Safety Consciousness

by Les Jackson

In the 1950s, Detroit automakers held to the adage, "safety doesn't sell." GM, Ford and Chrysler offered seat belts, padded dashes and other safety equipment, but consumers didn't buy them. In sharp contrast to those attitudes, one of the most important features consumers look for in new vehicles today is safety. Irrespective of federal mandates, no modern car, minivan or light truck can be successfully marketed in the U.S. unless it has minimum safety components of air bags, seat belts, collapsible steering column, padded dash and crash-resistant body structure. Today, safety is all-important to consumers.

Vehicles are now built with anti-lock brakes, side air bags, enhanced braking, skid control, dynamic stability, road-sensing suspensions, traction control, night vision systems, head-up displays and a host of soon-to-be introduced features that will make vehicles less likely to roll over or lose stability. Most of these devices are too complex in their installation to be available to the aftermarket, but there are a host of devices that can (and should) be sold as safety-enhancing equipment.

Child Booster Seats

According to National Transportation Safety Board statistics, more young children have died from injuries due to improperly installed - or improperly restrained - child safety seats in the last 10 years than all soldiers killed in Vietnam.

An almost exclusively aftermarket product, child safety seats are a huge yearly business, in excess of $1.5 billion. A number of companies manufacture child safety seats, chiefly Koala, Britax, BabyCo, Stork Talk, Fisher-Price and KidSafe. All differ in small ways and none are manufactured to any mandated installation standard.

Before the 2000 model year was introduced, this discontinuity was a problem for aftermarket sellers and installers. As of 2000, however, federal regulations stipulate that auto manufacturers provide standardized child seat tether anchors in their vehicles. This requirement makes safe installation of child seats - either by sellers or purchasers - a far more assured task.

Unfortunately, children between the ages of four and eight years - or weighing between 40-80 pounds - are still being placed in child safety seats. This practice is so dangerous that many safety organizations, as well as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have called for a national education program to foster the use of booster seats, which allow the use of the vehicle's lap/shoulder belt system, for older children.

Ford Motor Company has been the first manufacturer to step up with its "Boost America" campaign, a national child safety campaign that includes free inspections at Ford dealerships and giveaways of some one million booster seats. "We know many parents want to do the right thing for their kids, but are not aware of the dangers of improper - or improperly installed - child seating. Ford has embarked on this safety/education campaign and calls on all other manufacturers to do so," says Cathy Hickey, Ford's Boost America spokesperson.

The NHTSA says that only seven percent of children who should be in booster seats are actually in them, stating that over 20 million children fall in the age/weight group requiring the seats. At an average cost of $25, there is a yearly market potential of $500 million in booster seat sales. Booster seats are manufactured by the same companies manufacturing child seats and are available from normal supply channels. They are presently sold at discount stores, "box" stores and department stores.

Beware: Seat/Shoulder Belt Adjusters

Some aftermarket suppliers offer shoulder belt adjustment kits that alter the position of the belts to better fit small children. The NHTSA has been testing these products and has determined that installation errors, mounting hardware changes and other factors make them unsafe, either structurally or in their operation. NHTSA recommends that this sort of equipment currently for sale not be purchased by consumers. The agency is considering rulings that will require certification for aftermarket seat/shoulder belts.

Putting the Brakes on Older Cars

Disc brakes have become the industry standard. Their wet-and-dry fade-resistance, self-adjustment and straight-stopping characteristics make them far superior to older drum brakes. However, older cars (pre-1980), and the growing population of regularly-used collector cars, are still equipped with drum brake systems. Driving drum-brake vehicles poses a greater hazard than those with disc systems, due to longer stopping distances, brake-fade and vehicle yaw resulting from uneven adjustment.

Stainless Steel Brake Company is among a small group of manufacturers that market disc brake conversion systems for about 50 makes/models of older vehicles. These conversions are done chiefly on popular collectibles such as Mustang, Camaro and the like, but the market is wide open. Systems are available for front wheel or four wheel conversion, although front-wheel is more than adequate for most applications.

These conversion systems cost little more than a full-rebuild of a drum system (about $800) and offer profit potential for shops specializing in such services. The public, including collectors and aficionados, is largely unaware that these conversions exist. Safety sells.

