to 127,410 units.
Kei car sales were down
by 1.9% to 117,658.For the year overall, or-
dinary care sales are down 0.6%, while Kei car sales are down 7.6%.
In July truck sales were up
0.8%, while light commer-cials were down 0.9%.
Toyota topped the mar-ket for regular-size vehicles - the most important for the used import trade - unchanged on 55,295 units.
Miles behind was Nissan on 14,139 units,
up 11.6%, while Honda took third on 12,032 units, up 34.8%.
Japan planning to have all cars electrified by 2050
The Japanese government wants to see all passen-ger cars in Japan to be either electric or hybrid by 2050, according to the economy ministry.
The panel, which includes leaders from Toyota, Nis-san and Honda announced the plan last week, along with the formation of a new industry organisation which will facilitate co-operation between automakers on the procurement of cobalt for batteries.
The move comes as global carmakers race to lock in battery supplies and move away from traditional com-bustion engines, and as China locks down supply chains to secure its own quickly growing battery sector.
The organisation will focus on the sourcing long-term supplies of cobalt and buy clean materials not associated with conflict minerals or child labour.
“The new entity is aimed to disperse risks among battery users for securing cobalt supply which is domi-nated by DRC and at a time when growth rate of cobalt’s demand is still uncertain,” a government source said.
“Japanese battery-makers may also join the new scheme,” he said.
The panel, set up by the trade ministry in April to dis-cuss ways to spread the use of electric vehicles, also set a target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions of a single passenger vehicle by 90 per cent by 2050, compared with 2010 levels.
If you’d like to become an Autosure Approved Dealer, contact us to find out more.
We’ve got New Zealand covered!And we’re here to help you provide the best insuranceprotection for your customers.
Walking into some businesses today I’m reminded of the haunting line from The Sixth
Sense, “I see dead people.” These are the businesses with cul-
ture coma. You walk in the door and you feel … well, nothing: No energy, enthusiasm or urgency.
Employees slouch around and drift through the day with the same spring in their step as a road works crew on a Monday morning. The danger is that if you work in this type of culture, you may become so accustomed to it and desensitised by it, that you don’t even realise you’re in the midst of it.
Here are just three of many poten-tial signs that your environment has lapsed into a culture coma.
Please read over these points ob-jectively and don’t reflexively sink into denial by dismissing the point, or by assuming what I’m suggesting doesn’t apply to you. That, in itself, could indi-cate that you are perhaps the chief ar-chitect and collaborator of the sleepy state your business environment finds itself in from time to time.
1. Employees treat customers in a ‘matter-of-fact’ manner
The matter-of-fact manner is a sure sign that your people take your customers for granted and thus, stand a good chance of losing them.
I’m astounded at how many busi-nesses, in all fields, treat customers like trespassers or interruptions and still manage to keep their doors open; al-
though it’s safe to assume that it won’t be for long.
With a matter-of-fact attitude, your people certainly can give customers little reason to spend any more time or money with you than is necessary. Employees who work in strong culture environments are reminded often that they exist to serve the customer and need the customer a lot more than the customer needs them.
2. Employees have too much unmanaged time
Unmanaged time is a symptom of reactivity, low focus and uninspiring goals. Too much unmanaged time on anyone’s calendar ensures they are not fully engaged, urgent or energised.
As a result, the culture creates all the excitement level of a new Miley Cyrus album. Highly structured days force the expectation and accountability that bring the best out of your people.
3. Management lacks energySince the speed of the leader is the
speed of the pack, when management are lethargic, uninspired, isolated and
aloof, or otherwise not 100% mentally and physically checked in to their job, then they are the catalyst and lead architect for culture coma in your busi-ness. After all, they have little chance of energising others if they lack the energy to power a toy boat in a bathtub.
By taking these three points to heart it’s easy to see that the linchpin for changing your culture is for your leadership to change first:• Take the lead in showing how you
want customers treated. • Highly structure your own day
and coach others to leave as little “white space” of unmanaged time on their calendars as possible.
• Assume the role of a personal catalyst to get your culture fired up and keep it that way. If your culture is sleepy it’s because management are; if it is boring, it means that management are boring; if it’s life-less, it indicts management’s own lethargy. On the other hand, if it is focused, vibrant and consistently produces results, this indicates you have real leaders and not merely someone with a leadership title who acts like an anchor.
There are numerous other symp-toms of culture coma I could cover here if space permitted; keeping poor performers too long; no clear vision that unites the team; low or cloudy performance and behavioural expecta-tions and the like. However, the three highlighted in this article are a good start and they are issues you can begin affecting immediately.
Incidentally, the truest measure of your culture’s vitality isn’t measured by the tempo of your business in the last five days of the month. Instead, how much energy, urgency and enthusi-asm will you find there on the fourth, eighth or tenth of the month? This is a far more accurate barometer of whether your culture is either healthy or hell-bound.
At Autosure, we are constantly look-ing for innovative ways to support our dealers. Talk to us today if you wish to maximise your business culture and sales opportunities.
‘I see dead people’
By Gavin Lightfootsales performance manager, Autosure
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How time has flown these past 5 years! When we launched
Provident Insurance in Au-gust 2013 we had a dream, an office, four staff and no dealer clients.
Today I’m proud to report we have realised that dream, outgrown our office, 32 staff and almost 500 dealer clients throughout NZ.
And, like anyone in business will tell you, it hasn’t all been easy … and that’s what makes it all the more satisfying! The dream was the easy part. Planning and preparation, delivered with passion, expertise and commitment is what it has taken this far, and the journey is only just beginning for Provident. Putting our customers (you) at the centre of everything we do ensures a strong customer focus and an understanding of the value proposition we continually need to deliver on.
Over the last five years we have:• Gathered together a team of excellent people, compe-
tent, committed and passionate about our business.• Presented F&I Training Seminars every three months
(with courses being held in Auckland, Christchurch and Invercargill).
