CAR-WRECKERS' WINDFALL

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 70, 9 April 1937, Page 4

CAR-WRECKERS' WINDFALL

New ReguIaUons for Motor Vehicles DEMAND FOR PARTS Th© new motOf regulationi, «quiring that all motor»v ehicles secure certificates of fltness, has had an almost! ©m* barrassing effect oa th© ear'WreeWniSf trade, and there has been §> big increas# in the number of vehicles off ©red to these firms for wrecki'ng. A percentage of these cars fail to attract even the wreeker, and th© result is that some owners are finding that th© only way to get rid of th© car is to giv© it away. Wreckers, g^berally speaking are not interested in car© produced before 1.924-25, and their preferenc© it for models between five and six years pid. From some of the motor-selliug firms old ears traded in for newer models, ar© being purchased by tb« wreekers in batches of five and tix, as •the motpr-dealers find that the eost of fitting such cars out to bring them up to th© required standard of xoad-worthi-ness is not justified. There ha© also been an improved 3©* man for parts from the wrecking firmis. The head of a Hastings wrecking ©qmpany said that there was a growing inquiry for king-pins, bushings, rearvjsion mirrprs, wind-screen wipers and such-like aeceg'sories. Th© wreekers regard the new testing regulations as more than a temporary windfall. Owners will have to taka a progressively keener interest in kgeping their cars up to standard, and from the shelves of th© wrecking shops will come the supplies bf many of the parts required in th© perforinance of that' functioa, There is no sentiment in the wrecking business, When a wreeker . casts a professional eye on a poesible purchase h© first of all assesses the quality of the tyres. If these ar© reasonably good, there is a chanee of business, With some makes the eylin* der head and the crowa and piniou in the differential are ajso worth-while assets to be considered. ' Then, if the car is a 1924 or 1925 model, there is usually an' offer of £4 to £7 10/-, seldom more. # Many ears have come to the wreekers from garages as a result of the tgst of fitnesa, They had been traded in originally for betier cars, and tb« inotor firms have not -considered they were worth while. conditioning to go on the road* for demonstrating purposeg. "Garages are going to be much more carefui than before in th© trading in " of vehieles," said a wreeker. The cost of replacing tyres before warrants of fitiiess will be givem is n big cause qf cars being driven- on their ; last journey to the wreekers, Defective brakes as the result of worn brak# drums are a common cause for ihe onsentimental ending. The previous owner cannot even tak# satisfaction from the thought that hip car lives on in bits and pieces distributed over a hundred other cars. Most of the bits and pieces may .©ventually be melted down as scrap, for wreekers are not keen on acquiring slow-selling stock. Begularly they go through fcheir bins, and if slow-selling parts are duplicated, one goes into the monthly . mnsignment of scrap.