Northwest Indiana region sees auto repair business spike, car sales drop

BY ANDREA HOLECEK, Times of Northest Indiana 
holecek@nwitimes.com

As the nation's economy continues to stall, automobile service and repair shops are seeing more consumers trying to keep their vehicles from doing the same.

"People are putting more money into their cars rather than getting new ones," said Randy Jones, a mechanic at Muffler & Brake Man in Hammond.

New car sales are at the lowest level in 15 years and aren't expected to rebound in 2009, industry experts say. On Tuesday, Fitch Ratings predicted U.S. auto sales will drop to 11.6 million next year, down from 13 million estimated for 2008.

Roxanne Tharp, owner of Woody's Garage in Highland, said people aren't willing to go out and buy a new car at the moment, "especially when they don't know if they'll have a job in a few months."

Pete Breuckman, owner of Pete & Sons Auto Repair in Crown Point, said 2008 has been a good year for his business.

"Last month was slow, but this has been the best year we've ever had - people asking us to check everything and telling us to fix it," he said. "Or they fix what has to be done right away and then come back a month later when they have money and fix the rest."

Angie Wilson, spokeswoman for the Automobile Service Association, said many of the organization's members are reporting increased inquiries into fixing up older cars rather than buying new ones.

"Some ASA members have also reported that they're finding some customers are being a bit more selective in the types of maintenance and repair they are requesting/approving when they bring their vehicles in for service, due to economic conditions, but overall are seeking repairs and maintenance," she said.

"One ASA member shared something that I believe is in line with the majority of our members - that if a customer is not able to do all of the repairs and maintenance that a vehicle needs, they will help them prioritize repairs and maintenance."

More car owners also are doing their own repairs, according to FixYa, a Web-based repair resource, which is reporting a significant increase in car repair-related activity during the past three months.

"As the market turmoil becomes a sobering reality, struggling families are opting to fix their own cars and stretch their hard-earned income," said FixYa Chief Executive Officer Yaniv Bensadon.