Coalition for Auto Repair Equality Opposes Empty Agreement To Give Service Info to Independent Repair Shops

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 27 -- David Parde, president of the Coalition for Auto Repair Equality (CARE), today said he is "disappointed that the Automotive Service Association (ASA) has accepted a proposal from automobile manufacturers regarding access to vehicle service and repair information." Parde added that "the agreement is only between ASA and the automobile manufacturers. CARE and other aftermarket organizations were never consulted or notified by ASA or the manufacturers." Parde continued, "We have long promoted the principles in The Motor Vehicle Owners' Right to Repair Act (HR 2735), but the recent offer to make repair information public by the automobile manufacturers doesn't come close to the requirements in (HR 2735)." U.S. Representatives Joe Barton (R-TX) and Edolphus Towns (D-NY) introduced HR 2735 in August of 2001. U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone (D-MN) introduced a companion bill in the Senate. In October of 2001, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, a trade association representing car manufacturers, issued a "statement of intent" promising to give independent technicians access to all the repair service information that they currently give to their dealers, by January 1, 2003. The statement of intent was not an agreement with any party, but rather a public declaration. Parde said, "We have seen no steps taken by the car makers to implement this 'statement of intent.' Now that organizations such as the American Automobile Association (AAA); Public Citizen; The Consumer Federation of America, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Center for Auto Safety, and the Associated Locksmiths of America, as well as a growing chorus of U.S. Representatives calling for the passage of HR 2735, the manufacturers issue a letter saying they will make their information available by August 31, 2003. This is six months later than their previous offer! "In addition, the manufacturers have maintained for quite some time that all repair information is currently available. We believe it is progress that they now admit that information is, and has been, withheld. "We will continue to lobby and promote passage of legislation that requires manufacturers to fully release repair information and not short- change motoring consumers," concluded Parde.

CARE represents companies in the automotive aftermarket, among them: NAPA, Midas, CARQUEST, AutoZone, Advance Auto, Jiffy Lube, O'Reilly's, and CSK (parent company of Checker, Schuck's, Kragen). The aftermarket employs five million people nationwide in over 495,000 locations.