Mea culpa

Nope. I’m not admitting to any fault I may have committed — at least not publicly. But Arnel Doria, deputy head for marketing of Honda Cars, Philippines, Inc., (HCPI) did so last June 3 over lunch with the motoring media. Arnel, of course, was speaking in behalf of HCPI, as the company claimed culpability over defective metal bands which hold the fuel tanks of about 12,480 Honda Civic units released in the country from 2001 to 2004.

Now, 12,480 is a pretty big number, but the number doesn’t even come close to the real significance of the matter. When HCPI claimed culpability, they also initiated a recall of the affected vehicles, effectively setting the company back by at least P8 million and their man-hour productivity ratio by an as yet unspecified number. More importantly, the move threatens to create a huge dent in the public’s perception of HCPI — which could be a very dangerous precedent. Admitting to your faults in this country, you see, is tantamount to committing harakiri, what with the crab mentality that plagues our sorry society. But I’ll go out of my way and say it flat out — HCPI did the right and honorable thing by coming out and admitting and then offering to settle their shortcomings (free of charge, might we add).

In the next few weeks HCPI will have around 12,480 unhappy customers who will have to go out of their way to have their cars serviced. In the next few weeks they will have a number of wary would-be buyers who will think twice before parting with their hard-earned cash for a brand new Honda. In the next few weeks they will have detractors who will go to the extent of destroying their reputation just so the detractors themselves could get an inside track on the small piece of the pie of new vehicle sales. But Arnel and company knew that to begin with. Yet they still did what they felt was the right thing to do. And for that, they have my respect.

Unfortunately, not too many people will show them that same respect. HCPI is, in fact, bracing for the worst. They know that in a society like ours, where rumor mongers and back stabbers hold sway, they will have to face the court of public opinion — which more often than not is unforgiving of large corporate entities (even those that do the right thing). Maybe it’s just a function of the Filipino psyche. We, as a people, are generally fond of finding fault — and we could care less about finding solutions. But the fact of the matter is that HCPI has made it easy for us all as it is. They have admitted that it is their fault. They are providing the solution. Watch, however, as text messages claiming to champion the consumer begin to go around and erode a reputation that HCPI is trying desperately to save by facing up to the facts.

However, let’s pretend for a moment that we are not going to go down that dirty road. Let’s pretend that we’ll actually be responsible people and see HCPI’s efforts for what it truly is — an honest effort to rectify a shortcoming. What is at stake and how big an issue are we talking about here? Let’s try to put things in perspective, shall we? This is the first time that HCPI — or any other automotive manufacturer for that matter — has initiated a recall of this scale. Why do such a thing despite the inevitable backlash? Because the company prefers to make the public realize what the problem is before something untoward really happens. (So far, the ten reported cases have not resulted in any injury to vehicle passengers.)

The company also wants to make it clear that the recall and the problem is contained to all Honda Civic models released in the years 2001 to 2004. All Civic units manufactured beginning January 2005 have been corrected and are therefore not included in the recall campaign. All other Honda models are also free of the problem — which means that if you own a CR-V, City, Accord, Jazz, HR-V, Odyssey or Legend, you have nothing to worry about. If you are not sure about your Honda Civic’s release date, then you can call the Honda Hotline at 1-800-1000-HONDA (46632) to find out if your Honda Civic is among those affected by the recall.

Quite frankly, it’s efforts like these that rekindle the faith of people like me in the auto industry. Just like any frustrated Filipino consumer, for example, there are times when I would curse the high heavens for the inane concept of service that some of our countrymen — including those working in auto dealerships — have. But this is not one of those times. What I see in HCPI now is a genuine desire to offer service to the consumer, which is a rare occurrence but a welcome one just the same.

I could have used this space to fuel the burning debate between the Mayors of Metro Manila and the beleaguered MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando, I could have used this space to rant about diggings and unruly public utility drivers, I could have even used this space to castigate HCPI for being irresponsible and letting the defective part that caused the recall slip past their quality control, in the first place (which would have probably been the more popular thing to do). But I chose to use this space to give credit where credit is due, because I believe that what HCPI has done with this recall is what any responsible auto manufacturer (or even any other corporate entity, for that matter) ought to do. I tip my hat off to HCPI. And to the people who have their Hondas, this should serve as a good barometer of the kind of company you’ve entrusted your money (and the service of your vehicles) to. Not bad, I say. Not bad at all.

Last week, after the start of classes, a number of troublesome spots in the Metro cropped up. Here are some of your comments.

The U-turn at Katipunan Avenue in front of Ateneo and Miriam is not working. Sobrang traffic! — 09189481654

Please ask the authorities to check on PUJs parked in the middle of the road at the intersection of Commonwealth Avenue and Balara. — 09175307316

Diagonal parking by passenger buses and jeepneys when picking up commuters should be strictly disallowed. It’s too unsafe! — 09192896279

How about writing a comparative article between the Honda CRV and the Land Rover Defender? — 09154413895 (Interesting suggestion but quite the disparity, don’t you think?)

Why are so many tricycles fitted with loud after-market horns meant for cars and trucks yet don’t have any lights on at night? It’s stupid! — 09179447751 (Yeah. It’s stupid.)

New car buyers pay high registration fees but can’t use their cars for one month while waiting for their car plates! — 09178459239 (Allow us to fill you in on a little secret: if you pay a certain "fee" you can get your plates at once! You can ask the gray market importers how it’s done.)

Nissan U.N., please be true to your three-year warranty and responsibility. — 09165727829

More power to Bayani Fernando! Unfortunately, some of his people in the MMDA can see the small plate numbers to enforce coding laws but can’t see jeepney and bus drivers clogging our intersections. — 09178400419

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