In the autumn 2009 issue of the Locator UpFront Magazine there was a feature article about our website and e-commerce department. To view the article please follow this link The Locator UpFront Autumn 2009

I would like to take a minute to remind everyone to drive safely and when there is a storm concentrating on the road and driving alertly is essential. Even a minor distraction is enough to send you sliding into a guard rail or the car in front of you. Don't assume your SUV or truck will automatically save you from an accident either. As I mentioned all of the accidents I saw this morning were AWD vehicles who were probably driving faster or more carelessly because the driver assumed that they had better control. Concentrate, stay focused on your driving and leave a lot of room between you and the car in front of you.

And remember to keep your vehicle running safely. If you need replacement parts this winter season, whether it's mechanical or a body part please remember that East Coast Auto Salvage is your best source for quality recycled parts, and we ship nationwide. Drive safe!

2001 Trailblazer, 2000 Windstar and 2001 Jeep Cherokee traded in under the Federal "Cash for Clunkers" program headed for the crusher.

getting paid for the vehicles traded in under the 3 billion dollar Federal Cash for Clunkers program they are turning over the vehicles to auto recycling facilities and scrap yards.

What a surprise today when they brought down a load of vehicles including a 2001 Jeep Cherokee, 2000 Ford Windstar and 2001 Trailblazer. Three beautifully well maintained vehicles with moderately low mileage that will be destroyed because the Federal government somehow thinks that this is saving America money.

I do not know a high school or college student, low income family, single working parent or any other average Jane (including myself) who would not mind the opportunity to purchase one of these used vehicles. But as you might already know the Cash for Clunkers program mandates that the engines on these vehicles are destroyed and that under no circumstance are the vehicles resold; they are destined for the crusher.

So now these vehicles will be processed here at our facility just like all other salvage and wrecked vehicles. Fluids drained and other contaminating substances removed, all salvageable body parts and other miscellaneous parts stocked for resale and then off to the crusher to be recycled.

So if any of you out there are searching for a reasonably priced, well maintained used vehicle to get you to and from work or school and are having a hard time coming up with the money or finding a good vehicle think of the 750,000 used, running vehicles like these that were destroyed in the past few months and your hard earned tax dollars that fueled this genius plan.

The dealers then have an execution order to kill the engines of the trade in vehicles with a solution of sodium silicate. This mass killing of engines has left used engine communities across the nation, including the one at East Coast Auto Salvage, horrified and fearful.

“These engines have done nothing to deserve this!” exclaims the 2003 Trailblazer engine that resides in B1 at East Coast Auto Salvage. “These are good running engines that could have provided transportation for people in need of a ride. Not everyone can afford a new car; many people need used engines to keep their vehicles running. That is what we are here for.”

Just today the Wall Street Journal released an article about the increase in demand for the Sodium Silicate solution that is used in the execution process. It describes the killing process and in particular the experience at a dealership in Kansas:

At dealerships across America, mechanics accustomed to fixing engines are battling for the chance to ruin them. "Everybody wants to go first, so I'm probably going to have to make them draw straws," says Jim Burton of Randy Curnow Buick Pontiac GMC in Kansas City, Kan. As service manager, however, he might reserve that thrill for himself. "I can't wait," he says.

Over the weekend, half a dozen mechanics gathered around three clunkers marked for death at Jim Clark Motors in Lawrence, Kan. As Loris Brubeck Jr., the dealership's president, held a stopwatch, the sodium-silicate solution took two minutes flat to kill a 2002 Ford Windstar, and just a few seconds more to kill a 1999 Jeep. But a 1988 Dodge van lasted more than six minutes. "Sometimes those old engines, they're the hardest to kill," says Mr. Brubeck.

“As if the killings themselves weren’t bad enough it is just sickening the great pleasure that these mechanics and dealers are taking in performing the execution,” says the 2000 Expedition Engine that resides in Z2 at East Coast. “These motors are just like us. They probably still have a lot of life in them but the government decided that they should be put to death, it’s a shame really.” 

