Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Automotive News Europe
  • Automotive News China
  • Automobilwoche
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • login
  • HOME
  • News
    • News by Brand
    • Auto Shows
    • Photo Galleries
    • Automakers
    • Suppliers
    • Retail
    • Dealer Best Practices
    • Government Relations
    • Trade and Tariffs
    • Technology
    • Labour
    • 1-pathfinder.png
      view gallery
      13 photos
      New vehicles are shouting their names out loud
      NUtoyota1.jpg
      view gallery
      7 photos
      2022 Toyota GR 86
      hummersuv_1.jpg
      view gallery
      4 photos
      2024 GMC Hummer SUV Edition 1
      bronco_moab.jpg
      view gallery
      10 photos
      Ford Bronco Easter Moab concepts
    • 1PLANT-MAIN_i.jpg
      How suppliers and automakers saved the industry amid a pandemic
      Automakers, suppliers tackle new crises together
      HONDA_20190508_FINAL.jpg
      Honda, Toyota most preferred by suppliers
      Lawsuit challenges Trump's authority on steel, auto tariffs
    • Vaccine Vial
      Suppliers working on vaccination sites in Ontario, but 'it's a fluid discussion'
      5AMBASSADOR-MAIN_i.jpg
      Canada-U.S. trade faces 'critical moment' that demands urgent action, businesses warn
      Britishvolt teaser image web.jpg
      Britishvolt eyes Canada for home to new battery factory
      5AMBASSADOR-MAIN_i.jpg
      Ottawa mulls exempting auto workers from Canada-U.S. border shutdown
    • New Hyundai Dealership Sign
      Hyundai Canada commits to adding more Black dealers to its network
      HGregoire President John Hairabedian
      Why dealers are wading into the murky waters of cryptocurrency
      Dealers want post-pandemic investment in IT, not showrooms
      Windsor
      Automakers, dealers could look to the service sector to fill jobs
    • Cumberland Honda in Amherst, N.S.
      Dealing with provincial border closures caused by COVID-19
      Luxury dealers break new ground with online purchasing, servicing tools
      Digital greeter named Janus pre-screens showroom customers for COVID-19
      How a small-town GM store casts a wide net to land customers and stay successful
    • GenesisG70-MAIN_i.jpg
      Hyundai recalls more than 100,000 Genesis luxury vehicles for possible fire risk
      5AMBASSADOR-MAIN_i.jpg
      U.S., Canadian execs lobby for USMCA relief
      6NAFTA-5.jpg
      Some Mexican automakers want more time to meet USMCA rules, official says
      Japan Prius prod 20 web.jpg
      Japan may ban sales of new ICE vehicles in mid-2030s, report says
    • 5AMBASSADOR-MAIN_i.jpg
      Canada-U.S. trade faces 'critical moment' that demands urgent action, businesses warn
      5AMBASSADOR-MAIN_i.jpg
      Ottawa mulls exempting auto workers from Canada-U.S. border shutdown
      5AMBASSADOR-MAIN_i.jpg
      Dispute brewing over USMCA rules
      Canadian Pacific Train Engine
      How pending rail merger could aid North American auto industry
    • GMMaps-MAIN_i.jpg
      GM expects to launch new in-vehicle navigation system in Canada later this year
      Porsche, Apple Music partner on infotainment
      Vietnam-tied hackers said to target auto industry
      Vehicle screens go super-sized at CES as tech catches up
    • Wuhan honda prod web.jpg
      Automakers push to reopen plants with testing and lots of masks
      Ford, UAW reach tentative pact in U.S. with billions worth of investment
      GM Canada says it will find 2,400 jobs for Oshawa workers
      FCA to idle Ontario minivan plant for 8 days, union says
    • Aston Martin
    • BMW
      • Mini
      • Rolls Royce
    • Daimler
      • Mercedes Benz
      • Smart
    • Fiat Chrysler
      • Alfa Romeo
      • Chrysler
      • Dodge
      • Ferrari
      • Fiat
      • Jeep
      • Lancia
      • Maserati
      • Ram
    • Ford
      • Lincoln
    • General Motors
      • Buick
      • Cadillac
      • Chevrolet
      • GMC
    • Honda
      • Acura
    • Hyundai
      • Kia
    • Mazda
    • Mitsubishi
    • Nissan
      • Infiniti
    • Subaru
    • Tata
      • Jaguar
      • Land Rover
    • Tesla
    • Toyota
      • Lexus
    • Volkswagen
      • Audi
      • Bentley
      • Bugatti
      • Lamborghini
      • Porsche
    • Volvo
    • Toronto Auto Show
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Do automakers prioritize U.S. inventory over Canadian stock?
      BrightDrop.jpg
      Big questions remain when it comes to GM's $1-billion CAMI plant
      Bosch_information_domain_computer web.jpg
      Bosch, Continental battle to supply the brain of the connected car
      Unifor exceeded its goals during Detroit 3 talks
  • Canada Conversations
  • EVENTS & AWARDS
    • 2019 Canadians To Watch
    • 2019 Auto News Canada All Stars
    • Best Dealership To Work For
    • Register for the 2021 Best Dealership To Work For
    • Canada Congress Conversations
    • Retail Forum: Dealer Discussions
    • Leading Women Roundtables
    • Dealerships reboot for millennials
      Communication is key to keeping dealership family together
      How giving back to their communities helps dealerships succeed
      Green dealerships good for business and for hiring
    • Embrace millennials and technology or be left behind, dealers warned
      walker.jpg
      Magna CEO says USMCA will mean 'more jobs, more investment' in Canada
      Top auto execs to address industry upheaval at 2020 Canada Congress
      VIDEO: Why Ford's Hinrichs is bullish on USMCA
  • Jobs & Classifieds
  • +MORE
    • NEWSLETTERS
    • SUBSCRIBE
    • CLASSIFIEDS
    • PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
    • COMPANIES ON THE MOVE
    • WEBINARS
    • ADVERTISE WITH US
    • CONTACT US
    • DIGITAL EDITION
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Suppliers
June 22, 2020 12:12 AM

