u.s. consumer buying behaviors of r-134a refrigerant for light

U.S. Consumer Buying Behaviors of R-134a

Refrigerant for Light Vehicle Applications

Automotive Refrigeration Products Institute

September, 2006

2Automotive Refrigerant Products Institute (ARPI). Prepared for ARPI by Frost & Sullivan, September 2006

Table

of C

onte

nts

•Background and Methodology

•Repair Market Analysis

•California

•Impact Analysis

•Opportunities for Improved Usage

•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices

•Respondent Profile: California

•Respondent Profile: National

•Guide to Reading Tabular Data


Backgro

und

Researc

h O

bje

ctives

The primary objectives of this study are to measure the demand for retail packaged R-134a, to

establish the potential impact (i.e., financial and lifestyle burdens) caused by the unavailability of this

product, and to examine the potential for improving product usage as an alternative to a product ban.

Backgro

und

In 1995 vehicle manufacturers switched from using R-12 to R-134a as the refrigerant used in light

vehicle applications for cabin cooling. The change was the result of legislation that deemed R-134a to

be a more environmentally friendly substance than R-12. The result was the introduction of R-134a

however, R134a when leaked into the environment contributes to rising CO2 and global warming.

In 2005, approximately 23 million pounds of R-134a vehicle refrigerant were purchased by consumers

in cans 12oz to 20oz in size for personal use in recharging light vehicle air conditioning systems.

In December 2005, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) released documentation relating to

initiatives to reduce global warming. A recommendation is the removal of retail size cans of R-134a

used for recharging vehicle air conditioning systems from the market.

R-134a manufacturers and distributors joined together to form ARPIand have gone on record as

protesting this move. It is a right of the consumer to repair their own vehicle and the removal of this

product from the marketplace penalizes those who can least afford costly air conditioning system

repairs.


Meth

odolo

gy

•Frost & Sullivan completed a multi-method study to explore the issues associated with

the potential retail sales ban of R-134a products. The present report contains the data

and findings from an end-user analysis (i.e., do-it-yourselfers who use R-134a products)

and a repair market analysis.

End-U

ser

Analy

sis

:•Eligibility was based on the following criteria:

•U.S. residency;

•Must own and be a decision-maker for the maintenance and repair of a light passenger

vehicle;

•Vehicle model years 1995-2005;

•Must have personally performed refrigerant “recharge”on personal vehicle in the 12 months.

•The survey involved:

•400 end-users from California;

•600 end-users from a ‘National’sample that included 150 respondents from each major

geographic region (i.e., Northeast, South, Midwest, and West) and excluded respondents from

California.

•Thus, the survey involved a total sample of 1,000 end-users.

•The sample was panel-based using equal-opportunity recruitment on the basis of the eligibility

criteria detailed above.


The O

nline P

anel

US

Online P

anel

•The online panel used for this survey was systematically constructed to mirror the

composition of the general U.S. population.

•This online panel includes about 5 million individuals with an equal mix of males and

females (57% married/common-law, 70% employed).

•Invitations to participate in this survey were sent in batches that were structured

proportional to the composition of the online panel.

•That is to say, we let the composition of the online panel, which was designed to mirror

the US population overall, guide the recruitment process.

•No attempt was made to over-represent individuals from low-incomes or other minority

groups.

•In this manner, each member of the panel who has completed an R-134a recharge

should have had an equal opportunity to be recruited.

•However, the observed composition of the present survey is therefore driven not only

by the composition of R-134a product users but also survey completion rates in

response to our invitation…which would also be true of a CATI survey or postage mail

survey.


Panel Pro

file

: A

ge

10%

24%

21%

30%

15%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

55 y

ears

and a

bove

45 to 5

4 y

ears

35 to 4

4 y

ears

25 to 3

4 y

ears

18 to 2

4 y

ears

US

Online P

anel


Panel Pro

file

: Pers

onal In

com

e

6%

12%

7%

14%

13%

12%

14%

22%

0%

10%

20%

30%

More

than $

150,0

00

$100,0

00 to less than $

150,0

00

$75,0

00 to less than $

100,0

00

$60,0

00 to less than $

75,0

00

$50,0

00 to less than $

60,0

00

$40,0

00 to less than $

50,0

00

$30,0

00 to less than $

40,0

00

Under $30,0

00

US

Online P

anel


Meth

odolo

gy

Repair

Mark

et A

naly

sis

:

•The second research module investigates the size of the A/C repair market and the

costs of alternative solutions to DIY refrigerant recharge. Thisinvestigation attempted

to identify and evaluate the economic impact of all possible alternatives including…

•M

obile A

ir C

onditio

nin

g S

erv

ice D

em

and F

acto

rs:

•Demand for comfort;

•Rising vehicles in operation.

•R

eta

il A

naly

sis

:

•DIFM shop administered air conditioning refrigerant recharge;

•DIY R-134a refrigerant recharge average retail pricing;

•Consumer burden of legislation.


Table

of C

onte

nts



•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




10

Automotive Refrigerant Products Institute (ARPI). Prepared for ARPI by Frost & Sullivan, September 2006

Consum

er D

em

and F

or C

om

fort

Featu

res: H

igh T

em

pera

ture

s

•Over the past 140 years, average global temperatures have increased by almost 0.9 degrees

Celsius.

•With a large proportion of North America’s population being in the Southern U.S., and with much of

that southern geography experiencing temperatures above 16 degrees Celsius (60.8 Fahrenheit )

throughout the year, consumers are looking for a comfort solution.

11


Consum

er D

em

and F

or C

om

fort

Featu

res: In

cre

ased V

ehic

le U

se

•Between 2002 and 2005, average mile usage of personal light vehicles rose at a average rate of 0.72%

annually

•Between 2006 and 2012, average miles traveled is forecast to rise by a compound annual growth rate

(CAGR) of 0.15%. The longer consumers spend in their vehicles and on commuter highways, the more

inclined they are to seek out comfort features.

11,750

11,800

11,850

11,900

11,950

12,000

12,050

12,100

20022003200420052006200720082009201020112012

Avg Annual Miles Traveled

12


Consum

er D

em

and F

or C

om

fort

Featu

res: A

/C E

quip

ped V

ehic

les

•In 2006, North America has approximately 238.4 million light vehicles in use with 91.6% (218.4 million)

equipped with OE installed air conditioning and 77.6% (185 million) equipped with R-134a

•Both VIU and installation rates are anticipated to rise across the forecast period.

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

1991

1994

1997

2000

2003

2006

2009

2012

Light Vehicles (millions)

Total light vehicles in use

Light vehicles w/o AC

Light vehicles with R134a AC

Light vehicles with R12 AC

13


A/C

Serv

ice R

epair: R

epair L

ocations

•In 2005, there were approximately 352,000 automotive service locations in North America with 48.6%

of locations offering A/C service. The chart below demonstrates the percentage of revenues

generated from A/C services by location type.

Independent

Collision Shops

0.9%

Fast Lube

Centers

1.1%

Service Stations

w/service

5.9%

Retail/Dept

Stores

0.5%

Tire Dealers

2.1%

New Car

Dealerships

17.7%

Independent

Repair Shops

71.8%

14


A/C

Refr

igera

nt R

echarg

e:

Avera

ge W

eig

hte

d C

ost per R

echarg

e J

ob b

y S

erv

ice L

ocation

•Most locations perform a prelim

inary inspection. Some locations include the inspection as part of the

service while others bill inspections separately. The retail price for inspection services range $30 to $49

•The weighted average cost of and A/C refrigerant recharge job in2006 is $147.01. Recharge services

are available for as little as $70 to as much as $200. Prices vary by location type, geographical region,

vehicle type, and the amount of refrigerant required

149.95

159.96

147.00

70.00

119.99

140.00

139.99

$0

$20

$40

$60

$80

$100

$120

$140

$160

Retail/Depart. Stores

Service Stn.

Fast Lube

Tire Dealers

Indep. Collision

Dealerships

Indep. Repair

Avg. Price

$147.0

1

15


A/C

Refr

igera

nt R

echarg

e: C

ost D

iffe

rential D

IY v

ers

us D

IFM

•Research indicated that the average amount of

refrigerant added during a recharge is 15oz

•Consumers most common packaging choice for

refrigerant is the 12oz can which had an

average retail price of US $9.99 in 2006

•The average retail price for recharge service

through a Professional Auto Technician was

$147.01 in 2006. This price includes system

inspection, recharge service and the cost of the

refrigerant.

•The Do-It-Yourself consumer dollar outlay

would increase by 1,177% for retail 12oz can

purchasers should they be forced to obtain this

service through the professional automotive

repair channel

•Recharge kits are increasing in popularity.

Each market participant’s kit varies in content.

Commonly included in kits are refrigerant

(packaged in cans sized 6oz to 19oz), pagoil,

stop leak, and fittings. More elaborate kits may

include thermometers and gauges.

$12.4

9

$147.0

1

$0

$20

$40

$60

$80

$100

$120

$140

$160

DIY Recharge 12oz Can

(15 oz)

Professional Auto

Technician Recharge (15

oz)

Retail Price ($)

16


A/C

Refr

igera

nt R

echarg

e: C

onsum

er B

urd

en C

ost

•Should the legislation be enacted limiting consumer access to R-134a, consumers would bear

additional cost burdens as outlined below.

$0

$20

$40

$60

$80

$100

$120

$140

Retail/Depart. Stores

Service Stn. w/service

Fast Lube

Tire Dealers

Indep. Collision

Dealerships

Indep. Repair

17


•Freon 12, the predecessor to R-134a for

light vehicle cabin air conditioning

refrigerant was discontinued in the U.S. in

1995 for its high ozone depletion potential

•Under Section 609 of the 1990 Clean Air

Act Amendments, regulatory requirements

were implemented for personnel and

facilities servicing automobile A/C units.

Penalties of up to $25,000/day per

violation can be levied and prison terms

can be given to anyone who knowingly

vents CFC-12 or HCFCs into the

atmosphere

•Prices for R-12 rose so dramatically it soon

became more economical for consumers

to convert the vehicle to an R-134a system

at an average cost of $800 rather than

recharge the system with R-12

A/C

Refr

igera

nt R

echarg

e: Learn

ing fro

m the R

-12 E

xperience

Chlorofluorocarbons have become second only

to narcotics as the biggest smuggling problem

at some U.S. entry points since the United

Nations’ban on manufacture in industrialized

countries.

Source: Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality

18


Table

of C

onte

nts

Background and Methodology


•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




19


•There are three key factors driving demand for R-134a refrigerant for

light vehicle mobile air conditioning systems:

•North American consumers have high demand for comfort features

in vehicles;

•Rising vehicle population equipped with R-134a based air

conditioning systems;

•High cost of professional recharge prompts less costly DIY

alternatives.

•One of the primary objectives of this research is to examine the

potential impact that banning the sale of R-134a from retail outlets

might have on individuals who use this product.

Impact A

naly

sis

: In

troduction

20


Impact A

naly

sis

: K

ey F

indin

gs

Califo

rnia

End-U

sers

:

•The most important motivating reason to complete a DIY recharge was because it is less expensive

than paying a professional.

•DIYers appear to be highly motivated to elim

inate unnecessary expenses as 6 in 10 respondents

rated ‘It is less expensive’as a ‘very important’reason for completing this job themselves.

•Providing convergent evidence to this effect, one-third of respondents indicated that the cost of

professional work was the most important reason that they decided to start doing the job

themselves.

•About two-thirds (68%) of respondents suggest that there is a price at which they would consider

paying a professional to service their vehicle’s AC system.

•However, the mean reported acceptable price was about $32, whereas the average market price

is estimated to be just under $150.

•About 1 in 10 respondents (12%) reported that they would likely have to go without a fully functional

AC system if the retail sale of R-134a was banned.

•Moreover, because only about one-quarter of respondents (26%) estimated the current market

price for a professional service to be $80 or more, we suspect that an even greater proportion of

DIYers would not be able to afford or justify the cost of professional work.

•About 4 in 10 respondents (39%) suggested that they would look into other ways of obtaining R-134a.

Califo

rnia

21


Impact A

naly

sis

: K

ey F

indin

gs

Consid

eri

ng the m

ost vuln

era

ble

end-u

sers

fro

m C

alifo

rnia

(i.e., those r

eport

ing

pers

onal in

com

es less than $

30,0

00):

•Almost three-quarters of these respondents reported that saving money was a ‘very important’

motivating reason for completing the job themselves.

•About one-third (32%) voiced testimonials expressing concern or displeasure with the notion of a retail

sales ban of R-134a.

•About one-quarter (24%) voiced testimonials specifically expressing concern about the financial

burden that the added expense of paying a professional would impose upon them.

•A greater proportion of these respondents suggested that they would look for other ways of obtaining

R-134a (49%) than pay a professional (41%).

As w

e s

hall s

ee, oftentim

es the r

espondents

speak b

est fo

r th

em

selv

es…

.

Califo

rnia

22


Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Male

Age:18 to 2

9 y

ears

Marital Status:S

ingle

Employm

ent Status: U

nem

plo

yed

Education:S

om

e c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity

Personal Income:U

nder $20,0

00

Household Income:N

A

Reaction to Product Ban:I w

ould

lik

ely

go w

ithout

a fully functional air

-conditio

nin

g s

yste

m

Ethnicity:

His

panic

Gender:

Fem

ale

Age:18 to 2

9 y

ears

Marital Status:M

arr

ied/C

om

mon-law

Employm

ent Status:H

om

em

aker

Education:S

om

e c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity

Personal Income:U

nder $20,0

00

Household Income:U

nder

$30,0

00


ould

pay a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian to s

erv

ice

my a

ir-c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m

Testim

onia

ls* fr

om

those A

ffecte

d…

“Freaking ridiculous. A lot of

people don't have the money to

pay for shops to fix their cars.

Dealerships already

overcharge and hold a

monopoly on vehicles for close

to 2 years it's hard enough for

people now you don't need to

make things worse by linning

your pockets.”

I would be very upset. Its cheaper for

me to do it myself. My husband is the

one that taught me how to recharge it. It

has only needed it it once and it gets

really hot here in california and i'm

pregnant with my first child and as

everyone knows babies are expensive

and they need to stay in a cooler

temperature. I don't know if we'd be

able to afford to take it to a professional

every time and its important to me to

keep my baby safe. So hopefully it wont

be discontinued.

Califo

rnia

*Testimonials presented verbatim and unedited in any way. Testimonials were recorded in response to Q29, see slide 31.

