United Motors Company announces strong sales growth in first half of 2012

"We closed the first half of 2012 with total sales of 4,720 vehicles," said Paul Outhwaite, UMC's Chief Operations Officer. "That's a year on year increase of 2,126 vehicles against the first half of 2011, and represents growth of more than 80%. This clearly demonstrates that the combination of UMC's world-class customer service and the exciting, high quality Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep® and Ram ranges are attracting - and significantly, retaining - more and more customers. We're delighted to have achieved these results, and I'm incredibly proud of the team performance that has yet again taken us to new heights."

Since UMC started operations in 1999, it has grown to become one of the largest companies in the Saudi automotive market, as a direct result of consistently placing paramount importance on gaining customer trust and building a strong reputation through a focused strategy that is specifically designed to provide comprehensive, premium service. In line with this commitment, UMC has also made significant investments in its sales and service network and employs over 800 highly trained and experienced staff in its eighteen strategically located branches.

"Today, through our world-class network, we offer a comprehensive range of services, from new car sales - cash, leasing and installment-based - to used cars and trade-ins," said Outhwaite. "At the same time, our after sales service centers have been expanded to handle the rapidly increasing number of customers, while other new initiatives such as our Customer Satisfaction Department have been put in place to monitor and continually enhance customer service and satisfaction levels throughout all of our operations, beginning with the vehicle purchase process and continuing through to after sales."

"We offer private, fleet, government and car rental customers long-term reliability, reduced cost of ownership, greater fuel efficiency, uncompromised performance, ongoing advances in safety and technology plus ever-better capability and functionality, all supported by comprehensive after-sales back up."

To give just one example, the 2012 Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger are the first US produced vehicles to feature an advanced eight-speed automatic transmission that is normally only found on high-end luxury cars such as Audi, Bentley, BMW, Range Rover and Rolls Royce. Initially, the transmission is mated exclusively to the award-winning 3.6-litre V6 Pentastar engine.

Safety and security are also in sharp focus, as demonstrated by the latest features available across the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram ranges, including advanced Automatic Cruise Control, Blind Spot Monitoring, Electronic Stability Program and Handsfree Communication and Control.

Further evidence of the quality of the latest Chrysler Group products has come in the form of recognition from The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which named 11 models, including the Chrysler 200 and 300, Dodge Charger and Durango plus Jeep Grand Cherokee and Patriot as Top Safety Picks for 2012. The IIHS annually recognises vehicles that do the best job of protecting people in front, side, rollover and rear crashes in a series of tests conducted by the Institute.

"Having 11 vehicles named IIHS Top Safety Picks, plus countless prestigious international and regional awards for capability, build quality and exterior/interior design and widespread recognition of the reliability of our products really illustrates our commitment to design excellence, engineering quality, safety and security across all of our vehicle brands and segments," added Outhwaite. "Everyone agrees that the vehicles Chrysler Group is building right now have the best reliability in its history, and as the ongoing product transformation continues, even more new technology and capability will be built into our vehicles."

UMC, the largest distributor for Chrysler in the Middle East, is a regular recipient of prestigious regional awards for sales and service performance.