The Impact of Supply Chain Challenges on Vehicle Maintenance

This global pandemic has most certainly created a ripple effect throughout the business world, and despite the continued spread of COVID-19 and its variants, most companies haven’t skipped a beat in adopting the systems and procedures necessary to respond.

Unfortunately, multiple shutdowns of manufacturing, production, and distribution centers, in addition to massive reductions in the labor force have kept companies focused on the undeniable long-term challenges associated with the “new normal”.

All Chips are Down

The automotive industry is a large part of that focus and has been disrupted by the microchip shortage, impacting the manufacture of new vehicles. In particular, GM, BMW, Nissan, and Porsche are dropping features like touchscreens, wireless charging, satellite navigation systems, and even heated seats.

New vehicle inventories have also become scarce, increasing demand and driving new and pre-owned vehicle pricing higher than ever before. This prolonged shortage has forced manufacturers to focus on repairing existing and older vehicles, attempting to buy time until the effects of the pandemic pass.

Unfortunately, the ripple effect of the global shutdown and reduction in available labor have also devastated dealerships and independent facilities that provide these in-demand repair services. The result is an extreme shortage of parts inventory and lack of staff to perform the work, in turn causing excessive lead time on repairs.

Without the tools to help customers, relationships, revenue, and the ability to provide quality service are in jeopardy. Organizations are also struggling to obtain answers on when parts will be distributed and in some cases, advised that they will simply have to wait for information to become available.

Manufacturers have increased their efforts to produce, but with insufficient staffing at the distributor level and insufficiency of parts at the repair level, everyone will continue to feel the negative effects caused by these shortages. In some cases, those providing market insights predict part shortages will continue without improvement into 2023.

Awareness is critical in understanding the impact these shortages may have on vehicle availability for your fleet, and Motorlease is committed to providing the necessary updates and information to help our customers make smart, informed decisions. When it comes to maintaining vehicles and keeping your fleet on the road, we are in this together.