Joe said:
You're probably right, but I sure hope they think it through with a long
range view rather that the short range. This is one of those things that
customers love, whether they ever use it or not! It says, "We care about our
vehicles, and we care about you, our customers."
In general, customers feel at the mercy of the auto industry. The vast
majority dread taking their vehicles for servicing. Most of us have to take
the word of someone we don't trust in the first place. Anything that allows
a consumer to feel somewhat knowledgable, and thus a bit more in control of
the situation, is good. Even if that feeling is not justified in fact!
I think that it's important to register our concerns with the company.
There's a tendency for some companies to try to restrict all servicing
to their own dealer network. Hyundai servicing is done more by the
dealers than other companies' for the simple reason of the long warranty.
Also, as a Korean corporation that's come to the US relatively recently,
there may be certain cultural differences that must be explained
repeatedly in order for the parent executives to get the hang of
satisfying us. I've seen other Korean firms that employed very strange
practices when viewed through American eyes -- and seemed really bizarre
to their own employees (Inkel Corporation gave their staff toothbrushes
instead of bonuses one Christmas).
To me, having the shop manual on the web is a strong selling point for
the brand, and they should be made aware of this. Like, "I want you to
know that I'm so happy that you offer your shop manual freely to
everyone on the web that when I buy my next car, it's going to be a
Hyundai. I'm so used to going to your site for information that I can't
consider buying my next car from a manufacturer who doesn't offer this
valuable free service to their customers."
Now, to another matter: one major shortcoming with Hyundai is the lack
of drive cycle information available to anyone. I've been able to get my
hands on one set of gargantuan "all-purpose" drive cycles -- they are
insane for use anywhere but on a controlled test track. And this was
only available through an aftermarket source. Other car makers freely
disseminate individual drive cycles, for specific years, specific
models, and specific control systems.
Hyundai's huge single all-purpose multi-year pair of cycles impressed me
as being so dangerous to carry out on public roads that I decided to
withold the information rather than to post it here and have someone
kill themselves trying to actually do them.
Drive cycles are used to set and test computer routines -- software
built into your car -- that are called "monitors" or "readiness
monitors." The completion of these routines are checked in smog testing;
here in California, if a car hasn't completed enough of these monitors,
the car will be failed in a smog test. In other words, keeping the
consumer in the dark can be costly and a true hassle. Two of my monitors
have not completed; it's been this way for months. Yet, additional
monitors are shown complete -- monitors that should depend on the
incomplete ones in order to be able to finish themselves! I'm sure in
the dark. It doesn't make sense, but under the state law, the condition
is actually legal.
For this reason,I feel that we need for Hyundai to get on the stick and
to prepare and freely release drive cycles that conform to what's
standard in the rest of the industry. It may take a lot of prodding...
Please forgive me if I decide to repost this part of the message as a
new topic.
Richard