Tires

The recent Firestone SUV tire failure situation is a good example of how tires are marketed in less than efficient ways. Most tire sellers tout the performance and tread-wear characteristics of their products rather than the safety aspects. Since consumers are so concerned with safety it is likely that more inventory can be moved if tires are sold from a "safety" point of view. Foul-weather traction capability, "run flat" technology and tire pressure monitoring systems are more likely to command customers' attention than traditional performance characteristics.

Soon to enter the aftermarket will be Continental Teves' "Smart Tire" technology, one that will be followed closely by other major tire manufacturers. Smart tires actually feed "rolling data" (surface texture, adhesion, inflation pressure) to the vehicle's ABS system to allow real-time adjustments to the vehicle's braking and engine control to maintain stability. "We believe technology such as the 'smart tire' is a major step in advanced vehicle safety, and a pioneer in systems that will make vehicles of the future less likely to be involved in accidents," says Jim Gill, spokesman for Continental Teves.

Lights

Lighting systems offer a wide variety of safety-oriented solutions for the aftermarket. Replacement halogen headlamps offer greater long-range visibility and brightness for vehicles equipped with old, sealed-beam lamps. They are manufactured in sizes and styles to fit most older vehicles.

Older vehicles (pre-1985) were not equipped with center, high-mounted stop lights (commonly referred to as CHMSL). NHTSA statistics show that a significant number of rear-end collisions have been reduced as a result of the better visibility that the CHMSL produces and such devices have contributed to vehicle safety. CHMSL devices are made in a large variety of sizes and shapes for the aftermarket. They are normally not displayed effectively in stores or in catalogs.

Driving lights, fog lights and other such products have been sold for decades and show every likelihood of remaining popular.

Telematics

Any vehicle equipped with a cell phone is a candidate for such in-car paraphernalia as head-up displays, night vision, navigation systems and internet access electronics, commonly referred to as "telematics." These systems use a combination of satellite positioning and cellular access to perform two-way communication with the vehicle's occupants. Many GM 2001 vehicles are being equipped with systems such as Bose Infotainment, which can perform navigation, e-mail, voice-mail, web browsing and cell phone usage, all hands-free and voice-activated. Because they have real-time access to road, traffic and weather conditions their use can benefit overall safety by enabling drivers to avoid potentially dangerous situations.

GM, Ford, BMW, Lexus and Acura are projecting sales of millions of "wired access" features in next year's new-car fleet, as buyers' lifestyles continue to require long periods of time in their vehicles. Visteon, Delphi, NavMate and other companies currently manufacture OEM and aftermarket navigation/web systems. These products are expensive ($1,000-$2,000) and require trained technicians for installation, but the demand for them keeps increasing.

Added to these are in-vehicle entertainment systems, popular with minivan buyers. TV, VCR and individualized audio functions are designed to accommodate youngsters on long trips, relieving stress and distraction on the part of the driver. Sony, Hitachi, Panasonic, Visteon, Delphi and many other companies produce such systems.

Anti-Distraction

In-vehicle phone use is beginning to result in accidents. According to numerous studies by government and industry, about 25 percent of accidents each year are caused by distractions that take drivers' attention from the control of the vehicle.

Telematic devices can potentially create "other activities" that are fast becoming a safety crisis, and the NHTSA is already studying them to determine if potential usage rules need to be considered.

Old Standbys

Windshield wipers are one of the most under-appreciated pieces of safety equipment. Since many accidents are the result of poor visibility, it is important to stress the need for frequent wiper blade replacement. Few shops pay attention to proper, effective display of wiper blades.

In addition to wipers, there will always be a market for vehicle alarms, rollover bars, anti-sway bars (and other suspension equipment) and anti-theft steering wheel locks. Consumers want to do everything possible to safeguard their automotive investment and savvy retailers know how to appeal to that need.

Selling Safety

Unfortunately for the aftermarket, most major safety products are designed for the OEM supplier and not for shops and retailers. However, it's worth taking advantage of those safety-related products available by stressing their potential for increased security.

Very little is required on the part of aftermarket shops and stores to cater to the safety-conscious consumer. Retailers more often stress the features of products rather than their benefits, so a simple concentration on the real - or potential - safety benefits of some products is sure to get the attention of the customer and make selling much easier.

Few buyers are "price-shoppers" when it comes to safety. All too often those buyers simply aren't aware of the range of products available to them.

Reprinted with kind permission by the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association