• Provided our products, systems and services to almost 500 motor vehicle traders, including some of the most prominent dealer groups in the country.
• Underwritten insurance programmes for a number of major distributors, including: BMW & Mini, Hyundai, Isuzu, Jaguar, Land Rover, Volkswagen and Skoda.
• Delivered innovation in our products, systems and ser-vices, including our:
- IT system - State-of-the-art on-line policy generation system with API functionalit.y
- MPG system – make profits grow programme, - PICAL - Our quick quote loan calculator. - 3-year Motor Vehicle Insurance – a fantastic facility that
guarantees ongoing cover for your customers (regardless of claims history), peace-of-mind for your financier and ongoing renewal commissions for your business.
- Luxury Motor Vehicle Insurance – designed specifically for franchise dealerships, providing three years new and old replacement.
• Worked alongside industry organisations, supporting mo-tor vehicle traders to meet their obligations and commit-ments relating to disclosure in line with the requirements of the Responsible Lending Code and the Responsible Credit Related Insurance Code.
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MANHEIM AUCTIONS
09 918 0500www.manheim.co.nzManheim is New Zealand’s largest provider of automo-tive auction services. Auctions held weekly.
NICHIBO09 374 4436www.nichibojapan.comWe have a wealth of knowl-edge and experience in auto auctions throughout Japan which we know will enable us to assist you in making your next purchase.
NIKKYO0211-740-258 http://www.nikkyocars.comDespite changing times in the industry our focus on customer satisfaction and quality cars has kept us going for 22 years.
SBL INTERNATIONAL VEHICLE BROKERING03 377 6578www.sbltd.co.nz“NZ owned and operated SBL continue to set the motor industry benchmark for importing vehicles”
FINANCE & INSURANCE
AUTOSUREPhone: 09 489 9107www.autosure.co.nzAutosure NZ has been a lead-ing provider of automotive-owner protection policies for the NZ retail motor vehicle industry since 1986.
OXFORD FINANCE
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PROVIDENT INSURANCE
0800 676 [email protected]: Steve Owens Chief Executive OfficerHelping dealers “Make Profits Grow”. Specialist F&I training, support and products to retail motor vehicle traders.
UDC FINANCE0800 500 832www.udc.co.nzYour first choice in automo-tive lending. Fixed Rates. Fast Approval.
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INFORMATION SERVICE PROVIDER
MOTORWEB0800 843 [email protected]’s leading vehicle history check provider, delivering online services to all sectors of the motor industry.
IT SERVICES
AUTOPLAY.CO.NZ09 361 [email protected] use the latest technology to deliver a suite of smart digital tools to our customers.
PARTS
REPCO 0800 800 878www.repco.co.nzRepco - over 800 highly trained staff, 82 stores nationwide and home to New Zealand’s leading automotive brands.
PAINT & FABRIC SUPPLIERS
GARDX 0800 242 739www.gardx.co.nzNew Zealand Premier Paint & Interior Supplier. Providing profit solutions that achieves results.
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AUTOHUB09 411 [email protected] easiest way to ship your cars and other vehicles globally.
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TOYOTA 477 530 -10.0 44.1NISSAN 240 233 3.0 22.2MAZDA 65 68 -4.4 6.0ISUZU 58 41 Up 2 41.5 5.4FIAT 47 3 Up 9 1466.7 4.3FORD 39 49 Down 2 -20.4 3.6MITSUBISHI 34 41 -17.1 3.1HINO 24 41 Down 3 -41.5 2.2HOLDEN 19 21 -9.5 1.8CHEVROLET 15 24 Down 2 -37.5 1.4Other 64 38 68.4 5.9Total 1082 1089 -0.6 100.0
The market for used import cars was again down in July, although
not as bad as in recent months.
The bleeding has reduced down to 4% year on year from a peak of 18% down in March.
The market in July totalled 13,847 down from 14,430 the year before. Overall in 2018 registrations are down 6% to 88,419 units.
Commercial registrations are also down, though only by 0.6% to 1082 units for the month. For the year, volume is down 7%.
Toyota was again the most popular car brand, though
was down 15.4% to 3135 ve-hicles - accounting for 22.6% of the market.
Nissan took second on 2685 units, down 1.7% for a 19.4% share. Mazda was third on 2275 vehicles, up 6% for a 16.4% share.
In fifth place, Honda registrations were up 4.8% to 1517 for an 11% share, while
Subaru closed the top five, up one place and 13.7% to 781 units (5.6% market share).
Suzuki took sixth with 745, followed by BMW on 534, Mitsubishi on 532, Volkswa-gen on 404 and Audi on 301.
The Mazda Axela took the top spot for import models, up 20 units year on year to 696.
In second was the Suzuki
Swift on 624, followed by the Nissan Tiida on 611.
The Honda Fit was next on 581 units, while the Mazda Demio took fifth on 531 vehicles.
The Toyota Prius was top hybrid for the month on 410 units, top large car was the Subaru Legacy on 381, top MPV the Toyota Wish on 338, top EV the Nissan Leaf on 323 and top SUV the Mitsubi-shi Outlander on 294.
In commercials, Toyota also leads with 477 vehicles, down 10% for a 44.1% market share.
Nissan took second spot on 240 units, up 3% for a 22.2% share, followed in third on Mazda on 65, down 4.4% for a 6% stake in the market.
Truck brand Isuzu was next on 58 vehicles, up 41.5% for a 5.4% share, while Fiat on 47 units was up over 1400% - mostly off the back of motorhome imports.
Unsurprisingly, the Toyota Hiace was the most popular commercial model on 360 vehicles.
The Nissan Caravan was second on 81, followed by the Mazda Bongo on 83.
Fourth for the month was the Nissan NV200 on 48, and the Toyota Regius took fifth on 42.
Market playing catch upWell known importer Rod Milner says
the stink bug crisis has left the industry playing catch up.
