Autohome customer service
- Thread starter cwadej
- Start date
wreckdiver1321
Overlander
Mike (Autohome USA) seems very helpful and he's on here a lot. Has a habit of responding very quickly to his customers, no matter the question. Not my personal experience, just what I have seen. Anytime there is an Autohome thread, he pokes his head in within the first few posts usually.
Lemsteraak
Adventurer
Maybe I can give some insight into AutoHome having worked with Mike in the past on projects and on some show trucks. I know the designers in Italy test each product independently for a year at least before anything is introduced. In addition North America does much of their own testing and development
North America works closely with many vehicle manufacturers. For example, AutoHome tents are an approved accessory for Hummers, not the GM Hummers the military ones. To get that approval, AutoHome worked with Hummer to make sure the tent are up to Hummers high standards. Tests included two crash tests to make sure they can handle head on crashes of over 45 MPH. The universal mounting system that has now become industry standard can handle this. Tests included everything from real world tests to fabric flammability, even ladder strength. Jeep for example liked the design so much they gave the Maggiolina a Chrysler design excellence award a few years back. AutoHome corporate works with just about everyone in Europe. The reason I bring all this up is that they don't expect their customers to do their product testing so you shouldn't have to ever deal with customer service.
Here is some proof
Quality => http://www.autohome-official.com/en/products/customer-service/quality
Testimonial => http://www.autohome-official.com/en/testimonials/roof-top-tents-experts/about-us
What all this is to show is that they build to a quality and not to a price. That is a problem in my view, Mike keeps the fabric tents for example on special order because their prices are too high for North America.
North America works closely with many vehicle manufacturers. For example, AutoHome tents are an approved accessory for Hummers, not the GM Hummers the military ones. To get that approval, AutoHome worked with Hummer to make sure the tent are up to Hummers high standards. Tests included two crash tests to make sure they can handle head on crashes of over 45 MPH. The universal mounting system that has now become industry standard can handle this. Tests included everything from real world tests to fabric flammability, even ladder strength. Jeep for example liked the design so much they gave the Maggiolina a Chrysler design excellence award a few years back. AutoHome corporate works with just about everyone in Europe. The reason I bring all this up is that they don't expect their customers to do their product testing so you shouldn't have to ever deal with customer service.
Here is some proof
Quality => http://www.autohome-official.com/en/products/customer-service/quality
Testimonial => http://www.autohome-official.com/en/testimonials/roof-top-tents-experts/about-us
What all this is to show is that they build to a quality and not to a price. That is a problem in my view, Mike keeps the fabric tents for example on special order because their prices are too high for North America.
Martyn
Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
Here is my feedback.
I met Lemstreraak around 2002. He was in the Overlanding business before there was an Overlanding business in North America. Solid guy.
Mike, is also a solid guy, can't remember when we first met, maybe 2005 or 2006. Our company, AT, has bought tents from these guys for ten years. Great products, good support.
Some minor delays in response, some minor screw ups along they way, but nothing out of the normal. If there is a problem and it's their fault they fix it.
If this was a company with issues we wouldn't still be doing business with them.
I met Lemstreraak around 2002. He was in the Overlanding business before there was an Overlanding business in North America. Solid guy.
Mike, is also a solid guy, can't remember when we first met, maybe 2005 or 2006. Our company, AT, has bought tents from these guys for ten years. Great products, good support.
Some minor delays in response, some minor screw ups along they way, but nothing out of the normal. If there is a problem and it's their fault they fix it.
If this was a company with issues we wouldn't still be doing business with them.
mep1811
Gentleman Adventurer
My experience was completely the opposite. It was only after I started a thread on how bad the customer service did Mike finally break down and address the issue.
A couple of years later when I flipped my trailer and destroyed my Overcamp I dreaded having to order another one from Autohome. I ended up dealing with another guy, a new hire. He was very helpful and was very aware of the past bad customer service. He answered his e-mails , the phone and I received my new tent. I can't remember his name as it was a year ago.
Now there is competition for Autohome that did not exist a couple years back. A little competition always improves customer service if a company is to survive.
