Right to Repair Divides City's Auto Industry

While part manufacturers and legislators continue to offer staunch support for the Massachusetts Right to Repair Bill, painting the issue as a war between independent shops and large dealerships, local independents are split on the issue and some fear that the bill could leave small garages worse off than before.

The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Garrett Bradley and state Sen. John Hart, has been re-filed for the 2011-2012 legislative session. The legislation attempts to protect “motor vehicle owners and small businesses in repairing motor vehicles," who up until a few years ago were unable to access repair codes and computer information from manufacturers, forcing car owners to have repairs done exclusively at dealerships.

The driving force behind the measure is the Right to Repair Coalition, a collection of 33 special-interest groups which include AAA, Massachusetts Independent Auto, and the Massachusetts Locksmith Association. The measure passed unanimously in the Massachusetts Senate last year before stalling in the House of Representatives and never being voted upon before the 2010-2011 legislative session ended.

Right to Repair is popular with many independent garages that feel they don’t have the ability to access necessary repair information vital to car repairs, specifically on newer models, but least one local owner says the information is there and it is reasonably priced, garages and consumers just need to be educated on where to find it.

"I feel that we already have a right to repair," said Diane Larson, owner and manager of John on Lynn Street. "What we lack is information and proper training, tooling, education and information access for shop owners and technicians."

A small, independent shop, Larson says her service technicians have access to all of the information they need to fix just about any vehicle from their own shop from simply purchasing tools from the manufacturer and a subscription to a Web site that provides appropriate service codes. She says the movement for Right to Repair has unfairly been tied to small repair shops, pitting them against dealers, when in reality it is the independent parts manufacturers who want access to car manufacturer information so they can make what is essentially replicated parts.

"Passing this bill doesn't help anyone, except for the parts manufacturers," she said. And what it has done is divided the industry. That is a shame."

As it stands today, John Larson's has the ability to repair any car, something Diane Larson says is available to every repair shop at a cost.

"There are two different scan tools, there is the aftermarket tool and there is the OE (original equipment) manufacturer's tool," she said. "Most shops have the aftermarket tool which takes all of the information and condenses it in to one tool. The problem with that is there is so much information that it can't all be in there, so it doesn't have everything."

The OE scan tool is more useful to shops as it is unique to a specific manufacturer, and therefore has all of the codes the shop would need to repair any problem. The tool itself, which connects to the car and a laptop computer, is fairly inexpensive, around $1,500 depending on the manufacturer, and requires a yearly subscription to a database of online codes. 

Larson's uses the National Automotive Service Task Force website to subscribe to codes. Other available sites include Mitchell and All Data.

Larson says her shop has purchased tools and subscriptions for the manufacturers they service the most, including Toyota which makes up for over half of their business, and also has the ability to purchase a one, two or three day subscription online for other manufacturers if needed.

"The information is there," says Larson. "But the shops have to buy the tool, pay for the information and train their technicians. The Toyota guys (at the dealership) don't have anything my guys don't have that they need to fix the cars."

In a press release, the Right to Repair Coalition said that drivers with something as trivial as a “check engine light” on a car out of warranty are “told that the vehicle had to be taken to a new car dealership to simply turn the light off after repairs were made.”

Larson somewhat opposes this notion, pointing out that three or four years ago that was an issue, but today all of the information is available to shops if they are willing to pay for it and train their staff.

"A few years ago we were not getting the information we needed, yes," she said, pointing out that Toyota initially refused to sell her the OE manufacturer scan tool in 2008 because she was not a dealer. "But the ASA (Automotive Service Association) and other organizations have really been working hard with the OE's and the information is now available if we need it.

"I think that the OE's want us to fix the cars. They want their customers to be happy. I think if they are forced in to (Right of Repair) they are going to have their backs up and they are going to raise the cost of the information. Right now it is reasonably priced for everyone."

While Larson  fears the bill will raise the cost of information for garages, other shop owners in the city say it is necessary to ensure that the information will always be available.

"If it is not instated then we essentially have the fox guarding the hen house. I think they will stop offering the information," said Larry Rubenstein, owner of Route 1 Auto Service. "If the information is embargoed then you are going to have a monopoly with the dealerships. All it is going to do is raise the price of repairing cars."

Rubenstein uses a similar system as Larson when it comes to purchasing subscriptions and tools to gain access to codes. He says the information is not always accurate and there is still a worry over 'black market parts' which he says surface when proper information is unavailable.

"The info (online) is entered manually or scanned, they get it from the manufacturers and occasionally there are mistakes and errors that are there," he said. "What it comes down to is the information cannot be embargoed. Any time you do that there is nothing good that can come of it."

Rubenstein said passing the bill would also require manufacturers to make information about newer models available sooner and would help complete the vast library of codes that often have technicians scrambling. 

Since the beginning, dealerships have been opposed to the bill citing an influx of aftermarket parts hitting the market as well as job loss issues due to a loss of service business. 

In an interview with who represents the owners of Ira Toyota in Danvers,  said the passage of the Right to Repair legislation would be “disastrous” to the dealerships. He believes that the bill would allow competitors to have access to valuable intellectual property owned by the car manufacturers. This would, in effect, flood the industry with after-market parts.

“That would be a devastating blow to a major segment of their business,” he said in reference to the parts and service dealings of the dealerships.

Marcell spoke of the websites that make codes available and says manufacturers have made an effort to educate other garages about them.

“All of the people in the industry know of it and know of its usefulness,” Marcell said. “In my experience, 95 percent or better of the time, there is no problem. People can get the access they want.”

Marcell believes that the complaints that groups such as the Right to Repair Coalition have against dealerships are a “red herring” because repair problems are often user related. Repair shops also often run into problems with “knock-off” parts and scan tools, according to Marcell.

Larson does not agree with the notion that "everyone" in the industry knows about the Web sites. She said the focus should be on educating and training independent owners and their staff about what is available, as well as notifying consumers that they do not have to go to a dealership, instead of trying to push what she feels is an unnecessary bill through the legislature.

She says that many shops do think they have to send a customer to a dealership simply because they do not know or do not have the training to use the scan tools.

"They need to take all of this money they are putting in to this bill and put it toward educational training," she said. "If they put just a fraction of this money toward that... The information is out there. People just need to know that it is available."

She added that she believes hers and other shops are superior to dealerships not because of pricing, but because of the level of quality and personalizes service that independent shops provide. Her fear is that the rift the bill is creating in the industry will have the opposite effect and raise the cost of the information and therefore the repair.

"There is a great market for the independent shop," she said. "I just don't want to see us go the way of the neighborhood drug store."

Rubenstein agrees, but says Right to Repair is a key part of saving the independent shop from the strong hand of dealers and manufacturers.

"The government did a real job on us with Cash for Clunkers," he said, referring to the trade in program offered by the government two years ago. "We lost a lot of the older cars that we would normally work on. I see (Right to Repair) as another step."