new jersey automotive october 2014

October 2014$595

THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE ALLIANCE OF AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS/NEW JERSEY (www.AASPNJ.org)AND THE AUTOMOTIVE RECYCLERS ASSOCIATION OF NEW JERSEY (www.ARANJ.org)

www.grecopublishing.com

TM

NJA1014.qxp_NEW JERSEY AUTOMOTIVE 9/25/14 2:43 PM

2 | New Jersey Automotive | October 2014


New Jersey Automotive | October 2014 | 7

NORTHEAST® 2015 SPOTLIGHT18 NASTF to Bridge Communication Gaps Between Automakers and Independents at NORTHEAST 2015

VENDOR SPOTLIGHT by Joel Gausten24 JMK BMW: Where Experience & Service Meet

WHAT SAY YOU?28 How Do You Think Autonomous Vehicles/Telematics Will Affect Your Business In the Near Future?

FEATURE by Joel Gausten36 Testing Our Techs: Inside the Changing World of Collision Training

COVER STORY by Joel Gausten44 MUTINY! THE NATION FIGHTS BACK AGAINST PARTSTRADER

THE LIST48 What Has Been Your Most Memorable Repair Job?

NO BRAKES by Ron Ananian52 Just For Fun

AUTOMOTIVE RECYCLERS OF NEW JERSEY55 Wharton Insurance Briefs

P.O. Box 734 Neptune, NJ 07753

EXECUTIVE DI REC TORCharles Bryant732-922-8909 / [email protected]

2013 - 2015 OFFICERSPRESIDENTJeff McDowell, Leslie’s Auto Body732-738-1948 / [email protected]

COLLISION CHAIRMANDave Laganella, Peters Body and Fender201-337-1200 / [email protected]

MECHANICAL CHAIRMANKeith Krehel, Krehel Automotive Repair, Inc.973-546-2828 / [email protected]

TREASURERTom Elder, Compact Kars, Inc.609-259-6373 / [email protected]

SECRETARYThomas Greco, Thomas Greco Publishing, Inc. 973-667-6922 / [email protected]

BOARDJerry McNee, Ultimate Collision Repair, Inc. 732-494-1900 / [email protected]

Sam Mikhail, Prestige Auto Body908-789-2020 / [email protected]

Ted Rainer, Ocean Bay Auto Body732-899-7900 / [email protected]

Anthony Sauta, East Coast Auto Body732-869-9999 / [email protected]

Randy Scoras, Holmdel Auto Body732-946-8388 / [email protected]

Anthony Trama, Bloomfield Auto Body973-748-2608 / [email protected]

Brian Vesley, Valtek, Inc.973-278-1444 / [email protected]

BOARD ALLIEDJoe Amato, The Amato Agency732-530-6740 / [email protected]

Mike Kaufmann, Advantage Dealer Services973-332-7014 / [email protected]

PAST PRESIDENT ATTENDINGTom Elder, Compact Kars609-259-6373 / [email protected]

PUBLISHERThomas Greco ([email protected])DIRECTOR OF SALESAlicia Figurelli ([email protected])EDITORJoel Gausten ([email protected])MANAGING EDITORJacquelyn Bauman ([email protected])ART DIRECTORLea Velocci ([email protected])OFFICE MANAGERSofia Cabrera ([email protected])CONTRIBUTING EDITORSCharles Bryant • Tom Greco • Jeff McDowellMitch Portnoi • Dave Laganella • Ron Ananian

Published by: Thomas Greco Publishing, Inc.244 Chestnut Street, Suite 202, Nutley, NJ 07110Corporate: (973) 667-6922 / FAX: (973) 235-1963

www.grecopublishing.com

VOLUME 44, NUMBER 10 | October 2014

8 OUT OF BODY (AND MECHANICAL) EXPERIENCES10 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE12 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

16 COLLISION CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE58 NJA ADVERTISERS INDEX

NEW JERSEY AUTOMOTIVE is published monthly and is sent to AASP/NJ and ARANJ members free of charge. Subscriptions are $24 per year. NEW JERSEYAUTOMOTIVE is published by Thomas Greco Publishing Inc., 244 Chestnut St., Nutley, NJ 07110. The editorial contents of NEW JERSEY AUTOMOTIVEare copyright © 2014 by Thomas Greco Publishing Inc. and may not be reproduced in any manner, either in whole or in part, without written permission fromthe publisher and/or editor. Articles in this publication do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Thomas Greco Publishing Inc.

The Alliance of Automotive Service Providers/New Jersey

Ron AnanianJim Bowers

Charles BryantDon ChardGuy Citro

Ed DayDave Demarest

Tom Elder

Bob EverettThomas GrecoRich Johnson Wes KearneyNick KostakisJim KowalakJoe Lubrano

Michael LovulloSam Mikhail

Ron MucklowGeorge Petrask

Russ RobsonJerry RussomanoGeorge Threlfall

Cynthia TursiLee VetlandPaul VigilantRich WeberBrian Vesley

Glenn VillacariStan Wilson

HALL OF FAME

CONTENTS



OUT OF BODY (AND MECHANICAL) EXPERIENCES

It’s no secret that I love hot dogs. Yes, Iknow they are bad for you and yes, Iknow they are filled with mouse drop-

pings, turtle shells and magic Arabian salt-I’ve heard it all. Yet, still, I love hot dogs. Fortunately in New Jersey, we have noshortage of great hot dog joints and, luckyfor you, I’m going to take you on a tour ofsome of my favorite haunts. Now, I realize that these kinds of listsare subjective so I’m sure many of you aregoing to disagree with me. That’s fine. I’malso sure there will also be many of youlooking for places that I don’t mention.That’s even better. Email me their names;I’d love to try them. But since I get to write

the article, I’m going to tell you about theones that are closest to my heart (checkmy clogged arteries for proof). My hot dog adventures began when Iwas a kid at a hot dog truck in Cliftoncalled Joe’s. I will never forget it for a num-ber of reasons…one being it was parked infront of a cemetery. Not the most enticingplace for a bite to eat. But that never mat-tered. Joe’s was my dad’s and my joint; wewent at least once a week after school. Joewas a gray-haired, chubby guy with astrange accent, but he always had a smileon his face. He served Sabrett hot dogscooked in boiled water and taught me avery crucial lesson. You see, my dad

enjoyed his dogs with mustard and relish.Not me. Joe taught me that the way to tell ifyou’re eating a great dog is to eat it plain.And that’s the way it’s been for me over 45years or so. So don’t tell me about the bestplaces with their 10,000 toppings - I don’twant to hear it. Give me mine plain and I’lllet you know if what’s lurking underneaththat cheese, chili, bananas, kraut, etc. isactually any good. Old Joe must have died sometimearound the mid-’70s because by the time Ihit middle school, the truck was gone.After all these years, I can’t find one damnperson who remembers Joe’s hot dogtruck. But I do. My dad’s probably looking

THE HOT DOG DIARIESby THOMAS GRECO, PUBLISHER



Thomas Greco,President of ThomasGreco Publishing Inc.,has announced thehiring of JacquelynBauman as the com-pany’s new ManagingEditor.

Bauman will betaking over for AliciaFigurelli, who waspromoted to VicePresident/Director ofSales of the companythis past August.

A 2013 graduate of Fairleigh DickinsonUniversity, Bauman will oversee editorial inall Greco Publishing publications and will alsoactively participate in the management of theNORTHEAST® Automotive Services Trade Show.

“We are extremely excited to have Jacquelynbecome a part of the TGP staff,” Greco says.“Her background and skills are a perfect fit forour company. We have a great team in place andare looking forward to continuing our role as oneof the country’s top automotive repair publishersand trade show management companies.”

Jacquelyn Bauman can be contacted at:Ph: 973-667-6922 F: 973-235-1963E: [email protected].

