What's hot
Tracking the fastest rising catalytic converter SKUs is one thing, but identifying the underlying reasons can be difficult. Most catalytic converter failures are not caused by characteristics of the unit itself, but rather by upstream issues such as a faulty sensor, pipe or worn engine components. This cause/effect relationship can be seen in several of the top 10 applications from January 2008. Five of these applications are Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Cherokee or Chevrolet S10 models — each of which, according to exhaust suppliers, commonly experience premature wear of the pipes and/or connections between the exhaust manifold and converter."Typically you have a split pipe or a bad connection that's letting air into the exhaust system. This causes the onboard computer to dump more raw fuel into the system, which overheats the converter," explains a product manager for one leading converter manufacturer.
In contrast to the national data, the fastest rising converter applications in the midwestern U.S. were the 2001 Chevrolet Impala, which jumped 23 positions to No. 1 in January, and the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu, which rose 214 spots to No. 8.
What's driving this trend? One manufacturer explained that aftermarket converters for some GM engines commonly trigger malfunction indicator lights due to lighter-than-OE precious metals content.
There are fewer dramatic changes in the oxygen sensor category, where the 2000 Nissan Maxima moved from 16th to third position since January 2007. Activant's analysis of the western U.S. reflects the regional popularity of import vehicles, with the Honda Civic and Accord and Toyota Camry dominating the top 10 applications in January 2008.
National data in the strut mount category showed a virtual monopoly of the top 10 positions by the Toyota Camry, though the fastest riser was the '02 Honda Civic, which jumped from 994 in January 2007 to 10th place in 2008.
In contrast to the newer Camry models, the 1994 Camry — ranked third nationally in the Activant Vista data — has a documented reliability issue related to the location of a strut bearing, according to another supplier. "Toyota placed the bearing between the spring seat and strut, which made it susceptible to a lot of road spray," says a ride control engineer. "They improved the design the next year."
What's not
The most significant declines in catalog transactions among the January sample were in the converter and strut mount categories. The top seven fallers within the Midwest in the converter category were 2001 and older domestic applications. "In many of these cases, we're simply seeing normal vehicle lifecycle issues," says one product manager.
In the strut mount category, the fastest faller both nationally and within the northeastern U.S was the 1997 Toyota Avalon.
"The Avalon uses the same strut mount as the '97 Camry, which shows up as one of the most popular replacement opportunities," says a ride control engineer. "This is purely speculation, but Avalons are significantly heavier vehicles, so the strut mounts probably fail a few years earlier than they do on the Camry."
Methodology: The Activant Vista market intelligence tool captures point of sale information from a national panel of aftermarket stores. This information is processed and aggregated through Activant's unique statistical methodology on a daily basis before being delivered in reports to Vista subscribers. Collected information includes eCatalog lookups, product availability and sales transactions by vehicle and SKU.
Rod Bayless is the product director for Activant Solutions, Inc. For additional information regarding Activant Vista market data, write to [email protected]. Activant is a leading innovator and the industry standard for information and supply chain technology in the automotive aftermarket.
