Aftermarket

Committee:
Automotive Components & Aftermarket
status:
No progress
Published:
Currently automotive components companies supplying Japanese vehicle manufacturers are restricted in respect of where they can sell their products on the Japanese aftermarket. As a result, in many cases Japanese consumers can only purchase original high-quality spare parts from dealerships tied to a specific car manufacturer. Strangely, no such restrictions apply to companies that make copies or non-original parts, which leads to the independent aftermarket being characterised by potentially lower quality and less safe products.

Recommendations

  • Japan should set up a legal framework that allows automotive components manufacturers to sell on the aftermarket similar to the EU’s Motor Vehicle Block Exemption legislation. This would increase the options for Japanese consumers wishing to source original high-quality vehicle parts.
  • Components suppliers should be permitted to apply their own trademarks or logos and their own part numbers to goods supplied to vehicle manufacturers.