A couple of years later when I flipped my trailer and destroyed my Overcamp I dreaded having to order another one from Autohome. I ended up dealing with another guy, a new hire. He was very helpful and was very aware of the past bad customer service. He answered his e-mails , the phone and I received my new tent. I can't remember his name as it was a year ago.
Now there is competition for Autohome that did not exist a couple years back. A little competition always improves customer service if a company is to survive.
Martyn
Supporting Sponsor, Overland Certified OC0018
Sounds like your experience with the company improved. When the economy went into recession Mike ran the company single handed, which may explain your initial issues. As the economy improved the staff expanded and the service improved.
For small businesses the recession was a killer. Some businesses just disappeared, the ones that didn't ran on a shoe string, usually with the owner doing all aspect of the work, I know, from personal experience, that doing that for four years takes it's toll on the business and the individual.
Knowing some of the small business owners personally I think I'm correct in saying they are good people who are trying to do the best for their customers. 2008 - 2012 put a lot of pressure on all of us, we didn't always make the best decisions, as some of our customers will attest to.
In general most of the companies involved in Overlanding care deeply about their customers, there are screw up's along the way, that good companies fix. There are a few companies that are just bad eggs and deserve getting a bad reputation, and there are customers who are disgruntled and use social media to tarnish the reputation of a business either justly or unjustly. Trying to sort out the good companies from the bad companies, and the good customers from the bad is the hard part.
Herbie
Rendezvous Conspirator
I have found Mike and Autohome USA's customer service to be top notch. They are busy folks, and on occasion when I have called the phones are being forwarded to somebody's cell, and that person is out in the field (actually USING their product), but I have always had return calls after leaving a voicemail or email. They've taken care of me with the one transaction I've done with them. If I were in the market for an RTT again, they're first place I'd call.
PIC4GOD
Adventurer
Overall my experience with Autohome has been good. I get frustrated sometimes when calling them when they say they will call back and don't or take days before they call back That is understandable as again they are a small operation.
I think my biggest issue is that they are really a very small operation that does not carry much inventory. I have called and asked for accessories a couple of times now and while helpful it always ends up being not in stock and have to wait for the next shipment. Rather than take my order and tell me a ship date they will tell me to call back next month. I've been trying to get the interior pockets for mine for the last year or so without any luck (Called 3 or 4 times). I also almost purchased the awning that attaches to the RTT but I never received a call back and got a great deal on an Ironman 2500. I think if they had an online ordering system with inventory delivery timelines built in it might help their business. In other words when you buy online it would warn you before purchasing that this product will be available on such a date and then shipped with an actual delivery day. It might save some of their response times on phone calls.
Again I love my Maggiolina Airlander and understand that they are a small operation. I also understand that dealing with the type of supply chain that they have can be difficult. I'm not giving them a hard time but they are a very different business compared to let's say Demello Offroad. While Demello is a small operation, he really goes the extra mile to keep his customers informed and provides a quality product because he has direct control over it. Autohome is at the mercy of trying to ship very large items that take a long time to come from overseas. This is not a simple electronic part ordered on Amazon and being shipped from China.
I think my biggest issue is that they are really a very small operation that does not carry much inventory. I have called and asked for accessories a couple of times now and while helpful it always ends up being not in stock and have to wait for the next shipment. Rather than take my order and tell me a ship date they will tell me to call back next month. I've been trying to get the interior pockets for mine for the last year or so without any luck (Called 3 or 4 times). I also almost purchased the awning that attaches to the RTT but I never received a call back and got a great deal on an Ironman 2500. I think if they had an online ordering system with inventory delivery timelines built in it might help their business. In other words when you buy online it would warn you before purchasing that this product will be available on such a date and then shipped with an actual delivery day. It might save some of their response times on phone calls.
Again I love my Maggiolina Airlander and understand that they are a small operation. I also understand that dealing with the type of supply chain that they have can be difficult. I'm not giving them a hard time but they are a very different business compared to let's say Demello Offroad. While Demello is a small operation, he really goes the extra mile to keep his customers informed and provides a quality product because he has direct control over it. Autohome is at the mercy of trying to ship very large items that take a long time to come from overseas. This is not a simple electronic part ordered on Amazon and being shipped from China.
