CAWA is pleased to announce a partnership with the California Bureau of Automotive Repair regarding a consumer education focus on the motoring public's warranty rights. Recall, the federal Magnusson Moss Warranty Act says a consumer will not void their manufacturers' warranty if they maintain and repair their vehicle at a facility other than the new car dealers ( see the enclosure for details). 

CAWA, along with its national partners, the Auto Care Association and the Coalition for Auto Repair Equality (CARE), introduced a bill ( see enclosed) to require the new car dealers, at the point of sale, to make the consumer aware of this Act while they were purchasing a new vehicle. Lack of empirical data that could show consumers were unaware of the provisions of the Act and the opposition of the new car dealers and car manufacturers precluded the bill moving forward. 

So, your legislative team turned its focus to the state regulators to assure the consumers were aware of the Act! We met last week with the Chief of the Bureau of Automotive Repair, Pat Dorais and his executive staff to brief them on the Act. They were extremely appreciative and eager to work with CAWA and other industry partners on collaborative efforts. In a follow up email, this is what Mr. Dorais said regarding our meeting: "It was our pleasure meeting with you (Jennifer), Gary, and Rodney yesterday. Thank you so much to CAWA for pushing this important consumer protection issue. It also is an important one for the automotive repair industry. We look forward to partnering with you on the outreach ideas we discussed, as well as any other initiatives that might come up in the process". 

For further information on this partnership, contact our Director of Government Affairs, Jennifer Zins at [email protected] or 916.871.0603. Another member benefit.

According to the California Air Resources Board (CARB), the Regulation for Small Containers of Automotive Refrigerant requires manufacturers of small containers of automotive refrigerant to implement a deposit and return program to process any remaining HFC-134a in the can as well as for recycling of the metal in the can. Additionally, retailers are to collect a refundable $10 deposit, at the time of sale, from consumers for each small container of automotive refrigerant purchased. Consumers can reclaim their deposit by returning the used container with its receipt to the retailer within 90 days of purchase.  If a consumer fails to collect the $10 deposit, the retailer must transfer the unclaimed deposit to a manufacturer-managed account. The funds from this account are to be used primarily to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through enhanced consumer education, and secondarily to support other programs, projects, or measures reducing GHG emissions. 

Further information about the regulation can be found here: https://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/hfc-mac/hfcdiy/hfcdiy.htm. See CAWA representatives (from AutoZone, O'Reilly's, Advance, Genuine Parts Company and Next Level Auto Parts) on the working group assembled by CARB to assist them "in thinking" regarding the Program ( here).

 

Should you or your company be interested in donating cash, raffle or auction prizes, please see the contribution form and solicitation letter from this year's Fundraising Committee Chair, David Wendt of Delphi Products & Service Solutions ( here). The event that raises funds for the scholarship program will be held the Sunday night before AAPEX/SEMA in Las Vegas.

For more information on how you can support scholarships given by the Association, contact our President & CEO, Rodney Pierini at [email protected] or 800.332.2292, ext. 1201. To register for the annual dinner meeting where funds are raised for the scholarship fund, click ( here). Another member benefit.

The "how-to" behind building a highly-effective, competition-dominating, sales juggernaut is actually fairly simple. What isn't simple is executing the steps and sticking to the plan. The dedication and resolve necessary to start and complete the process is where the majority of people fail. That said, if you're ready to skyrocket sales in your organization, here are the steps to get it done ( here). Source: John Chapin

"Vehicles in all age groups do not contribute equally to aftermarket product and service volume. Although cars and light trucks 4 years of age and older represent only approximately 80% of the total light vehicle VIO (vehicles in operation), they generate a much larger share of light vehicle aftermarket products and services (not including Accessories and Tires)." 

"To understand the aftermarket and how it is changing, it is necessary to focus on what Lang Marketing defines as Aftermarket Vehicles: cars and light trucks 4 years of age and older." For more details, click here. Source: Jim Lang