What is GAC Motor’s commitment to after-sales services?

GAC Motor vehicles speak for themselves. They’re attractive, packed with technological features that you’ll likely find in high-end cars, and quite frankly, they don’t look like Chinese cars at all – leaning towards a more European design execution.

In short, GAC cars have broken through the stigma against Chinese cars in the Philippines when it comes to build quality and tech offerings. We’ve reviewed a number of GAC cars and we can strongly vouch for their quality in the metal. But then again, buying a brand-new car is one thing; addressing the inevitable need for after-sales services and parts during the course of vehicle ownership is another.

During a plant visit to GAC Motor manufacturing plants in Guangzhou, China, I’ve had the chance to interview GAC Motor CEO Wilbert A. Lim to shed us some light on how the new company will be able to cater to the needs of its customers after rolling off of its showrooms. Chances are, if you're among those who are eyeing to buy a GAC vehicle this year, these are the things you need to know.

Mr. Lim confidently mentioned that a percentage of every shipment of GAC cars to the Philippines has their parts accounted for. Currently, the company has invested P20-million in spare parts – all of which are available on hand in all GAC dealerships.

In a manufacturing perspective, when a brand makes its own parts, most especially the engine, it would be easier to provide spare parts to its customers because the company won’t need to reach out to a third-party supplier.

That’s the case with GAC Motor. Since its engine are all made by GAC itself, spare parts for its powertrain and other vital components of the vehicles are all sourced in-house, bridging the gap between the local distributor and a third-party supplier.

Of course, GAC cars will still have components that are sourced from a third-party company. However, GAC Motor assures us, the members of the media, that the company has a strong relationship with them that would transcend the lifetime of vehicle ownership.

In other words, the links in the supply chain are strong – and that’s worth noting about if you are to look at it at a wider perspective.

The industry standard for the warranty of brand-new cars in the Philippines is three years or 100,000 kilometers, whichever comes first. However, GAC Motor vehicles with an extended one – five years to be exact. And that speaks of the confidence that the company has with its cars.

In fact, Mr. Lim touted that not a single GAC buyer has come back to the showrooms to complain about a problem with its cars.

Mr. Lim was pretty positive about the competency of GAC Motor’s dealership facilities to provide adequate services for its customers. He was also honest about it – the facilities aren’t state of the art, but they could go head to head with the current leaders in the Philippine automotive market today.