23


Ethnicity: S

om

e o

ther eth

nic

ity –

‘Mix

ed’

Gender: F

em

ale

Age: 30 to 3

0 y

ears

Marital Status: D

ivorc

ed/S

epara

ted/W

idow

ed

Employm

ent Status: H

om

em

aker

Education: P

ost gra

duate

or

pro

fessio

nal degre

e

Personal Income: $20,0

00 to less than $

30,0

00

Household Income: N

A

Reaction to Product Ban: I w

ould

look into

oth

er

ways o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a

Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Male

Age:40 to 4

9 y

ears

Marital Status:D

ivorc

ed/S

epara

ted/W

idow

ed

Employm

ent Status:U

nem

plo

yed

Education:S

om

e c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity

Personal Income:U

nder $20,0

00

Household Income:N

A


ould

look into

oth

er

ways o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a

Testim

onia

ls* fr

om

those A

ffecte

d…

“It wood make me do something

that is agence the law just

because some that don't know

wht he is doing gets in trouble

working the product and or

storing it. If someone know what

he his doing and is capable of

doing the work with this product

the he or she should beabled to

do so without the government

getting involved.”

“It would mean I would

be FORCED to go to a

dealer or service station

and that would cost twice

as much than me doing it

myself. Again my rights

would be taken away.”

Califo

rnia


24


Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Fem

ale

Age:30 to 3

9 y

ears

Marital Status:M

arr

ied/C

om

mon-law

Employm

ent Status:Em

plo

yed p

art

-tim

e

Education:C

om

ple

ted c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity

Personal Income:$20,0

00 to less than $

30,0

00

Household Income:$40,0

00 to less than $

50,0

00


ould

look into

oth

er

ways o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a

Ethnicity:

His

panic

Gender:

Male

Age:18 to 2

9 y

ears

Marital Status:S

ingle

Employm

ent Status:S

tudent

Education:S

om

e c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity

Personal Income:U

nder $20,0

00

Household Income:N

A


ould

look into

oth

er

ways o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a

Testim

onia

ls* fr

om

those A

ffecte

d…

“IT W

ILL MEANS THAT I W

ILL

STRUGGLE AND SPEND

MORE MONEY FINDING THE

PRODUCT W

HICH IS THE

MAIN REASON I PERFORMED

THE JOB MYSELF. A

PROFESSIONAL TECHNICIAN

TAKES MANY HOURS TO

COMPLETE THE JOB AND

CHARGES SO MUCH.”

“Iam not sure why it would

discontinue the sale of r-

134 for people who has

low income, some of them

can install by themselves

since most of them couldnt

afford the full price at

dealer since its ripped off

the price.”

Califo

rnia


25


Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Male

Age:18 to 2

9 y

ears

Marital Status:S

ingle

Employm

ent Status:S

tudent

Education:S

om

e c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity

Personal Income:U

nder $20,0

00

Household Income:N

A


ould

look into

oth

er

ways o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a

Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Male

Age:30 to 3

9 y

ears

Marital Status:S

ingle

Employm

ent Status:H

om

em

aker

Education:S

om

e h

igh s

chool

Personal Income:U

nder $20,0

00

Household Income:N

A


ould

look into

oth

er

ways o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a

Testim

onia

ls* fr

om

those A

ffecte

d…

“I would cause that professionals

that do this service increase

dramatically their all ready high

prices since people will pey

anything for the comfort of having

air-conditioning in their cars.

people who cant afford to hire a

professional to do this service

done for them would suffer the

most. they would have to go about

without air-conditioningi”

“If I couldn't get the r134a

refrigerant I would have to

go without air conditioning

or trade my vehicle in for

something with working air

conditioning.”

Califo

rnia


26


Testim

onia

ls* C

oded b

y R

esponse C

ate

gory

Q29.W

e w

ould

lik

e to b

etter unders

tand y

our

opin

ions o

n the p

ote

ntial im

pact th

at dis

continuin

g the s

ale

of R

-134a m

ight

have. W

hat w

ould

this

mean to y

ou? P

lease b

e a

s s

pecific

as p

ossib

le. C

A r

espondents

n=400.

Overa

ll, a q

uart

er of re

spondents

voic

ed that th

ey w

ould

be u

nhappy o

r concern

ed if th

e s

ale

of R

-134a w

as d

iscontinued.

Fourt

een p

erc

ent cited issues r

ela

ted to the p

ote

ntial financia

lburd

en c

aused b

y the incre

ased e

xpense o

f payin

g a

pro

fessio

nal. A

bout 1 in 1

0 r

espondents

(9%

) m

entioned issues rela

ted to inappro

priate

govern

ment m

eddling a

nd a

sim

ilar

pro

port

ion (11%

) suggeste

d that th

ey w

ould

consid

er altern

ative m

eans to a

cquir

e R

-134a. N

ote

: Verb

atim

responses w

ere

coded b

y a

third-p

art

y, blind to the s

pecific

purp

ose o

f th

e researc

h.

18%

5%

4%

13%

10%11%

9%

14%

25%

0%

10%

20%

30%

No A

nsw

er/

Don't K

now

Oth

er

Positiv

e R

eaction

Will

Accept/Pay for P

rofe

ssio

nal R

echarg

e

No Im

pact/No C

oncern

Purc

hase b

y A

ltern

ative M

eans o

r Sto

ckpile

Befo

re B

an

Inappro

priate

Govern

ment M

eddlin

g

Burd

en o

f In

cre

ased E

xpense

Unhappy/C

oncern

ed

Califo

rnia

27


Testim

onia

ls C

oded b

y R

esponse C

ate

gory

Exam

ined b

y p

ers

onal in

com

e, tw

o tre

nds e

merg

e. H

ighlighting the

heig

hte

ned im

port

ance o

f th

is issue to low

er in

com

e

consum

ers

, re

spondents

who e

arn

less than $

30,0

00 w

ere

slightly m

ore

lik

ely

to v

oic

e u

nhappin

ess o

r concern

and m

ention

issues d

irectly r

ela

ted to the fin

ancia

l burd

en o

f th

e incre

ased

expense o

f payin

g a

pro

fessio

nal com

pare

d to respondents

w

ith h

igher in

com

es. N

ote

: Verb

atim

responses w

ere

coded b

y a

third-p

art

y b

lind to the s

pecific

purp

ose o

f th

e researc

h.

Q29.W

e w

ould

lik

e to b

etter unders

tand y

our

opin

ions o

n the p

ote

ntial im

pact th

at dis

continuin

g the s

ale

of R

-134a m

ight

have. W

hat w

ould

this

mean to y

ou? P

lease b

e a

s s

pecific

as p

ossib

le. C

A r

espondents

n=400.

Califo

rnia

16

13

12

15

11

11

13

Will Accept/Pay for Professional Recharge

16

11

410

11

910

No Impact/No Concern

14

10

10

13

13

711

Purchase by Alternative Means or Stockpile

812

79

910

9Inappropriate Government Meddling

36

66

63

5Positive Reaction

813

21

13

724

14

Burden of Increased Expense

25

25

25

22

23

32

25

Unhappy/Concerned

14

19

21

17

20

18

18

No Answer/Don't Know

83

36

32

4Other

Motivated to Save Money

Personal Income

Tota

l

(%)

216

More than

$50,000

(%)

96

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

(%)

88

Less

than

$30,000

Not an

Important

Reason

One of Most

Important

Reasons

Most

Important

Reason

(%)

120

(%)

144

(%)

136

(%)

400

Base:

28


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e

Q11. W

e w

ill show

you a

lis

t of re

asons that could

be u

sed to indic

ate

why s

om

e p

eople

lik

e y

ou c

hoose to c

om

ple

te this

job

them

selv

es. H

ow

im

port

ant is

each o

f th

ese r

easons is to y

ou? C

Are

spondents

n=400.

DIY

ers

appear to

be h

ighly

motivate

d to reduce e

xpenses a

s 6

in 1

0 respondents

rate

d ‘It is less e

xpensiv

e’as a

‘very

im

port

ant’

reason for com

ple

ting this

job them

selv

es. Sta

tistical analy

ses

confirm

ed that th

e im

port

ance o

f ‘It is

less

expensiv

e’w

as rate

d s

ignific

antly h

igher th

an a

ll o

ther m

otivating facto

rs.

32%

60%

49%

47%

46%

47%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

I can’t a

fford

to h

ave the job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian

I enjo

y w

ork

ing o

n m

y v

ehic

le

It s

aves tim

e

I can d

o just as g

ood a

job a

s a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian

It is m

ore

convenie

nt

It is less e

xpensiv

e

Califo

rnia

Mean, Std

.

4.4

5, 0.7

7

4.2

3, 0.8

9

4.2

4, 0.8

4

4.2

1, 0.8

9

4.1

6, 0.9

6

3.6

7, 1.2

0

Perc

enta

ge o

f re

spondents

who r

ate

each ite

m ‘very

im

port

ant’.

29


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e

Exam

ined b

y p

ers

onal in

com

e, w

e o

bserv

e a

sig

nific

ant dir

ectional tr

end w

ith respondents

with incom

es less than $

30,0

00

more

fre

quently c

itin

g ‘It is less e

xpensiv

e’as a

‘very

im

port

ant’

motivating facto

r th

an respondents

with incom

es g

reate

r th

an $

50,0

00 (73%

vs. 56%

, re

spectively

). There

is a

lso a

marg

inal directional tr

end that suggests

that re

spondents

with

incom

es less than $

30,0

00 m

ore

fre

quently c

ite ‘I can’t a

fford

to h

ave the job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive

technic

ian a

s a

‘very

im

port

ant’

motivating facto

r th

an r

espondents

with incom

es g

reate

r th

an $

50,0

00 (42%

vs. 29%

, re

spectively

).

Q11. W

e w

ill show

you a

lis

t of re

asons that could

be u

sed to indic

ate

why s

om

e p

eople

lik

e y

ou c

hoose to c

om

ple

te this

job

them

selv

es. H

ow

im

port

ant is

each o

f th

ese r

easons is to y

ou? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

49

40

50

47

It saves time

51

34

51

47

I can do just as good a job as a professional automotive technician

50

38

56

49

It is more convenient

56

57

73

60

It is less expensive

50

38

47

46

I enjoy working on my vehicle

Personal Income

Tota

l

29

29

42

32

I can’t afford to have the job completed by a professional automotive

technician

More than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

Perc

enta

ge o

f re

spondents

who r

ate

each ite

m ‘very

im

port

ant’.

30


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e

Analy

ses c

onfirm

that re

spondents

with incom

es less than $

30,0

00

rate

d ‘It is less e

xpensiv

e’and ‘I can’t a

fford

to h

ave the

job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian’to

be o

f hig

her im

port

ance than respondents

fro

m h

igher in

com

es

(i.e

., those w

ith incom

es g

reate

r th

an $

50,0

00).

Q11. W

e w

ill show

you a

lis

t of re

asons that could

be u

sed to indic

ate

why s

om

e p

eople

lik

e y

ou c

hoose to c

om

ple

te this

job

them

selv

es. H

ow

im

port

ant is

each o

f th

ese r

easons is to y

ou? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

3.53

(1.25)

3.72

(1.07)

3.9

3(1.18)

3.67

(1.20)


technician

(0.82)

(0.74)

(0.68)

(0.77)

4.38

4.44

4.6

44.45


Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

Mean im

port

ance ratings. S

td p

rovid

ed in p

are

nth

esis

.

31


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e: C

ost of Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q17. To w

hat exte

nt did

the c

ost of havin

g this

work

com

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian influence y

our

decis

ion to s

tart

doin

g this

type o

f w

ork

yours

elf? C

A r

espondents

n=375.

One-t

hird o

f re

spondents

indic

ate

d that th

e c

ost of pro

fessio

nal w

ork

was the m

ost im

port

ant re

ason that th

ey d

ecid

ed to

sta

rt d

oin

g the job them

selv

es. M

ore

over, the c

ost of pro

fessio

nal serv

ice influenced a

ppro

xim

ate

ly 9

in 1

0 respondents

’(8

7%

) decis

ion.

13%

33%

17%

37%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

It d

id n

ot in

fluence m

y

decis

ion a

t all

It influenced m

y d

ecis

ion

but w

as n

ot one o

f th

e

most im

port

It w

as o

ne o

f th

e m

ost

import

ant re

asons

It w

as the m

ost

import

ant re

ason

Califo

rnia

32


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e: C

ost of Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

The p

attern

of re

sponses d

id n

ot vary

by p

ers

onal in

com

e level. H

ow

ever,

respondents

who indic

ate

d that th

ey w

ould

lik

ely

have to g

o w

ithout a fully functional A

C s

yste

m o

r find a

ltern

ative m

eans to a

cquir

e R

-134a w

ere

sig

nific

antly m

ore

lik

ely

to

sta

te that cost w

as the m

ost im

port

ant re

ason to s

tart

doin

g this

job them

selv

es c

om

pare

d to r

espondents

who s

uggeste

d

that th

ey w

ould

lik

ely

pay a

pro

fessio

nal if R

-134a w

as b

anned.

Q17. To w

hat exte

nt did

the c

ost of havin

g this

work

com

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian influence y

our

decis

ion to s

tart

doin

g this

type o

f w

ork

yours

elf? C

A r

espondents

n=375.

41

24

33

It was the most important reason

12

22

17

It influenced my decision but was not one of the most important reasons

35

39

37

It was one of the most important reasons

12

15

13

It did not influence my decision at all

Reaction to Product Removal

Tota

l

Likely Go

Without/ Find

Alternatives

Likely Pay

Professional

(%)

184

(%)

191

(%)

375

Base:

Califo

rnia

33


Incid

ence o

f Past Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e A

mong C

urr

ent D

IYers

Q16. H

ave y

ou e

ver

had y

our

curr

ent vehic

le’s

or a p

revio

us v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m r

echarg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian (e.g

., a

t your

deale

r or an a

uto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

r)?

CA

respondents

n=400.

Only

about half the r

espondents

(51%

) re

port

ed they h

ad e

ver

paid

for a p

rofe

ssio

nal re

charg

e in the p

ast. T

his

pro

port

ion

was s

lightly low

er (i.e

., 4

3%

) am

ong respondents

who e

arn

less than $

30,0

00.

Califo

rnia

43%

6%

51%Y

es

No

Can't R

ecall

42

42

48

43

No

63

96

Can’t recall

52

55

43

51

Yes

Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

34


Accepta

ble

Price for Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

Q19. Is

there

a p

rice a

t w

hic

h y

ou w

ould

consid

er

havin

g y

our

air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

About one-t

hird o

f re

spondents

(32%

) re

port

ed that th

ere

is n

o p

rice a

t w

hic

h they w

ould

consid

er havin

g their A

C s

yste

m

pro

fessio

nally r

echarg

ed. This

pro

port

ion incre

ases to a

bout 4 in 1

0 (41%

) am

ong respondents

who e

arn

less than $

30,0

00.

Califo

rnia

32%

68%

Yes

No

29

32

41

32

No

71

68

59

68

Yes

Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

35


Willingness to P

ay for Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q19b. O

k, at w

hat price w

ould

you c

onsid

er havin

g this

job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian? C

A

respondents

n=269.

