"Till now, customers have been restricted to specification and equipment packages set out by the manufacturer. This meant they couldn't take out what they didn't want or add some things they may have wanted. Our customer free choice system breaks through this barrier by giving customers a virtual free hand in selecting trim and equipment combinations," said Eiji Iwakuni, head of domestic car sales and marketing at MMC.

With CFC, customers can make their own choice for everything from the engine and drive system to body and interior colors, seat types, and even in-car devices and equipment. By choosing exactly what they want, customers will not only be able to tailor their purchase to meet their own specific requirements, tastes, lifestyle, and budget, but also enjoy the whole purchasing experience through making more active decisions.

CFC represents a renewed effort within MMC to provide customers with the best possible service. "Our R&D, production, logistics, marketing, and IT departments are all working closely together to ensure customers will be able to tailor their purchase as easily as possible," added Iwakuni, underscoring MMC's new focus on cross-functional work.

MMC is now focusing on the turnaround of its domestic passenger car operations. A key target of reforms is to reach a leading position among automakers in terms of customer satisfaction by installing strict dealer standards and encouraging innovative sales practices. CFC is the first concrete step in realizing this.