GRECO PUBLISHING ANNOUNCES HIRING OF MANAGING EDITOR JACQUELYN BAUMANdown eating two of those with mustard

and relish right now. Another hot dog joint that has cap-tured my heart has been the Windmill. I’vementioned the Windmill in a number of myarticles in the past and with good reason -it was my weekly Friday night treat for thelast 10 years. The original Windmill is lo-cated in Long Branch, with several otherlocations down the shore (sadly, the onlyone north of Exit 109 in Westfield closedearlier this year.) I discovered the Windmill by accidentin 1979 after a Southside Johnny show inAsbury Park. My friends and I got lost onthe way home and around 2am, we cameacross this effed-up Windmill shapedbuilding. My friends thought they were hal-lucinating but I knew it was a sign fromGod. Once I bit into that super-sizedSabrett, they had me. Thirty-five yearslater, I’m still going back (side note: Max’sdown the street in Long Branch is alsopretty good). Another great thing aboutthe Windmill is that it’s usually open until atleast 3am. One night, I got the urge for

one of those dogs and, around midnight,started a journey down to Belmar to satisfymy craving. I was pulled over for speedingin one of the surrounding towns and, whenthe policeman asked what a guy from Nut-ley was doing down there at that time ofnight, I told him I was going to the Wind-mill. He laughed out loud, handed meback my license and said, “Get the hellout of here.” Now, I do have one exception to theplain hot dog rule (I’m the writer, I canmake the rules of this list.) There’s a truckon Bloomfield Ave. in northern Newarkcalled JJ’s and, although I’d never admit itin public, JJ’s hot onions are so delicious,they’re well worth the impending heartburn and paint-melting bad breath that fol-low. JJ’s is the only place with a toppinggood enough to have an exclusion to mynaked dog guideline, so you know it hasto be good. It was kind of bizarre how I evenended up going to JJ’s in the first place.

continued on page 54

Jacquelyn Bauman

NJA


As I write this message, we are at noshortage of activity in and around the au-tomotive repair industry. A quick look atthe recent trade press - including thismonth’s issue of New Jersey Automotive- shows the continuing development ofseveral high-profile lawsuits around thecountry by repairers who are refusing toback down from the restraints placedupon them by some insurers. Given the

growing attention on these cases - not tomention the fact that those behind themare fighting back on behalf of countlessother industry members nationwide - Iwould definitely make it a priority towatch what happens. When repairers,trade organizations and, in one case, theactual Attorney General of a state arestepping in and telling insurers to scaleback their tactics, I can all but guarantee

that things areabout to get very interesting. To learn more about some ofthese cases, please see pages 12 and44. While AASP/NJ has not formallyjoined any particular lawsuit mentionedabove - though of course we do supportthose battling the insurance industry inthe courts as we speak - we are nonethe-less gearing up for a ton of activity our-selves. First and foremost, as usual, our2014 Annual Meeting promises to be aninformative and valuable experience forAASP/NJ members and supporters, withassociation updates, an eye-opening“state of the industry” address and muchmore. See page 15 of this issue for moreinformation on our Annual Meeting. Ihope to see all members there! And ifyou miss it, there will still be plenty of op-portunities for education in the comingmonths, as AASP/NJ is working to put to-gether some in-shop training sessions forour members. These free technical meet-ings will help you keep yourself and youremployees up to date on important infor-mation, while allowing you to networkwith fellow repairers in a relaxed environ-ment close to home. Looking ahead, several AASP/NJBoard members will be heading to LasVegas to represent us on the nationallevel at the fall AASP National Boardmeeting, being held during the 2014SEMA Show. And I know it seems like along way away, but NORTHEAST® 2015really is right around the corner onceSEMA concludes. We are beyond ex-cited to continue to build upon the suc-cess of last year’s show, and lookforward to making some important an-nouncements regarding our 2015 eventthat are sure to make it a can’t-missweekend for all members of the repair in-dustry. In the meantime, we are verypleased to welcome the National Auto-motive Service Task Force (NASTF) toNORTHEAST 2015, who will be present-ing their Spring Board meeting and gen-eral meeting on Thursday, March 19 atthe Meadowlands Exposition Center. Tolearn more about this and our developingNORTHEAST “Industry Week,” pleasesee page 18. The weather may be starting to turncooler, but around here at AASP/NJ,things are just heating up!


PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Keep Your Eyes Peeled!by JEFF MCDOWELL

NJA


Over the years, I have writtenarticle after article predictingthat this day would come. I

once posed the question: What happenswhen an unstoppable object and an un-movable object collide? This question isno longer a passing thought, but an un-deniable reality. For years, the insuranceand collision industries have been on apath destined to result in conflict. Theonly reason the two industries haven’t al-ready collided head-on is because majorinsurers have always known how far theycould push collision repairers and stillmanage to get away with it. Finally, greedhas motivated the insurance industry topush the collision industry far beyond itslimits.

I knew the day would come when theindustry would draw the line, say, that’s itand get the courage to fight back. I justwasn’t sure how far the insurers wouldhave to push before collision repairers,as a whole, would decide that enough isenough. Now I know, and there is no ig-noring the force with which the collisionindustry is pushing back.

A class action lawsuit from a shopout of Pennsylvania has been filed in theUS District Court for the Northern Districtof Illinois-Eastern Division, naming multi-ple insurers. The suit alleges that theseinsurers illegally conspire to control thecollision repair process and the cost ofrepairs. The suit also alleges violation ofRacketeer Influenced and Corrupt Or-ganization (RICO) Act. Additionally, theLouisiana Attorney General has filed suitagainst State Farm, claiming the com-pany had a deal with certain DRP shopsto put inferior, cheaper parts in cars theycovered. In the suit, the Louisiana AGaccused State Farm of deceiving its poli-cyholders by getting them to use bodyshops that they had contracts with. TheAG said that these shops then usedcheaper, less crash-worthy parts to fixthe vehicles, rather than parts from thevehicle’s manufacturer, in order to saveState Farm money. Also, in Mississippi,a multi-state lawsuit has been filedagainst about 40 insurers for conspiring

to manipulate Labor Rates and othershop charges in order to lower claimcosts. A total of six states have joined thesuit and the cases have been merged to-gether with a similar suit out of FloridaThey will now all now be heard in Floridawhere local shop owner, Ray Gunder,has been winning case after case. Talkabout a busy month for the insuranceindustry.

Although I saw this day coming for awhile, I never imagined that the pushback would be this strong. Insurers havecertainly “woken a sleeping giant” in thecollision industry. I have often said, if youpush a puppy into a corner and keeppoking it with a stick, eventually it will at-tack. The reality is, the industry hascome to the point where it was time to ei-ther fight back or die. It is impossible forrepairers to ignore the safety issues thatconsumers would face as the result ofthese short-changed repairs that the in-surance industry has forced on them andit is this very issue that has likely causedthe collision industry to finally stand up,advancing these suits forward.

Ever since I can remember, insurershave attempted every way possible tokeep the cost of repairs down, sendingin appraisers who say, “We don’t pay forthat” or, “We only pay X for that.” (I chal-lenge anyone to find a clause in an autopolicy that says, “We don’t pay for that”

when referring to a part or procedureneeded to properly repair a damagedvehicle.) I have preached for years thatthe insurance industry must acknowl-edge the changes in the vehicles on theroads today and the advances in tech-nology that have caused the cost ofequipment and training to skyrocket.Modern vehicles are nothing like the ve-hicles on the roads a few years back.These new vehicles are technical and,like it or not, require shops to invest inspecial equipment and training. Yearsago, a shop might have been able to puta shim here and there and get away withit, but that’s no longer the case on thesemodern vehicles. They have to be re-paired according to the manufacturerspecifications or they will not function asdesigned.

Even with all this knowledge, the in-surance industry still expects collisionshops to work for rates less than what ischarged at a lawnmower shop. Not onlydo they expect the work to be done forsuch low rates, but if the insurance com-pany is unable to force a shop to workfor the measly amounts they’re willing topay, most insurance agencies will do allthey can to convince, persuade or evenintimidate those insured by them intogoing to another shop. These battleshave been repeatedly fought for years.However, due to the might and power of


EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

The Time Has Come!by CHARLES BRYANT

Although I saw this day coming for a while,

I never imagined that the push back

would be this strong. Insurers

have certainly “woken a

sleeping giant” in the

collision industry.


an insurer compared to a small collisionshop, the fight is like David and Goliath.Even if a small shop occasionally wins abattle by standing up to an insurancecompany who chooses to bully the shopinstead of paying a fair and reasonableamount to repair a damaged vehicleproperly, the glory is usually short-lived.Should such a shop decide to take astand and fight back, they will likely en-counter the insurer doing everything intheir power to steer customers awayfrom their shop until they surrender. But

this time, things are different.When a suit is filed in one state and

five other states join in, when RICO isadded to a suit or when a suit is filed bythe AG on behalf of consumers beingabused, you know things are serious.The problem of artificially suppressedlabor rates, inadequate reimbursementfor paint and materials and failure to payfor the procedures to repair damagedvehicles safely and properly has beengoing on for a long time. In the past,shops were not dealing with the types of

vehicles they’re seeing these days - theycould let a few shortcuts slide. Now, ifthe vehicles on the roads today are notrepaired properly and the manufacturerrecommendations are not followed, thevehicles are not safe to go back on theroad. On top of that, most insurers areforcing DRP shops to sign hold harmlessagreements and forcing them to agree toindemnify the insurer if they are sued.Obviously, the insurers are aware thatproblems are on the horizon.