Am

ong r

espondents

who w

ould

consid

er payin

g for a p

rofe

ssio

nal re

charg

e, th

e m

ean p

rice o

f entr

y a

ppears

to b

e a

bout

$30 ($31.5

6). R

esearc

h o

n m

ark

et prices for pro

fessio

nal serv

ices reveale

d that prices range fro

m $

70.0

0 to $

200.0

0

dependin

g o

n location, vehic

le type, and a

mount of re

frig

era

nt re

quired (w

eig

hte

d m

ean =

$147.0

1). T

here

is a

gre

at div

ide,

there

fore

, betw

een w

illingness to p

ay a

nd m

ark

et price (i.e., $

32.5

6 v

s. $147.0

1).

18%

20%

15%

30%

14%

3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

$50 a

nd o

ver

$40 to $

49

$30 to $

39

$20 to $

29

$10 to $

19

Under $10

Califo

rnia

Mean =

$31.5

6, Std

=15.9

6

Media

n =

$30.0

0

36


Willingness to P

ay for Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Exam

ined b

y incom

e, a d

irectional tr

end e

merg

es w

ith respondents

with incom

es less than $

30,0

00 r

eport

ing low

er

accepta

ble

price p

oin

ts than respondents

with h

igher in

com

es.

Q19b. O

k, at w

hat price w

ould

you c

onsid

er havin

g this

job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian? C

A

respondents

n=269.

Califo

rnia

31.47

34.78

27.74

31.44

Mean

16

23

18

18

$50 and over

Personal Income

Tota

l

15.73

16

21

30

17

(%)

153

More than

$50,000

16.25

15

23

28

11

(%)

65

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

15.13

10

12

35

25

(%)

51

Less than

$30,000

15

$40 to $49

30

$20 to $29

17

Under $20

15.96

Std.

20

$30 to $39

(%)

269

Base:

37


Possib

le O

utc

om

es to R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Q28a. If for som

e reason it becam

e illegal in

your

sta

te to s

ell c

ans o

f R

-134a to d

o-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou, how

would

you

choose to m

ain

tain

your vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m a

ssum

ing this

was r

equir

ed?

CA

respondents

n=400.

About half the respondents

(51%

) suggeste

d that th

ey w

ould

not pay for pro

fessio

nal w

ork

. A

bout 4 in 1

0 respondents

(3

9%

) suggeste

d that th

ey w

ould

look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a a

nd a

bout 1 in 1

0 (12%

) suggeste

d they w

ould

have to g

o w


C s

yste

m.

12%

49%

39%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

I w

ould

lik

ely

go w

ithout a

fully

functional air

conditio

nin

g s

yste

m

I w

ould

look into

oth

er

ways

of obta

inin

g r-1

34a

I w

ould

pay a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian to

serv

ice

Califo

rnia

38


Possib

le O

utc

om

es to R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Exam

ined b

y p

ers

onal in

com

e, re

spondents

who e

arn

less than $

30,0

00 a

ppear to

be m

ore

lik

ely

to look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a (and less lik

ely

to p

ay for pro

fessio

nal w

ork

than r

espondents

with h

igher pers

onal in

com

es. Part

icula

rly

str

ikin

g, w

hen e

xam

ined b

y the im

port

ance o

f savin

g m

oney a

s a

motivating facto

r fo

r com

ple

ting D

IY recharg

es, alm

ost

half the respondents

who indic

ate

d that savin

g m

oney w

as the m

ost im

port

ant re

ason (46%

) in

dic

ate

d that th

ey w

ould

lik

ely

go w


C s

yste

m.

Q28a. If for som

e reason it becam

e illegal in

your

sta

te to s

ell c

ans o

f R

-134a to d

o-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou, how

would

you

choose to m

ain

tain

your vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m a

ssum

ing this

was r

equir

ed?

CA

respondents

n=400.Califo

rnia

35

36

46

14

10

10

12

I would likely go without a fully

functional air conditioning system

58

53

36

51

51

41

49

I would pay a professional

automotive technician to service


Personal Income

Tota

l

35

(%)

216

More than

$50,000

39

(%)

96

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

49

(%)

88

Less than

$30,000

711

18

39

I would look into other ways of

obtaining R-134a

Not an

Important

Reason

One of Most

Important

Reasons

Most

Important

Reason

(%)

120

(%)

144

(%)

136

(%)

400

Base:

39


Report

ed A

ltern

ative W

ays o

f O

bta

inin

g R

-134a

Q28b.You m

entioned that you w

ould

look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a if do-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou w

ere

unable

to

purc

hase it in

your

sta

te. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing w

ould

you m

ostlikely

try

to d

o? S

ele

ct all that apply

. C

A r

espondents

n=156.

Am

ong r

espondents

who s

uggeste

d that th

ey w

ould

look for altern

ative w

ays to o

bta

in R

-134a, slightly m

ore

than h

alf (54%

) sta

ted they w

ould

try

to p

urc

hase the p

roduct out of sta

te a

nd n

early a

sim

ilar pro

port

ion (47%

) suggeste

d they w

ould

attem

pt to

sto

ckpile R

-134a p

rior to

a s

ale

s b

an.

10%

28%

21%

29%

47%

54%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Oth

er

I w

ould

try

to fin

d a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian o

r

serv

ice c

ente

r th

at w

ould

sell

r-134a d

espite the legal

issues involv

ed

I w

ould

try

to p

urc

hase r

-134a o

ut of countr

y (onlin

e o

r in

-

pers

on)

I w

ould

try

to locate

indiv

iduals

or

reta

il outlets

that w

ere

will

ing to s

ell

r-134a d

espite the legal is

sues involv

ed

I w

ould

try

to p

urc

hase r-1

34a fro

m o

ld s

tock p

rior

to the

intr

oduction o

f any n

ew

law

I w

ould

try

to p

urc

hase r-1

34a o

ut of sta

te (onlin

e o

r in

-

pers

on)

Califo

rnia

40


Report

ed A

ltern

ative W

ays o

f O

bta

inin

g R

-134a

Exam

ined b

y p

ers

onal in

com

e, slightly h

igher pro

port

ions o

f re

spondents

with incom

es less than $

30,0

00 s

uggest th

at th

ey

would

try

to p

urc

hase R

-134a o

ut of sta

te o

r tr

y to s

tockpile the p

roduct prior to

a s

ale

s b

an c

om

pare

d to respondents

with

hig

her in

com

es.

Q28b.You m

entioned that you w

ould

look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a if D

IYers

lik

e y

ou w

ere

unable

to p

urc

hase it in

your

sta

te. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing w

ould

you m

ost likely

try

to d

o? S

ele

ct all that apply

. C

A r

espondents

n=156.C

alifo

rnia

32

24

30

29

I would try to locate individuals or retail outlets that were willing to sell R-134a despite

the legal issues involved

46

43

53

47

I would try to purchase R-134a from old stock prior to the introduction of any new law

54

46

63

54

I would try to purchase R-134a out of state

18

16

28

21

I would try to find a professional automotive technician or service center that would

sell R-134a despite the legal issues involved

24

35

30

28

I would try to purchase R-134a out of country

Personal Income

Tota

l

13

(%)

76

More than

$50,000

8

(%)

37

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

5

(%)

43

Less than

$30,000

10

Other

(%)

156

Base:

41


Negative Im

pact on P

roduct U

sage

Q28c.In

your

opin

ion, do y

ou thin

k that havin

g to p

urc

hase R

-134a b

y these m

eans w

ould

contr

ibute

to p

roble

ms u

sin

g the

pro

duct (i.e

., m

isapplication o

r im

pro

per use)?

I thin

k the n

um

ber of pro

ble

ms w

ould

lik

ely

…C

A r

espondents

n=156.

Am

ong r

espondents

who s

uggeste

d that th

ey w

ould

look for altern

ative w

ays to o

bta

in R

-134a,one-thir

d report

that th

ey

thin

k o

bta

inin

g R

-134a b

y s

uch a

ltern

ative m

eans is lik

ely

to incre

ase the m

isuse o

f th

e p

roduct.

9%

53%

4%

34%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Don’t k

now

/Not sure

Decre

ase

Sta

y the s

am

e

Incre

ase

Califo

rnia

42


Respondent Pro

file

: D

IY B

ehavio

r

Just over half the r

espondents

(55%

) in

dic

ate

that th

ey c

om

ple

teth

e m

ajo

rity

of th

e m

ain

tenance s

erv

ices a

nd repairs for

their v

ehic

le them

selv

es. This

pro

port

ion incre

ases to a

bout 6 in 1

0 (61%

) am

ong respondents

who s

tate

d that th

e

motivation to s

ave m

oney w

as the m

ost im

port

ant re

ason they d

ecid

ed to s

erv

ice their v

ehic

le’s

AC

syste

m them

selv

es a

nd

am

ong respondents

who s

uggeste

d that th

ey w

ould

lik

ely

go w


C s

yste

m o

r lo

ok for oth

er w

ays to

find R

-134a if th

e p

roduct w

as b

anned.

Q4. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes the w

ay y

ou g

o a

bout serv

icin

g a

nd m

ain

tain

ing y

our

vehic

le?

CA

respondents

n=400.

Reaction to Product Removal


Tota

l

61

39

47

53

53

48

50

50

61

39

55

45

I complete the majority of the basic

maintenance services and repairs

I complete some basic maintenance

services and/or some repairs

Likely Go

Without/ Find

Alternatives

Likely Pay

Professional

Not an

Important

Reason

One of Most

Important

Reasons

Most

Important

Reason

(%)

195

(%)

120

(%)

144

(%)

205

(%)

136

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

43


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le P

assengers

Q32.D

o o

ther in

div

iduals

occasio

nally rid

e in y

our

vehic

le w

ith y

ou? S

ele

ct all that apply

. C

A r

espondents

n=400.

The p

attern

of re

sponses indic

ate

s that m

any o

ther in

div

iduals

oth

er th

an the r

espondent (i.e

., v

ehic

le d

river)

could

be

affecte

d b

y h

avin

g to u

se a

vehic

le w


C s

yste

m. In

div

iduals

who a

re m

ost vuln

era

ble

to e

xtr

em

e

heat such a

s y

oung c

hildre

n a

nd s

enio

rs a

re fre

quently c

ited a

s v

ehic

le p

assengers

(42%

and 2

2%

respectively

).

5%

27%

22%

42%

72%

79%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

No o

ne

Indiv

iduals

over th

e a

ge o

f 65

Pet(s)

Young c

hild

ren

Friends

Fam

ily m

em

bers

Califo

rnia

44


Aw

are

ness o

f Pote

ntial R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Part

icip

ation in this

surv

ey w

as lik

ely

to rais

e the level of aw

are

ness o

r suspic

ion o

f a p

ote

ntial ban o

f th

e reta

il s

ale

of

R-1

34a. For th

is r

eason, it is lik

ely

that m

ore

than 4

4 p

erc

ent ofre

spondents

were

unaw

are

of a p

ote

ntial sale

s b

an.

There

fore

, 44 p

erc

ent re

pre

sents

a v

ery

conserv

ative e

stim

ate

ofth

e p

roport

ion o

f pro

duct users

who a

re n

ot aw

are

of th

e

pote

ntial sale

s b

an. In

tere

stingly

, re

spondents

with incom

es less than $

30,0

00 w

ere

the o

nly

respondent gro

up to b

e m

ore

likely

to report

that th

ey a

re u

naw

are

of th

e p

ote

ntial pro

duct ban than a

ware

of it (56%

vs. 44%

, re

spectively

). It is

part

icula

rly inte

resting that th

e m

ost vuln

era

ble

end-u

ser gro

up m

ay b

e the least in

form

ed o

f a p

ote

ntial pro

duct ban.

Q39.A

re y

ou a

ware

that som

e s

tate

govern

ments

within

the U

S a

re c

onsid

ering b

annin

g the s

ale

of auto

motive a

ir

conditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt R

-134a? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

Califo

rnia

41

42

56

44

No

59

58

44

56

Yes

Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

44%

56%

Yes

No

45


Exam

inin

g E

nd-U

sers

by A

ge a

nd P

ers

onal In

com

e

Exam

ined b

y a

ge, th

e m

ajo

rity

of lo

w incom

e respondents

(65%

) are

betw

een 1

8 a

nd 2

9 y

ears

old

.

Q1. In

whic

h o

f th

ese g

roups d

oes y

our

age fall? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

12

43

850 to 59 years

20

15

716

40 to 49 years

36

29

24

32

30 to 39 years

32

52

65

44

18 to 29 years

00

10

60 to 65 years

Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

46


Exam

inin

g E

nd-U

sers

by E

mplo

ym

ent Sta

tus a

nd P

ers

onal In

com

e

Exam

ined b

y e

mplo

ym

ent sta

tus, lo

w incom

e respondents

were

less lik

ely

to b

e e

mplo

yed full tim

e (41%

com

pare

d to 7

2%

and 8

2%

). A

bout one-q

uart

er of lo

w incom

e respondents

are

stu

dents

while a

n a

dditio

nal 16 p

erc

ent are

em

plo

yed p

art

-tim

e.

Q36. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes y

our

curr

ent em

plo

ym

ent sta

tus? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

59

24

10

Student

44

64

Homemaker

513

16

9Employed part time

82

72

41

71

Employed full tim

e

31

53

Retired

Personal Income

Tota

l

11

93

Unemployed

More than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

47


Exam

inin

g E

nd-U

sers

by E

ducation a

nd P

ers

onal In

com

e

Exam

ined b

y h

ighest le

vel of education c

om

ple

ted, lo

w incom

e r

espondents

are

the least likely

to h

ave c

om

ple

ted c

ollege

or

univ

ers

ity (17%

com

pare

d to 3

6%

and 4

2%

).

Q37. W

hat is

the h

ighest le

vel of education that you h

ave c

om

ple

ted? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

42

36

17

35

Completed college/university

32

31

61

38

Some college/university

613

78

Completed high school

11

52

Some high school

19

18

816

Post graduate or professional degree

Personal Income

Tota

l

01

21

Other

More than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

48


Exam

inin

g E

nd-U

sers

by M

arita

l Sta

tus a

nd P

ers

onal In

com

e

Exam

ined b

y m

arita

l sta

tus, about tw

o-thir

ds o

f lo

w incom

e r

espondents

(64%

) are

sin

gle

.

Q34a. W

hat is

your

marita

l sta

tus? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

25

52

64

40

Single

55

75

Divorced/Separated/Widowed

71

43

30

55

Married/Common-law

Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

49


Exam

inin

g E

nd-U

sers

by V

ehic

le S

egm

ent and P

ers

onal In

com

e

Exam

ined b

y v

ehic

le s

egm

ent, low

incom

e respondents

are

more

lik

ely

to o

wn s

mall c

ars

(34%

) th

an r

espondents

fro

m the

hig

hest in

com

e level (1

7%

). C

onvers

ely

, re

spondents

fro

m the h

ighest in

com

e level are

more

lik

ely

to o

wn luxury

cars

(17%

) com

pare

d to respondents

fro

m the low

est in

com

e levels

(2%

).

