18 | AutoPartsAsia | FEBRUARY 2018INTERVIEW
Asia To Accelerate
Automotive Aftermarket
Boom For Delphi
The line-up of Delphi Technologies, a world leader in the OEM and aftermarket supplies,
includes parts, equipment, software and training to help its customers to be a step ahead
in servicing and maintaining sophisticated vehicle systems. Delphi covers fuel systems, air
conditioning, engine management, steering and suspension, advanced diagnostic equipment,
e-catalogues and more.“I would classify our product lines as Fuelling (diesel and gasoline),
Electronics and engine management, General maintenance solutions of which braking,
steering and suspension are the most important, and Test equipment and diagnostics.
Delphi can also offer whatever alternative is required by the market for any part: new,
remanufactured, or locally repaired at lower cost. Our goal is to grow and continually support
our customers with high quality products,” Alex Ashmore, President, Global Aftermarket,
Delphi, told T Murrali of AutoParts Asia in an exclusive interview. The excerpts:Q: How do you assess the
present performance of the global
automotive aftermarket? Where is
the future?
A: The aftermarket globally, from
a market perspective, is strong in
Europe. North America has slowed
down over the last two or three years,
and Asia, particularly China, continues
to boom. South America is on the
recovery path.Q: What is the outlook for the next
five years?
A: As far as we can see these trends
should more-or-less continue. The
aftermarket is driven by the number
of cars on the road, how many miles
they do, the quality of the replacement
parts and the technology within specific
product lines. Most industry statistics
reflect a reasonably positive trend in the
aftermarket, particularly in China where
the vehicle population is still growing
probably at 8-10 percent, with the
average age of the vehicle at 4 years.
There is a lot of growth potential from
the aging vehicles.Q: Miles driven is increasing as fuel
prices fall. It may have a positive
impact on the aftermarket since
more people are driving. How do
you see this phenomenon helping
Delphi to enhance aftermarket
business?A: With fuel prices low people drive
more miles, so there is a bigger pie
for everybody in the aftermarket. Our
business would ride that way to get a
bigger market share.Q: The customers want better fuel
efficiency and maximum up-time of
the vehicle on the road. These are
certain indicative parameters that
help aftermarket players plan their
products. How is it with Delphi?
A: As you say, we have the end-
customers very much in mind; we
are serving a value chain of the
distributor with the installer fitting in
Delphi quality parts for good repair
and service so that the customer does
not come back for warranties andassociated problems. We also try not
only to sell our products but also offer
technical and marketing support to
our customers. One example is the
campaign we are running presently in
North America called ‘Clean the Tank’.
This is because many have come back
to claim the warranty on fuel pumps
because the service provider has
not cleaned the tank efficiently. We
have developed a little kit to remind
people to clean the tank on time; we
have a campaign running on YouTube
and other marketing sites to educate
and remind fitters to clean the tanks
properly.Q: This is also a part of the
sustainability initiative because youDelphi Steering