These major suits are not the onlyadvances the collision industry havebeen making recently. Shops across thecountry taking a stand on getting properpayment for repairs have also been win-ning smaller suits when an insurer short-changes an insured. The bottom line isthat when a vehicle is insured and suf-fers a loss or damage, the insurer cover-ing the vehicle owes what it takes torepair the vehicle properly. I am surethese lawsuits will make an impact onhow insurers do business from here onend. One thing is for sure: We will bewatching and informing the members ofthe industry as these cases go to court.


EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

and

Micro-Mix Paintand

Materials Calculatorin Bergen, Passaic, Essex and

Hudson Counties in New Jersey.

CALLOffice: (973) 696-3176or Cell: (201) 452-0987

Mike LovulloDistributor for

NJA



COLLISION CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

by DAVE LAGANELLA

Seven years ago, after years of battling with heavy-hittinginsurance companies over proper reimbursement for paint andmaterials costs, the collision repair industry finally gained some

ground. In 2007, the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insur-ance stepped into the battlefield by releasing a bulletin demandingthat insurers pay us what we deserve. Although several insurers con-tinued to cause a lot of us grief, we were being properly reimbursed,for the most part. After all these years, some of those same troublemaking companies have conspired to working around the system, and

it’s time to once again take up arms. As many of you have experienced recently, some insurers have raised

their hourly rates a couple of dollars per hour and are now paying off of in-flated figures, as opposed to acknowledging the rates provided to them using a

paint and materials calculator. For those of you who experienced the headache ofarguing with these insurers in the past, I know you may be too tired and reluctant to

step up and fight again. But we have gained too much ground to let these guys win.We are not an industry that can be pushed around and bullied, and it’s time insurancecompanies figured that out.

I urge you not to lie down without giving them a fight. If an insurance company tells youthey won’t accept your figures, combat their refusal with the facts. Present an intelligent argu-

ment, and don’t take no for an answer. The only way things in our industry can change is if westand up and fight for what is right.

If you have an insurance company that is not accepting figures based on the paint calculator,call AASP/NJ Executive Director Charlie Bryant (732-922-8909) to receive a special complaint form. He will

work with you to get it into the right hands and to monitor the progress.NJA

A Call to Arms!


“In 2012, the Board of Directors and Communications Committee had a meet-ing to decide how to promote the organization,” Potter explains. “We agreed that toofew technicians knew about us, and the decision was made to partner up with someof the state associations. The NORTHEAST event was mentioned in that discussionas one of the leading events in the country that NASTF wanted to align with and at-tend.” Instead of trying to organize, advertise and invite technicians to come to anevent on a limited budget, Potter figured it was best to hold the meetings in a placewhere there were already going to be technicians and repair shops present. In thepast they have held meetings at both the Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo(AAPEX) and the Specialty Equipment Market (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas, VisionHi-Tech in Kansas City and the Automotive Training Expo in Seattle. This year willbe the first time that NASTF will reach the Northeast. In a market where a numberof automakers’ headquarters are already located, this meeting can serve to be one ofthe most effective of its kind.

“The whole purpose of NASTF, if you look at our 15-year history, is all centeredaround constructive conversations between the independents and the automakers,”Potter says. “The general meetings are the key opportunity for these independents tojoin the conversation. I tried to create an event that would put technicians and shopowners in the same room as automakers, key people in their operations. My intentthere is [for these parties to] get together and appreciate each other, making it easierto work together. Rather than have all of the access to service information argued inthe halls of Congress, we try to get the people who have the information, and thosewho need the information, to sit down and try to figure out how to solve the problemtogether as co-workers.” In this current atmosphere of legal tension and constanttechnical changes within the industry, this opportunity is not one to miss.


NORTHEAST® 2015 SPOTLIGHT

NASTF to Bridge CommunicationGaps Between Automakers and Independents at NORTHEAST 2015

With the Alliance ofAutomotive ServiceProviders of New

Jersey’s (AASP/NJ) 38th annualNORTHEAST2015AutomotiveServices Show at the Meadow-lands, the largest trade show ofits kind in the country, comingup in March, organizations fromacross the industry are alreadywaking up and racing to gettheir foot in the door. Oneorganization that refused towaste any time getting involvedin this event is the NationalAutomotive Service Task Force(NASTF), who will be bringingtheir spring Board meeting andGeneral Meeting to the show onThursday, March 19 as part ofthe NORTHEAST AutomotiveWeek.

NASTF’s mission is to “facili-tate the identification of gaps inthe availability and accessibilityof automotive service informa-tion, training, diagnostic toolsand equipment and communica-tions to automotive profession-als.” For Skip Potter, NASTFexecutive director, the decisionto travel to NORTHEAST 2015was a no-brainer.

NORTHEAST 2015 is scheduled for March 20, 21 and 22, 2015. For more information on NORTHEAST, visitwww.aaspnjnortheast.com, the NORTHEAST Automotive Services Show on Facebook, the NORTHEAST Auto-motive Services Show YouTube page (www.youtube.com/user/AASPNJNORTHEAST) or on Twitter @AASPNJNORTHEAST / #NORTHEAST2015. For more information on AASP/NJ, please visit www.aaspnj.org.

NJA


Top-notch educational opportunities

Over 150 industry-leading exhibitors

Fun for the whole family, and more!

Save the Dates for

NORTHEAST® 2015!MARCH 20, 21, 22

Proudly Presented by

Visit

WWW.AASPNJNORTHEAST.COM

for details



Want your parts supplier to be fast?How about 70,000 part numbers availablefor same-day delivery fast? Thanks to one ofthe most efficient and impressive wholesaleparts operations in the country, JMK BMWin Springfield provides greater parts options(and at greater speeds) than meet the eye. The largest BMW parts wholesaler inthe northeastern region, JMK BMW is anactive participant in BMW’s DMDC (DailyMetropolitan Distribution Center) program,which provides the dealership unprece-dented access to the manufacturer’s prod-ucts. “Due to our size, we get two split deliv-eries daily from BMW [one for the whole-sale facility and the second for the retailfacility], with an additional three deliveriesper day from BMW North America,” ex-plains JMK BMW Wholesale Parts Man-ager Mike Chin. Not surprisingly, shopslove this special feature. “The response has been positive,” saysPedro Santos, JMK BMW’s parts and acces-sories director. “If we tell a customer wedon’t have it but can get it out to him or herthe same day, you just get a big wow factorduring that conversation.”

JMK BMW’s special ability to get anyBMW part they need within a day’s timeadds to the dealership’s already-strong $1million in-house BMW, Fiat and Saab partsinventory. In addition to a two-story,108,000-square foot facility with a loadingdock and an exclusive wholesale call center,the JMK BMW parts department includes adedicated 20,000-square-foot wholesalewarehouse. Eight delivery trucks bring partsto shops throughout Central and NorthernNew Jersey as well as parts of New Yorkand Staten Island. For non-local customers,JMK BMW offers next-day UPS serviceand can be reached by fax, phone, email orNextel phone messaging. The department’s17-person staff includes knowledgeableparts advisors who boast 67 years of com-bined experience. In addition to a thriving parts operation,JMK BMW features a 12,0000 square-footCertified Collision Repair Center (CCRC)and recently became a BMW i dealer. Al-ready winning big with the i3 electric car,the dealer will soon add the i8 EV to its newcar offerings. This means that the dealer willhave all it takes to handle the parts and serv-ice needs of these technologically advanced

vehicles. JMK BMW is also an M-certifieddealer, meaning that they are approved byBMW to work on any M-branded vehicle. Of course, New Jersey Automotivereaders also know JMK BMW from theirregular presence at the annual NORTH-EAST® Automotive Services Show. Fol-lowing in the footsteps of JMK BMWGeneral Manager Robert Schoenemann(one of the very first participants in the an-nual show), Santos makes it a point to be apart of the festivities every year. In hismind, NORTHEAST offers JMK BMW aunique opportunity to spend quality timewith their ever-growing clientele. “The whole show is beyond valuable,”he says. “It brings so much awareness to theindustry year after year. It does so much foreverybody; it brings us all together. You getto meet people and put a name to a face. Ithelps build a relationship and make it muchmore personable.” JMK BMW is also a member of AutoBody Distributing Co, Inc. (ABD) for bothBMW and Fiat and is a part of the MikeKaufmann Advantage Group. With the deal-ership still reaching new heights in serviceafter more than 40 years in business, Santoslooks forward to building new customer re-lationships while earning ongoing loyaltyand business for his current accounts. “We go the extra mile and really dowhatever it takes to get to know our cus-tomers so we know how to service themeven better,” he says.