Q7. You indic

ate

d that you r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt w

ithin

the p

ast 12 m

onth

s. W

hat is

the m

ake,

model and y

ear

of th

is v

ehic

le? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

65

56

Luxury SUV/CUV

13

16

713

SUV/CUV

910

10

10

Specialty Car

95

10

9Pickup Truck

13

62

9Luxury Car

25

21

18

23

Med & Large Car

17

28

34

24

Small Car

54

75

Van

Personal Income

Tota

l

24

74

Other

More than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

50


Exam

inin

g E

nd-U

sers

by E

thnic

ity a

nd P

ers

onal In

com

e

No tre

nds e

merg

ed o

n the b

asis

of eth

nic

ity a

nd p

ers

onal in

com

e.

Q38. A

nd a

re y

ou…

CA

respondents

n=400.

51

34

African American

21

24

18

21

Asian

12

17

18

15

Hispanic

57

50

48

53

Caucasian

34

74

Some other ethnicity

Personal Income

Tota

l

24

64

Decline to respond

More than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

216

(%)

96

(%)

88

(%)

400

Base:

Califo

rnia

51


Table

of C

onte

nts

•Recommendations and Issues of Concern



•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




52


•One of the primary objectives of this research was to explore the opportunities for improved product

usage and customer education.

•To this end, we investigated the extent to which users of R-134a products search out and use various

sources of information.

•The d

ata

str

ongly

suggest th

at D

IYers

are

hig

hly

motivate

d to learn

how

to c

om

ple

te

auto

motive repairs a

nd s

erv

ices c

orr

ectly a

nd m

ore

specific

ally,m

ake g

reat effort

s to take

the n

ecessary

actions to a

void

pro

duct m

isuse.

•For th

ese r

easons F

rost &

Sulliv

an c

onclu

des that any e

ffort

s m

ade b

y the A

RPI to

im

pro

ve c

urr

ent R

-134a p

roduct in

str

uctions o

r to

incre

ase the e

xposure

or availability o

f pro

duct in

str

uctions w

ill have a

n im

pact on p

roduct usage.

Opport

unitie

s for Im

pro

ved U

sage

Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Fem

ale

Age:40 to 4

9 y

ears

Marital Status:M

arr

ied/C

om

mon-law

Employm

ent Status:Em

plo

yed full-tim

e

Education:O

ther

(technic

al school)


00 to less than $

75,0

00


00 to less than $

75,0

00

Region: S

outh

“If people are going to misuse a

product they will find ways to do

so regardless of what the law

says. In the mean time the

"laws" are making criminals out

of people who have every

intention of using it properly.”

53


DIY

er Educational Sourc

es U

sed

Q10. W

e a

re inte

reste

d in b

etter unders

tandin

g h

ow

people

lik

e y

ou learn

to c

om

ple

te v

ari

ous v

ehic

le m

ain

tenance s

erv

ices

and r

epair

s. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing s

ourc

es o

f in

form

ation h

ave y

ou u

sed? S

ele

ct all that apply

. C

A r

espondents

n=400.

The r

espondents

appear to

be p

art

icula

rly m

otivate

d to learn

about D

IYer behavio

rs a

nd report

the u

se o

f m

any d

ivers

e

sourc

es o

f educational m

ate

rials

and s

ourc

es. Fri

ends o

r fa

mily m

em

bers

and d

o-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive m

agazi

nes a

nd

books a

re a

mong the m

ost fr

equently r

esourc

es c

ited.

9%

64%

29%

22%

30%3

3%

33%

37%

46%

51%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Oth

er

Auto

motive reta

iler

websites

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive r

eta

il outlets

Auto

motive (O

E) m

anufa

ctu

rer

websites

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

rs

Oth

er

auto

motive d

o-it-

yours

elfers

Pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ians

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive w

ebsites

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive m

agazin

es/b

ooks

Friends o

r fa

mily

mem

bers

Califo

rnia

54


Sourc

e o

f First In

form

ation o

n D

IYer R

echarg

e

Q20.H

ow

did

you first le

arn

that you c

ould

purc

hase R

-134a p

roducts

and recharg

e y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m

yours

elf? D

id y

ou learn

fro

m a

(n)…

? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

Half (50%

) of all r

espondents

indic

ate

d that th

ey r

elied o

n friends / fam

ily for in

form

ation o

n D

IYer re

charg

e. A

fter fr

iends

and fam

ily, pro

fessio

nal sourc

es o

f in

form

ation r

eceiv

ed the s

om

ew

hat hig

her m

entions.

10%

49%

13%

11%

14%15%

18%

24%25%

28%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Oth

ers

Auto

motive (O

E) m

anufa

ctu

rer

website

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

r

Auto

motive reta

iler

website

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive r

eta

il outlet

Oth

er

auto

motive d

o-it-

yours

elfer

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive w

ebsite

Pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive m

agazin

e/b

ook

Friend o

r fa

mily

mem

ber

Califo

rnia

55


Use o

f Pro

duct In

str

uctions

Q21.D

o y

ou follow

the instr

uctions p

rovid

ed w

ith R

-134a p

roducts

when y

ou r

echarg

e y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g

syste

m? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

The v

ast m

ajo

rity

(90%

) of re

spondents

indic

ate

d that th

ey follow

ed instr

uctions p

rovid

ed w

ith R

-134a p

roducts

.

Califo

rnia

10%

90%

Yes

No

56


Aw

are

ness o

f Pote

ntial C

onsequences to P

roduct M

isuse

Q30a.A

re y

ou a

ware

of any p

ote

ntially n

egative c

onsequences that can r

esult fro

m r

ele

asin

g R

-134a into

the a

tmosphere

?C

A r

espondents

n=400.

Just over half the r

espondents

(56%

) w

ere

aw

are

of th

e p

ote

ntialnegative c

onsequences o

f re

leasin

g R

-134a into

the

atm

osphere

. This

suggests

there

is a

n e

norm

ous p

ote

ntial to

better in

form

end-u

sers

regard

ing the c

onsequences o

f pro

duct m

isuse.

44%

56%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

No

Yes

Califo

rnia

57


Pre

cautions A

gain

st M

isuse

Q30b.W

hen y

ou w

ork

on y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m, w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing p

recautions d

oyou take to reduce the

likelihood o

f re

leasin

g R

-134a into

the a

tmosphere

? S

ele

ct all that apply

. C

A r

espondents

n=223.

The v

ast m

ajo

rity

of re

spondents

undert

ake a

dditio

nal pre

cautions a

gain

st m

isuse: A

lmost 6 in 1

0 r

espondents

(57%

) m

entioned a

dditio

nal care

while h

andling their v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m w

hile 4

in 1

0 respondents

(41%

) re

port

ed

com

ple

ting a

dditio

nal re

searc

h regard

ing h

ow

to p

roperly r

echarg

e the R

-134a in their v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m.

This

pro

vid

es c

onverg

ent evid

ence for th

e e

norm

ous p

ote

ntial to

better in

form

end-u

sers

regard

ing the p

ote

ntial

consequences o

f pro

duct m

isuse.

4%

57%

41%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Oth

er

I lo

oked for additio

nal

info

rmation a

bout how

to

pro

perly recharg

e a

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m

befo

re I c

om

ple

ted this

job

I am

part

icula

rly c

are

ful w

hen

I w

ork

on m

y v

ehic

le’s

air

conditio

nin

g s

yste

m to m

ake

sure

no r-1

34a is rele

ased

into

the a

tmosphere

Califo

rnia

58


Table

of C

onte

nts




•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




59


Most R

ecent R

efr

igera

nt Pro

ducts

Purc

hased

Q12. O

n the m

ost re

cent occasio

n that you p

urc

hased a

ir c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt pro

ducts

, did

you p

urc

hase a

pre

-packaged

refr

igera

nt re

charg

ing k

it (e.g

., c

onte

nts

may inclu

de refr

igera

nt, o

il, sto

p leak, fittin

gs, re

charg

e h

ose a

nd p

ressure

gauge) or

separa

te p

roducts

inclu

din

g R

-134a?

CA

respondents

n=400.

Half (50%

) of all r

espondents

indic

ate

d that th

ey p

urc

hased the e

ntire

pre

-packaged refr

igera

nt re

charg

ing k

it o

n their m

ost

recent purc

hase, w

hile 4

in 1

0 (38%

) re

port

ed p

urc

hasin

g just th

e R

-134a c

an.

Califo

rnia

38%

12%

50%

Recharg

ing K

itR

-134a

Don't K

now

/C

an't R

ecall

60


Report

ed P

rice p

er C

an

Q14. A

ppro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

much d

id y

ou p

ay for each c

an o

f R

-134a? C

A r

espondents

n=199.

Four

of te

n r

espondents

report

ed s

pends o

f up to $

5.0

0 for th

e p

urc

hase o

f a R

-134a c

an.

17%

40%

4%

6%

8%

11%12%

12%

17%

10%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Don't k

now

/Can’t recall

$30.0

0 o

r m

ore

$25.0

0 to less than $

30.0

0

$20.0

0 to less than $

25.0

0

$15.0

0 to less than $

20.0

0

$12.5

0 to less than $

15.0

0

$10.0

0 to less than $

12.5

0

$7.5

0 to less than $

10.0

0

$5.0

0 to less than $

7.5

0

Less than $

5.0

0

Califo

rnia

Mean =

$14.2

0 , S

td =

7.5

8

61


Typic

al Purc

hase

Q15. W

hen y

ou p

urc

hase a

ir c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt pro

ducts

do y

ou u

sually p

urc

hase a

recharg

ing k

it o

r separa

te p

roducts

in

clu

din

g R

-134a? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

When q

uestioned a

bout th

eir typic

al purc

hase, 42 p

erc

ent in

dic

ate

d that th

ey typic

ally p

urc

hased the recharg

ing k

it o

nly

w

hile 3

7 p

erc

ent purc

hased the R

-134a c

an o

nly

.

Califo

rnia

37%

21%

42%

Recharg

ing k

itR

-134a

Only

purc

hased o

nce

62


Perc

eiv

ed M

ark

et Price for Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

Q18. A

ppro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

much w

ould

you e

xpect to

pay to h

ave y

our

air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian?

CA

respondents

n=400.

A b

road r

ange o

f prices w

ere

mentioned b

y r

espondents

, w

ith a

quart

er in

dic

ating a

mark

et pri

ce o

f over

$80 for

pro

fessio

nal re

charg

e. M

any e

nd-u

sers

will, there

fore

, experience s

tick s

hock in response to a

ctu

al m

ark

et prices ($150).

8%

8%

26%

11%

13%

15%

9%

8%

3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

Don’t k

now

$80 o

r m

ore

$70 to less than $

80

$60 to less than $

70

$50 to less than $

60

$40 to less than $

50

$30 to less than $

40

$20 to less than $

30

Less than $

20

Califo

rnia

Mean =

$58.6

5 , S

td =

21.7

2

63


Table

of C

onte

nts




•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




64


Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Male

Age:30 to 3

9 y

ears

Marital Status:M

arr

ied/C

om

mon-law

Employm

ent Status:Em

plo

yed p

art

-tim

e

Education:S

om

e c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity


00 to less than $

30,0

00


00 to less than $

40,0

00


ould

look into

oth

er

ways o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a

Region:N

ort

heast

Testim

onia

ls* fr

om

those A

ffecte

d…

Ethnicity:

Caucasia

n

Gender:

Fem

ale

Age:18 to 2

9 y

ears

Marital Status:M

arr

ied/C

om

mon-law

Employm

ent Status:Em

plo

yed p

art

-tim

e

Education:C

om

ple

ted s

om

e c

ollege/u

niv

ers

ity

Personal Income:Less than $

20,0

00


00 to less than $

40,0

00


ould

pay a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian to s

erv

ice

Region:N

ort

heast

“Just another law to screw the

average middle class of trying to

save some money. Last time I

took it to "PepBoys" for a charge

the price was 180.00. Never

again will I pay that it only

prompted me on asking friends

(one of which is a mechanic) on

how to do it myself.

Unbelievable on just how easy it

is!!!”

“this would mean that i

would have to spend more

money that i probably

wouldn't be able to afford

to maintain my air

conditioning system.”

National


65


Testim

onia

ls* C

oded b

y R

esponse C

ate

gory

Q29.W

e w

ould

lik

e to b

etter unders

tand y

our

opin

ions o

n the p

ote

ntial im

pact th

at dis

continuin

g the s

ale

of R

-134a m

ight

have. W

hat w

ould

this

mean to y

ou? P

lease b

e a

s s

pecific

as p

ossib

le. N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

Nationally, attribute

s r

ela

ted to b

urd

en o

f cost re

ceiv

ed the h

ighest m

entions. A

dditio

nally, one in fiv

e respondents

expre

ssed e

ither unhappin

ess o

r concern

about th

e p

ossib

le d

iscontinuation o

f sale

of R

-134a.

National

18%

14%

22%

4%

4%

5%

7%

7%

10%

12%

18%

23%

22%

13%

11%

10%

9%

5%

3%

4%

0%

10%

20%

No a

nsw

er/

Dont know

Very

Unhappy / C

oncern

ed (str

ong m

entions)

Oth

er

Positiv

e reaction

Inappro

priate

govern

ment m

eddlin

g

No im

pact / No c

oncern

Will

get pro

duct by a

ltern

ative m

eans / s

tockpile

/

illegalll

y / a

ltern

ative p

roduct

Will

accept / go to p

rofe

ssio

nal to

do it

Unhappy / C

oncern

ed (any m

ention)

Burd

en o

f C

ost

CA

National

66


Sta

tem

ent about Pro

duct B

an: B

y T

opic

Cate

gory

Q29.W

e w

ould

lik

e to b

etter unders

tand y

our

opin

ions o

n the p

ote

ntial im

pact th

at dis

continuin

g the s

ale

of R

-134a m

ight

have. W

hat w

ould

this

National M

ean to y

ou? P

lease b

e a

s s

pecific

as p

ossib

le. N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

National by Region

Sub-Samples

21172511

16 7 8 2 5

(%)

150

Midwest

Tota

l

20172016 5 11 8 9 5

292127 7 9 6 7 3 3

17331812 8 5 6 6 4

222223

1210 7 7 5 4

2518141311

10 9 5 4

2320191210 8 8 5 4

Unhappy/Concerned

No answer/Don't know

Burden of Cost

Will accept/go to professional to do it

Will get the product by alternative means or

stockpile

No im

pact/No concern

Inappropriate government meddling

Positive reaction

Other

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

150

(%)

150

(%)

600

(%)

150

(%)

400

(%)

1000

Base:

67


Testim

onia

ls C

oded b

y R

esponse C

ate

gory

Q29.W

e w

ould

lik

e to b

etter unders

tand y

our

opin

ions o

n the p

ote

ntial im

pact th

at dis

continuin

g the s

ale

of R

-134a m

ight

have. W

hat w

ould

this

mean to y

ou? P

lease b

e a

s s

pecific

as p

ossib

le. N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

65

25

Positive reaction

610

67

Inappropriate government meddling

16

22

35

23

Burden of Cost

28

19

14

22

No answer/Don’t know

76

87

No im

pact/No concern

911

10

10

Will get the product by alternative means or stockpile

12

11

10

12

Will accept/go to professional to do it

22

22

21

22

Unhappy/Concerned (any mention)

26

64

Other

Personal Income

Tota

l

(%)

267

More than

$50,000

(%)

209

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

(%)

124

Less than

$30,000

(%)

600

Base:

Respondents

with incom

es less than $

30,0

00 w

ere

more

lik

ely

to m

ention issues r

ela

ted to the incre

ased fin

ancia

l burd

en o

f havin

g to p

ay for pro

fessio

nal serv

ices.

