Why most car owners are taking better care of their vehicles these days

According to new research, inflation is causing Americans to take better care of their current vehicle.

A survey of 2,000 car owners found that 73% of respondents have made a conscious decision to better maintain their car, due to rising vehicle costs.

This was especially true for older respondents. While 60% of Gen Z said they are making an active effort to better maintain their car, 75% of Gen X said the same.

But regardless of age, car owners are considering the cost of a new vehicle as well as previous maintenance mistakes (28%) when thinking about the products they choose for their cars.

The survey, conducted by Talker Research on behalf of Pennzoil, looked at the ways in which vehicle owners are taking better care of their cars – and how that relates to the products they’re buying.

Respondents who rely on premium brand name recognition when purchasing products say that premium brands work and perform better over time compared to private label products and are more reliable than their private label counterparts.

Those who buy private label products may regret it.

When asked which private label products they most regretted buying in the last month, private label auto care products ranked in the top three, along with personal care items and cleaning products.

This desire for brand name products was a consistent theme throughout the survey.

Respondents were shown a series of categories and asked whether they would prefer to buy a name-brand product over a private-label product in each category.

Car maintenance ranks second most likely to buy brand names. In fact, Americans are far more likely to purchase a name brand product (57%) to maintain their vehicle versus a private label product (34%).

Personal technology, such as a laptop, (72%) took the top spot as the most likely brand purchase. Other categories followed closely, such as small household appliances (55%) and personal care items (52%).

The survey also asked people how maintenance is usually performed on their vehicles: Are they a do-it-yourself (DIY) or do-it-for-me (DIFM) type of consumer?

Nearly 80% of consumers say they rely on someone else (DIFM) to do simple maintenance for them on their vehicle, with half preferring to hire a professional and 27% relying on a friend or family member to do it that for them.

Twenty percent do their own maintenance, with over 40% of DIYers stating that they enjoy maintaining their vehicle.

For those who prefer to take their car into the shop, more than half (58%) said it’s because they don’t have the knowledge to maintain it themselves.

And most do-it-yourself car owners (57%) also reported that brand recognition has an impact when making a purchase decision.

But regardless of whether they are do-it-yourself or DIFM consumers, two-thirds of respondents (63%) said motor oil was a product they were willing to invest more money in to protect the value of their car over time.

Survey methodology:

This random double-choice survey of 2,000 US car owners was commissioned by Pennzoil between May 24 and May 29, 2024. It was conducted by the market research company Speaker researchwhose team members are members of the Market Research Society (Ms.) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).