VENDOR SPOTLIGHT

JMK BMW: Where Experience

& Service Meet


The driving factor in JMK’s success:A fleet of eight trucks delivers parts

throughout North and Central New Jersey.For more information on JMK BMW,

please contact Wholesale Parts ManagerMike Chin at [email protected].

NJA

Below: JMK’s 17-person staff, including the parts department, parts clerk, retail department, delivery and internal segments. The team has over 67 years of combined experience.


How do you think autonomousvehicles/telematics will affectyour business in the near future?


“Autonomous vehicles will most likely take another five to 10 years before there is an impact on repairers. Mixing driver-controlled and autonomous vehicles would be risky and complicated, necessitating extensive testing. Until a significant portionof vehicles has autonomous capability, there will not be a road infrastructure to accommodate them except in limited circum-stance, for instance, an autonomous high occupancy vehicle lane. Telematics will allow more efficient use of vehicles with more rideshare possibilities and reduce the need for as many au-tomobiles. That will reduce the number of vehicles on the road and decrease collision repair demand. This will also make vehi-cles even more complex, leading to the need for a greater commitment to - and investment in - equipment and training on theparts of the independent shops, if they want to survive.” - Paterson

“I do a lot of fleet work so I do not think it will affect me much soon. I honestly believe trucks will be slow to use this sortof tech. It’s a good thing if it helps to avoid accidents, even though less work at the shop may be the price of ‘progress,’ justlike stainless steel exhausts have eliminated a lot of work and expense of a car. It could, however, keep older drivers on theroad longer than their skills would allow, possibly creating more work for us.” -Clifton

“It’s yet to be seen. Autonomous vehicles will lower accidents in most cases, but obviously, not all of them. We will al-ways have human nature that will take over. However, this will only be in the high-end cars only to start. It will definitelylower the number of accidents. Telematics will help the way some people drive, especially if they know they are, or can be,monitored.” -Edison

“It can definitely cause friction between the manufacturer and repair shops. If a customer is aware of these autonomousfeatures, like brake assist, and they still get into a collision, the repairer is the one that has to be aware of how to explain tothem that these systems aren’t a failsafe. It’s like when airbags first came out and people would come in complaining that their‘airbag didn’t go off.’ We had to explain to them why it would or wouldn’t happen. Now that they’ve been standard for so long,we don’t have to do that as often. But what people don’t realize is that these systems don’t make decisions for you. They allowyou to make the decision in a situation first and, if you chose the worst decision - to do nothing - it turns it into a better one. Asthese things become more standard in the next few years, I think we’ll see less and less confusion, but for right now, one of ourbiggest issues is having to explain these things to the customer. Plus, after a collision, the shop has to know not only how to repair the damage, but also how to reset the system for thenext driver. If the feature relies on sensors, they need to know how to set them properly. With a lot of these frivolous systemslike Park Assist, if a new owner is operating the vehicle and it wasn’t properly reset after a previous collision, the driver mighthave to explain what happened to the guys ahead of and behind them.” -Jackson

WHAT SAY YOU?



Members fromaround New Jerseyweigh in on thismonth’s question.

“When the autonomous carsbecome available to the generalpublic, the collision industry willonce again go through a dramaticchange. With the electronics andcomputer-driven technology thatmake these vehicles function alsocomes the need for new equipment,training and technology thatpresently does not exist in thecollision repair industry. Although this technology willcertainly lessen the frequency ofaccidents, some accidents will stilloccur and repairers will have toknow how to fix these automobilesand get them back on the roadwhen they are involved in a colli-sion. At the present time, insurancecompanies are paying rates at ap-proximately 50 percent of what itactually takes to operate a collisionrepair facility and realize a profit.With less vehicles to repair andmore complicated repairs that willrequire special new equipment andtraining, the insurance industry willhave to address these issues or col-lision shops will not be able to effi-ciently repair the vehicles and getthem back on the road in a reason-able amount of time. Currently, collision shops areable to survive on the artificiallysuppressed Labor Rates that insur-ance companies pay, only by beat-ing the time allowed for making therepairs and working on a high-vol-ume basis. With a smaller volumeof repairs and more expensiveequipment and training required torepair these newly created driver-less cars on the way to collisionshops, repairers should be evaluat-ing the situation now to determineif the investment of time andmoney in equipment and training isultimately going to be worth it. Al-though these self-driving robot-type cars seem like a thing of thefuture, this technology is actuallyright around the corner. If thereever was a time for the collision in-dustry to come together and ad-dress situations like this in a unitedeffort, now is that time.”-Neptune

NEPTUNEEDISON

JACKSON

CLIFTONPATERSON

This will also make vehicles even morecomplex, leading to the need for a greatercommitment to - and investment in - equipment and training on the parts of theindependent shops...

...the shop has to know not only how torepair the damage, but also how to resetthe system for the next driver.

I honestly believe trucks will be slow touse this sort of tech.

Telematics will help the way some peopledrive, especially if they know they are, orcan be, monitored.

If there ever was a time for the collision industry to come together and address situations like this in a united effort, now is that time.

“”“

““

””

”

”

“



FEATURE by Joel Gausten

TESTING OUR TECHS: Inside the Changing World

of Collision Training Insurer-mandated partsprocurement. Data owner-ship. Steering. These are allcritical issues deserving ofthe industry’s attention andaction, but they pale incomparison to the biggesttopic to affect every singleperson employed in thisprofession: Training. Are you keeping up todate with the education andequipment requirements ofthe vehicles you’re repair-ing? Are you demanding –and receiving – a return onthe investment you made toget that training? Are youeven aware of the certifica-tions needed to profession-ally work on the vastmajority of vehicles on theroad right now? Thismonth, New Jersey Auto-motive sheds light on whyyou might want to thinktwice before answering“yes” to these questions.



The Training Tsunami The 2015 Ford F-150 is certainly not the industry’s first alu-minum-intensive vehicle, but it could end up being its most influ-ential. Thanks to a strong promotional push by Ford (including thespecial appearance of a cutaway of the vehicle at this year’sNORTHEAST® Automotive Services Show), the next generationof the manufacturer’s best-selling truck has inspired a slew ofshop owners to add aluminum repair to their services for the firsttime. In an effort to address the rapidly growing need for trainingon how to handle these vehicles once they hit the market later thisyear, I-CAR worked extensively with Ford to develop a special2015 F-150 curriculum (detailed in full at www.i-car.com/FORDF150) that was officially launched in May. As of mid-Sep-tember, I-CAR has hosted 1,330 2015 Ford F-150 Structural Re-pair Training courses for nearly 15,000 students. Additionally,I-CAR hosted 894 in-shop Welding, Training and Certificationevents for more than 2,000 technicians. The organization antici-pates that another 8,000 students will pass through the F-150 pro-gram by the conclusion of 2014. “You really have to applaud Ford for taking this whole pro-gram seriously, bringing us into it early on and getting us en-gaged in the process,” offers Jeff Peevy, I-CAR’s senior directorof field operations and segment development. “By doing that, wewere able to think through the collision repair process on that ve-hicle. We worked with them, developed the course through theirguidance, piloted it with them and continued to adjust it until itwas everything it needed to be and Ford was satisfied.” Although I-CAR’s efforts have been successful in fillingclassrooms throughout the country, they have also raised eye-brows by offering a two-day class/program on the truck forroughly $1,100 per tech when other aluminum-intensive vehiclemanufacturers are known to offer intense, multi-week certifica-tion courses that can cost upwards of $16,000. While Peevy rec-ognizes these differences, he insists that I-CAR’s currentofferings fulfill the industry’s need for F-150 training. “The thing that we had to do as a not-for-profit serving theindustry, is develop a program that satisfied the welding needswith a skills-based test going into the shop, and then be able to doit in a way that is economical,” he explains. “If we were to gointo a shop [to] spend two or three days, it would be very expen-sive and very difficult for the majority of shops to dedicate thatmuch time [and] justify that kind of expense. We tried to developa program that the industry would embrace; we had to take thatinto consideration.” The 2015 F-150 is only a small part of what I-CAR calls the“technical tsunami” that is revolutionizing all aspects of collisionrepair. With everything from autonomous braking to the conceptof self-driving cars being discussed in the industry, I-CAR isalready looking into how they can help prepare technicians forwhat the next decade or two will bring. “Right now, there’s a lot of attention on aluminum, but