68


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e

Q11. W

e w

ill show

you a

lis

t of re

asons that could

be u

sed to indic

ate

why s

om

e p

eople

lik

e y

ou c

hoose to c

om

ple

te this

job

them

selv

es. H

ow

im

port

ant is

each o

f th

ese r

easons is to y

ou? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

Pote

ntial cost savin

gs (90%

) appear to

be the p

rim

ary

motivation

for D

IY r

echarg

es.

57%

69%

76%

82%

82%85%9

0%

87%

80%

79%

77%80%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

I can’t a

fford

to h

ave the job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian

I enjo

y w

ork

ing o

n m

y v

ehic

le

I can d

o just as g

ood a

job a

s a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive

technic

ian

It s

aves tim

e

It is m

ore

convenie

nt

It is less e

xpensiv

e

CA

National

69


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e

Q11. W

e w

ill show

you a

lis

t of re

asons that could

be u

sed to indic

ate

why s

om

e p

eople

lik

e y

ou c

hoose to c

om

ple

te this

job

them

selv

es. H

ow

im

port

ant is

each o

f th

ese r

easons is to y

ou? C

Are

spondents

n=400.

Califo

rnia

41

45

47

47

45

32

40

I can’t afford to have the job completed by a

professional automotive technician

43

41

48

49

46

46

46


50

53

51

51

51

47

50

I can do just as good a job as a professional

automotive technician

47

50

58

53

52

47

50

It saves time

49

54

61

50

54

49

52


National by Region

Sub-Samples

75

(%)

150

Midwest

Tota

l

67

73

62

69

60

66


West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

150

(%)

150

(%)

600

(%)

150

(%)

400

(%)

1000

Base:

Perc

enta

ge o

f re

spondents

who r

ate

each ite

m ‘very

im

port

ant’.

Com

pare

d to their c

ounte

rpart

s in C

alifo

rnia

, re

spondents

fro

m the N

ational sam

ple

were

more

lik

ely

to rate

cost savin

gs a

s

‘very

im

port

ant’

reason to c

om

ple

te the job them

selv

es (69%

vs. 60%

).

70


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e

Q11. W

e w

ill show

you a

lis

t of re

asons that could

be u

sed to indic

ate

why s

om

e p

eople

lik

e y

ou c

hoose to c

om

ple

te this

job

them

selv

es. H

ow

im

port

ant is

each o

f th

ese r

easons is to y

ou? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

50

51

57

52

It saves time

51

51

52

51

I can do just as good a job as a professional automotive technician

51

53

61

54


60

71

85

69


45

48

44

46


Personal Income

Tota

l

36

49

56

45


technician

More than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

267

(%)

209

(%)

124

(%)

600

Base:

National

Perc

enta

ge o

f re

spondents

who r

ate

each ite

m ‘very

im

port

ant’.

Exam

ined b

y incom

e level, a

dir

ectional tr

end e

merg

ed w

ith respondents

report

ing incom

es less than $

30,0

00 b

ein

g the

most likely

to r

ate

cost savin

gs a

s a

‘very

im

port

ant’

reason for com

ple

ting the job them

selv

es. M

ore

over, o

ver half the

respondents

fro

m the low

incom

e g

roup (56%

) re

port

ed that th

ey c

ould

not afford

to h

ave the job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian.

71


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e: C

ost of Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q17. To w

hat exte

nt did

the c

ost of havin

g this

work

com

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian influence y

our

decis

ion to s

tart

doin

g this

type o

f w

ork

yours

elf? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

Nationally, nearly h

alf (46%

) of th

e r

espondents

indic

ate

d that th

e c

ost of pro

fessio

nal w

ork

was the m

ost im

port

ant

motivation for doin

g it th

em

selv

es. A

n a

dditio

nal 3 in 1

0 r

espondents

(29%

) m

entioned that th

is w

as o

ne o

f th

e m

ost

import

ant re

asons for doin

g s

o.

13%

11%

14%

29%

46%

33%

17%

37%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

It d

id n

ot in

fluence m

y

decis

ion a

t all

It influenced m

y d

ecis

ion

but w

as n

ot one o

f th

e

most im

port

It w

as o

ne o

f th

e m

ost

import

ant re

asons

It w

as the m

ost im

port

ant

reason

CA

National

72


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e: C

ost of Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q17. To w

hat exte

nt did

the c

ost of havin

g this

work

com

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian influence y

our

decis

ion to s

tart

doin

g this

type o

f w

ork

yours

elf? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

49

29

10

12

146

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

52

24

14

10

145

45

30

12

13

148

46

29

14

11

582

38

34

18

10

143

33

37

17

13

375

41

32

15

12



It influenced my decision but was not one of

the most important


957

Base:

73


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e: C

ost of Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q17. To w

hat exte

nt did

the c

ost of havin

g this

work

com

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian influence y

our

decis

ion to s

tart

doin

g this

type o

f w

ork

yours

elf? N

ational re

spondents

n=375.

National

12

10

11

11


15

12

14

14

It influenced my decision but was not one of the most important

reasons

30

30

26

29


44

48

49

46


Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

264

(%)

201

(%)

117

(%)

582

Base:

74


Incid

ence o

f Past Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e A

mong C

urr

ent D

IYers

Q16. H

ave y

ou e

ver

had y

our

curr

ent vehic

le’s

or a p

revio

us v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m r

echarg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian (e.g

., a

t your

deale

r or an a

uto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

r)?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

43%

3%

54%

Yes

No

Can't R

ecall

Four

of te

n (43%

) re

spondents

had n

ever had their v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g recharg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal.

75


Incid

ence o

f Past Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e A

mong C

urr

ent D

IYers

Q16. H

ave y

ou e

ver

had y

our

curr

ent vehic

le’s

or a p

revio

us v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m r

echarg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian (e.g

., a

t your

deale

r or an a

uto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

r)?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

42

55 3

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

57

40 3

150

59

40 1

150

54

43 3

600

59

36 5

150

51

43 6

400

53

43 4

Yes

No

Can’t recall

1000

Base:

76


Incid

ence o

f Past Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e A

mong C

urr

ent D

IYers

Q16. H

ave y

ou e

ver

had y

our

curr

ent vehic

le’s

or a p

revio

us v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m r

echarg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian (e.g

., a

t your

deale

r or an a

uto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

r)?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

40

44

46

43

No

14

63

Can’t recall

59

52

48

54

Yes

Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

267

(%)

209

(%)

124

(%)

600

Base:

77


Accepta

ble

Price for Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

Q19. Is

there

a p

rice a

t w

hic

h y

ou w

ould

consid

er

havin

g y

our

air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

31%69%

Yes

No

Seven o

f te

n (69%

) re

spondents

were

willing to h

ave their c

ar air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal at

som

e p

rice.

78


Accepta

ble

Price for Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

Q19. Is

there

a p

rice a

t w

hic

h y

ou w

ould

consid

er

havin

g y

our

air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

66

34

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

69

31

150

66

34

150

70

31

600

77

23

150

68

32

400

69

31

Yes

No

1000

Base:

79


Accepta

ble

Price for Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

Q19. Is

there

a p

rice a

t w

hic

h y

ou w

ould

consid

er

havin

g y

our

air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

28

32

33

31

No

72

68

67

70

Yes

Personal Income

Tota

lMore than

$50,000

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

Less than

$30,000

(%)

267

(%)

209

(%)

124

(%)

600

Base:

80


18%

17%

16%

19%

29%

16%

2%

3%

14%

30%

15%

20%

0%

10%

20%

30%

$50 a

nd o

ver

$40 to $

49

$30 to $

39

$20 to $

29

$10 to $

19

Under $10

CA

National

Willingness to P

ay for Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q19b. O

k, at w

hat price w

ould

you c

onsid

er havin

g this

job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian? N

ational

respondents

n=417.

National

Mean =

$31.5

2, Std

= 1

6.0

7

Media

n =

$32

Nationally, re

spondents

were

willing to p

ay a

n a

vera

ge o

f $32 for a p

rofe

ssio

nal serv

ice .

81


Willingness to P

ay for Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q19b. O

k, at w

hat price w

ould

you c

onsid

er havin

g this

job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian? N

ational

respondents

n=687.

National

National M

ean =

$31.5

2 , S

td =

16.0

7

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

0 17

25

21

22

14

99

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

3 22

34

13

13

14

104

2

11

28

20

18

20

99

2

16

29

19

16

17

417

4 14

30

23

12

17

115

3 14

30

20

15

18

270

3

15

30

20

16

17

Under $10

$10 to $19

$20 to $29

$30 to $39

$40 to $49

$50 and over

687

Base:

82


Willingness to P

ay for Pro

fessio

nal W

ork

Q19b. O

k, at w

hat price w

ould

you c

onsid

er havin

g this

job c

om

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian? N

ational

respondents

n=600.

National

$33.6

$30.6

$29.7

$31.8

Mean

22

10

14

17

$50 and over

Personal Income

$16.3

17

16

31

15

(%)

191

More than

$50,000

$15.1

17

26

25

21

(%)

143

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

$16.6

13

17

33

22

(%)

83

Less than

$30,000

16

$40 to $49

29

$20 to $29

18

Under $20

$16.0

Std.

19

$30 to $39

(%)

417

Base:

83


Possib

le O

utc

om

es to R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Q28a. If for som

e reason it becam

e illegal in

your

sta

te to s

ell c

ans o

f R

-134a to d

o-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou, how

would

you

choose to m

ain

tain

your vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m a

ssum

ing this

was r

equir

ed?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

Nationally, 1 in 5

respondents

(19%

) re

port

ed they w

ould

lik

ely

go w

ithout a fully functional air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m in their

vehic

le. A

n a

dditio

nal 4 in 1

0 r

espondents

(38%

) w

ere

willing to

look for oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a.

12%

19%

38%

43%

39%

49%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

I w

ould

lik

ely

go w

ithout a

fully

functional air

conditio

nin

g s

yste

m

I w

ould

look into

oth

er

ways

of obta

inin

g r-1

34a

I w

ould

pay a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian to

serv

ice

CA

National

84


Genera

l R

eaction to R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Q28a. If for som

e reason it becam

e illegal in

your

sta

te to s

ell c

ans o

f R

-134a to d

o-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou, how

would

you

choose to m

ain

tain

your vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m a

ssum

ing this

was r

equir

ed?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

National by Region

Sub-Samples

33

41

25

(%)

150

Midwest

Tota

l

51

39

11

42

40

18

45

32

23

43

38

19

49

39

12

45

38

17

I would pay a professional automotive

technician to service

I would look into other ways of obtaining R-

134a

I would likely go without a fully functional air

conditioning

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

150

(%)

150

(%)

600

(%)

150

(%)

400

(%)

1000

Base:

85


Possib

le O

utc

om

es to R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Q28a. If for som

e reason it becam

e illegal in

your

sta

te to s

ell c

ans o

f R

-134a to d

o-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou, how

would

you

choose to m

ain

tain

your vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m a

ssum

ing this

was r

equir

ed?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

21

15

23

38

I would likely go without a fully functional air

conditioning system

41

47

39

43

I would pay a professional automotive technician to

service

Personal Income

Tota

l

38

(%)

267

More than

$50,000

38

(%)

209

$30,000 to less

than $50,000

39

(%)

124

Less than

$30,000

19

I would look into other ways of obtaining R-134a

(%)

600

Base:

86


Report

ed A

ltern

ative W

ays o

f O

bta

inin

g R

-134a

Q28b.You m

entioned that you w

ould

look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a if do-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou w

ere

unable

to

purc

hase it in

your

sta

te. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing w

ould

you m

ostlikely

try

to d

o? S

ele

ct all that apply

. A

ll respondents

n=384.

National

Am

ong r

espondents

who indic

ate

d that th

ey w

ould

look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a, over

half (55%

) m

entioned that

they w

ould

purc

hase R

-134a o

ut of sta

te. A

noth

er

half (52%

) m

entioned that th

ey w

ould

purc

hase the R

-134a fro

m a

n o

ld

sto

ck.

10%1

3%

24%

22%

32%

52%5

5%

54%

47%

29%

21%

28%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Oth

er

I w

ould

try

to fin

d a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian

or

serv

ice c

ente

r th

at w

ould

sell

r-134a d

espite the legal

issues involv

ed

I w

ould

try

to p

urc

hase r-1

34a o

ut of countr

y (onlin

e o

r

in-p

ers

on)

I w

ould

try

to locate

indiv

iduals

or re

tail

outlets

that

were

will

ing to s

ell

r-134a d

espite the legal is

sues

involv

ed

I w

ould

try

to p

urc

hase r

-134a fro

m o

ld s

tock p

rior

to

the intr

oduction o

f any n

ew

law

I w

ould

try

to p

urc

hase r-1

34a o

ut of sta

te (onlin

e o

r in

-

pers

on)

CA

National

87


Report

ed A

ltern

ative W

ays o

f O

bta

inin

g R

-134a

Q28b.You m

entioned that you w

ould

look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a if do-it-

yours

elfers

lik

e y

ou w

ere

unable

to

purc

hase it in

your

sta

te. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing w

ould

you m

ostlikely

try

to d

o? S

ele

ct all that apply

. N

ational re

spondents

n=228.

National

National by Region

Sub-Samples

55

48

26

18

18

13

(%)

62

Midwest

Tota

l

52

59

38

28

28

17

58

52

27

17

22

13

56

50

42

27

31 8

55

52

32

22

24

13

54

47

29

28

21

10

55

50

31

24

23

12


(online or in-person)

I would try to purchase R-134a from old stock

prior to the introduction of any new law

I would try to locate individuals or retail

outlets that were willing to sell R-134a despite



(online or in-person)

I would try to find a professional automotive

technician or service center that would sell R-

134a

Other

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

60

(%)

48

(%)

228

(%)

58

(%)

156

(%)

384

Base:

88


Report

ed A

ltern

ative W

ays o

f O

bta

inin

g R

-134a

Q28b.You m

entioned that you w

ould

look into

oth

er w

ays o

f obta

inin

g R

-134a if D

IYers

lik

e y

ou w

ere

unable

to p

urc

hase it in

your

sta

te. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing w

ould

you m

ost likely

try

to d

o? S

ele

ct all that apply

. N

ational re

spondents

n=228.