The article in the WJS describes the effect of the Sodium Silicate:

"The heat of the operating engine then dehydrates the solution leaving solid sodium silicate distributed throughout the engine's oiled surfaces and moving parts," says the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration publication. "These solids quickly abrade the bearings causing the engine to seize while damaging the moving parts of the engine and coating all of the oil passages."

“Reading this makes me cringe, what a horrible way to die,” says the 2004 Durango Engine that resides in A10. “It could have been any of us really; it is just a matter of being at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Indeed these engines from these “clunkers” don’t stand a chance. Approximately 250,000 vehicles have already been destroyed under the program and if the senate approves more funding another 500,000 or more running engines will be killed. This obviously reduces the number of good used vehicles available on the market and because of the engine destruction will also reduce the number of used replacement parts available for consumers.

“This program just doesn’t make any sense to me,” says the 1998 Deville engine that resides in Z3. ”Valuable resources were used to create us in the first place and the resources used to produce new vehicles costs more in the long run than keeping us old engines running until we naturally expire. All of this killing seems unnecessary and I am glad that I am not a tax payer right now because I don’t see how this is a benefit to the consumer.”

A moment of silence will be held by all of the engines at East Coast Auto Salvage this evening in remembrance of those engines that could have lived on to help others but instead were brutally slaughtered by the federal government.

WSJ article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124934376942503053.html

Cash for Clunkers Information at http://www.cars.gov/ 

Today is the official start date for the federal Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) formally known as "Cash for Clunkers".  This program will allow vehicle owners to trade in their older, less fuel efficient vehicle for a $3,000-$4,500 credit toward the purchase of a new more fuel efficient vehicle. For consumer related information about the program please visit www.cars.gov

The trade in vehicles are required by law to be destroyed by an authorized auto recycler or scrap yard. Only a few thousand facilities nationwide have made the list of authorized facilities. The government drew the list up from a database of disposal facilities that participate in the National Vehicle Mercury Switch Recovery Program. Most of these facilities are already in compliance with the environmental regulations for auto recycling and the government believes them to be the most qualified for participation in the CARS program.

East Coast Auto Salvage Inc. is proud to be on the list of authorized disposal facilities in the state of Connecticut. If you are an auto dealer participating in the CARS program and would like to talk to someone about the removal and disposal of the trade in vehicles that you acquire please do not hesitate to give us a call. 

Call East Coast Auto Salvage Inc. today to discuss disposal of Cash for Clunkers trade-in vehicles.

Toll Free: 1-800-231-9121

Local: (860) 345-4591

Hours of Operation Monday - Friday 8AM-5PM, Saturday 8AM-12Noon

For more information about the disposal of the trade in vehicles please visit CARS Disposal & Salvage

Customer: Hello, I am looking for a 3.0l engine for my 2000 Toyota Camry and I was wondering what you have in stock?

Tim: California or Federal Emissions?

Customer: I live in Massachusetts.

Tim: Yes Sir, it doesn't matter where you live, we need to know the emissions standards for your Toyota Camry, Federal or California? You can find this information under the hood on an emissions sticker or engine ID plate.

Customer: Well I purchased the car in Indiana and my wife has been driving it for two years and we've never been to California . . . .

Okay, maybe I exaggerated a little bit at the end but at least once a week we get a phone call along these lines. People are looking for their own engine parts and then they are thrown for a loop when we ask them if they have  Federal or California emissions.

I don't blame people for being confused; it doesn't make sense that the engine of a vehicle would be built two different ways, one to meet the standards for a single state the other for the entire nation. And to add to the confusion both California and Federal vehicles can be found in all parts of the country. In fact it seems that the various standards have created a lot of distress within the automotive manufacturing industry as well. President Obama explained some of the challenges presented by the different standards yesterday in his address in the Rose Garden:

Car companies might then face three different sets of overlapping requirements, one administered by the Department of Transportation, one administered by the EPA, and still a third administered by California and 13 other states. This proposed national policy, under the leadership of two agencies - and bringing together 14 states, 10 companies, as well as auto workers and environmental groups - changes all that. The goal is to set one national standard that will rapidly increase fuel efficiency - without compromising safety - by an average of 5 percent each year between 2012 and 2016 . . .