aluminum may be the least of our worries,” Peevy says. “Thereare a couple of things that probably save us for now...Even if thevehicle was put out today, it’s going to be a few years before itshows up in large volume in the shops.” Even if a fully self-driving car is not likely to show up onyour doorstep any time soon, Peevy advises all shops managersto keep in mind that the way they are doing things in 2014 willnot remain static. “As these new technologies start to show up at your shops, itwill really negatively affect your cycle time,” he says. “You willget into a vehicle that maybe you’re not prepared to repair, andyou’ll have to stop and try to understand what you’re looking ator how to really do an analysis or diagnostics on what's goingon.” Above all, Peevy stresses the importance of shops adopting a“learning culture” that encourages consistent training and growthas the industry continues to evolve. “Learning and knowledge is the only source of sustainable,competitive advantage,” he says. Paying for Quality The philosophy of constant education is in full effect atAASP/NJ member shop Exclusive Auto Collision (Ramsey),where owner Tony Lake has spent the last decade building an im-pressive roster of OEM certifications for Audi, Mercedes-Benz,Porsche, Volkswagen, Volvo and Nissan. A shop owner since2002, Lake realized early in his career that he needed to have anedge to establish himself in his high-end market area. “After two years of being in the collision industry, I couldsee that there was a need for a shop that was willing to go the dis-tance and be dedicated to fixing cars properly and not just be arepair shop,” he says. To date, Lake has devoted around $1 million to making surehis business has the technical training and equipment necessaryto earn multiple certifications. “I can’t say that my business decisions were solely based onROI,” he shares. “It was more of projecting the future [and] theway the cars were going to be manufactured...I was either goingto be in the auto body business and see if I could make a go at itfor the next 15 to 20 years, or I was going to have to get out ofit.” Naturally, the level of expertise showcased at Exclusive AutoCollision isn’t always welcomed by the insurance industry withopen wallets. Like a growing number of shop owners who stead-fastly stand behind their adherence to OEM recommended proce-dures, Lake regularly utilizes the Assignment of Proceeds toreceive suitable compensation for the quality he puts out. “The insurance industry believes that every car, town andcounty is the same and we can all operate our business for thesame amount of money from Camden to Bergen County,” hesays.



FEATURE

A Look in the Mirror Frustrating as they can be at times, in-surers are not the biggest enemy facingshops when it comes to getting the rightamount of cash for a job done well. Unfor-tunately, the biggest hurdle facing this in-dustry is the industry itself. While ownerslike Lake are actively seeking out ways todo the right thing, many of their contem-poraries are operating businesses with aslittle training as possible. According to I-CAR figures, 69 percent of today’swelders don’t hold basic I-CAR weldingcertification, 94 percent are not trained foraluminum welding certification and 98percent (!!) are not trained for advancedstructural steel welding certification. Asshocking as I-CAR’s numbers already are,veteran auto body educator and New Jer-sey Automotive contributor Larry Mon-tanez believes that these figures couldactually be higher when factoring in allthe “body shops” that work under theradar. “You probably have another 10,000shops in the United States that are not reg-istered, insured or listed as actual collisionrepair shops, along with truck repair shopsand tow companies that perform body re-pairs by just throwing a sign up whilebeing listed technically as another busi-ness,” he says. Why is there such an obvious aver-sion to training in this industry? In Mon-tanez’s mind, part of the problem stemsfrom a lack of genuine oversight of thecollision repair field. “The states are at fault,” he explains.“Nobody in the states is requiring thatthese shops have these welding certifica-tions. It’s the body shops’ fault that theydon’t go ahead and make sure they do agood job of training their own. But a bigpercentage of [the problem] is that the mu-nicipalities and those in power are not re-quiring that these shops do repairsproperly and have the proper equipmentand training.” Of course, no shop would be able toensure the appropriate training of their

technicians without first getting theirhouse in order. After visiting and consult-ing with shops all over the country, Mon-tanez likens touring many of thesefacilities to stepping into a time machine.For more shops than some would like toadmit, conducting business in 2014 meansworking on antiquated equipment whilehaving none of the knowledge necessaryto handle current or upcoming materials. “Many of the shops I see in the indus-try belong in the Smithsonian,” he says. While the 2015 Ford F-150 continuesto spur interest from shops that have neverconsidered aluminum repair before, morethan a few of these businesses would bewise to learn how to first handle the vehi-cles in their bays today.

“Some repairers can’t fix the Fordframe now,” Montanez says. “Now, it’sgoing to be made 20,000 pounds persquare inch stronger [about 50,000 psi to70,000 psi].” In the high-demand world of auto re-pair, there’s no option but to learn from asmany sources as possible. Montanez rec-ommends that anyone truly serious aboutbecoming proficient at welding not onlytake the I-CAR welding tests, but also ex-plore the OEM certification programs forJaguar, Land Rover, Audi, Mercedes-Benzand Tesla (courses that he calls “the PHDsof collision repair”) and invest time in tak-ing classes offered by area colleges or theAmerican Welding Society.

“You learn your limitations veryquickly when you get into something likethat,” he says. “AWS welding certificationis on much thicker material and would bea little more difficult for most of the techsto collate than to what they do on a dailybasis.” Above all, the instructor urges hisstudents and readers to refer to what themanufacturer says should be done when-ever they have doubts over a particularprocedure. “There are no collision repair stan-dards in the United States - end of story,”he says. “It’s only what the OEM says.” To help ensure that shops find theright technicians to work on vehicles,Montanez suggests that I-CAR develop abundle of classes – including courses likeFundamentals of Collision Repair(FCR01), Steel GMA (MIG)Welding (WSC01) and Structural Straight-ening Steel (SSS01), to name a few – thatcan serve as an entry-level standard oftraining that every technician should passbefore getting a job. Industries rangingfrom trucking to real estate require creden-tials, so why doesn’t the collision repairfield? “I-CAR should come up with a basic,minimum program just to be able to gethired – a certain number of classes thatyou have to take,” he says. “You shouldhave a bare minimum just for anyone totalk to you if you come to a collision re-pair shop looking for a job.” With vehicle technology advancingfaster than ever, repairers have no choicebut to embrace as many educational op-portunities as possible to ensure the safetyof the consumers they serve. Simply put,the industry of today – and the industrythat is still to come – is not a place forpoor work performed by uneducated peo-ple. It’s time to get those I-CAR percent-ages down. In the words of Jeff Peevy, “It’s amoral and ethical issue that we’re puttingthe people riding in the cars that ourindustry’s repairing at risk.”

NJA

While many shop ownersare actively seeking out

ways to do the right thing, some of their contemporaries are operating businesses with as little training

as possible.


