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Five Million Auto Breakdowns Could be Avoided Annually With Easy Maintenance, AAA Says

27 September 1999

Five Million Auto Breakdowns Could be Avoided Annually With Easy Maintenance, AAA Says

    ORLANDO, Fla.--Sept. 27, 1999--Consumers who don't perform periodic visual inspections of their vehicle's vital components are risking a costly breakdown, according to AAA.
    "More than five million breakdowns could be avoided each year if motorists performed a simple and quick inspection of their tires, belts and hoses alone," said John Nielsen, director of AAA's Automotive Repair Network. "People tend to view today's cars as maintenance free, but they are not."
    According to AAA research, only 2 percent of motorists believe that belts and hoses are important maintenance items. Another 34 percent feel that tire rotation is important, but on average, consumers are rotating tires only every 9,000 miles instead of the recommended 6,000 miles. More than 20 percent of respondents have never rotated their tires.
    AAA research also shows that consumers are maintaining select items, such as oil. In fact, sometimes these items are over-maintained.
    "Consumers are changing their oil every 3,735 miles on average," said Nielsen. "The 3,000-mile oil change is only needed if you drive your vehicle in extreme situations. Otherwise such service can be extended to 5,000 miles or more."
    To help motorists better understand the maintenance needs of their vehicles, AAA is providing easy-to-use maintenance materials to consumers during October, National Care Month. The brochures, maintenance guidelines and videos are designed to educate motorists about simple steps needed to adequately maintain their vehicle.
    "Lack of knowledge about specific maintenance requirements of a vehicle can cost consumers big money in the long run," said Nielsen. "Anything more than manufacturer's recommended maintenance is wasted money."
    For more information, motorists can contact their local AAA club.
    AAA is a not-for-profit federation of 90 clubs with 1,100 offices providing 42 million members in the United States and Canada with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services. AAA's automotive services network includes 4,400 AAA Approved Auto Repair facilities and 13,418 towing contractors representing 39,071 service vehicles.

    AAA news releases can be downloaded from http://www.aaa.com/news