“The stink bug situation has certainly distorted the market.
“You had bugger all stock for a month, then they all arrived. It was a double whammy”
Milner says he normally has a couple of hundred vehicles around the place, but there were 20 or 30 more than usual following the delays.
Milner’s vehicles are “big things” and take up plenty of space.
“I’ve got an acre here. We managed to squeeze them in. The stock was so jammed in, that’s when you have ac-cidents.
Used continues downward trend
“We were lucky that we had enough stock during the shortage. Now we are trying to play catch up.
“It affected cash flow badly. Twenty or 30 cars in the system not being paid for costs a lot of money.”
Luckily for Milner, the Takata alpha airbag issue hasn’t affected him, with only one repair needed to one of his vehicles in the last six months.
Japan leading arrivalsMore new cars arrived in New Zea-
land than used cars for the first time this year, latest Customs figures reveal.
There were 11,503 new cars that crossed the border, compared with 11,046 used cars in the month of July.
MAZDA AXELA 696 MAZDA AXELA 676SUZUKI SWIFT 624 SUZUKI SWIFT 626NISSAN TIIDA 611 NISSAN TIIDA 625HONDA FIT 581 TOYOTA COROLLA 597MAZDA DEMIO 531 HONDA FIT 500TOYOTA PRIUS 410 MAZDA DEMIO 474SUBARU LEGACY 381 TOYOTA WISH 385TOYOTA WISH 338 SUBARU LEGACY 340NISSAN LEAF 323 TOYOTA MARKX 310MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER 294 TOYOTA PRIUS 297MAZDA PREMACY 289 MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER 293MAZDA ATENZA 286 MAZDA ATENZA 284TOYOTA VITZ 284 TOYOTA VITZ 281NISSAN NOTE 263 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 277VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 242 TOYOTA ESTIMA 239NISSAN DUALIS 204 NISSAN DUALIS 229TOYOTA COROLLA 200 MAZDA MPV 223TOYOTA BLADE 198 MAZDA PREMACY 192SUBARU IMPREZA 196 NISSAN NOTE 191HONDA STREAM 188 HONDA ODYSSEY 188
20 TOP USED IMPORT PASSENGER MAKES
MAKEJUL'18
JUL'17
Movement% Change
Market Share
TOYOTA 3135 3705 -15.4 22.6NISSAN 2685 2732 -1.7 19.4MAZDA 2275 2146 6.0 16.4HONDA 1517 1447 4.8 11.0SUBARU 781 687 Up 1 13.7 5.6SUZUKI 745 746 Down 1 -0.1 5.4BMW 534 632 -15.5 3.9MITSUBISHI 532 515 3.3 3.8VOLKSWAGEN 404 449 -10.0 2.9AUDI 301 271 Up 1 11.1 2.2MERCEDES-BENZ 229 295 Down 1 -22.4 1.7LEXUS 88 103 Up 1 -14.6 0.6FORD 81 113 Down 1 -28.3 0.6VOLVO 74 75 -1.3 0.5JAGUAR 52 36 Up 4 44.4 0.4CHEVROLET 51 53 Up 1 -3.8 0.4JEEP 39 28 Up 5 39.3 0.3LAND ROVER 39 55 Down 2 -29.1 0.3MINI 37 42 Down 1 -11.9 0.3DODGE 31 26 Up 3 19.2 0.2Other 217 274 -20.8 1.6Total 13847 14430 -4.0 100.0
That’s a massive turnaround from June 2018 when 16,272 used cars arrived compared with 10,263 new cars, while in May 15,484 used cars came into the country compared with 12,273 new cars.
However, used cars still dominate the market year-to-date at 91,177 compared with 69,628 new cars.
Japan remains the biggest source for both new and used vehicles, with 25,631 new cars and 86,277 used cars coming in year-to-date
Despite some worry-ing signs in recent months, July’s vehicle
registration figures – re-leased today by the Motor Industry Association – indi-cate there is still life in the market.
Registrations across
the market totalled 12,324 vehicles, up 6% or 693 units in the same month last year. This was the second strong-est July on record – the best since 1984.
Year-to-date, the market is up by 1.8% (1621 units) compared to the first seven
Sales holding steady?months of 2017.
Registrations of 8041 passenger and SUV vehi-cles for the month of July were up 436 units on July 2017, an increase of 5.7% and registrations of 4283 commercial vehicles were up by 257 (up 6.4%) on July
2017.“Despite there
being several worrying signs the NZ economy is not as strong as it has been combined with a significant drop in overall business confidence, new vehicle sales have for the time being held steady,” says
MIA chief executive David Crawford.
Toyota retained the over-all market leader with 17% market share (2070 units), followed by Ford with 10% (1203) and Mazda with 8% market share (1003).
Toyota retained the mar-ket lead for passenger and SUV registrations with 15% market share (1202 units) followed by Mazda with 10% (817) and Mitsubishi with 7% market share (603).
In light commercials, Toyota regained the market lead with 20% market share (868 units) followed by Ford with 19% (799) and Holden third with 10% market share (418).
The top four selling models for the month of July were all light com-mercial vehicles. The Ford Ranger retained its position as the bestselling vehicle model with 674 units. This was followed by the Toyota Hilux with 658 units and the Holden Colorado with 408.
The “SUV Medium” seg-ment came in as the top seg-ment for July with 18% mar-ket share. This was followed by the “Pick Up/Chassis Cab 4×4” with 15% of the market, and the “SUV Compact” with 14% market share.
New Zealand’s electric vehicle fleet has reached 9241.
The July EV statistics are up 541 on June’s 8700.
Used light pure electrics continue to lead the way, comprising 5114 of that total, latest Ministry of Transport figures show.
That category is up 350 on the previous month.
New light pure elec-trics reached 1678, up 43 on June’s 1635.