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Nucar Wholesale PartsNew Jersey Automotive | October 2014 | 41



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COVER STORY by Joel Gausten

For the last two years, State Farm hasearned plenty of negative attention fromthe collision repair industry due to its im-plementation of the PartsTrader procure-ment system. Despite plenty of protestsfrom a variety of industry associations,grumblings from a few repairers and deal-ers willing to talk to the press, ongoing lit-igation in Mississippi and the departure ofa small number of shops from the SelectService program, the nation’s largest in-surer was able to proceed with its contro-versial plans without facing too manyobstacles. However, recent activitiesaround the country indicate that the carriermay not be so untouchable after all. The Good Neighbor Gets Sued Throughout the PartsTrader debate,one tool that the opposition was lackingwas the support of a high-profile officialwilling to put State Farm in the hottestseat they have ever endured. That problemwas finally solved on August 19, whenLouisiana Attorney General Buddy Cald-well announced a lawsuit against StateFarm, alleging that the carrier “has en-gaged in a pattern of unfair and fraudulentbusiness practices aimed at controlling theauto repair industry and forcing unsafe re-pairs on vehicles without the knowledgeor consent of Louisiana consumers.” Caldwell’s suit claims that the insurerviolated Louisiana’s Unfair Trade

Practices Act and Monopolies Law by, ac-cording to an official statement by theAG’s office, “using scare tactics to steerLouisiana consumers to State Farm’s pre-ferred repair shops and forcing shops toperform vehicle repairs cheaply andquickly, rather than in accordance withconsumer safety and vehicle manufacturerperformance standards.” State Farm cur-rently holds the largest share of auto insur-ance policies in Louisiana. In 2012, StateFarm wrote one third of all auto insurancepolicies in the state, totaling over $1 bil-lion in premiums. In addition to issuing a variety of alle-gations against State Farm, the complaint(available online at https://www.ag.state.la.us/Shared/ViewDoc.aspx?Type=3&Doc=402) offers the AG Office’s damningassessment of the insurer’s chosen pro-curement system:

Pursuant to the Select Service Agree-ment, State Farm’s Select ServiceProviders are required to utilize an au-tomated replacement parts locatingservice called PartsTrader...The use ofthe PartsTrader software platform re-moves the ability of the repair facilityto freely select replacement parts thatare most appropriate for a specificrepair.

The Caldwell suit calls for State Farmto “pay restitution to all consumers whohave incurred a loss due to the conduct ofthe Defendants through any mannerdeemed practicable by the Court.” As of this writing, State Farm’s totalpublic response to the AG’s legal actionhas been a characteristically short state-ment: “The description in this lawsuit isnot in line with State Farm’s mission toserve the needs of its customers, and ourlong, proud history of achievements in ad-vancing vehicle safety. We are reviewingthe lawsuit and will have more to sharesoon.” Naturally, the reverberations from theactions in Louisiana are being felt in theGarden State. “It is rare for an Attorney General totake up arms on an issue like this, andeven more rare for him to go as far as fil-ing a suit on it,” comments AASP/NJ Ex-ecutive Director Charles Bryant. “In fact,in most cases, the complaints of the colli-sion industry or consumers against insur-ers usually fall on deaf ears. It appears thatthe Louisiana Attorney General took thetime to listen and must have been givenenough proof that a major problem actu-ally exists. My hope is that he will staystrong and not buckle to the pressure thatno doubt will be applied to get him to goaway.”



Interestingly,news of theLouisiana suitcomes at a time whenrelations between StateFarm and shops in NewJersey appear to be at an all-time low. “The complaints against State Farm,in relation to other insurers, are on the rise- and have been for some time,” Bryantsays. “Not so long ago, the complaintsabout State Farm were only here andthere. Now, they are coming in on a regu-lar basis, on multiple different issues. Oneof the major issues is the push by StateFarm on used suspension parts; another issteering on a regular basis.” NJ Pays To Play Just as AG Caldwell’s lawsuit hit thenews, dealerships in New Jersey were get-ting ready to make their first payment toPartsTrader for use of the system. InFebruary, it was announced that therewould be monthly subscription fees to par-ticipating parts suppliers per the followingschedule on the company’s website:

Monthly Order Volume* Monthly Rate$0-$2,000.00 $19$2,000.01-$6,000.00 $39$6,000.01-$12,000.00 $99Over $12,000.00 $199

According to theirpricing bulletin, “participating suppliersare defined as either companies with aPartsTrader supplier user ID or eachunique distribution/warehouse locationprocessing PartsTrader orders. At Part-sTrader’s discretion, companies with a de-livery radius larger than 200 miles may besubject to a customized pricing program.Participating suppliers are tied to the statesin which they were invited by a repairer touse PartsTrader.” Suppliers participating in each mar-ket launch determined by repairer statewere allowed to use the system at no costfor six months before their initial Sub-scription Fee was due and payable. So thequestion is, is it worth paying for? Not ac-cording to reports that have come in to theAASP/NJ offices. “Every comment that I have receivedor heard about PartsTrader [from suppli-ers] has been extremely negative,” Bryantshares. “I have received reports that twomajor players in New Jersey have already

pulled out of the program. I would not besurprised if more and more pull out astime goes on.” As this issue of New Jersey Automo-tive went to press, Team PRP (PremiumRecycled Parts) – a national network of in-dependent auto recyclers totaling nearly5.5 million parts in inventory – issued apress release announcing their decision towalk away from PartsTrader. According tothe release, a membership survey con-ducted in August 2014 showed that “whilemost members joined the program withhigh hopes for increased sales to their cur-rent repair facilities and the opportunity tosell to new State Farm DRP facilities theywere not selling to, tabulated resultsshowed that there have been very limitedincremental sales while costs resulting forparticipation have increased. Specifically,the labor associated with responding to re-quests and completing transactions has in-creased for most Team PRP members.

* Based on three-month average



COVER STORY

Compounding the increase in costs are sta-tistics by Team PRP members showingthat the amount of time required to sell apart is considerably higher with Parts-Trader than with other methods and thepercentage of quotes that result in sales issubstantially lower.” Additionally, the PRP statement of-fered the following reasons why membersmost indicated dissatisfaction with theprocurement system:

It does not use technology properly tofully automate the search process. It does not filter out parts inappropriate

for auto recyclers. It does not include sufficient part detail

to allow proper part identification. The de-tails most mentioned as lacking includeproduction dates, vehicle mileage, a moreeffective VIN decoder, better part descrip-tions and digital images of the damagedvehicle.It does not make it mandatory that the

request include Hollander interchange, thecataloguing method used by virtually allauto recyclers in the US.Its process is slow and inefficient.It does not provide efficient reporting

tools recyclers can use to measure results.It does not include effective means of

communication between the parties. Despite these criticisms against Parts-Trader, PRP stressed that they are open tothe idea of embracing other forms of ePro-curement in the parts-ordering process:

Team PRP research has shown thatcompeting eProcurement programs arebeing developed and will soon be intro-duced by other industry providers. Inits commitment to promote as manyeffective sales opportunities for itsmembers as possible, Team PRP willresearch these new offerings and willrecommend to its members participa-tion in those that can provide betterresults than what is currently in themarket.

Tony Zaccaro, president of Cosmo’sOcean County Auto Parts (a Team PRPpartner), tells New Jersey Automotive thathis company’s experience with Parts-Trader was far from positive. “We participated at its inception,” herecalls. “During a two-month trial, we ex-perienced an increase in the already-bur-densome overhead costs we bear in thesale of recycled parts. With the impendingaddition of fees PartsTrader will soon becharging to sell our own parts, our choicewas clear. With the ever-increasing cost ofsalvage, transportation and our overallbusiness environment, we are striving tofind ways to automate, simplify and de-crease the cost of selling parts. Unfortu-nately, the PartsTrader platform takes us astep in the opposite direction. We under-stand that eProcurement is a reality whichwill only grow from here; all of our Team-PRP partners are ready and prepared totake part if the platform makes economicsense for us and our industry.” Looking towards the future of ePro-curement, Zaccaro urges his fellow recy-clers to get their data in order. “We need to enter our information asif the whole world can see it, because theycan,” he says. “We need to make sure theinventory we list is immediately availableand the descriptions are accurate. Mostimportantly, we must utilize the nationalstandards set forth by the Automotive Re-cyclers Association. We especially need touse the ARA damage locator and QualityAssurance Grid, which can be found atwww.CosmosAutoParts.com. The easierwe make it for the customer, the more suc-cessful our e-commerce future will be.” Selling Beyond Select Service With PartsTrader now available na-tionwide (including in Massachusetts andRhode Island, where State Farm currentlyhas zero auto insurance presence), it wasonly a matter of time before the companywould start marketing its product to shopsthat have nothing to do with State Farm’s

Select Service program. In their salesbrochure to body shops, the procurementprovider details their goal of expandingbeyond their mandated clientele:

PartsTrader is available to any re-pairer in an active market. You can ei-ther be introduced to the programthrough State Farm, in a region wherewe are about to go live or register onthe PartsTrader website to set up anaccount. Our goal is to make Part-sTrader available to collision repairparticipants in the U.S. who seek anopen parts sourcing and procurementplatform.

