August 9, 2019—According to the Auto Care Factbook 2020 and IMR Inc., there’s $24.9 billion in delayed auto maintenance.
A survey of over 100,000 American households (driving more than 170,000 vehicles) revealed they know that repairs or maintenance need to be performed on their car but have chosen to delay the work.
“We found that a surprising amount of households are knowingly delaying vehicle maintenance and that the primary reasons are economic, convenience and a perception that delaying the maintenance isn’t quite affecting vehicle performance,” said Bill Thompson, CEO, IMR, Inc. “Ultimately, servicing your vehicle at the recommended service intervals can keep money in your pocket by avoiding more unintentional wear, a catastrophic failure or worse case, an accident.”
Brake pads, tire changes and oil changes rank at the top of the list. With 278 million cars on America’s highways and byways, there’s over 5 million delayed brake jobs, nearly 7 million unchanged tires and 11 million cars in need of an oil change.
“We’re all guilty of not repairing our vehicles on a routine schedule, or even when the check engine light comes on,” said Behzad Rassuli, senior vice president, strategic development, Auto Care Association. “But, not all repairs are made equal, and not all of them set off a check engine light. That’s why even if you’re not checking your owner’s manual, it’s important to get your car serviced on a regular basis. There are free resources including the Car Care Guide and service schedule at carcare.org. The Auto Care Association and Car Care Council hope to raise the awareness of maintenance among all drivers to make sure we’re all traveling safely this summer.”