Not far behind were new light plug-in hybrids at 1616, an increase of 75 on June.
Used light plug-in hybrids totalled 740 –
64 more than June, and after months of relative stagna-tion, heavy EVs rose from 84 to 93 – probably due to Wel-lington’s new electric buses going into service in July.
EV registrations were at their second-highest for the year, all light EVs at 550 in July compared with 514 the previous month and 572 in May.
The 550 EV registrations comprised mainly used EVs at 420.
If the trend in New Zea-land’s EV fleet continues, the 10,000 mark should be exceeded within about two months – way ahead of the 8000 end-of-year goal and well on track towards the 64,000 EV target by the end of 2021.
Aussie new sales slumpAustralian new car sales
in July 2018 have slumped 7.8%, despite the same num-ber of days to close deals and get customers over the line.
On average, there were 277 more vehicles sold every
day in July 2017 compared to last month – resulting in just 85,551 cars finding new homes, 7203 fewer than last year, according to VFACTS data provided by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.
Passenger vehicle sales are down more than 20%, shy 7425 over July 2017, and SUVs while still strong took a 1% hit (only 354 sales short), although light commercials managed to claw a 0.1%
gain over July 2017 – just 19 vehicles.
Every manufacturer in the top 10 sales race held their ground from June, Toyota on 16,915 sales for the July keeps Mazda at bay by 7995 sales sitting on 8920, while Hyundai trailed the Japanese leaders by 1859 sales on 7061.
Toyota Hilux sold five more units more than July 2017 making it the only per-centage gain until position six on the top 10 models list
Sales holding steady?
– the Hyundai i30 – which did 2.6% better than last year with 2178 sales. Top-selling Hilux beat Ranger for sec-ond (down 4.1%), Corolla for third (down a massive 19%), Mazda 3 (down 0.9%), Toyota LandCruiser in seventh place (up 11.1%) and RAV4 in eighth (up 6.7%), the Volkswagen Golf (up a staggering 60% on July 2017), and Nissan X-Trail in 10th (up 9.6%).
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While the used import car market is struggling, second-hand vehicles are on a high.
Dealer sales of second-time-around vehicles were up 11.2% in July to 19,756 units, while dealer purchas-es were up 15.9% to 14,998.
Public transactions were relatively static, up just 1% to 45,190 vehicles.
In bikes, dealer sales were down by 6.4% to 350 units. Dealer purchases were up just 0.3% to 299.
The public transacted 1555 units, a 5.1% rise year-on-year.
In trucks, dealer registrations were up just 1.5% to 2867 units, while pur-chases rose 6.2% to 2480.
Public-to-public registrations climbed 3.4% to 7239 units.
Second-hand spike
44 | AUTOTALK AUGUST 2018 | www.autotalk.co.nz
STATSTALKTRUCKS
STATSTALKBIKES
44 | AUTOTALK AUGUST 2018 | www.autotalk.co.nz
NEW BIKE MODELSMAKE MODEL JUL’18SUZUKI UZ50 24TNT MOTOR ROMA 2T 24SUZUKI GSX150 DXA GIXXER 15HARLEY DAVIDSON SOFTAIL 18 STREET BOB 13HARLEY DAVIDSON SOFTAIL 18 SPORT GLIDE 12SUZUKI GSX150 FDZA GIXXER 12FORZA CICLONE 9PIAGGIO ZIP 50 2T 9HONDA NCH 50L 8UBCO 2X2 8
The new bike market was up only marginally in July - a 1.1% gain
year-on-year.Registrations hit 554
units, against 548 the year before. For 2018, the new bike market has hit 4774 bikes.
Suzuki leads the market but took a hit in July, down 18.3% to 89 units from 109 a year ago. For the year the Whanganui-based distributor his moved 785 bikes.
Harley Davidson recorded a 46% gain for the month with 73 units, with a market share of 13.2%. Honda was third, down 10% to 45 bikes and an 8.5% stake.
Fourth for the month was Yamaha on 44 bikes, down 8.3% to 7.0% of the market, while KTM and Triumph tied for fifth on 32 units apiece.
A pair of scooters lead
new model sales for the month, with the Suzuki UZ50 and TNT Roma 2T matching each other on 24 units.
In third, the Suzuki GSX150 DXA Gixxer record-ed 15 bikes, while just behind was the Harley Davidson Softail 18 Street Bobber on 13 units.
In a tie for fifth was basi-cally the same bike - the
Harley Davidson Softail 18 Sport Glide and Suzuki GSX150 FDZA Gixxer on 12 units each.
The used import bike market had a busier month,
up 52.7% to 226 units.Harley Davidson again led
the segment, up 54% to 77 bikes, a 34.1% market share.
Ducati took second spot, unchanged on 18 units and
an 8% share, while Triumph took third with 17 bikes, up 142% for a 7.5% share.
Honda was fourth on 16, followed by BMW on 14.
Bikes experience small gains
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5 years on and delivering on promisesContinued from page 34
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New heavy vehicle registrations saw a boost in July and
show no signs of slowing. Total registrations of
new trucks and buses over 3500kg GVM sit at 687 units for the month. This is up 21% compared to the 568 registered in the same period last year.
Overall, 3834 new trucks and buses have hit the road in this category for 2018, compared with 3550 in the same period last year.
Mercedes-Benz have tak-en the top spot for July, up 23% year-on-year with 101 registered units compared to 82 in the same period last
year. This gave the brand a 14.7% market share for the month.
Isuzu came in second spot, down 33% with 87 units registered compared to 130 in the same period the year before. This gives Isuzu a 12.7% market share for July.
Hino was in third, up 7% with 60 units registered compared to 56 units in the same period last year. Hino took an 8.7% market share for the month.
