Omnicraft parts to boost Quick Lane business

DETROIT (Feb. 27, 2017) — Ford Motor Co. expects its new Omnicraft brand of aftermarket parts for non-Ford and non-Lincoln vehicles to boost business at the company's franchised Quick Lane service centers and potentially entice more dealers to open a Quick Lane outlet.

On average, vehicles other than Ford- and Lincoln-brand cars and trucks account for about a fourth of the service volume at the nearly 900 Quick Lane centers in the U.S. and Canada, but that figure is as high as 50 percent at some stores, according to Brett Wheatley, executive director of Ford's customer service division in North America.

"Up to this point, we haven't had the parts" for other brands beyond such basics as wiper blades, filters and oil, Mr. Wheatley said.

Before the auto maker launched the Omnicraft parts brand in January, Ford and Lincoln dealers had to buy non-Ford parts from other suppliers, a process that was inefficient and probably more expensive, Mr. Wheatley said.

Ford launched Quick Lane in 1997 as a pilot program. There are now 815 Quick Lane centers in the U.S., some as stand-alone stores and others integrated into some of Ford's 3,200 U.S. dealerships.

Some Ford dealers have complained it was tough to make the business case for a center that mostly sells low-margin, basic replacement parts and routine maintenance service, especially in a stand-alone store.

Alan Chan, owner of Babbitt Ford in Flagstaff, Ariz., doesn't have a Quick Lane center, but he says the availability of Omnicraft parts makes it a more attractive idea.

"It's hard to stock parts when you don't know what your used mix is going to be" servicing Ford vs. non-Ford vehicles, Chan says.

Bill Jarrett, chairman of the Ford National Dealer Council, says part of the rationale for Quick Lane is that customers are unwilling to drive far for service, and full-service Ford dealerships can't be everywhere.

"It's a tremendous way to meet the owners of" non-Ford vehicles, said Mr. Jarrett, whose Jarrett Automotive Group operates five Ford and Lincoln dealerships in central Florida. He operates Quick Lane centers at four of the stores and is adding a fifth.

Ford CEO Mark Fields said last month that the auto maker plans a "significant expansion" of Quick Lane globally.

"That is good business for us," Mr. Fields told an investor conference in Detroit. "Dealers who invest in Quick Lane operations not only are generating service business, but also attracting competitive makes, to sell more cars."

Stephen Odell, Ford Motor's executive vice president of global marketing, sales and service, said customer demand is propelling Quick Lane's growth. "It's not us pushing."

Ford launched the Omnicraftparts brand as a tool to help its dealers service up to 90 percent of competitive makes, thus generate more sales. Officials said Ford's customer service division wants to generate more dealership business by providing parts to cover non-Ford and non-Lincoln vehicles. The new brand will exist alongside the Ford/Lincoln-dedicated Motorcraft brand.

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Jim Henry is a reporter with Automotive News, a Detroit-based sister publication of Tire Business.