National

34

28

38

32

I would try to locate individuals or retail outlets that were willing to sell R-134a despite


50

48

63

52

I would try to purchase R-134a from old stock prior to the introduction of any new law

52

56

60

55


25

23

25

24

I would try to find a professional automotive technician or service center that would

sell R-134a despite the legal issues involved

23

22

21

22


Personal Income

Tota

l

12

(%)

101

More than

$50,000

14

(%)

79

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

15

(%)

48

Less

than

$30,000

13

Other

(%)

228

Base:

89


Negative Im

pact on P

roduct U

sage

Q28c.In

your

opin

ion, do y

ou thin

k that havin

g to p

urc

hase R

-134a b

y these m

eans w

ould

contr

ibute

to p

roble

ms u

sin

g the

pro

duct (i.e

., m

isapplication o

r im

pro

per use)?

I thin

k the n

um

ber of pro

ble

ms w

ould

lik

ely

…N

ational re

spondents

n=384.

National

About one-t

hird o

f re

spondents

(31%

) w

ho w

ere

lik

ely

to p

urc

hase R

-134a thro

ugh a

ltern

ative m

eans m

entioned that in

doin

g s

o the p

ote

ntial pro

duct m

isuse w

ould

lik

ely

incre

ase.

4%

4%

9%

31%

56%

53%

9%

34%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Decre

ase

Don’t k

now

/Not sure

Incre

ase

Sta

y the s

am

e

CA

National

90


Negative Im

pact on P

roduct U

sage

Q28c.In

your

opin

ion, do y

ou thin

k that havin

g to p

urc

hase R

-134a b

y these m

eans w

ould

contr

ibute

to p

roble

ms u

sin

g the

pro

duct (i.e

., m

isapplication o

r im

pro

per use)?

I thin

k the n

um

ber of pro

ble

ms w

ould

lik

ely

…A

ll r

espondents

n=384.

National

National by Region

Sub-Samples

53

32

10 5

(%)

62

Midwest

Tota

l

59

26 7 9

57

30

12 2

56

35 8 0

56

31 9 4

53

34 9 4

55

32 9 4

Stay the same

Increase

Don’t know/Not sure

Decrease

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

60

(%)

48

(%)

228

(%)

58

(%)

156

(%)

384

Base:

91


Negative Im

pact on P

roduct U

sage

National

10

515

9Don’t know / Not sure

29

32

33

31

Increase

52

57

57

56

Stay the same

46

04

Decrease

Personal Income

Tota

l

(%)

101

More than

$50,000

(%)

79

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

(%)

48

Less

than

$30,000

(%)

228

Base:

Q28c.In

your

opin

ion, do y

ou thin

k that havin

g to p

urc

hase R

-134a b

y these m

eans w

ould

contr

ibute

to p

roble

ms u

sin

g the

pro

duct (i.e

., m

isapplication o

r im

pro

per use)?

I thin

k the n

um

ber of pro

ble

ms w

ould

lik

ely

…N

ational re

spondents

n=228.

92


Respondent Pro

file

: D

IY B

ehavio

r

National

Nationally, nearly tw

o thir

ds (63%

) of re

spondents

mentioned that th

ey c

om

ple

ted the b

asic

main

tenance s

erv

ices a

nd

repairs them

selv

es.

46%

37%

63%

55%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

I com

ple

te s

om

e b

asic

main

tenance s

erv

ices

and/o

r som

e r

epairs

I com

ple

te the m

ajo

rity

of

the b

asic

main

tenance

serv

ices a

nd r

epairs

CA

National

Q4. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes the w

ay y

ou g

o a

bout serv

icin

g a

nd m

ain

tain

ing y

our

vehic

le?

National

respondents

n=600.

93


Respondent Pro

file

: D

IY B

ehavio

r

National

43

34

37

33

37

46

40

I complete some basic maintenance services

and/or some repairs

National by Region

Sub-Samples

66

(%)

150

Midwest

Tota

l

57

63

67

63

55

60

I complete the majority of the basic

maintenance services and repairs

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

150

(%)

150

(%)

600

(%)

150

(%)

400

(%)

1000

Base:

Q4. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes the w

ay y

ou g

o a

bout serv

icin

g a

nd m

ain

tain

ing y

our

vehic

le?

National

respondents

n=600.

94


Respondent Pro

file

: D

IY B

ehavio

r

Q4. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes the w

ay y

ou g

o a

bout serv

icin

g a

nd m

ain

tain

ing y

our

vehic

le?

National

respondents

n=600.

National

39

34

35

37

I complete some basic maintenance services and/or some repairs

61

66

65

63

I complete the majority of the basic maintenance services and repairs

Personal Income

Tota

l

(%)

267

More than

$50,000

(%)

209

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

(%)

124

Less

than

$30,000

(%)

600

Base:

95


Aw

are

ness o

f Pote

ntial R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Q37.A

re y

ou a

ware

that som

e s

tate

govern

ments

within

the U

S a

re c

onsid

ering b

annin

g the s

ale

of auto

motive a

ir

conditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt R

-134a? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

Nationally, half (49%

) of re

spondents

were

aw

are

of th

e fact th

at som

e s

tate

govern

ments

in the U

.S. w

ere

consid

ering

bannin

g the s

ale

of R

-134a.

54%

52%

49%

46%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

No

Yes

CA

National

96


Aw

are

ness o

f Pote

ntial R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

National

61

51

48

45

52

54

53

No

National by Region

Sub-Samples

49

(%)

150

Midwest

Tota

l

39

52

55

49

46

47

Yes

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

150

(%)

150

(%)

600

(%)

150

(%)

400

(%)

1000

Base:

Q37.A

re y

ou a

ware

that som

e s

tate

govern

ments

within

the U

S a

re c

onsid

ering b

annin

g the s

ale

of auto

motive a

ir

conditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt R

-134a? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

97


Aw

are

ness o

f Pote

ntial R

-134a R

eta

il S

ale

s B

an

Q37.A

re y

ou a

ware

that som

e s

tate

govern

ments

within

the U

S a

re c

onsid

ering b

annin

g the s

ale

of auto

motive a

ir

conditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt R

-134a? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

49

50

59

52

No

51

50

41

49

Yes

Personal Income

Tota

l

(%)

267

More

than

$50,000

(%)

209

$30,000 to

less than

$50,000

(%)

124

Less than

$30,000

(%)

600

Base:

98


Table

of C

onte

nts



•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




99


DIY


es U

sed

Q10. W

e a

re inte

reste

d in b

etter unders

tandin

g h

ow

people

lik

e y

ou learn

to c

om

ple

te v

ari

ous v

ehic

le m

ain

tenance s

erv

ices

and r

epair

s. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing s

ourc

es o

f in

form

ation h

ave y

ou u

sed? S

ele

ct all that apply

. N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

Nationally, 7 o

f 10 respondents

mentioned w

ord

of m

outh

thro

ugh friends a

nd fam

ily a

s a

DIY

educational sourc

e. O

ther

pro

min

ent educational sourc

es inclu

de D

IYer auto

motive m

agazin

es

or

books a

nd D

IY a

uto

motive w

ebsites.

National

9%

64%

8%

25%28%

33%

34%

35%37%

45%

54%

69%

30%

22%

29%

33%3

7%

33%

46%

51%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Oth

er

Auto

motive r

eta

iler w

ebsites

Auto

motive (O

E) m

anufa

ctu

rer w

ebsites

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive reta

il outlets

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

rs

Pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ians

Oth

er

auto

motive d

o-it-

yours

elfers

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive w

ebsites

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive m

agazin

es/b

ooks

Friends o

r fa

mily

mem

bers

CA

National

100


DIY


es U

sed

Q10. W

e a

re inte

reste

d in b

etter unders

tandin

g h

ow

people

lik

e y

ou learn

to c

om

ple

te v

ari

ous v

ehic

le m

ain

tenance s

erv

ices

and r

epair

s. W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing s

ourc

es o

f in

form

ation h

ave y

ou u

sed? S

ele

ct all that apply

. N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

73

45

42

27

32

23

29

19

17

11

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

67

49

39

31

41

31

32

29

26 6

150

71

60

52

44

45

45

39

32

39 6

150

69

54

45

35

37

34

33

28

25 8

600

65

60

47

39

31

39

34

31

19

11

150

64

51

46

37

33

33

29

30

22 9

400

67

52

45

36

36

34

32

29

24 8

Friends or family members

Do-it-yourself automotive magazines/books

Do-it-yourself automotive websites

Professional automotive technicians

Other automotive do-it-yourselfers

Service personnel at automotive service centers

Service personnel at automotive retail outlets

Automotive (OE) manufacturer websites

Automotive retailer websites

Other

1,000

Base:

101


Sourc

e o

f First In

form

ation o

n D

IYer R

echarg

e

Q20.H

ow

did

you first le

arn

that you c

ould

purc

hase R

-134a p

roducts

and recharg

e y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m

yours

elf? D

id y

ou learn

fro

m a

(n)…

? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

Nationally, over

half (57%

) of th

e r

espondents

indic

ate

d that a friend o

r fa

mily m

em

ber w

as the s

ourc

e o

f firs

t in

form

ation

on D

IYer re

charg

e.

National

10%

49%

8%

15%17%

21%23%

23%

24%

24%2

7%

57%

28%

25%

24%

18%

15%

13%

11%1

4%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Oth

ers

Auto

motive (O

E) m

anufa

ctu

rer

website

Auto

motive reta

iler

website

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive s

erv

ice c

ente

r

Serv

ice p

ers

onnel at auto

motive reta

il outlet

Oth

er auto

motive d

o-it-yours

elfer

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive w

ebsite

Pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian

Do-it-yours

elf a

uto

motive m

agazin

e/b

ook

Friend o

r fa

mily

mem

ber

CA

National

102


Sourc

e o

f First In

form

ation o

n D

IYer R

echarg

e

Q20.H

ow

did

you first le

arn

that you c

ould

purc

hase R

-134a p

roducts

and recharg

e y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m

yours

elf? D

id y

ou learn

fro

m a

(n)…

? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

63

17

19

16

17

23

13 8 8 7

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

61

30

21

23

22

21

22

19

13 7

150

53

35

32

31

29

31

27

26

24 5

150

57

27

24

23

23

24

21

17

15 8

600

52

25

23

23

23

20

20

13

15

13

150

49

28

25

24

18

15

13

14

11

10

400

54

27

24

24

21

20

18

15

14 9

Friend or family member

Do-it-yourself automotive magazine/book

Professional automotive technician

Do-it-yourself automotive website

Other automotive do-it-yourselfer

Service personnel at automotive retail outlet

Service personnel at automotive service

center

Automotive retailer website

Automotive (OE) manufacturer website

Others

1000

Base:

103


Use o

f Pro

duct In

str

uctions

Q21.D

o y

ou follow

the instr

uctions p

rovid

ed w

ith R

-134a p

roducts

when y

ou r

echarg

e y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g

syste

m? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

Nearl

y a

ll (95%

) of re

spondents

cla

im to follow

pro

duct in

str

uctions p

rovid

ed w

ith R

-134a p

roducts

.

National

10%

5%

95%

90%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

No

Yes

CA

National

104


Use o

f Pro

duct In

str

uctions

Q21.D

o y

ou follow

the instr

uctions p

rovid

ed w

ith R

-134a p

roducts

when y

ou r

echarg

e y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g

syste

m? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

93 7

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

95 5

150

93 7

150

95 5

600

97 3

150

90

10

400

93 7

Yes

No

1000

Base:

105


Aw

are

ness o

f Pote

ntial C

onsequences to P

roduct M

isuse

Q30a.A

re y

ou a

ware

of any p

ote

ntially n

egative c


esult fro

m r

ele

asin

g R

-134a into

the a

tmosphere

?N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

Nationally, 6 in 1

0 respondents

cla

im to b

e a

ware

of th

e p

ote

ntial consequences o

f pro

duct m

isuse.

National

44%

40%

60%

56%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

No

Yes

CA

National

106


Aw

are

ness o

f Pote

ntial C

onsequences to P

roduct M

isuse

Q30a.A

re y

ou a

ware

of any p

ote

ntially n

egative c


esult fro

m r

ele

asin

g R

-134a into

the a

tmosphere

?N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

National by Region

Sub-Samples

57

43

(%)

150

Midwest

Tota

l

57

43

62

38

65

35

60

40

56

44

59

42

Yes

No

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

150

(%)

150

(%)

600

(%)

150

(%)

400

(%)

1000

Base:

107


Pre

cautions A

gain

st M

isuse

Q30b.W

hen y

ou w

ork

on y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m, w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing p

recautions d


likelihood o

f re

leasin

g R

-134a into

the a

tmosphere

? S

ele

ct all that apply

. N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

The m

ajo

rity

of re

spondents

(71%

) cla

im to follow

pro

duct in

str

uctions p

rovid

ed w

ith R

-134a p

roducts

. A

n e

qual pro

port

ion

indic

ate

that th

ey a

re p

art

icula

rly c

are

ful w

hen w

ork

ing w

ith their v

ehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m, so a

s to p

revent any

leakage o

f R

-134a into

the a

tmosphere

.

National

4%5%

46%

68%71%

57%

41%

62%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Oth

er

I lo

oked for

additio

nal in

form

ation a

bout how

to p

roperly

recharg

e a

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m b

efo

re I

com

ple

ted this

job

I am

part

icula

rly c

are

ful w

hen I w

ork

on m

y v

ehic

le’s

air

conditio

nin

g s

yste

m to m

ake s

ure

no R

-134a is

rele

ased into

the a

tmosphere

I fo

llow

the instr

uctions p

rovid

ed w

ith the R

-134a

pro

ducts

CA

National

108


Pre

cautions A

gain

st M

isuse

Q30b.W

hen y

ou w

ork

on y

our

vehic

le’s

air c

onditio

nin

g s

yste

m, w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing p

recautions d


likelihood o

f re

leasin

g R

-134a into

the a

tmosphere

? S

ele

ct all that apply

. N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

National by Region

Sub-Samples

74

71

35 5

(%)

85

Midwest

Tota

l

76

64

49 7

65

67

49 5

71

69

51 3

71

68

46 5

62

57

41 4

68

63

44 5

I follow the instructions provided with the R-

134a products

I am particularly careful when I work on my

vehicle’s air conditioning system to make

sure no R-134a is released into the

atmosphere

I looked for additional information about how

to properly recharge a vehicle’s air

conditioning system before I completed this

job

Other

West

South

Northeast

National

California

(%)

93

(%)

98

(%)

362

(%)

86

(%)

223

(%)

585

Base:

109


Table

of C

onte

nts



•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




110


Most R

ecent R

efr

igera

nt Pro

ducts

Purc

hased

Q12. O

n the m

ost re

cent occasio

n that you p

urc

hased a

ir c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt pro

ducts

, did

you p

urc

hase a

pre

-packaged

refr

igera

nt re

charg

ing k

it (e.g

., c

onte

nts

may inclu

de refr

igera

nt, o

il, sto

p leak, fittin

gs, re

charg

e h

ose a

nd p

ressure

gauge) or

separa

te p

roducts

inclu

din

g R

-134a?