Fuso follow, down 19% with 59 units registered for the month, BCI up 253% with 53, Kenworth up 246% with 45, DAF up 70% with 34, UD Trucks up 15% with 31 and
New and used trucks keep hitting the road
Iveco up 47% with 28. Meanwhile, total
used imported truck registrations were up by 7% year-on-year with 193 units hitting the road. This compares to 180 in the same period last year.
Overall, a total of 1339 used trucks have been reg-istered for the year-to-date compared to 1269 in the same period last year.
Isuzu led the used trucks segment, up 35% with 50 units registered and a 26% market share.
Toyota came in second, down 8% with 40 units and a 20.7% market share.
Hino are in third spot, down 41.5% with 24 trucks registered and a 12.4% mar-ket share.
This is followed by Mitsub-ishi with 19 units, Nissan (16), Fuso (nine), Mercedes-Benz (seven), Ford and Mazda (five) and DAF (three).
warning light does not illuminate for no cause. He says that underly-ing fault may have been minor and easily repairable (such as a faulty sensor or a mi-nor electrical issue), or it may have been much more serious (such as
a significant oil leak or an internal fault with the engine that caused the vehicle to consume excessive amounts of oil).
He advises that there is now no way of determining the true nature and extent of the fault that caused the oil level warning light to illuminate because the purchaser did not have the fault assessed before the engine seized, and now that the engine is seized, the fault cannot be diagnosed.
The adjudicator agreed the fault that caused the light not to illuminate breached the guarantee of accept-able quality - a reasonable consumer would not expect a fault that causes the vehi-cle’s oil level warning light to illuminate to be present in a vehicle of this price, age and mileage so shortly after purchase.
However, the trader alleges that the engine damage does not breach the acceptable quality guaran-tee because the damage was caused by the purchaser continuing to drive the vehi-cle after the oil level warn-ing light had illuminated. It says that the significant engine damage would have been avoided if the vehicle had not been driven further.
Under s 7(4) of the Consumer Guarantees Act, the engine damage will not breach the acceptable qual-ity guarantee if it was caused by the vehicle being used
“in a manner, or to an extent which is inconsistent with the manner or extent of use that a reasonable consumer would expect to obtain from the goods.
“Accordingly, given the allegation that [the purchas-er] has continued to drive the vehicle while its oil level warning light was illuminat-ed, I must consider whether [the purchaser] caused the engine damage.”
The tribunal’s assessor ad-vised that a vehicle’s oil level warning light is intended to warn the driver of a vehicle that the oil levels are low and immediate steps need to be taken to rectify those low oil levels.
The assessor advises that failure to heed an oil level warning light can lead to significant damage to the vehicle.
The purchaser claimed she did not drive the vehicle for any considerable distance after the light came on, and that she did not drive the vehicle again until November 2017 because she had trav-elled to India for a holiday. She continued to drive the vehicle because the oil level warning light went off.
The trader has quite a different story to tell claim-ing the purchaser drove the vehicle for much longer than she now admits.
The trader says that the purchaser advised it that she drove the vehicle shortly after it was returned to her in August 2017 and noticed the oil level warning light illuminate. The trader says the purchaser advised that she then continued to drive the vehicle with the oil level warning light illuminated because she was too busy to bring the vehicle in to have
Continued on page 47
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In July 2017, the purchaser paid $14,500
for a 2008 BMW 320i. The vehicle’s odometer read around 42,000km at the time.
Shortly after pur-chasing the vehicle, the owner noticed the vehi-cle’s oil level warning light illuminate. She returned the vehicle twice to the trader for it to perform repairs, with notes from the trader’s repairer indicating that it diagnosed and checked the vehicle for an oil leak, sub-sequently found no oil leak, but discovered that the oil level sensor was not reading the oil level properly and required replacement.
Following the repair, the vehicle’s oil level warning
light continued to illuminate. On 23 November 2017,
the vehicle broke down. The purchaser says the vehicle simply stopped working, and when the vehicle was towed away she noticed a sig-nificant amount of oil on the ground where the car had come to a stop. The vehicle has since been assessed by the trader, who found that the vehicle’s engine has seized and required replace-ment.
7 Meaning of acceptable quality(1) For the purposes of section 6, goods are of acceptable quality if they are as -(a) fit for all the purposes for which goods of the type in question are commonly supplied; and(b) acceptable in appearance and finish; and(c) free from minor defects; and(d) safe; and(e) durable - as a reasonable consumer fully acquainted with the state and condition of the goods, including any hidden defects, would regard as acceptable, having regard to -(f) the nature of the goods:(g) the price (where relevant):(h) any statements made about the goods on any packag-ing or label on the goods:(ha) the nature of the supplier and the context in which the supplier supplies the goods:(i) any representation made about the goods by the sup-plier or the manufacturer:(j) all other relevant circumstances of the supply of the goods.(2) Where any defects in goods have been specifically drawn to the consumer’s attention before he or she agreed to the supply, then notwithstanding that a rea-sonable consumer may not have regarded the goods as acceptable with those defects, the goods will not fail to comply with the guarantee as to acceptable quality by reason only of those defects.(3) Where goods are displayed for sale or hire, the defects that are to be treated as having been specifically drawn to the consumer’s attention for the purposes of subsection (2) are those disclosed on a written notice displayed with the goods.
The adjudicator says he does not accept the pur-chaser’s evidence that she barely drove the vehicle.
“Instead, I consider it much more likely that, as al-leged by [the trader], she has continued to use the vehicle extensively after August 2017, which explains the high mileage travelled in the four months between purchas-ing the vehicle and its engine seizing.
“In her evidence, she admitted that the oil level warning light illuminated in November 2017, some-time before the engine seized. [The purchaser] says
she continued to drive the vehicle because the oil level warning light then turned off.
Emails were also pre-sented that reinforced the trader’s evidence that the purchaser was driving the car with the light on.
