Driven by innovation and quality since 1916

April 15, 2016
Monroe has established itself as a driving force of automotive ride performance, and 100 years after its founding remains one of the best-known brands in the global automotive and commercial vehicle industries.   

August Meyer never met any of the pioneers of personal computing. Moreover, the world's first shock absorber wasn’t anything like a PC, Mac or mobile device. But there are dozens — perhaps even hundreds — of similarities between the histories of Meyer's company and many of today's technology leaders.

August Meyer founds the company in 1916.

Meyer's company quickly established itself as a driving force of automotive ride performance, and 100 years after its founding remains one of the best-known brands in the global automotive and commercial vehicle industries.

That brand is Monroe®.

“Perhaps the most impressive part of the Monroe story is that it is every bit as vibrant today as it was following its first product success,” says Jeff Koviak, vice president and general manager of Tenneco’s North America Aftermarket business. “Very few brands have been able to maintain that competitive edge over a full century. I think that’s largely due to our corporate culture. We never dwell on past accomplishments; our focus is always on delivering even greater value to the professionals who rely on our products. “

This forward-thinking approach has played a role in every Monroe product, service and marketing innovation over the past 100 years. In fact, few might realize that Meyer, the mechanic and entrepreneur who founded the company in 1916, initially marketed an air pump to help consumers repair tires damaged on North America’s unpaved roads. As roads improved and, more importantly, a network of independent automotive service providers took root, Meyer and his partner, Charles McIntyre, looked for new ways to support their customers. Their next innovation — the Monroe Shock Eliminator — revolutionized their company and established an entirely new product category.

A century of firsts
There have been hundreds of Monroe innovations through the intervening decades, from the first dual-action shock absorber (1929); to the Monro-Matic® shock (1951), which became an industry standard among automakers and within the aftermarket; to iconic technologies and names like Gas-Magnum™ (1982), Sensa-Trac® (1991), Reflex® (1999), and OESpectrum® (2011).

The brand’s portfolio expanded beyond conventional shocks in 1980 with Tenneco’s introduction of its first original equipment and replacement struts, which addressed the increased use of McPherson struts by leading global vehicle manufacturers. “While strut technology quickly became a major part of Tenneco’s OE ride control business, we were also well aware that it posed new challenges for the service provider,” Koviak says. “Struts are more complex to remove and replace, which ties up the service bay. They’re also more expensive than conventional shocks because of their increased content.

“As strut-equipped vehicles became a significant portion of the North American vehicle population, we invested the time and resources to help revolutionize the service opportunity in the aftermarket. The industry was looking for a solution and we embraced the responsibility to deliver it.”
The resulting innovation, introduced in 2003, was the Monroe Quick-Strut® assembly. Gone was the need for time-consuming disassembly and reassembly of the old and new strut tower. More important, the repair provider could now ensure a comprehensive, high-quality repair by replacing all worn components — including upper bearing, damper, coil spring, jounce bumper and more — by selecting and installing a single bolt-in unit.

Monroe applies the technology of the single-barrel tire pump to smoothing the ride for America's drivers. The Monroe Quick-Strut unit was the first complete, ready-to-install replacement strut assembly available. The yellow Monroe blazer worn by every field sales rep in the 1960s and 70s was featured in a popular ad campaign. The Monro-Matic becomes the best-known shock absorber in the 1950s.

"A service provider typically only has one chance to perform a strut replacement over the life of a given vehicle. It makes sense to use the best parts from a trusted U.S.-based manufacturer to ensure the best outcome.”

The Quick-Strut assembly was an immediate success. And as more service providers recognized the benefits of this timesaving solution, they asked for additional part numbers. In response, Tenneco over the past 13 years has invested in a more than 500-percent increase in strut assembly production in Paragould, Ark., and in 2016 alone expects to add 100 Quick-Strut part numbers, expanding the line’s coverage to more than 132 million registered vehicles.

“Convenience is a huge advantage of the Quick-Strut assembly, but our commitment to quality and performance have played even greater roles in its continued success,” says John Perrin, director of marketing and engineering, North America Aftermarket, Tenneco.

