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BREAKING NEWS
10 CAR CARE 'MUSTS' THAT DRIVERS
SHOULDN'T SCRIMP ON
1. Tire pressure More motorists are fixing their old cars instead of buying new ones, in hopes their jalopies will survive a long recession.
Auto dealers and garage owners say
they are seeing drivers pay more attention to regular
maintenance and be more willing to spring for costly major
repairs now that they are reluctant to trade in their junkers.
"People are hanging on to them right now, and they've got to
keep them running," says Tim Smith of Bob Smith BMW/Mini in
Calabasas, Calif.
• Dealer servicing. Parts and
service departments are expected to see a revenue gain of about
3% this year, forecasts Paul Taylor, chief economist for the
National Automobile Dealers Association. That would be up from
1.8% for the first 11 months of 2008.
• Repair shops. Some 60% of the
independent mechanics responding to a survey by Automotive
Service Association reported sales up last year over the
previous year. Only 14% reported a decline. This year, 76% say
they expect more work.
• Roadside assistance. Though AAA
says roadside assistance calls have remained fairly steady at
nearly 30 million a year, memberships, which usually include
towing benefits, rose by about 500,000 last year to 51.3
million. "People are taking a little better care of their cars,"
says Michael Calkins, manager of AAA's approved auto repair shop
program. |
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