Editor's Report

Motor, Apr 2005 by Lypen, John

Consumer Reports' 2005 auto issue includes recommendations on where, when and how people should have their cars serviced. You should care about what they said.

If you're over 40 years old you must remember the old TV commercials that proclaimed: "When E.F. Hutton speaks, people listen." I don't know how much truth there was in that old tag line, but I know that when Consumer Reports speaks, people da listen.

Consumer Rcjwrts magazine, with a circulation of about 4 million, has a nearly evangelical following. Yon probably know someone personally who won't even buy a bar of soap unless it's received a good rating from "Consumers."

Several days after the April 2005 issue of the magazine landed on newsstands, my e-mail box received several press releases from industry associations discussing CR's comments on automobile service. The mere fact that a one-page commentary in a magazine could cause such a flurry of activity says something about the influence it has. (I'm reasonably certain none of my editorials has ever fostered a press release!)

The recoin mendations offered in the article are, naturally, subject to interpretation, but here's how I saw it.

The Good

*Readers are reminded that federal law gives them the right to have their vehicles serviced anywhere without jeopardizing the factory warranty.

*Some perfectly reasonable advice for finding a good repair shop is offered. It includes asking friends and family for references, not waiting until your car breaks down to find a shop you're comfortable with, "test-driving" a shop with some maintenance work and looking for shops that employ ASE-certified technicians.

*Readers are encouraged to look in their owner's manual to determine which services need to be performed at specific mileage intervals.

*The article includes a fair summary of independent shops. "A reputable independent shop should be able to handle most other [than warranty and recall] repairs. Shops that specialize in your vehicles brand are more likely to have the proper training and equipment. A good technician will let you know when a problem warrants a trip to the dealer or a specialty shop."

The Bad

*When suggesting it might be cheaper to go to an independent shop for maintenance work, the article says, "It rarely takes a lot of special equipment and know-how to change the oil or flush a cooling system." Nice that they recommend independent service, but someone could take tliis to mean that joe's Auto Service isn't a place you're going to find any special equipment or know-how.

*When shopping for a 60,(XX)-mile service, CR bemoans, "We had a tougher time getting quotes from the five independent shops we sampled. Most asked us to drop off the veliicle for an inspection and estimate." It's easy to take this as a warning that most independent shops want to get you in the door so they can squeeze you for additional repair work.

The Debatable

*CH says, "A federal bill, the Right to Repair Act, would help independents Ixicause it would require automakers to provide them with technical information they need to compete with dealers." While the statement may be technically accurate, it is subjective. Someone outside of our industry could easily interpret this as, "Independent shops can't compete with dealerships now because they don't have the technical information they need to fix my car. If this bill becomes law, car companies will have to give this information to my local garage and the playing field will be level." If you've been following this issue-and you should be-you know that there are some people in our industry who are for the legislation and some who are against it. One tiling we can all agree on is that we don't want to imply that independent shops are currently incapable of making a proper repair.

Consumers Union and its Consumer Reports magazine are highly influential with American consumers. It's important you know what they're saying about your industry. And, when yon disagree with something said about your profession, it's important you let them know.

John Lypen

jlijpen@motor.coin