Honda Motor Company Japan-based Honda Motor Company (Honda) is the 6 largest automobile manufacturers in the world. It produces cars, motor cycles, trucks, scooters, robots, jets, jet engines, water craft, electrical generators, marine engines, lawn and garden equipments, aeronautical and other mobile technologies. It is also the largest engine maker in the world which produces more than 14 million internal combustion engines every year. It has been several years since the company is in the automotive industry and it has already proven as one of the best car makers in the world. Started in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, the company is still one of the best and continuously improving automaker even in this high technology age. Over the years, as Honda witnessed significant growth, its started own dealership stores. The dealership store, New World Honda, has products ranging from Honda lights, spanning engines, power equipment to marine outboards, motorcycles, cars. The New World Honda has become a huge success. The main task of the company is to be one of the few manufacturers who sell products across a wide and diverse range of applications. The New World Honda is a one-stop-shop wherein people get everything like in a department store. It also believes that Honda brand is synonymous with reliability and has innovative and high technology products in its arena. As all the products which Honda manufactures continuously undergo modifications to include the new cutting edge technology, the company not only retains its old customers but also attracts new ones. Not only are the products in Honda of good quality but also the concept of new world Honda has enabled customers to experience products they would not have thought and saw before. In many countries Honda ranked highest in satisfying customers. Honda ranked highest in satisfying new-vehicle owners in New Zealand, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 New Zealand Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study(SM) released March 7 2009. The study is conducted in association with the New Zealand Automobile Association (NZAA). It is based on interviews with 4,061 new-vehicle owners and 11,653 owners of used vehicles. Overall satisfaction is based on owner experiences in four factors: vehicle quality and reliability; vehicle appeal (which measures satisfaction with the vehicle's design, style, performance and comfort); service; and ownership costs. Honda ranks highest in ownership satisfaction in the new-vehicle segment with an index score of 799 on a 1,000-point scale (Exhibit I). Volkswagen, Mazda and Suzuki, respectively, follow Honda in the rankings. Overall satisfaction has increased to 769 index points in 2009 among new-vehicle owners in New Zealand. As a result of its success in the study, Honda was awarded the New Zealand Automobile Association's 2009 AA Motoring Excellence Award for Customer Satisfaction? Exhibit I New-Vehicle Owner Satisfaction Survey Sl. No. New Vehicles Purchased Points on an Overall 1000 Point Scale 1. 2. 3. Honda Volkswagen Mazda 799 788 787 4. Suzuki 782 5. Toyota 770 6. Kia 766 7. Hyundai 765 8. Mitsubishi 760 9. Peugeot 755 10. Nissan 750 11. Holden 746 12. Subaru 741 13. Ford 737 Source: "Honda Ranks Highest in New-Vehicle Owner Satisfaction in New Zealand", http://www.infonews.co.nz/ news.cfm?l=1&t=0&id=34180, March 8" 2009 Considering the ownership satisfaction among buyers of used cars, Mercedes-Benz ranks highest, followed by BMW, Toyota, Audi and Honda, respectively (Exhibit II). The 2009 New Zealand Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study serves as a benchmark in measuring customer attitudes and expectations in the market. Overall, around 15,714 vehicle owners from among New Zealand Automobile Association members were surveyed online to evaluate their ownership experiences. Exhibit II Used-Vehicle Owner Satisfaction Survey Sl. No. Used Vehicles Purchased Points on an overall 1000 point scale 1. 2. 3. Mercedes-Benz BMW Toyota 762 755 742 4. Audi 738 5. Honda 736 6. Mazda 734 7. Suzuki 734 8. 9. Volkswagen Holden 728 726 10. Nissan 724 11. Hyundai 721 12. Ford 720 13. Peugeot 716 14. Subaru 713 15. Mitsubishi 704 Source: "Honda Ranks Highest in New-Vehicle Owner Satisfaction in New Zealand", http://www.infonews.co.nz/ news.cfm?=1&t=0&id=34180, March 8 2009 "Honda remains a strong brand in New Zealand," said Brian Fine, managing director for New Zealand at J.D. Power and Associates. "Major focus on technology and heavy importation has help build consumer confidence in Honda Honda launched the new Jazz compact car at the 2007. The car's new 'Ultra Seats' can even be arranged into a makeshift bed for tired drivers. The Jazz is one of the Honda's best selling cars worldwide. In fact, it is an important vehicle for the company in the sense that "If the Jazz does well, Honda does well". The new Honda Jazz, known as the Honda Fit in North America, will compete against some tough domestic rivals in the form of the new Mazda2, the Toyota Yaris, and the Nissan Micra Honda, after launching its new Jazz compact car for international sales, surveyed the Jazz customers from New Zealand. After surveying its customers, Takeo Fukmi, President and CEO of Honda Motor ltd claims that at least around 80% of the company's 5,000 customers are very satisfied. A survey of 25 randomly sampled customers finds that 76.9% are very satisfied. Discuss and analyse the situation.