 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Changing TimesPosted 7/5/1998By Carl Miller, AAM This month, we celebrate our nation's 222nd birthday. Since the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the U.S. Constitution in 1787, when our forefathers formed this nation, times sure have changed. Government has grown more than any of the Constitution's signers would probably have ever dreamt. The changes in our laws and regulations never seem to end. We in the Automotive Service Association (ASA) do have an advantage by having Bob Redding in Washington, D.C., watching out for our interests. With new rulings by the Environmental Protection Agency and other government agencies, it would be impossible for small businesses to keep up with all of the changes on their own. Much like the government, our industry too has grown and changed. I would guess the automotive pioneers would be amazed at what has happened in this century to the family car. The simple distinctive vehicles of yesterday are now being replaced by vehicles that are combinations of several manufacturers. Just recently, I was made aware of the fact that the heavy-duty Ford pickups could have Mazda transmissions. Now wouldn't old Henry Ford roll over in his grave if he knew that was happening! And who would have ever imagined even 15 years ago that Chrysler and Mercedes would merge in 1998? I guess most of us would have bought more Chrysler stock if we had known. The changes just keep coming and we, as the automotive repair industry, are expected to keep up. The family car started out with four-cylinder engines and evolved until most of us were driving V-8s; now we are back to four-cylinder vehicles as the basic family car. Cast iron engines and gearboxes are being replaced with aluminum and even some plastic parts. In addition to mechanical changes, the collision industry has experienced significant change as well. Material changes in body construction make fit and finish much more critical. The tolerances the manufacturers want to hold on body and frame measurements today would have been impossible just a few years ago. As materials change, so do methods of repair. We are essentially in an industry of continuous evolution. Fifty years ago, cars could be repaired by technicians without much formal education. Today, vehicles use computerization to control almost everything. Training is a must, even for technicians already established in the industry. We also need the top students to enter the industry so they can become the technicians of the future. However, training alone won't repair vehicles - independent shops need to have access to original equipment manufacturer (OEM) information to be able to repair these vehicles, and the manufacturers would like to keep us locked out of the repair information needed to service their computerized vehicles. ASA is helping independent shops get the information needed for these repairs - Redding and his staff are working with the regulating agencies to resolve this situation, and ASA's mechanical operations committee is helping to gather information to help him in our cause.
This is just one way ASA is working on your behalf. With the changing world of the automobile and the industry, aren't you glad you're a member of ASA?
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Copyright (c) 1996-2008. Automotive Service Association. All rights reserved.
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Here we are in the month of July, over halfway through this year. Where has the time gone?