National re

spondents

n=600.

Nationally, over

half (55%

) th

e respondents

mentioned that th

ey p

urc

hased the e

ntire

recharg

ing k

it. Four of 10 respondents

(4

1%

) purc

hased just th

e R

-134a c

anis

ter.

National

12%

4%

41%

55%

38%

50%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Don't k

now

/Can’t recall

r-134a

Recharg

ing k

it

CA

National

111


Most R

ecent R

efr

igera

nt Pro

ducts

Purc

hased

Q12. O

n the m

ost re

cent occasio

n that you p

urc

hased a

ir c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt pro

ducts

, did

you p

urc

hase a

pre

-packaged

refr

igera

nt re

charg

ing k

it (e.g

., c

onte

nts

may inclu

de refr

igera

nt, o

il, sto

p leak, fittin

gs, re

charg

e h

ose a

nd p

ressure

gauge) or

separa

te p

roducts

inclu

din

g R

-134a?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

43

52 5

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

57

40 3

150

61

35 4

150

55

41 4

600

57

38 5

150

50

38

12

400

53

40 7

Recharging kit

R-134a

Don't know/Can’t recall

1000

Base:

112


Report

ed P

rice p

er C

an

Q14. A

ppro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

much d

id y

ou p

ay for each c

an o

f R

-134a? N

ational re

spondents

n=XX.

Nearl

y h

alf (48%

) of re

spondents

report

ed p

rices o

f up to $

10 for th

e c

an o

f R

-134a.

National

National M

ean =

$12.9

7, Std

= 7

.62

17%

4%

17%

5%

1%

6%

6%

6%

11%

23%

18%

7%

10%

17%

12%

12%

11%

8%

6%

4%

0%

10%

20%

Don't k

now

/Can’t r

ecall

$30.0

0 o

r m

ore

$25.0

0 to less than $

30.0

0

$20.0

0 to less than $

25.0

0

$15.0

0 to less than $

20.0

0

$12.5

0 to less than $

15.0

0

$10.0

0 to less than $

12.5

0

$7.5

0 to less than $

10.0

0

$5.0

0 to less than $

7.5

0

Less than $

5.0

0

CA

National

113


Report

ed P

rice p

er C

an

Q14. A

ppro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

much d

id y

ou p

ay for each c

an o

f R

-134a? N

ational re

spondents

n=273.

National

National M

ean =

$12.9

7 , S

td =

7.6

2

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

8 19

27 6 4 5 5 5 7 15

85

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

5 32

25 8 6 5 5 0 6 965

9 9 21

17 5 5 14 0 3 17

58

7 18

23

11 6 6 6 1 5 17

273

6 11

17

14 9 9 2 0 5 28

65

4 10

17

12

12

11 8 4 6 17

199

6 15

20

11 8 8 7 2 6 17

Less than $5.00

$5.00 to less than $7.50

$7.50 to less than $10.00

$10.00 to less than $12.50

$12.50 to less than $15.00

$15.00 to less than $20.00

$20.00 to less than $25.00

$25.00 to less than $30.00

$30.00 or more

Don't know/Can’t recall

472

Base:

114


Typic

al Purc

hase

Q15. W

hen y

ou p

urc

hase a

ir c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt pro

ducts

do y

ou u

sually p

urc

hase a

recharg

ing k

it o

r separa

te p

roducts

in

clu

din

g R

-134a? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

Four

of te

n r

espondents

indic

ate

d that th

ey typic

ally p

urc

hase the e

ntire

recharg

ing k

it, w

hile a

n e

qual pro

port

ion p

urc

hase

the R

-134a c

an o

nly

.

National

21%

16%

42%

42%

37%

42%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

I have o

nly

purc

hased a

ir

conditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt

pro

ducts

R-1

34a

Recharg

ing k

it

CA

National

115


Typic

al Purc

hase

Q15. W

hen y

ou p

urc

hase a

ir c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt pro

ducts

do y

ou u

sually p

urc

hase a

recharg

ing k

it o

r separa

te p

roducts

in

clu

din

g R

-134a? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

29

51

19

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

50

39

11

150

49

37

15

150

42

42

16

600

41

41

17

150

42

37

21

400

42

40

18

Recharging kit

R-134a

I have only purchased air

conditioning refrigerant products

1000

Base:

116


Perc

eiv

ed M

ark

et Price for Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

Q18. A

ppro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

much w

ould

you e

xpect to

pay to h

ave y

our

air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian?

National re

spondents

n=600.

The p

erc

eiv

ed m

ark

et price for pro

fessio

nal re

charg

e v

ari

ed w

idely

. H

ow

ever, the a

vera

ge p

rice report

ed w

as $

59. National

National M

ean =

$59.1

1, Std

= 2

1.7

4

8%

6%

26%

10%

13%

15%

11%

9%

6%

5%

3%

8%

9%

15%

13%

11%

26%

8%

0%

10%

20%

30%

Don’t k

now

$80 o

r m

ore

$70 to le

ss than $

80

$60 to le

ss than $

70

$50 to le

ss than $

60

$40 to le

ss than $

50

$30 to le

ss than $

40

$20 to le

ss than $

30

Less than $

20

CA

National

117


Perc

eiv

ed M

ark

et Price for Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

Q18. A

ppro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

much w

ould

you e

xpect to

pay to h

ave y

our

air c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt re

charg

ed b

y a

pro

fessio

nal

auto

motive technic

ian?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

National M

ean =

$59.1

1, Std

= 2

1.7

4

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

3 3 12 7 15 8 9 32

10

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

6 11 6 15

16

13 9 21 3

150

2 6 12

13

11

17

11

22 7

150

5 6 9 11

15

13

10

26 6

600

9 4 7 11

16

12 9 27 5

150

3 8 9 15

13

11 8 26 8

400

4 7 9 13

14

12 9 26 7

Less than $20

$20 to less than $30






$80 or more

Don’t know

1000

Base:

118


Table

of C

onte

nts



•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




119


15%

32%

11%

42%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

More

than 3

Thre

e

Tw

o

One

Num

ber of R

echarg

es

Q9. In

clu

din

g p

ast and p

resent vehic

les, appro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

many tim

es h

ave y

ou r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

R-1

34a

refr

igera

nt?

CA

respondents

n=348.

Califo

rnia

Mean =

2.0

9 , S

td =

1.3

1

120


Respondent Pro

file

: A

ge

Q1. In

whic

h o

f th

ese g

roups d

oes y

our

age fall? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

8%

32%

16%

44%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50 to 5

9 y

ears

40 to 4

9 y

ears

30 to 3

9 y

ears

18 to 2

9 y

ears

Califo

rnia

121


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le O

wners

hip

Q2. D

o y

ou o

wn o

r le

ase a

car?

CA

respondents

n=400.

3%

97%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Lease

Ow

n

Califo

rnia

122


Respondent Pro

file

: R

esponsib

ility for Vehic

le

Q3.A

re y

ou r

esponsib

le for m

akin

g d

ecis

ions a

bout th

e m

ain

tenance a

nd r

epair

s for th

is v

ehic

le? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

10%

90%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Yes, jo

intly w

ith s

om

eone

els

e

Yes, sole

ly r

esponsib

le

Califo

rnia

123


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le S

egm

ent

Fro

m Q

7.You indic

ate

d that you r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

air c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt w

ithin

in the p

ast 12 m

onth

s. W

hat is

th

e m

ake, m

odel and y

ear of th

is v

ehic

le? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

Califo

rnia

4%

6%

5%

9%

13%

19%

23%2

4%

0%

10%

20%

30%

Oth

er

Van

Luxury

SU

V/C

UV

Pic

kup T

ruck

SU

V/C

UV

Luxury

/ S

pecia

lity C

ar

Med &

Larg

e C

ar

Sm

all

Car

124


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le M

odel Year

Fro

m Q

7.You indic

ate

d that you r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

air c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt w

ithin

in the p

ast 12 m

onth

s. W

hat is

th

e m

ake, m

odel and y

ear of th

is v

ehic

le? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

Califo

rnia

4%

9%

10%

8%

8%

8%

11%

8%

9%

11%

7%

8%

0%

5%

10%

15%

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

1996

1995

125


Respondent Pro

file

: W

arr

anty

Expiration

Q8a.For th

is v

ehic

le, in

whic

h y

ear

did

(or w

ill) the m

anufa

ctu

rer’s w

arr

anty

end? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

27%

4%

5%

7%

8%

7%

9%

7%

5%

5%

2%

3%

1%

0%

1%

1%

2%

2%

4%

2%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Don't k

now

/Can't r

ecall

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

Califo

rnia

126


Respondent Pro

file

: A

nnual M

ileage

Q31.O

n a

vera

ge, how

many m

iles d

o y

ou d

rive in a

year?

CA

respondents

n=400.

17%

27%

12%

24%

16%

4%

0%

10%

20%

30%

20,0

00 o

r m

ore

16,0

00 to less than 2

0,0

00

12,0

00 to less than 1

6,0

00

8,0

00 to less than 1

2,0

00

5,0

00 to less than 8

,000

Less than 5

,000

Califo

rnia

127


Respondent Pro

file

: G

ender

Q33.W

hat is

your

gender?

CA

respondents

n=400.

Califo

rnia

85%

15%

Male

Fem

ale

128


Respondent Pro

file

: M

arita

l Sta

tus

Q34a.W

hat is

your

marita

l sta

tus? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

5%

55%

40%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Div

orc

ed/S

epara

ted/W

idow

ed

Sin

gle

Marr

ied/C

om

mon-law

Califo

rnia

129


Respondent Pro

file

: Pers

onal In

com

e 2

005

Q35a.In

to w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing c

ate

gories d

id y

our

pers

onal in

com

e, befo

re taxes, fa

ll in 2

005? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

5%

16%

7%

26%

13%

12%1

3%

9%

0%

10%

20%

30%

$125,0

00 o

r over

$100,0

00 to less than $

125,0

00

$75,0

00 to less than $

100,0

00

$50,0

00 to less than $

75,0

00

$40,0

00 to less than $

50,0

00

$30,0

00 to less than $

40,0

00

$20,0

00 to less than $

30,0

00

Under $20,0

00

Califo

rnia

130


Respondent Pro

file

: H

ousehold

Incom

e 2

005

Q35b.In

to w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing c

ate

gories d

id y

our

household

incom

e, befo

re taxes, fa

ll in 2

005? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

9%

19%

11%

25%

12%

11%

13%

0%

10%

20%

30%

$125,0

00 o

r over

$100,0

00 to less than

$125,0

00

$75,0

00 to less than $

100,0

00

$50,0

00 to less than $

75,0

00

$40,0

00 to less than $

50,0

00

$30,0

00 to less than $

40,0

00

Under $30,0

00

Califo

rnia

131


Respondent Pro

file

: Em

plo

ym

ent Sta

tus

Q36.W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes y

our

curr

ent em

plo

ym

ent sta

tus? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

3%4%

3%

9%10%

71%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Unem

plo

yed

Retire

d

Hom

em

aker

Em

plo

yed p

art

tim

e

Stu

dent

Em

plo

yed full

tim

e

Califo

rnia

132


Respondent Pro

file

: Education

Q37.W

hat is

the h

ighest le


ave c

om

ple

ted?

CA

respondents

n=400.

1%

35%

16%

38%

8%

2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Oth

ers

Post gra

duate

or

pro

fessio

nal degre

e

Com

ple

ted c

olle

ge/u

niv

ers

ity

Som

e c

olle

ge/u

niv

ers

ity

Com

ple

ted h

igh s

chool

Som

e h

igh s

chool

Califo

rnia

133


Respondent Pro

file

: Eth

nic

ity

Q38.A

nd a

re y

ou …

? C

A r

espondents

n=400.

4%

4%

4%

15%

21%

53%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Declin

e to respond

Afr

ican A

merican

Som

e o

ther eth

nic

ity

His

panic

Asia

n

Caucasia

n

Califo

rnia

134


Table

of C

onte

nts



•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




135


15%

20%

16%

25%

39%

42%

11%

32%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

More

than 3

Thre

e

Tw

o

One

CA

National

Num

ber of R

echarg

es

Q9. In

clu

din

g p

ast and p

resent vehic

les, appro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

many tim

es h

ave y

ou r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

R-1

34a

refr

igera

nt?

National re

spondents

n=475.

National

National m

ean =

2.3

2 , S

td =

1.4

4

136


Num

ber of R

echarg

es

National

32

30

45

39

37

26

32

More than 3

15

11

11

13

13

10

11

Three

21

23

17

19

20

28

23

Two

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

36

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

27

150

29

150

31

600

32

150

37

400

33

One

1000

Base:

Q9. In

clu

din

g p

ast and p

resent vehic

les, appro

xim

ate

ly h

ow

many tim

es h

ave y

ou r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

R-1

34a (i.e.,

topped u

p the a

ir c

onditio

nin

g r

efr

igera

nt)

? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

137


Respondent Pro

file

: A

ge

Q1. In

whic

h o

f th

ese g

roups d

oes y

our

age fall? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

0%1

%

1%

13%

24%

32%

29%

8%

0%

16%

32%

44%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

66 y

ears

and a

bove

60 to 6

5 y

ears

50 to 5

9 y

ears

40 to 4

9 y

ears

30 to 3

9 y

ears

18 to 2

9 y

ears

CA

National

National

138


Respondent Pro

file

: A

ge

National

01

30

10

166 years and above

22

11

10

160 to 65 years

815

921

13

811

50 to 59 years

25

27

27

19

24

16

21

40 to 49 years

33

31

32

30

32

32

32

30 to 39 years

32

25

28

30

29

44

35

18 to 29 years

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

0

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

0

150

0

150

0

600

0

150

0

400

0Under 18 years

1000

Base:

Q1. In

whic

h o

f th

ese g

roups d

oes y

our

age fall? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

139


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le O

wners

hip

Q2. D

o y

ou o

wn o

r le

ase a

car?

National re

spondents

n=600.

3%

2%

99%

97%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Lease

Ow

n

CA

National

National

140


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le O

wners

hip

National

12

11

23

2Lease

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

98

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

99

150

99

150

99

600

99

150

97

400

98

Own

1000

Base:

Q2. D

o y

ou o

wn o

r le

ase a

car?