“Consequently, applying s 7(4) of the Act, I am not sat-isfied that the significant en-gine damage is a defect that breaches the acceptable quality guarantee in s 6 of the Act. Instead, I consider it likely that the damage was caused by [the purchaser’s] continued driving of the ve-hicle, and so [the purchaser] is not entitled to any remedy under the Act in relation to the engine damage.
(4) Goods will not fail to comply with the guarantee of ac-ceptable quality if (a) the goods have been used in a manner, or to an extent which is inconsistent with the manner or extent of use that a reasonable consumer would expect to obtain from the goods; and(b) the goods would have complied with the guarantee of acceptable quality if they had not been used in that manner or to that extent.(5) A reference in subsections (2) and (3) to a defect means any failure of the goods to comply with the guarantee of acceptable quality.What does this mean?Under clause four of section seven of the Consumer Guar-antees Act, the actions of the consumer can mean a vehicle meets the guarantee of acceptable quality even if they have failed.If the vehicle has been used in a way not consistent with its intended use, or if the way they have been used has contrib-uted to the failure.For example, ignoring an engine warning light for a period of time that results in damage could invalidate protection. Or the use of a non-offroad vehicle in tough conditions and resulting failures.
It is however, important that the customer is not doing these things at your request. If they advise you of a fault and you suggest continuing to drive the vehicle, it would likely be difficult to use this defence at a later date.
THE DIARY AutoTalk’s group editor Scott Morgan looks at the month gone by on AutoTalk.co.nz
Continued on page 49
July 2New vehicle manufacturers ‘outstanding’ during alpha airbag recall - FaafoiThe automotive industry and government agencies are working together to get the alpha Takata airbag problem sorted out, consumer affairs minister Kris Faafoi says.
As of May, 50,806 of the 103,819 of the alpha-affected vehicles have been completed, leaving 53,013 still to complete – although the total number affected is somewhat fluid as vehicles are either added or subtracted from the list.
The total recall for other Takata recall has reached 490,004 with 183,975 com-pleted, and for all airbag-related recalls the tally has hit 593,893 with 234,781 repaired.
Number of dealers continues to fall – justThe number of registered mo-tor vehicle traders fell again in June – but only just.
From 3479 dealers at the start of the month, the num-ber fell to just 3475 – a loss of four traders.
A year ago, at the start of July 2017, the number of regis-tered traders stood at 3432.
July 4CentrePort on track post-quake with $2m dividendWellington’s CentrePort has announced “a strong bounce back” from 2016 Kaikoura earthquake with a $2 million interim dividend.
Shareholders did not receive a dividend in the 2017 financial year due to building costs following the quake.
Chairman Lachie John-stone says the dividend payment is the result of CentrePort returning to pre-earthquake levels of perfor-mance in most business units.
ATL approved for heat treatmentAutomotive Technologies Limited (ATL) now has approval to heat treat vehicles in Japan, following the stink bug issue earlier this year.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) approved ATL to provide heat treatment to vehicles and machinery com-ing out of Japan, prior to the next stink bug season starting in September.
“Having robust and efficient heat treatment processes for vehicles in Japan will be critical to meeting the required level of bio-security control that MPI are seeking under the current revision to the Import Health Standard,” ATL chief executive Nigel Grindall says.
July 6Turners boosts small car stockA rise in petrol taxes is the likely reason behind Turners seeing a jump in demand for small cars.
“Turners are responding to an increased demand for smaller vehicles by ensuring a significant amount of fresh, fuel efficient stock is available at all of our car branches na-tionwide,” the company says in its latest market update.
Latest registration figures show sales are flat or slightly down across the board in June, it says.
July 9Court ruling goes against Continental Cars
Continental Cars is considering its legal options after a High Court decision which ruled the company has to pay $130,000 to a former customer.
The ruling centres around its Ferrari dealership in Newmarket, Auckland where customer Martyn Thompson thought he had purchased a Ferrari F12 Berlinetta.
The dealership was to im-port the car along with several others from a Malaysian deal-ership, Stuff reports.
July 10MPI outlines stink bug strategyManaging the brown marm-orated stink bug (BMSB) threat offshore is the Ministry for Primary Industries’ key strategy to keep the pest out of New Zealand.
Stink bugs made their way to New Zealand on vehicle carriers from Japan earlier this year, threatening New Zealand’s primary industries.
An MPI spokesperson told Auto Media Group new clean-ing requirements would be part of the updated Import Health Standard.
Cloned key-fob costs dealerA tech-savvy thief has gone to great lengths to steal one of Genuine Vehicle Import’s (GVI) fleet.
GVI general manager Hayden Johnston says a young male stole the grey 2007 Mazda Axela from the Auckland dealership on Friday last week without even need-ing the key-fob.
“From surveillance footage, it looks like he has cloned the transponder frequency and sim-ply pushed the unlock button on the door handle and driven the car away,” Johnston says.
July 11Diamond milestone for Bridgestone’s oldest independent NZ store
Garnett’s Tyre Service is cel-ebrating 60 years in business.
It is Bridgestone New Zealand’s longest running in-dependent store, with six dec-ades of serving the Maunga-turoto area in Northland.
The business was opened by Bert and Elsie Garnett on July 14 1958 and is now run by Dean and Vicky Garnett.
July 12Biosecurity awareness needs work: O’ConnorBiosecurity minister Damien O’Connor is pushing for a better public understanding of biosecurity threats, like the brown marmorated stink bug.
According to a survey done as part of the Biosecu-rity 2025 programme, more than 60% of New Zealanders have a good understanding of biosecurity and think it is important.
But only 2% think they would be personally affected by a biosecurity breach.
Automotive finance continues shift onlineNew research indicates 40% of Kiwi consumers would consider looking online for automotive finance.
American analytic software firm FICO says the results of its research show New Zea-landers sit behind Australia at 42% and the UK at 48% in terms of those looking for automotive finance online.
July 13Twyford looks to the future at VIA dinnerAutomotive and transport industry leaders gathered for the Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association’s (VIA) annual mid-winter dinner on Thursday.
