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Repair business awaits boom as motorists keep cars longer [Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa]
(Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier (IA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Apr. 5--WATERLOO -- With car sales having dipped nearly 40 percent in February compared to a year earlier, the automotive repair business theoretically should be riding high.
Drivers still have to get from place to place, and the latest statistics show they're moving around in older vehicles.
According to data compiled by R. L. Polk & Co., the average vehicle in use today is a record 9.4 years old, up a few points from last year's 9.2-year average.
Light trucks don't manage to live quite as long -- an average of 7.5 years -- but that figure is still up from the 7.1 years in 2007.
Analysts offer various reasons for the aging of the fleet, including sagging consumer confidence, tight credit and a sharply lower inventory of discretionary funds. Last summer's record-high fuel prices only fed the problem.
The conventional wisdom is motorists are holding onto their cars longer.
And repair shops are reaping the rewards, right?
"Yes is the easy answer," said Barry Soltz, president of the Falls Church, Va.-based Automotive Maintenance & Repair Association. "It's a natural progression. Every time we've had a downturn in the economy, for whatever reason, when it comes to the automobile, shops get an increase in their business due to people holding onto those cars. It's cheaper to make a repair than make a car payment for several years."
But the easy answer doesn't cover the nuances of the business. Some repairs are put on hold during economic hard times, Soltz said.
"It seems like the basic maintenance repairs are being put off a bit," he said.
Instead of getting an oil change every 3,000 miles, as many mechanics recommend, a motorist might delay that work until 4,500 or 5,000 miles, Soltz said.
So called "heavy repairs" are a different story, he added.
"If they need tires, they need tires, and they'll get those," Soltz said. "If they need brakes, they'll get brakes. But anything they can push off a bit, they'll push it off a little bit."
Shop owners around the Cedar Valley generally agree trends indicate an uptick in business for them.
At the same time, they note business hasn't been noticeably more brisk.
"Consumers are definitely being more careful with their money," said Jim Lind, owner of Jim Lind BP Service, 230 E. Ridgeway Ave. "They're putting off a lot of unnecessary expenses that can wait."
Lind said he couldn't "analytically say" business at his shop was up.
"Everyone can see that new-car sales have been hurting," he said. "I guess we're not in the doldrums like car sales have been, but we're not cutting a fat hog. We're somewhere in between. I guess some of our repair business has picked up."
There is anecdotal evidence of some increase in sales, Lind added.
"Your poison is our medicine," he said. "When it got to 30 below, some batteries and starters didn't work, and we were seeing some more business there."
Shawn Streittmatter, manager of Boubin Automotive Service, 1935 Enterprise Ave. in Waterloo, has noticed an increase in repair orders.
"I'd say business is good, at least on our end," Streitt-matter said. "It seems like a lot of shops we do business with back and forth are busy, too. It seems like most people are commenting about hanging on to things a little longer, especially with all the bad stuff in the news about GM and Chrysler. They're nervous about what they're going to buy and what is going to be available. People seem to be wanting to fix what they own rather than strapping on a new car payment."
Leonard Corpman, manager of Priority 1 Automotive Service, 1607 La Porte Road, Waterloo, said he had not noticed a sharp increase in business.
"It's been steady," he said.
But, he added, there could be other factors in play.
"Generally, the manufacturers have what they call 'planned obsolescence,' and it's across the board," Corpman said. "Cars, they just break down. It's not to the fault of the consumer. They just don't build them to last, or they'd be out of business."
Corpman acknowledges car warranties last longer than ever. But a warranty doesn't necessarily keep a vehicle out of the repair shop.
"What I'd question is how long those warranty companies are going to be around," he said. "Their whole goal is after two or three years you're going to sell your car."
However, Soltz said vehicles last longer than ever, and that affects business at repair garages.
"The useful life of a vehicle today is a lot different than in the '70s, '80s and early '90s," Soltz said. "It used to be time to trade it in when it reached 100,000 miles. Today, it can go 200,000 or longer. As long as the consumer likes the vehicle and its creature comforts work, they're going to keep the car."
Jeff Matthias, owner of J&J Auto Service and Sales Inc., 2909 Lafayette St., Waterloo, said his shop's business had not necessarily seen a spike.
"The repair business has been slow-steady," he said. "You can always use more work. We're not real busy."
Contact Jim Offner at (319) 291-1598 or jim.offner@wcfcourier.com.
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