While PartsTrader would clearly liketo see its system flourish as a free marketitem, its ultimate success in non-SelectService territories remains to be seen. Al-though it has existed in Massachusetts forseveral months, we have not received asingle report of a shop or dealer using it.Bryant has encountered similar silence inNew Jersey. “So far, I am not aware of any shopsthat have even considered using the pro-gram when they are not required,” he says.“I see no incentive for any shop to use thePartsTrader program if they are not forcedto do so.” If the system’s first few months inNew Jersey have shown us anything, it isthat the auto body industry isn’t willing toaccept current conditions. With hostilitytowards the program growing throughoutthe country, they may soon find it moredifficult to thrive in the marketplace thanthey could have anticipated. Yes, PartsTrader is now active every-where in the United States, but this tale isfar from over.

NJA



What’s your most memorable repair job? Our readers share thefunny and crazy stories ofrepair jobs that have stuck with them throughthe years.

THE LIST

Stockholm Syndrome

Waving Goodbye“My most memorablerepair job? Probably thelast one before I retire.”

ClaudeMeow-net“I can make a paint job perfect,but I’m no artist. This guycomes in one day and he’s gottwo ceramic figurines and a Po-laroid of some cats. Apparently,the picture is of his two catswho just died. He said to me,‘I’ve seen what you do to cars, Iwant you to make these fig-urines look like my dead cats.’When he came back in, he juststarted crying. He said itlooked just like them. It was thegreatest thing. I only chargedhim like 100 bucks for it.”

Doppelganger “We had this car in for a womanwho was in the hospital gettingher leg amputated. When shegot back in to the shop, we pullthe car around and she says,‘You did a lovely job but that’snot my car.’ Someone hadbrought in a stolen car - samemake, model, year, paint andeverything. Her car was tuckedaway in the back corner of thelot, untouched, and we hadrepaired the wrong car.”

Pop Rocks“One time a customer came inwith a BMW 528 and claimed tohave something rattling in hisheater from his accident. Now,I’ve been around long enoughto know everything is wrong‘from the accident.’ So we gotan authorization for possiblenon-related disassembly fromthe customer. When we re-moved the heater box behindthe dash, we found a substan-tial supply of crack rock washitting on the squirrel cage andcausing the noise. Whenpresented to the owner, hepromptly stated that it was nothis… and his ‘friend’ who waswith him quickly exited thebuilding. The owner’s nextwords were, ‘We don’t need no heat, I’ll take the car just like this.’”

“About five years ago, we got a call from an insurance companyto pick up a stolen recovery vehicle out of Newark. It was a blackVolkswagen Jetta, no plates or identification other than the VIN.We had it towed to my shop and it looked like it was in prettygood condition, no forcible entry or anything. The lady who thecar belonged to was on vacation so when she finally got back,she comes came to pick up the car and the first thing she saysis, ‘That’s not my car.’ We opened up the doors and she said shedidn’t recognize the stereo, the wheel, the tires, anything. Butwhen we compared the VIN on her registration, it was definitelyher car. The guy stole the car and, in the three weeks he had it,doctored the thing up. He pampered it. All I did was fix the igni-tion and locks. She ended up taking it home - she got the carback in nicer condition than when she left it! As for the guy whostole it, he had dropped his wallet and union card in the car, so,he got what was coming to him.”

Bring in theClowns!“Last time the Ringling Bros.and Barnum & Bailey Circuswas in town, I got in a car thatan elephant had sat on. Thatwas pretty memorable.”


Did you ever have a customer that owned a vehicle inneed of major repairs who was upset? If not, what’sin the water in your part of the country? Car names

and brands all seem to mean something I’ve noticed over theyears. Remember the Chevy Nova? In Spanish the name didn’ttranslate well; Nova in Spanish means “No Go.” Not exactly anencouraging statement for a vehicle manufacturer. Sometimes Iwould say to a customer who owned one, “No wonder it needs atune-up; you know it means ‘No Go’ in Spanish.” That wouldusually bring a chuckle or grin to their face and, in most cases,diffuse a sometimes tense situation. Over the years I’ve found thata little humor at the counter can go a long way to making a cus-tomer smile and relax a little.

Not sure when but over time things changed regarding carnames; they actually seemed to fit the brands. We all know Ford;poor Henry has had to suffer with Found On Road Dead foryears. In actuality, I consider Ford to be one of the better-qualityvehicles on the road right now. Henry would be proud. But otherbrands sometimes seem to fit the bill. Chevrolet? Can Hear EveryValve Rattle On Long Extended Trips. Remember how, someyears ago, Chevrolet had issues with piston rattle cold and otherengine noises? See? It fits. Honda? Had One Never Did Again.Ever have Honda customer service tell you, “We don’t have carproblems; we’re Honda.”? Yea, sure...makes you want to own an-other one with that kind of an attitude.

But I think the one that has put me on the map is Volkswagen–VW for short. Do you know what VW stands for? Imagine this:You are at the front counter telling the owner of a six- or seven-year-old VW that it needs some major repairs in the form of sus-pension, brakes or electronic modules. The customer looks at you

with disbelief in their eyes, asking why? “Easy,” you reply. “Youknow what VW stands for, right? Virtually Worthless.” Makesthem laugh every time –or at least smile –and, in many cases,helps sell the repair. Seems that people like repairing cars that ap-pear “worthless.” It’s like somebody in a relationship: “I canstraighten him or her out.” Sounds strange, but I swear it’s true.

Ok, enough car names, I can write about them for a while butI think you get the idea. (How about AUDI? Another Underpow-ered Demonic Invention. Sorry, couldn’t resist.) On another mat-ter, here’s a nice idea that can make someone smile for anotherreason. I think we need to pay tribute to our boys and girls inblue: The police. It dawned on me recently; I was finishing break-fast at the local deli here in town on Friday morning and, as I waspaying, I noticed a young, plainclothes police officer havingbreakfast alone. It was the gun and badge on his belt that got myattention. He was just trying to have breakfast and get his daystarted peacefully and that gun was on, ready to go if needed.First bad guy through the door was taking aim at him and his fel-low officers. I had to do something, so I bought him breakfastwithout him knowing it. My girls at the deli told me the followingday (I’m what you call a “regular”) that he was stunned. “At leastsomeone likes us and it’s nice to see” was his reply. Sad, right? Sohow about we start a movement. Let’s call it “Breakfast of Cham-pions” and dedicate it to the folks that protect us: The cops. Nexttime you see one having breakfast, pick up the tab. Tell them it’s

’Til next time, I’m Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor, reminding you that“Good mechanics aren’t expensive; they’re priceless.”

Ron Ananian, owner of R\A Automotive in Waldwick, NJ (est. 1978), is heard weekly in140 markets on his nationally syndicated radio talk show. He is a working technicianand former AASP/NJ Board member. Beyond his radio show, Ron writes and speaksfor the automotive industry at trade shows and events. Visit The Car Doctor online atwww.cardoctorshow.com.

NO BRAKES by Ron Ananian

JUST FOR FUNWe all need to have some fun in our lives, especiallywhen you fix cars –and people– for a living. This month, Ithought I would share some ideas that might make us alllaugh a little.




your way of saying thanks. Remember,love them or hate them, without them it’sanarchy, not much you can say about itotherwise. Buying them breakfast is a greatway to pay it forward should you ever needone for help.

THE BOTTOM LINE IS...

Laugh a little more; life’s too short tolet a broken car make you not enjoy it.Next time the shop or a car goes homewith you in your head, make a consciouseffort to forget about it. Maybe its name orbrand will trigger a chuckle. (BTW did Itell you the one for ACURA? AnotherCrummy Underpowered Rotten Automo-bile.)

If you want to laugh a little more andwant to help, I think it would be a hoot todo the “Top 10 List” of what car names re-ally mean on the Late Show with DavidLetterman; anyone have a connection? Incase you need it, the web contact [email protected] Give them my nameand hey, you never know.

As for the cops, no brainer. Let’s allmake a commitment to do something niceand show some understanding about thepressure society puts on them and the risksthey take. They say that the time for a StateTrooper on the road to react to a safe situa-tion to dangerous situation is less than halfa second. It is pretty tough to make a cor-rect life or death decision in that kind oftime, right? Think about it: A “Breakfast ofChampions” moment makes everyonesmile.