“It’s not enough to develop a part that’s faster and easier to install — it also has to help restore the OE-style ride and handling characteristics on each corresponding vehicle. Our engineers match every component to the unique demands of the application. We use coil springs featuring premium, U.S.-manufactured steel. And we assemble Quick-Strut units in our U.S. facility to make sure they meet our stringent quality standards.

Aftermarket’s OE advantage
It might surprise some to learn that the Monroe brand isn’t simply a leader in the aftermarket ride control category; Tenneco also supplies advanced ride control solutions — including many of the latest electronic systems — to major vehicle manufacturers.

The benefits of this expansive OE portfolio are not exclusive to automakers, however; they can also be seen in the growing Monroe OESpectrum® line of replacement shocks and struts. The OESpectrum offering includes an array, or “spectrum,” of OE-inspired technologies for vehicles that have entered the aftermarket repair cycle.

Today's North American Sales Force proudly wears the yellow Monroe blazer. OESpectrum shocks and struts provided added control while reducing harshness. Monroe always thrived on cutting-edge, head-turning marketing campaigns aimed at raising interest in the ride control service need.

In addition to conventional twin-tube and monotube shocks and struts featuring Tenneco’s latest valving technologies, the OESpectrum line includes plug-and-play electronic dampers for a growing number of European vehicles originally equipped with the company’s Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension (CES). These replacement units respond to inputs from an ECU that processes driver inputs and data from sensors placed in key locations on the vehicle, resulting in superior ride comfort and firm vehicle control.

“As one of the largest suppliers of OE ride control systems, Tenneco is ideally positioned to support the long-term success of independent repair providers who rely on Monroe products,” Perrin says. “When each new generation of our advanced OE solutions eventually enter the service bay, technicians be confident that we’ll support them with the right replacement parts and great technical support to deliver a quality repair.”

Above all, great support
“Only Monroe would think of that.”

Whether the topic is the brand’s classic shock absorber barrel displays of the 1950s, the bright-yellow blazers worn by every Monroe field sales representative in the 1960s and 70s, the “Change Daily” underwear billboards of the early 2000s, or today’s 28-foot-long, glow-in-the-dark “Shockmobiles” and “Everything Gets Old” campaign, Monroe has thrived on cutting-edge, head-turning marketing aimed at raising interest in the ride control service need.

This OESpectrum shock absorber is hard to miss as the Shockmobile drives through cities across North America, spreading the word on the importance of inspecting ride control units.

“Ride control has always had to be sold — consumers simply don’t automatically understand they should replace worn shocks and struts,” explains Bill Johnston, director of sales, North America Aftermarket, Tenneco. “That fact has driven multiple generations of Monroe marketing and sales professionals to invent new ways to help our most important customers — service providers — grow their businesses.”

Pride has been another important ingredient of the brand’s success. That’s why many sales professionals from competing suppliers envied the yellow Monroe blazer; they weren’t necessarily fashionable (we’re talking BRIGHT yellow), but they were touchstones signifying the pinnacle of professionalism and customer support.

(As part of the 100th Anniversary celebration, Tenneco in January presented each member of its North American Sales Force with a Monroe blazer. They were worn with pride throughout the company’s 2016 Sales Conference.)

This same sense of pride can be seen in every current Monroe campaign, promotion, training initiative and other program designed to engender customer success. Tenneco’s Expert Plus loyalty program each year enrolls thousands of service businesses that proudly specify and install Monroe and Walker products. The hands-on Monroe Ride & Drive training experience attracts thousands of technicians, service writers and others who sense the opportunity to increase sales and better serve their customers. Even Monroe’s iconic counter stools are symbols of service, value and pride. 

“We had a special guest during our 2016 Sales Conference — Rick Meyer, the grandson of Monroe founder August Meyer,” says Koviak. “He told us that as far back as he can remember, members of the Monroe team understood the responsibility to be their customers’ best business partner.

“A lot has changed in our industry, but our commitment to customer success has never been stronger. No one will do more to partner with the front-line professionals who drive this industry. When people ask me what makes Monroe, Monroe — that’s the answer I always give them.”     

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