New dawn for Honda customers in Australia

Honda has today entered a new era in Australia with a compacted network of 90 dealers and a ‘one price promise’ that brings nationwide fixed vehicle pricing and industry-leading capped-price service costs.

As part of Honda Australia’s new agency sales model, the Japanese brand’s new Price Promise will see consumers pay the same drive-away price for their new Honda vehicle across Australia.

However, as reported by carsales last month, Honda buyers will pay more and have access to fewer models under the Honda Price Promise, following the axing of several models, the deletion of some entry-level variants and the inclusion of on-road costs across the range.

For example, the Honda Civic hatch range now comprises just three variants – down from six – with the VTi-S opening the range at $31,000 drive-away.

A new Honda Civic hatch will arrive around November, followed by a new HR-V in February 2022, but the new Civic sedan won’t be sold here, the Odyssey is nearing the end of its life and Honda Australia no longer sells the Jazz or City light cars.

From today, every new Honda vehicle (Civic, CR-V, HR-V, Odyssey and Accord) will be sold with a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty and five years of premium roadside assistance as standard, while service costs have been reduced to just $125 for each of the first five standard scheduled service intervals.

But as part of the change, the Honda dealer network has been reduced nationally, including a high-profile site in Melbourne’s inner suburb of Collingwood.

The introduction of the agency model and compacted dealer network will see the brand aspire to sell just 20,000 vehicles a year – prioritising customer experience over sales volume.

In a statement, Honda Australia director Stephen Collins said the new agency model is positioned to deliver better outcomes for Honda shoppers and owners.

“We embarked on a transformation journey over 15 months ago to create an enhanced, consistent and premium Honda brand experience for our customers and Honda representatives. Today marks an exciting new chapter for Honda Australia, as we officially introduce our new business model to the Australian market,” said Collins.

“Many businesses outside of automotive have already realised an end-to-end customer experience that is simple, trusted and enjoyable, is the key to future success. Brand experience is the new competitive battleground, which is why we have shifted our focus from the auto industry norm of chasing volume, to prioritising a quality customer experience.

According to VFACTS, Honda sales were down 28 per cent in May 2021 compared to previous month in 2020, and are down 25 per cent year to date.

The brand’s CR-V medium SUV was its top-seller in May, achieving 577 sales, followed by the HR-V small SUV with 571 sales. May also saw just 132 sales of the Civic hatch and sedan – down 74 per cent year-on-year.