By the way, if you are making it to

SEMA: This year we will be taping abroadcast of the radio show from theBosch Automotive Aftermarket Groupbooth on Tuesday, November 4. Stop byand say hi. Don’t be a stranger now, yahear? NJA



When I was around 12, my sister-in-law Connie took me downto Newark to a truck called Ed’s. About 20 feet down from Ed’swas JJ’s, but Connie was loyal to Ed so that was our spot for thenext few years - he had a pretty solid dog. Every time we went,we would pass JJ’s as if it were the redheaded stepchild and Edkept our hatred of JJ’s fueled by letting us know the two of themwere at war. Only in Newark could you have a hot dog truck war(there are still over a dozen down there). One night I got another1am hot dog craving - but this time, it was for Ed’s. When we gotthere, Ed had left for the night. BUT…JJ’s was there. Hmmm.Could I betray Ed? I thought about it for about a half a second be-fore I decided of course I could, I was starving. So I had a JJ’sdog and it really wasn’t as good as Ed’s. Damn, I thought, Ishould have been true. My girlfriend suggested I try one with hotonions. I looked at her as if she was insane but I figured, what thehell? When I bit into the dog with onions, it was like when QuickDraw McGraw’s dog Snuffles used to get a biscuit (if you get thatreference without watching this: www.youtube.com/watch?v=YohXc9x6cUU, I’ll take you to JJ’s myself.) Needless to say, JJ’s became my Friday night dinner for thenext 15 or so years (a heart attack kinda stopped that tradition.)Over the years, I got to know the Friday night guy, Richie. He’dsee me coming and he’d put so many onions on the hot dogs, thebag would fall apart before I got to my car. Naturally, I then had todrive 100 miles an hour to get home. That many of JJ’s onionscould give Ex-Lax a run for their money. It is important to note, itwasn’t the fact that I ate at JJ’s that gave me the heart attack; itwas the fact that I would eat at least six at a time (personalrecord: 11. It was 4:30am.) Despite this article, I have cut down on my hot dog intakeover the years. Since the Westfield location closed, I can only geta Windmill hot dog once every couple of months when I can getdown to Belmar and I only stop at JJ’s every three months or so.(Ironically, it’s on the way home from my cardiologist’s office.)However, there are two places that I still visit on a semi-regularbasis. One is the Hot Dog House on Route 17 in Carlstadt. Again, Icame across this tiny building by accident one day in the early’80s. It’s a no-nonsense place (just ask for Dee if you don’t believeme) with an old soda shop layout made up of a counter andstools. The dogs are Sabretts boiled in water (just like Joe’s) andthey have some really great fries cooked in oil that tastes goodbut won’t kill you. HDH has a ton of toppings but when I’m there Istay loyal to my plain hot dogs. It’s quick, tasty and nearby and Itry and go every other Friday. The other place is the one and only Rutt’s Hut. Rutt’s Hut hasbeen around since 1928 and is on any decent list of the best hotdogs in the country. So if you haven’t heard about it by now, I’mnot going to waste space explaining. Just get over there IMMEDI-ATELY and order two wellers: A frenchy well and a Marvis. Noother words necessary. Rutt’s is another of those places like Joe’s (ironically, also inClifton) that reminds me of my dad. In fact, I can’t remember atime when we weren’t going there. The whole family would pileinto the Cadillac: Dad, Mom and all five kids. Dad would comeout with the food and we’d all sit in the back and eat on the

massive rear dash. Just thinking about it brings a smile to my face- except the part when my older brothers and sisters stole myfood! I learned at an early age to hate the words “can I have abite?” Back in the ’60s, Rutt’s used to serve their beer in smallglasses that you were supposed to bring back to the counter but,since we ate in the car all the time, my dad used to just throwthem in the glove compartment. My entire childhood was spentdrinking milk out of Rutt’s Hut beer glasses. Rutt’s caught on tomy dad though and started serving him beer in a plastic cup.Until the day he died he swore it tasted different. When my older sister got a brand new Monte Carlo back inthe day, she was game to drive anywhere. My destination ofchoice was Rutt’s. She drove me there in that beautiful MonteCarlo. It was immaculate...until I spilled fries, ketchup and sodaall over it. She still hasn’t forgiven me. Rutt’s is a generational thing. My dad took me there and Ihave taken my kids there and I’m sure they’ll take theirs. One timethey interviewed the owner of Rutt’s on a PBS documentary aboutthe best hot dog place in the country. I told my son that I knewthat guy. He didn’t believe me. I put his sneakers on and we tooka ride. When I walked in the door, the owner yelled from the back,“Tommy, how you doing?” You should have seen the look on myson’s face. Now HE’s driving there. I love hot dogs.

OUT OF BODY (AND MECHANICAL) EXPERIENCES continued from page 9

NJA



ARANJ 2014 OfficersPresident

Bob Dirkes, Dirkes Used Auto Parts609-625-1718 [email protected]

1st Vice PresidentIan Szoboszlay, Ocean County Auto

732-349-0332 [email protected] Vice President

Darryl Carmen, Lentini Auto Salvage908-782-6838

[email protected] Vice President

Joe Goodman, Leesville Auto732-388-0783

[email protected] President

Norm Vachon, Port Murray Auto908-689-3152

[email protected] Director

Brian Snyder, Auto Recyclers of NJ609-714-2339 [email protected]

ARANJ 2014Board of Directors

Mike Ronayne, Tilghmans Auto Parts609-723-7469 [email protected]

Marvin Leadbeater, Bamber Lake Auto609-639-6500 [email protected]

Mike Yeager, EL & M Auto609-561-2266 [email protected]

Rodney Krawczyk, Ace Auto Wreckers732-254-9816 [email protected]

Mike Caputo, Lacey Used Auto Parts, Inc.609-693-0898 [email protected]

ARANJ The Automotive Recyclers Association of New Jersey

Wharton Insurance Briefs An ARA Member Our insurance carrier has experienced several accidents in the past few yearsinvolving the sale of used tires. The accidents were related to tire blowouts. Mosttire manufacturers specifically exclude “Tires Purchased as Used” under their war-ranty. Many will deny any responsibility, which leaves the onerous on you, the usedtire dealer. This is why it is important to have a Used Tire Inspection Process in writ-ing for your employees to follow during the removal of tires from each vehicle. Sta-tistical data derived by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)from 2005 - 2007, showed that tires with tread depth of 7/32 or less accounted for30 percent of tire related crashes. Other causes related to tire blow outs were im-proper tire pressure, roadway related factors, aggressive driving and climate con-ditions. I would suggest you contact your agent to review an inspection process thatbest fits your exposure. If you would like to discuss this further, please contact me.

Mario DeFilippis, AAI, Vice President800-221-0003 (1320) • 908-513-8588 (cell) • [email protected]



Acme Nissan................................................11Amato Agency..............................................40Audi Group ................................................30-31Axalta Coating Systems ..............................IBCBMW Group ................................................42-43Bridgewater Acura........................................22Brogan GM Parts Center ............................8Cadillac of Mahwah......................................16CCC Comp-Est ............................................14CCC One ....................................................5Classic Audi ................................................10Crane Chevrolet ..........................................57Cycan Industries ..........................................54Empire Auto Parts ........................................58Flemington Group ........................................13Fred Beans Parts ........................................6Future Cure..................................................14Glen Toyota..................................................OBCHackettstown Honda....................................57Hyundai Group ............................................35JMK BMW....................................................25JMK Saab/JMK Fiat ....................................55Klean Frame ................................................58LKQ..............................................................32Maxon Mazda ..............................................17Maxon Hyundai........................................20-21Mazda Group ..............................................26Mercedes Benz of Freehold ........................32Mini Group ..................................................50Mini of Manhattan ........................................34Mitsubishi Group..........................................51Mopar Group................................................4NORTHEAST® 2015 ..................................19NU-CAR ......................................................41Paul Miller Audi ............................................27Porsche Group ............................................47PPG ............................................................3Prestige Motors............................................34Princeton BMW............................................49Princeton Mini ..............................................9Saw Mill Auto Wreckers ..............................56Subaru Group ..............................................33Town Audi ....................................................56Toyota Group ..............................................23Toyota of Hackensack..................................IFCValtek ..........................................................53VIP Honda....................................................22VW Group ....................................................38Wheel Collision Center ................................53


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