Women Becoming More Involved in Car Care.

• Position: Brief Article

It's no wonder women are taking better care of their vehicles since they buy half of the new cars and trucks in the U.S. That number is expected to climb to 60% in 2000.

According to the 1999 NAPA (National Automotive Parts Association) Auto-Attitudes Report, men are no longer considered the experts and females the innocent bystanders when it comes to car maintenance. More than half of American women (54%) are more likely to follow a regular schedule for getting a car tune-up than to do yard work, receive an eye exam, or vacuum behind the couch. Currently, more than 65% of customers who take their cars to repair shops are women.

The 15-city national survey was administered by the Automobile Association of America (AAA) for NAPA. Three out of four women surveyed feel a "trustworthy reputation" is a key quality when choosing an automotive repair facility, followed by technicians' expertise. When they find an automotive technician they like, women are significantly more loyal to him than are men (41% vs. 33%).

The survey polled 1,506 vehicle owners, equally split between men and women, to gauge consumers' attitudes about car repair and automotive technicians in the areas of trust, professionalism, and training. Among the results were:

Trust. Sixty-six percent of women tend to rely on friends for information about car repair, but they also feel technicians are a...