Michael Weaver has owned a 2022 Ford Bronco Sport since late September, but has put less than 1,200 miles on it. It has been in the shop for the better part of the last five months.
Weaver, 38, who lives in Glenolden, he said his vehicle was behind before he made the first payment. But adding insult to injury has been the wait — a missing piece between Weaver and his new ride. Only because the body shop offered to repair the hard-to-find wheelhouse panel, rather than replace it with a new one, did Weaver get back on the road in time for the Eagles to head to the Super Bowl.
“You can only laugh at this point,” Weaver said just before getting the car back. “We’re at a point where there’s nothing they can do.”
Manufacturing deceptions. Factory closures. Shipping problems. All of this can mean that the part you need to repair your vehicle’s mechanical or cosmetic components may not be available when you need it.
The biggest supply chain disruptions since World War II
Items on order at Otto’s BMW and Otto’s Mini parts department in West Chester include steering racks, EV batteries, headlights, ball joints, valve covers and steering gears.
With more than $300 billion in annual spending by American consumers to repair and maintain vehicles, according to the Aftermarket Division of the Engine and Equipment Manufacturers Association, there are many ways to go sideways when it comes to to get parts from factories to mechanical workshops.
Add in some very unusual economic times and the result can be chaos for many.
“It’s the biggest supply chain disruptions we’ve faced since World War II, so in over 75 years, when our entire manufacturing economy changed on a dime in wartime, that’s how significant and persistent it has been state,” said Paul McCarthy, president and CEO of the 500-member MEMA Aftermarket division, which represents manufacturers of all types of parts for the automotive industry, including big names like Bosch, Valvoline, Delphi; Pennsylvania players like East Penn batteries; and Philadelphia-area companies such as Dorman, Continental and Cardone.
McCarthy said problems have included shortages, unavailability or price spikes in all of its materials: steel, copper, oil additives and more. And the problems have been three-fold in the industry, starting with supply chain problems at the onset of COVID, moving to consumer demand problems and finally logistics problems.
“And now the question is when we get back to normal, ‘What’s the demand like?'” McCarthy said. “History is not a good guide.”
Bend the rules
As Weaver’s story illustrates, the supply chain problem affects new and near-new cars as well as older vehicles in need of repair.
It’s gotten to the point where the body shop that services Weaver’s Bronco Sport has changed the way it does business.
“We end up leaving it in the hands of the customer, and they end up driving it essentially damaged,” said Tony DiNapoli, owner of Carstar Tamco Collision in Norwood.
“At this point with the problems we’ve had since the shutdown and the lack of parts, we had to bend those rules,” DiNapoli said, stressing that only since the pandemic has it committed to allowing damaged vehicles back on the street in safe operating conditions. But he had to be flexible, especially when dealing with cases like a car that has been waiting a year for work to be done. “We just don’t have the parts.”
For Weaver, the saving grace of having the car stuck in the shop has been working in IT: He normally commutes to work in Plymouth Meeting two or three days a week, but since the accident, he’s been working exclusively from home .
This is not an option for Holly Loveland.
The West Chester resident works in sales in the beverage industry and drives 400 to 500 miles per week, which also includes driving her 12- and 15-year-old sons to various activities. So when his Grand Cherokee needed a new engine, he thought the five days of warranty coverage for an Enterprise rental would be plenty of time for the repair, which is usually a one-day job. David Jeep in West Chester gave him a loan.
“My kids play sports, travel soccer, so I said, ‘Do you think maybe I should take my stuff out for the weekend?'” and they said you probably shouldn’t, but just to be sure. ” Loveland said.
Unfortunately, the engine was in relief. Loveland dropped the vehicle off at David Jeep in West Chester on Oct. 4; the repair was completed on November 10.
More old cars
The need to repair more cars comes in part from rising new and used car prices and a shortage of them: New car sales are down to 13.7 million in 2022 from just under 15 million by 2021, mainly due to production issues. Many potential buyers are on the lookout for cars longer than ever. The average age of a car on the road in the United States these days is 12 years, and it continues to grow year after year.
Data from the Greater Philadelphia Automobile Dealers Association reflects a “trend to hang on to your car” among people who are likely to be some of the most eager buyers: visitors to the Philadelphia Auto Show.
By the numbers
Average age of cars on the road: 12.1 years
How much Americans spend each year on repairs: 300 billion dollars
How many new cars were sold in 2022: 13.7 million
Typically, surveys of show goers have consistently shown that around half of respondents intend to buy a new car in the next 12 months, and follow-up surveys reveal that even more than half did buy this new car
But after the 2022 show, while 49% of visitors planned to buy a new car, only 42% did.
“For the first time it wasn’t higher,” said Kevin Mazzucola, executive director of the dealer association.
Still, some dealers and mechanics seem to be on the road to recovery.
McCarthy said his industry has long boasted a 95 percent fill rate — the percentage of vehicle parts orders that can be filled from existing stock without lost sales or back orders. The figure fell below 50% for a while, and so 70% became the new industry target. Some members now report that they have been able to recover up to 90% consistently.
Hank Glanzmann, general manager of Glanzmann Subaru in Willow Grove, said his worst example was a small part of the vehicle dynamics control system in an Outback.
“I think that was the longest we had to wait, which was probably about 60 days,” Glanzmann said. “Outside of this one, it’s been a few weeks instead of a few months.”
It seems to be a new element all the time. Now it even interferes where the rubber meets the road.
“Tires are starting to be a big issue,” said Chris Clayton, service manager at Otto’s BMW and Mini in West Chester.
And people like Lonnie Goldiner of Northeast Philadelphia stay out of that 90%.
After his 2016 Honda Civic was involved in a collision in mid-December, the 63-year-old learned that an airbag component will hold off on repairs until March.
“I’m kind of stuck right now,” Goldiner said.