National re

spondents

n=600.

141


Respondent Pro

file

: R

esponsib

ility for Vehic

le

Q3.A

re y

ou r

esponsib

le for m

akin

g d

ecis

ions a

bout th

e m

ain

tenance a

nd r

epair

s for th

is v

ehic

le? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

10%

16%

84%

90%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Yes, jo

intly w

ith s

om

eone

els

e

Yes, sole

ly responsib

le

CA

National

National

142


Respondent Pro

file

: R

esponsib

ility for Vehic

le

National

14

23

17

10

16

10

14

Yes, jointly with someone else

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

77

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

83

150

90

150

84

600

86

150

90

400

86

Yes, solely responsible

1000

Base:

Q3.A

re y

ou r

esponsib

le for m

akin

g d

ecis

ions a

bout th

e m

ain

tenance a

nd r

epair

s for th

is v

ehic

le? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

143


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le S

egm

ent

Fro

m Q

7.You indic

ate

d that you r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

air c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt w

ithin

in the p

ast 12 m

onth

s. W

hat is

th

e m

ake, m

odel and y

ear of th

is v

ehic

le? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

4%

4%

4%

9%

10%

13%

16%

21%

25%

6%

9%

5%

13%

19%

24%

23%

0%

10%

20%

30%

Oth

er

Pic

kup T

ruck

Luxury

SU

V/C

UV

Van

SU

V/C

UV

Luxury

/ Specia

lity C

ar

Sm

all

Car

Med &

Larg

e C

ar

CA

National

144


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le S

egm

ent

National

10

13

78

10

58

Van

24

25

23

27

25

23

24

Med & Large Car

54

41

44

4Other

45

25

46

5Luxury SUV/CUV

710

14

69

99

Pickup Truck

15

16

11

10

13

13

13

SUV/CUV

12

818

24

16

19

17

Luxury / Specialty Car

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

19

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

21

150

19

150

21

600

23

150

24

400

22

Small Car

1000

Base:

Fro

m Q

7.You indic

ate

d that you r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

air c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt w

ithin

in the p

ast 12 m

onth

s. W

hat is

th

e m

ake, m

odel and y

ear of th

is v

ehic

le? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

145


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le M

odel Year

Fro

m Q

7.You indic

ate

d that you r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

air c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt w

ithin

in the p

ast 12 m

onth

s. W

hat is

th

e m

ake, m

odel and y

ear of th

is v

ehic

le? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

National

4%

9%

10%

8%

3%

7%

9%

7%

8%

9%

8%

9%

11%

12%

9%

9%

8%

8%

11%

8%

9%

11%

7%

8%

0%

5%

10%

15%

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

1996

1995

CA

National

146


Respondent Pro

file

: Vehic

le M

odel Year

National

32

33

34

32006

65

314

77

72005

87

716

98

92004

46

513

711

92003

911

76

98

81999

711

12

79

89

1995

87

10

98

99

2002

99

11

59

88

2001

711

77

811

92000

11

11

11

10

11

810

1998

15

13

13

612

911

1997

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

9

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

11

150

5

150

9

600

13150

10

400

91996

1000

Base:

Fro

m Q

7.You indic

ate

d that you r

echarg

ed y

our

vehic

le's

air c

onditio

nin

g refr

igera

nt w

ithin

in the p

ast 12 m

onth

s. W

hat is

th

e m

ake, m

odel and y

ear of th

is v

ehic

le? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

147


Respondent Pro

file

: W

arr

anty

Expiration

Q8a.For th

is v

ehic

le, in

whic

h y

ear

did

(or w

ill) the m

anufa

ctu

rer’s w

arr

anty

end? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

27%

4%

5%

7%

8%

7%

9%

7%

5%

5%

2%

3%

35%

1%

0%

1%

1%

1%

1%

4%

3%

5%

4%

6%

8%

5%

6%

4%

4%

5%

3%

4%

1%

0%

1%

1%

2%

2%

4%

2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Don't k

now

/Can't r

ecall

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

National

148


Respondent Pro

file

: W

arr

anty

Expiration

National

35

43

31

31

35

27

32

Don't know/Can't recall

01

11

10

12016

00

01

01

02015

11

01

11

12014

10

21

11

12013

00

02

12

12012

00

03

12

12011

13

37

44

42010

42

35

32

32009

75

36

54

52008

55

17

45

52007

56

95

67

72006

45

53

47

62002

74

42

43

41998

95

10

78

88

2005

55

73

57

62004

65

57

69

72003

26

33

45

42001

64

64

55

52000

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

1

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

5

150

3

150

3

600

2

150

2

400

21999

1000

Base:

Q8a.For th

is v

ehic

le, in

whic

h y

ear

did

(or w

ill) the m

anufa

ctu

rer’s w

arr

anty

end? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

149


Respondent Pro

file

: A

nnual M

ileage

Q31.O

n a

vera

ge, how

many m

iles d

o y

ou d

rive in a

year?

National re

spondents

n=600.

17%

13%1

4%

25%

29%

14%

4%

27%

12%

24%

16%

4%

0%

10%

20%

30%

20,0

00 o

r m

ore

16,0

00 to less than 2

0,0

00

12,0

00 to less than 1

6,0

00

8,0

00 to less than 1

2,0

00

5,0

00 to less than 8

,000

Less than 5

,000

CA

NationalN

ational

150


Respondent Pro

file

: A

nnual M

ileage

National

20

13

12

11

14

12

13

16,000 to less than 20,000

32

65

44

4Less than 5,000

11

17

19

713

17

15

20,000 or more

24

21

22

33

25

27

26

12,000 to less than 16,000

26

31

25

34

29

24

27

8,000 to less than 12,000

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

16

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

16

150

9

150

14

600

16

150

16

400

15

5,000 to less than 8,000

1000

Base:

Q31.O

n a

vera

ge, how

many m

iles d

o y

ou d

rive in a

year?

National re

spondents

n=600.

151


Respondent Pro

file

: G

ender

Q33.W

hat is

your

gender?

National re

spondents

n=600.

National

15%

32%

68%

85%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Fem

ale

Male

CA

National

152


Respondent Pro

file

: G

ender

National

86

61

59

64

68

85

75

Male

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

39

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

41

150

36

150

32

600

14

150

15

400

25

Female

1000

Base:

Q33.W

hat is

your

gender?

National re

spondents

n=600.

153


Respondent Pro

file

: M

arita

l Sta

tus

Q34a.W

hat is

your

marita

l sta

tus? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

5%

7%

24%

69%

40%

55%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Div

orc

ed / S

epara

ted /

Wid

ow

ed

Sin

gle

Marr

ied / C

om

mon-law

CA

NationalN

ational

154


Respondent Pro

file

: M

arita

l Sta

tus

National

511

85

75

6Divorced/Separated/Widowed

73

63

68

72

69

55

64

Married/Common-law

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

26

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

24

150

23

150

24

600

21

150

40

400

30

Single

1000

Base:

Q34a.W

hat is

your

marita

l sta

tus? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

155


Respondent Pro

file

: Pers

onal In

com

e 2

005

Q35a.In

to w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing c

ate

gories d

id y

our

pers

onal in

com

e, befo

re taxes, fa

ll in 2

005? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

5%

4%

5%

12%

24%

16%

19%

12%

9%

16%

7%

26%

13%

12%1

3%

9%

0%

10%

20%

30%

$125,0

00 o

r over

$100,0

00 to less than $

125,0

00

$75,0

00 to less than $

100,0

00

$50,0

00 to less than $

75,0

00

$40,0

00 to less than $

50,0

00

$30,0

00 to less than $

40,0

00

$20,0

00 to less than $

30,0

00

Under $20,0

00

CA

NationalNational

156


Respondent Pro

file

: Pers

onal In

com

e 2

005

National

26

19

27

25

24

26

25

$50,000 to less than $75,000

711

11

59

99

Under $20,000

35

27

45

5$125,000 or over

63

55

57

6$100,000 to less than $125,000

810

919

12

16

13

$75,000 to less than $100,000

17

13

18

15

16

13

14

$40,000 to less than $50,000

21

21

19

16

19

12

16

$30,000 to less than $40,000

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

18

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

9

150

8

150

12

600

13

150

13

400

12

$20,000 to less than $30,000

1000

Base:

Q35a.In

to w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing c

ate

gories d

id y

our

pers

onal in

com

e, befo

re taxes, fa

ll in 2

005? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

157


Respondent Pro

file

: H

ousehold

Incom

e 2

005

Q35b.In

to w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing c

ate

gories d

id y

our

household

incom

e, befo

re taxes, fa

ll in 2

005? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

9%

5%

9%

14%

23%

17%

15%

17%

19%

11%

25%

12%

11%

13%

0%

10%

20%

30%

$125,0

00 o

r over

$100,0

00 to less than

$125,0

00

$75,0

00 to less than

$100,0

00

$50,0

00 to less than

$75,0

00

$40,0

00 to less than

$50,0

00

$30,0

00 to less than

$40,0

00

Under $30,0

00

CA

National

National

158


Respondent Pro

file

: H

ousehold

Incom

e 2

005

National

913

15

19

14

19

16

$75,000 to less than $100,000

15

25

19

10

17

13

15

Under $30,000

35

29

59

7$125,000 or over

75

815

911

10

$100,000 to less than $125,000

31

20

21

19

23

25

24

$50,000 to less than $75,000

17

15

19

15

17

12

15

$40,000 to less than $50,000

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

17

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

16

150

12

150

15

600

17

150

11

400

14

$30,000 to less than $40,000

1000

Base:

Q35b.In

to w

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing c

ate

gories d

id y

our

household

incom

e, befo

re taxes, fa

ll in 2

005? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

159


Respondent Pro

file

: Em

plo

ym

ent Sta

tus

Q36.W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes y

our

curr

ent em

plo

ym

ent sta

tus? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

3%

6%

4%

8%9%

3%

70%

4%

3%

9%10%

71%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Unem

plo

yed

Retire

d

Hom

em

aker

Em

plo

yed p

art

tim

e

Stu

dent

Em

plo

yed full

tim

e

CA

National

National

160


Respondent Pro

file

: Em

plo

ym

ent Sta

tus

National

46

43

43

4Retired

75

63

65

77

70

71

70

Employed full tim

e

49

55

63

5Unemployed

43

22

310

6Student

610

97

84

7Homemaker

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

9

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

14

150

7

150

9

600

7

150

9

400

9Employed part time

1000

Base:

Q36.W

hic

h o

f th

e follow

ing b

est describes y

our

curr

ent em

plo

ym

ent sta

tus? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

161


Respondent Pro

file

: Education

Q37.W

hat is

the h

ighest le


ave c

om

ple

ted?

National re

spondents

n=600.

1%2

%

10%

31%

33%

22%

3%

35%

16%

38%

8%

2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Oth

ers

Post gra

duate

or

pro

fessio

nal degre

e

Com

ple

ted

colle

ge/u

niv

ers

ity

Som

e c

olle

ge/u

niv

ers

ity

Com

ple

ted h

igh s

chool

Som

e h

igh s

chool

CA

National

National

162


Respondent Pro

file

: Education

National

79

10

12

10

16

12

Post graduate or professional degree

11

55

32

3Some high school

11

23

21

1Other

29

29

24

41

31

35

33

Completed college/university

41

35

33

23

33

38

35

Some college/university

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

25

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

25

150

16

150

22

600

22

150

8

400

16

Completed high school

1000

Base:

Q37.W

hat is

the h

ighest le


ave c

om

ple

ted?

National re

spondents

n=600.

163


Respondent Pro

file

: Eth

nic

ity

Q38.A

nd a

re y

ou …

? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

4%6

%

1%

1%

8%

6%

79%

4%

4%

15%

21%

53%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Declin

e to respond

Afr

ican A

merican

Som

e o

ther eth

nic

ity

His

panic

Asia

n

Caucasia

n

CA

NationalN

ational

164


Respondent Pro

file

: Eth

nic

ity

National

11

11

14

2Some other ethnicity (Please specify) :

80

85

79

71

79

53

69

Caucasian

10

01

14

2Decline to respond

47

68

64

5African American

53

68

621

12

Asian

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

National by Region

Sub-Samples

5

150

Midwest

Tota

lWest

South

Northeast

National

California

8

150

11

150

8

600

9

150

15

400

11

Hispanic

1000

Base:

Q38.A

nd a

re y

ou …

? N

ational re

spondents

n=600.

165


Table

of C

onte

nts



•California

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•National

•Impact Analysis


•Purchase Process

•Appendices




166


Motivation for D

IY R

echarg

e: C

ost of Pro

fessio

nal R

echarg

e

The p

attern

of re

sponses d

id n

ot vary

by p

ers

onal in

com

e level. H

ow

ever, re

spondents

who indic

ate

d that th

ey w

ould

likely

have to g

o w


C s

yste

m o

r find a

ltern

ative m

eans to a

cquire r-1

34a w

ere

sig

nific

antly m

ore

likely

to s

tate

that cost w

as the m

ost im

port

ant re

ason to s

tart

doin

g this

job them

selv

es c

om

pare

d to respondents

who

suggeste

d that th

ey w

ould

lik

ely

pay a

pro

fessio

nal if r-1

34a w

as b

anned.

Q17. To w

hat exte

nt did

the c

ost of havin

g this

work

com

ple

ted b

y a

pro

fessio

nal auto

motive technic

ian influence y

our

decis

ion to s

tart

doin

g this

type o

f w

ork

yours

elf? C

A r

espondents

n=375.

41

24

33


12

22

17

It influenced my decision but was not one of the most important reasons

35

39

37


12

15

13


Reaction to Product

Removal

Tota

l

Likely Go

Without/ Find

Alternatives

Likely Pay

Professional

(%)

184

(%)

191

(%)

375

Base:

Guid

e to R

eadin

g T

abula

r D

ata

Topic

Lin

eK

ey fin

din

gs

Pro

file

/ s

egm

enta

tion

vari

able

s o

f in

tere

st.

Gro

up s

ize (count)

appears

belo

w.

Read:

Respondents

who

indic

ate

d that th

ey w

ould

likely

have to g

o w

ithout a

fully functional A

C s

yste

m o

r find a

ltern

ative m

eans to

acquir

e R

-134a w

ere

sig

nific

antly m

ore

lik

ely

to

sta

te that cost w

as the m

ost

import

ant re

ason to s

tart

doin

g this

job them

selv

es

(41%

) com

pare

d to

respondents

who s

uggeste

d

that th

ey w

ould

lik

ely

pay a

pro

fessio

nal if R

-134a w

as

banned (24%

).

Additio

nal note

sQ

uestion

Response

item

s

Rele

vant

sam

ple

siz

es

u.s. consumer buying behaviors of r-134a refrigerant for light

Documents