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Analysis Shows Vehicles Going Longer Between Tuneups

17 September 1998

Tuneup? What Tuneup? Analysis Shows Vehicles Going Longer Between Tuneups, Reports Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association

    RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., Sept. 17 -- When was the last
time you had your car tuned up?  Can't remember?  That's probably because
you're having it tuned up less frequently, just one of the trends in
automotive repair and maintenance tracked in the recent publication,
Replacement Rates of U.S. Automotive Parts.
    Replacement Rates -- a pocket-sized guide published by the Motor &
Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA) -- analyzes information on 62
automobile maintenance categories -- ranging from major collision repair to
air filter replacement -- from 1993 through 1997.
    Take your tuneup, for example.  Approximately five of six vehicles had
annual tuneups in 1993.  In 1997, less than three of five vehicles had annual
tuneups.
    Why does MEMA study these rates?  Frank Hampshire, MEMA research director,
explains this analysis provides an important measurement guide.  "These
replacement rates can provide a yardstick for estimating durability of parts,"
said Hampshire.  For consumers, knowing how often certain parts need replacing
or certain maintenance procedures need to be scheduled can help in estimating
vehicle costs in the household budget.
    The automotive industry can gain long term benefits from such analysis,
Hampshire said.  Replacement Rates also "provides a starting point for
estimating the size of the parts replacement market," he said.
    MEMA members received one complimentary copy of Replacement Rates.  The
publication is available to non-members for $50 per copy.  MEMA produced
Replacement Rates in conjunction with IMR of Clarendon Hills, Ill.
    Founded in 1904, MEMA exclusively represents and serves more than 700
North American manufacturers of motor vehicle components, tools and equipment,
automotive chemicals, and related products used in the production, repair, and
maintenance of all classes of motor vehicles.  MEMA is headquartered in
Research Triangle Park, N.C., and has offices in Washington, D.C.; Detroit,
Mich.; Yokohama, Japan; Brussels, Belgium; Mexico City, Mexico; and Sao Paulo,
Brazil.