Some people are upset that the new fuel efficiency regulations do not mandate the inclusion of hybrid technology, but I do not think that hybrid is right for everyone. I believe that with a higher national standard that innovation will lead the way to produce fuel efficient vehicles with different kinds of technology. How this innovation is funded is a whole other issue, not one I am about to discuss this afternoon.

So will setting a national standard be a good thing in the end? Well, it would seem that for the environment and the efficiently of producing parts to meet one standard instead of several would be beneficial. But there are a lot of car-enthusiasts that feel like a part of our "American Freedom" is being taken away.

Well, that does bring up a good point. What about the sports cars, those designed for speed and recreation and maybe not daily driving? Will these nationwide emission standards affect the production of these vehicles?

And then what about safety standards for vehicles? Will we be compromising our safety for the sake of fuel efficiency? President Obama says that safety will not be compromised but it's hard to understand that when the safety of a vehilce is directly related to it's weight and weight is directly related to fuel efficiency how it could not have an effect. When I think of it this way I am terrified to think that the government could in inadvertently (or deliberately) affect our safety for the sake of fuel economy and I fear for my unborn children.

There are a lot of indications that sport cars, SUVs and even pick up trucks will be harder to get in the future and that the owners may be forced to pay a luxury tax. That signifies to me that the standards are only enforced to the common-folk, middle and lower class and that the right to disregard fuel economy and/or safety can be purchased. This doesn't feel right either, if I agree to give up my SUV for a more fuel efficient vehicle why should the next guy be able to buy his way out of it. Well, because he has more money, that's why.

So does the government regulation really help to improve our overall fuel consumption as a nation or just increase disparity between classes?  I personally feel that a nationwide emission standard is a step in the right direction toward a more environmentally responsible American made vehicle however I wouldn't want to see a tax imposed on vehicles with lower gas mileage or a compromise in safety standards. I hope that a new kind of American dream car can be created, without compromising our right to safety or the choice for recreation.

At least we know what one benefit will be when the new standards stake effect, when you call us in 2020 looking for a engine part for your 2012 vehicle Tim won't have to ask you "Is that California or Federal?" Huh?

Bye Bye Pontiac

On April 25th the Wall Street Journal reported that Pontiac is headed to the Junk Yard. Besides being mildly annoyed that the author was using the term Junk Yard to refer to the permanent demise of the brand (while I of course prefer to think of our industry as one of renewal and restitution) I was mostly saddened by the loss of another iconic American auto. I also learned that the GTO , first released in 1963, was the start of the Detroit "horsepower wars",followed by the Mustang and the Plymouth Barracuda.

The author pointed out that Pontiac sales peaked in 1978 and tumbled downhill ever since besides a brief resurgence in the 1980s with the Firebird and Trans Am. Well, now that you mention it that does sound a little pathetic. It reminds me of the kids who's popularity and sports abilities peaked in high school and then they never went on to make anything out of their life because they thought they had it so good. It turns out there is life after the 70s. While all things good must come to an end I think that the real tragedy is that Pontiac was never able to re-invent themselves.

Of course with the current situation of Detroit I am not surprised that Pontiac is on the chopping block. Any division of a business labeled as a "steady money looser" can not be good for the overall health of a company. Sentimental value is not enough to keep a brand in business when the numbers don't support it. Or is it? I am interested to hear your opinions about what the end of this Pontiac-era means to you. Did you ever own a GTO? Do you currently own a Pontiac? What do you think GM should do?

Original article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124060030328753755.html#articleTabs%3Darticle