The guest speaker was transport minister Phil Twy-ford, who gave a future-fo-cused speech that suggested individual car ownership is on borrowed time.
AUTOTALK AUGUST 2018 | www.autotalk.co.nz | 49
DIARYTALK
Continued from page 48
Continued on page 50
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“Within a relatively short pe-riod of time, more people will be living in high-density urban communities.
July 17Trade Me launches new dealer finance toolDealers that sell vehicles on Trade Me Motors now have a new option to promote their finance options.
The site launched its Deal-ership Finance tool on August 1, which will enable dealers to display the weekly instal-ment term, deposit and their selected interest rate on Trade Me vehicle listings.
Dealerships host Subaru displaysTwo Subaru dealerships will host interactive displays fea-turing the latest Legacy 3.6RS with STI Performance.
The displays at Winger Greenlane, in Auckland, and Farmer Auto Village, in Tauranga have touchscreen displays that allow custom-ers to compare the additional STI features with the standard Legacy 3.6RS features.
They can also read the STI story, watch the Legacy 3.6RS with STI Performance in action and take it for a test drive.
EMD buys Mevo sharesCar-share service Mevo has secured a further $300,000 investment from Z Energy (ZEL), as well as new funding
from European Motor Distribu-tors (EMD) and The Wellington Company (TWC).
Z Energy is now a 12% shareholder, while both EMD (Audi NZ’s parent company) and TWC have become 2.1% shareholders.
The funding will be used to further fuel Mevo’s growth. It follows a massive six months for Wellington-based Mevo, which has included a series of strategic hires, doubling its membership, rolling out at Wellington Airport, and launching the first free-floating car-share service in Australasia.
July 18Used car price drop offset by petrol hikeAn influx of used cars follow-ing the stink bug crisis has seen prices drop, new Stats NZ figures show.
Used car prices fell 3.3% in the June quarter.
“It was cheaper to buy a used car this quarter as dealer-ships looked to move some stock,” Stats NZ prices senior manager Paul Pascoe says.
July 20Alpha airbag recall deadlines “too tight”The used import industry is still working with its new vehicle counterparts to sort out the al-pha Takata airbag compulsory recall issue.
But the timeframes set by consumer affairs minister Kris Faafoi are making it tough, Imported Motor Vehicle
Industry Association chief executive David Vinsen says.
“We understand the minis-ter wanted a hard-line date.”
Wahlberg invests in Chevrolet dealershipMark Wahlberg has turned his attention from the big screen to the car game.
The actor has purchased a Chevrolet dealership in Columbus, Ohio along with business partner Jay Feldman.
“I am continuously looking for ways to innovate my brand and engage in businesses I am passionate about,” Wahlberg says in a statement.
July 23Heat treatment could cause cost increasesA significant investment in heat treatment technology by those tasked with inspecting used imports from Japan is being applauded by the Im-ported Motor Vehicle Industry Association (VIA).
Jevic and Automotive Technologies Limited (ATL) have been approved to offer heat treatment by the Min-istry for Primary Industries following the stink bug issue earlier this year.
Turners and Tower join forcesTurners Cars is set to manage the logistics and sale of dam-aged vehicles written off by Tower Insurance.
The agreement is the latest in a number of new arrange-
ments entered into by Turners as it builds its share of the end of life vehicle market.
“The potential in this sector of the market is significant”, Turners Group NZ chief ex-ecutive, Greg Hedgepeth says.
Mitsubishi’s NZ dealers part of global rebrandMitsubishi dealers around the country are in for a fresh new look with the marque adopt-ing an updated brand identity globally.
The global dealer rebrand will encompass 5000 dealer-ships worldwide.
“This rebrand comes at a great time for Mitsubishi Motors NZ, aligning us with a global standard in what is an increasingly successful market,” chief operating officer Daniel Cook says.
VW concept store for PukekoheEbbett Group is expanding its presence in Pukekohe with a Volkswagen concept store opening in September.
Located on the corner of King St and Massey Ave, the concept store will prioritise “customer experience above all else,” the company says.
Ebbett staff will utilise digi-tal technology to create 360o interactive views of the interior and exterior of every car they have in stock.
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“no surprise”: VinsenVIA chief executive David Vinsen isn’t surprised Auckland Council has been ordered to apologise over delays releasing a report about the future of the imported vehicle trade.
Chief ombudsman Pe-ter Boshier says Auckland Council’s five month delay releasing the report to Radio New Zealand under the Local Government Official Infor-mation and Meetings Act (LGOIMA) was unacceptable.
July 26“Justice campaigner” Nottingham sentencedDermot Gregory Notting-ham has been convicted and sentenced on five charges of criminal harassment and two charges of breach of suppres-sion orders.
Described by some media as a “justice campaigner”, Nottingham was known in the automotive industry for his investigations into allegations of odometer tampering.
The trial matters were unrelated to the automotive industry, but details have been suppressed where they might lead to identifying the com-plainants and others involved.
Haval ranking high in distinguished companyChinese carmaker Haval has placed itself among titans of the automotive industry.
In the Brand Finance Auto 100 report, listing the most valuable global automakers, Haval is celebrating its 16th ranking above Ferrari, Kia, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Tesla.
Haval’s brand value has reached a ranking of 249 among the Global 500, and is the highest ranked Chinese
automotive company.
July 27FCA saviour passes at 66Sergio Marchionne, the former chief executive who rescued Fiat Chrysler from the Global Financial Crisis, died this week.
Marchionne was just 66 when he passed away on Thursday having relinquished his position after shoulder surgery resulted in serious complications.
Marchionne was reportedly receiving “recurring treatment for more than a year” by University Hospital Zurich, in Switzerland.
