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Serving the automotive and truck parts remanufacturing industry since 1941 |
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Serving the automotive and truck parts remanufacturing industry since 1941 |
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CAWA Leads Aftermarket to
Success in Securing Delay for Extending Emissions Warranties to 15
years/150,000 CAWA and other automotive aftermarket associations, including APRA, were victorious last week as the California Air Resources Board (CARB) determined not to vote on a proposal that would have extended emissions warranties to 15 years/150,000 miles on defective emissions-related components. The decision came during a CARB hearing on changes to the Emissions Warranty Information Reporting (EWIR) requirement that would have required car companies that experience more than a 4 percent warranty return rate on a specific emissions-related part to extend the emissions warranty to 15 years/150,000 miles, whether or not the failure would cause the vehicle to exceed emissions standards. During the December 7th hearing in Bakersfield , CAWA Legislative Advocate Norm Plotkin testified in opposition of the extended warranty provision and was joined by Aaron Lowe of AAIA, representatives of APRA, CalABC, ASC and ASA as well as independent repair shop owners. Also opposing the EWIR proposal was the vehicle manufacturers who agreed with the aftermarket that the board did not have the legislative authority to increase the warranty beyond the three-year/50,000 bumper-to-bumper emissions warranty (seven years/70,000 miles on higher priced repairs) that is mandated in state statute. “Scoring this victory on such an important issue to the aftermarket in California and nationwide is huge,” stated Rodney Pierini, President & CEO of CAWA. “CAWA has been at the forefront of this battle for years and having all interested sectors of the industry converge together to fight these extended warranties truly speaks to the magnitude this regulation will have on our industry.” The board previously would have required a recall of the part only after it was determined that the defective component or system caused the vehicle to increase its emissions. In his testimony to the CARB Board, CAWA Legislative Advocate Norm Plotkin stressed that CARB has ignored their statutory authority, ignored the economic impact this regulation will have on aftermarket (estimated to be as much as $8 billion by 2020), and that CARB is moving forward with no empirical evidence to support this change in the law. “The plain language of the statute authorizing warranties is unambiguous. Parts are covered for 3 years 50,000 miles or 7 years, 70,000 miles for more expensive parts. But the most outrageous aspect of this rulemaking is that CARB would warranty a part beyond what their own regulations declare as the useful life of that part,” stressed Norm Plotkin, Legislative Advocate. “Fortunately the CARB Board members heard our argument and shelved this item for the time being. We will need to get in and work with them so that they have a better understanding of the aftermarket's place and we can explore other avenues toward increasing the durability of emissions parts.” In the end, CARB made the decision not to vote on the EWIR proposal and sent it back to CARB staff for additional work. It will now be up to the staff to make a determination whether to retain the extended emissions warranty provision as part of this rulemaking, or revise the proposal to return to a recall requirement. Key to the aftermarket preventing the extended warranty from becoming a reality will continue to be letters and communications to CARB opposing the extended warranty. A date for reconsideration of the extended warranty has not been set, but should occur in the next six months. Founded in 1955, the California/Nevada Automotive Wholesalers' Association is a nonprofit trade organization representing over 550 automotive jobbers, warehouse distributors, retailers and manufacturers serving the automotive aftermarket industry. CAWA serves the over 37,000 auto repair bays in California that repair over 70% of California's vehicles. CAWA's mission is to provide legislative and regulatory advocacy, communications and education for our members while promoting the automotive aftermarket industry. For more information about CAWA visit www.cawa.org APRA Global Connection / January 2007 |
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 utoBulletins.comit's as easy as your A, B, C's |
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Automotive Parts Remanufacturers Association | 4215 Lafayette Center Drive, Suite
3 | Chantilly, VA 20151-1243 703-968-2772 | Fax: 703-968-2878 | mail@apra.org | www.apra.org |