Honda, Toyota most preferred by suppliers

Alexa St. John
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    HONDA_20190508_FINAL.jpg

    Honda, the No. 2 automaker in this year's ranking, and No. 3 General Motors both dipped slightly in their supplier relations, the study found.

    Smooth supplier relations have been put to the test over the past three months as automakers scrambled to get their assembly plants back online after the coronavirus shutdown.

    But the pandemic's jarring effects on auto production did not dramatically shake the working relations of the six biggest North American automakers with their parts makers, according to a new survey of suppliers.

    The study found automakers that have enjoyed positive working relationships with suppliers in the past several years maintained their industry-leading cool when coping with the emergency, while those that haven't performed well as customers in the past did not benefit under the stress of this year's pandemic.

    The 2020 North American Automotive OEM-Supplier Working Relations Index Study, an annual survey of supplier sales personnel by the Detroit consulting firm Plante Moran, was conducted during the early weeks of the crisis, from mid-February to mid-April, when production lines were crashing and the future was uncertain.

    The study compiled the impressions of 841 salespeople from 503 Tier 1 suppliers on how those companies are getting along with their automaker customers, what it's like to serve each automaker and what impact those working relationships are having on suppliers' business and operations.

    Toyota's purchasing operation led the industry this year as it has in every year except for two during the study's 19-year history. Toyota actually widened its gap with other automakers in the ranking, despite the pandemic upheaval.

    Honda, the No. 2 automaker in this year's ranking, and No. 3 General Motors both dipped slightly in their supplier relations, the study found. Ford remained little changed in fourth place, according to its suppliers' perceptions.

    FCA, which ranked at the bottom of last year's report, moved up slightly to overtake Nissan, in last place, this year.

    Plante Moran principal Dave Andrea said two key fundamentals — trust and clear communication — determined which automakers scored well. Andrea said those factors influenced how the six industry supply chains navigated the disruption of the coronavirus crisis.

    "If you have communication and processes in place, you should have an advantage going into a major crisis," Andrea told Automotive News, assessing the survey findings. "You also have to have alignment with engineering and manufacturing and all the other touch points that a supplier interacts with."

    Plante Moran took over the study in 2019 from industry researcher John Henke's firm, Planning Perspectives Inc.

    Toyota performed the best of the six automakers in each of the 22 variables the study monitors.

