How To Sell More! Exhaust Systems And Components

Selling exhaust systems and parts may be coming back into vogue these days, as vehicles age and the desire to keep them even longer grows.

While the market has suffered some negative influences over the past two years due to general economic factors, there is no reason to believe that the underlying demand for exhaust products, of both the replacement and performance variety, are suffering any significant or permanent change.

Quite the contrary: there are signs of a positive shift, driven by factors such as an aging vehicle population. The “sweet spot,” as it were, is the 1997 to 2000 model year range, which included some strong new-car-sales years. And, perhaps partially because some manufacturers have been strapped for profits, the suggestion has also been made that the stainless steel used in some systems is not what it once was.

In any case, sales improvements in the market have been reported by some suppliers.

Selling successfully into the exhaust market continues to be largely dependent on only a few factors. The first is supply. The second is your customer base. Lastly, there is the performance customer.

Addressing these requires a thoughtful approach.

Exhaust Sales: The Supply Factor

When the stainless steel exhaust system became de rigueur at the OEM level, the drop in replacement rates among three-to seven-year-old vehicles caused many jobbers to leave the market entirely. And, as is often the case, other products filled their shelves, both figuratively and literally. In order to sell successfully in the exhaust market, you need to have a solid on-hand inventory and a comprehensive backup supply of slow movers.

It is important to use the tools at hand to determine precisely what the inventory you should have on hand should be. And recognize that things have changed. (There’s that “change” word again.)

Items like flex pipe, which weren’t even part of the market a dozen years ago, are proving to be significant movers.

And, of course, there are catalytic converters, which can fit neatly into either exhaust or emissions control categories, but have been consistent performers even when the components that make up the rest of the exhaust system have seen demand dip. Even on this front, the development of specialized aftermarket units–such as those engineered for GM cars prone to MIL light activation–can provide an additional boost to your sales if you put them into your inventory mix.

Larger trends, such as the rise in direct-fit systems over universal fit systems, may fit well into your local market, but it is not a given. The economic, demographic, and preference factors of your customer base will have a greater effect on what you need to have in stock and on-call than any national averages.

Further to inventory issues, though, is the fact that there are now cases where consolidation across model years can ease the entry. A few years ago you were seeing kits that would fit ’01-’04 models. Now they’re designing kits that fit vehicles from ’01-’08 models. So they cover a wider range. Many companies are moving towards a one-piece-fits-all approach.

So there are several areas where the jobber can compete. One is in the front pipe. While a stainless-steel exhaust system is very resilient to corrosion, it doesn’t mean certain parts of the system won’t bend or crack. This is the case on some vehicles where there is a lot of vibration, but insufficient flex. Aftermarket parts from some suppliers have been engineered to withstand these forces, and that may provide a good opening for a jobber.

Exhaust Sales: The Customer Factor

As noted, there is a larger trend toward the direct-fit option; service providers and technicians like it because it makes their job quicker, easier, and more predictable. But the direct fit approach isn’t for every customer.

So how do you know how your customers feel about the equation that works best for them? Simple: you have to go and talk to them.

Find out what their comfort level is with different approaches and make your decisions based on that, not just on higher-level statistics.

The commitment made in inventory should be significant if you are to have significant sales gains, and to make that work you need to have ground-level data.

But if you’re in the game and you’re not hearing what you’d like from your customers, don’t dismiss your program out of hand; your supplier rep can be a wonderful source of information on ways to meet customer needs with the options they have available. And, of course, there are different suppliers with different approaches should a change become necessary.

Exhaust Sales: Retail and Performance

This is the fun stuff, even when you’re not necessarily talking performance. Selling exhaust parts at retail can give salespeople and in-store staff some real ammunition for creativity.

Displays that turn exhaust systems into tin men, entire systems suspended from the ceiling, and walls of chrome tips can all add spice to a showroom, and to retail sales.

The performance business is a fashion-driven business in many ways. Yes, horsepower at the wheels matters, but as often as not, the sound and the look of an exhaust system is really the key for the purchaser.

And, as a fashion business, trends change. While the large and loud pipes seem to have endured for some time, there has been a parallel trend towards hiding their exhaust systems, while others, particularly drivers of the luxury performance brands, have found a tailored, close-to-the-body look the most desirable. You won’t know what your local market wants in this regard until you get out and take a look, and a listen, around.

Enthusiasts tend to be brand-oriented, but cachet may be on your side if you have something that nobody else has.

The first step, however, is to make the customer aware of what you have. Use merchandisers to get your products out in front of the customer. Get the related point-of-purchase material from your suppliers and keep it at hand.

And, understand that if you are not an enthusiast yourself, and you can’t talk shop with the performance customers, perhaps you should leave the selling to the staffer who is. It can make all the difference.