Industry moving forward despite IHS Several factors could delay the introduction of a new Import Health Standard for used vehicles, but the industry is
pushing ahead regardless.A High Court ruling which
holds the Government re-sponsible for letting kiwifruit vine disease PSA into the country, and a request by the Japanese government to delay the process are among the stumbling blocks.
However, Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association (VIA) chief executive David Vinsen says that doesn’t help motor vehicle importers, who are expecting a new IHS to be introduced on September 1 – the same time as the start of the next stink bug season.
July 2New car-buying intentions dropThe number of Australians who intend on buying a new car has dropped.
From March to April this year, 66,000 Aussies dropped off the new car-buying intention radar according to Roy Morgan’s Automotive Currency Report research.
The report reveals 2.268 million people were intending on buying a new car before 2022, a slump from the 2.334 million measured in March.
July 11Nissan finds incorrect emissions data at Japanese factories
Incorrect emissions data from car exhaust tests conducted at Nissan’s Japanese factories have been discovered, the company says.
Emissions and fuel econ-omy tests “deviated from the prescribed testing environ-ment”, the BBC reports.
Nissan didn’t reveal how many cars were affected but promised to initiate a com-prehensive investigation.
July 19Suzuki joins Hyundai, VW in customer transparency voteSuzuki Australia says it would be open to making confiden-tial customer research data publicly available.
Following an enquiry published by news.com.
au asking 11 major carmakers whether they would share confidential customer feed-back data from the Automo-tive Research Committee, Suzuki Australia says it too would join the minority.
July 23US dealers could be squashed under Trump tariffNew car dealers in the United States are expecting sales to take a hit if president Donald Trump’s imported vehicle tariff succeeds.
The Wall Street Jour-nal reports dealers are ready-ing themselves for a 25% tax on foreign-built vehicle sales, which would cover nearly half of all 2017 US sales.
July 25VACC pushing governments to spark industry
changeThe Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce is applying pressure to a pre-election state government about the biggest issues fac-ing the automotive industry.
With thousands of hard-to-fill automotive trade vacancies strangling small businesses due to a grow-ing skills shortage, the VACC has launched its election campaign calling on govern-ment – or opposition – to listen and respond to “one of the biggest trade employers in Victoria”.
VACC chief executive officer Geoff Gwilym has told stakeholders, media and government, including roads minister Luke Donnellan and VicRoads representatives, that the automotive industry, especially franchised dealers face dire consequences if left unchecked.
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TransportTalk DiaryTransportTalk New Zealand editor Nigel Moffiet looks at the month gone by on www.transporttalk.co.nz
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July 13National EV association launchedThe newly launched Elec-tric Vehicle Association of Aotearoa (EVAA) is already attracting strong interest.
Created by EV owners for EV owners, the 100% inde-pendent association had 50 people sign up in the first 30 minutes of its official launch announcement on July 13.
July 17EVworld NZ set to buzzIndustry forums are a new ad-dition to the EVworld NZ con-ference and expo in Auckland.
The Conferenz organised
event is expected to attract thousands of people to the ASB Showgrounds in Auck-land from August 9-11.
July 18Real time charging information database launchedEVRoam, a new system providing real-time charging information to electric vehicle users, has been launched.
EVRoam is a live database, collated by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) and shared to dozens of websites and apps.
July 19Electric scooters in footpath rules review
- GenterIncreasing use of micro elec-tric vehicles such as e-scoot-ers has prompted a review of rules around their use on pathways.
“The Ministry of Transport is reviewing footpath rules to consider what types of vehicles should be allowed to use the footpath and in what ways,” associate minister of transport Julie Anne Genter says.
July 21Suppliers defend Leaf fixThe Motor Industry Associa-tion has expressed concern over the safety of a locally-adapted software patch for the 30kW Leaf – but the suppliers are defending their work.
The fix is to sort out issues with the Battery Manage-ment System software which may cause the health of the battery to be incorrectly
indicated.
July 30Thousands of e-bikes and drones not covered by insuranceKiwi electric bike and drone owners are being warned to check their insurance poli-cies as one expert cautions the industry hasn’t kept pace with new technologies.
Simon Moss, partner services manager of NZbro-kers, says analysis of home contents policies found significant complexity and variation in wording – leav-ing many e-bike and drone owners unexpectedly with-out cover for loss, damage or third-party liability.
July 5Highway quality questionedThe deteriorating state of some new motorways and highways has the Road Trans-port Forum worried.
As a result, RTF chief ex-ecutive Ken Shirley is calling on the New Zealand Trans-port Agency to sort out the problem.
July 9Pacific Fuel Haul and Z Energy renew partnershipPacific Fuel Haul, a division of NZX-listed TIL Logistics
Group, has renewed its part-nership with Z Energy.
The newly signed long-term contract includes increased volumes and wider distribution coverage.
July 16KiwiRail boss joins FletcherKiwiRail boss Peter Reidy is set to leave and take up the role as chief executive for Fletcher Building’s construc-tion division.
Reidy will start the new job in early November after four years at the state-owned enterprise. It will see him lead projects such as infra-structure and roading.
July 17Isuzu NZ puts new trucks to the testIsuzu New Zealand is set to release new truck models af-ter successful testing in local conditions.
This includes the CYZ460 and CYZ530 6x4s with the brand’s unique MJX 16-speed automated manual transmission (AMT) to com-plement the existing three 18-speed Eaton Road Ranger models.
July 18Twyford to attend RTF conferenceTransport minister Phil Twy-ford will be returning to the Road Transport Forum’s an-nual conference this year.
The event is being held at Forsyth Barr Stadium in
Dunedin from September 26 to 27.
Twyford gave his first public address as transport minister at the 2017 confer-ence.
July 23Hastings food hub has transport backingFreight company Tomoana Warehousing and Transport is behind a new 16.5-hectare food hub development in the Hawke’s Bay.
Tomoana Food Hub, its sister company, is set to open next to Heinz Wattie’s’ main production plant in Hastings, and will be a major base for the food industry.
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