    They include how helpful the automaker is in solving problems, whether the automaker creates hindrances in executing the business, whether the customer supports the supplier's need to make a profit and how knowledgeable the automaker's buyers are about the specific business of the relationship.

    Toyota also ranked best in seven of the eight purchasing areas in which the automakers were assessed, including electronics, chassis parts, powertrain components and body-in-white parts. FCA ranked lowest in half of the areas and Nissan ranked lowest in the other half.

    Toyota was not ranked at all in the purchasing area of electric vehicles, where it is not active in North America.

    Toyota's wide spread of top scores made it the industry's most preferred customer by suppliers, the survey concluded, with Honda at No. 2.

    "You have to be good at a wide range of activities," Andrea said.

    "You could individually be very good at resolving tooling issues and those types of things, but that's just one element of working together."

    Robert Young, group vice president of the purchasing, supplier engineering development and cost planning groups of Toyota Motor North America, said last week that suppliers play an integral role in Toyota's regional and global success.

    "We are committed to work more deeply and collaboratively with our partners to develop and build world-class vehicles and mobility solutions for our customers," he said.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Continental, Amazon Web Services launch automotive software platform
    Recommended for You
    Continental, Amazon Web Services launch automotive software platform
    Continental, Amazon Web Services launch automotive software platform
    Canadian battery recycling startup plans new U.S. plant to feed EV boom
    Canadian battery recycling startup plans new U.S. plant to feed EV boom
    Magna plans to expand manufacturing in North America to focus on EVs
    Magna plans to expand manufacturing in North America to focus on EVs
    Digital Edition
    View latest issue
    See our archive
    Sign up for free newsletters
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up today for our Weekly Newsletter, Daily Newsletter and Breaking News Alerts. We'll deliver the news you need to know straight to your inbox.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Subscribe Now

    An Automotive News Canada subscription includes 12 monthly issues – delivered in print to your doorstep, and digitally to your inbox – plus unlimited, 24/7 access to our website.

    Subscribe Now
    Connect With Us
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Our Mission

    The Automotive News Canada mission is to be the primary source of industry news, data and understanding for the industry's decision-makers interested in Canada.

    Contact Us

    PO Box 243
    Station A
    Windsor, ON
    N9A 6K7

    1-877-812-1257

    Email Us

    ISSN 2475-5001 (print)
    ISSN 2475-501X (online)

    Resources
    • About us
    • Contact Us
    • Digital Edition Archive
    • Advertise with Us
    • Reprints
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Automotive News Canada
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HOME
    • News
      • News by Brand
        • Aston Martin
        • BMW
          • Mini
          • Rolls Royce
        • Daimler
          • Mercedes Benz
          • Smart
        • Fiat Chrysler
          • Alfa Romeo
          • Chrysler
          • Dodge
          • Ferrari
          • Fiat
          • Jeep
          • Lancia
          • Maserati
          • Ram
        • Ford
          • Lincoln
        • General Motors
          • Buick
          • Cadillac
          • Chevrolet
          • GMC
        • Honda
          • Acura
        • Hyundai
          • Kia
        • Mazda
        • Mitsubishi
        • Nissan
          • Infiniti
        • Subaru
        • Tata
          • Jaguar
          • Land Rover
        • Tesla
        • Toyota
          • Lexus
        • Volkswagen
          • Audi
          • Bentley
          • Bugatti
          • Lamborghini
          • Porsche
        • Volvo
      • Auto Shows
        • Toronto Auto Show
      • Photo Galleries
      • Automakers
      • Suppliers
      • Retail
      • Dealer Best Practices
      • Government Relations
      • Trade and Tariffs
      • Technology
      • Labour
    • Opinion
      • Blogs
    • Canada Conversations
    • EVENTS & AWARDS
      • 2019 Canadians To Watch
      • 2019 Auto News Canada All Stars
      • Best Dealership To Work For
      • Register for the 2021 Best Dealership To Work For
      • Canada Congress Conversations
      • Retail Forum: Dealer Discussions
      • Leading Women Roundtables
    • Jobs & Classifieds
    • +MORE
      • NEWSLETTERS
      • SUBSCRIBE
      • CLASSIFIEDS
      • PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
      • COMPANIES ON THE MOVE
      • WEBINARS
      • ADVERTISE WITH US
      • CONTACT US
      • DIGITAL EDITION