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Busting the 3,000 Mile Myth Reducing the Volume of Used Oil by Encouraging California Drivers to Go Longer Between Oil Changes From a report to the California Integrated Waste Management Board

Busting the 3,000 Mile Myth

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Busting the 3,000 Mile Myth. Reducing the Volume of Used Oil by Encouraging California Drivers to Go Longer Between Oil Changes From a report to the California Integrated Waste Management Board. Presented by:. The Social and Behavioral Research Institute California State University - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Busting the 3,000 Mile Myth

Reducing the Volume of Used Oil by Encouraging California Drivers

to Go Longer Between Oil Changes

From a report to the California Integrated Waste Management Board

Page 2: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Presented by:

The Social and Behavioral Research Institute

California State University

San Marcos

Page 3: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Project Team

Allen Risley, M.A. Director of Research Michael Large, Ph.D. (Former Quantitative

Study Director) P. Wesley Schultz, Ph.D., Faculty Advisor Chuck Flacks, M.S., Study Director Jolin Haley, Research Assistant Sam Ballard, Research Assistant Dana Stokes, CIWMB

Page 4: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Project Goals

Factors influencing oil-change behavior Demographic trends of frequent vs.

infrequent changers Create messages to encourage going longer

between changes Test messages

Page 5: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Oil Change Survey

1,002 telephone interviews conducted with randomly selected drivers between December 1st and January 12th 2005-2006

54% women, 46% men Average age = 49 Sample was more Caucasian, less Hispanic,

more multi-ethnic, and better educated than the expected values given the State of California’s averages in the 2000 Census

Page 6: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Most Important Factors

Oil Change Behavior

Page 7: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Most Go to Professionals

Chart 6 -- Who typically changes your oil?

34%

24% 24%

12%

6%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Car Dealer Quick LubeSpecialty Shop

Other Auto RepairShop

Do-it-Yourself Friend or FamilyMember

Page 8: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

How Do They Know When to Change?

Page 9: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Most Use Stickers…

Chart 7: Percent of Drivers with Oil Change Stickers

34%

66%

Yes

No

Page 10: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

…But Report Other Means

Chart 8: How People Know When It is Time to Change Their Oil

37%

26%

11%7% 5% 3%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

When it has beenspecific number of

miles

WindowReminder Sticker

Vehicle OilMonitoring

System

Other Reminder Oil level or quality Manufacturer orlog

N = 977, Responses under 2% omitted

Page 11: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

How Often Do They Change?

Median and most reported = 3,000 miles, Average = 4,200 miles

Compared to manufacturer recommendations Frequent Changers = more frequent than

manufacturer recommendations Waiters = at or below manufacturer

recommendations

Page 12: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Most Drivers Frequent Changers

Chart 11: Frequent Changers vs. Waiters

27.5%

72.5%

0.0%10.0%20.0%

30.0%40.0%50.0%60.0%70.0%

80.0%90.0%

100.0%

Waiters Frequent Changers

Page 13: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Changers Vs. Waiters

Changers More likely to be women More likely to drive imported cars More likely to be normal (less severe

conditions) drivers More likely to use synthetic oil More likely to have a reminder sticker on

windshield

Page 14: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Most Important Factors

Greatest concern = engine wear Least concern = saving time Frequent Changers were more likely to be

very concerned about engine wear Saving money and saving time were more

likely to be considered very important by Waiters

Strongest predictor of Frequent Changer was engine wear

Page 15: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Myth Busting

Creating Messages to

Influence Behavior

Page 16: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Theory: Central Route Vs. Peripheral

Applying the work of

Dr. P. Wesley Schultz

Page 17: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Routes to Persuasion

Central route to persuasion Analytic, high effort, cogent arguments Can produce durable, long-term changes in

behavior and agreement Peripheral route to persuasion

Intuitive, low effort, use standard measures Can produce bigger changes in behavior, but not

agreement

Page 18: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Routes to Persuasion

Persuasive Appeal

Central Route

Peripheral Route

Audience Processing Persuasion

BehaviorChange

Analytical andmotivated

Not analytical or involved

High effort,elaborate,Counter-argue

Low effort,use peripheralcues

Cogent argumentsinvoke enduringagreement

Cues triggerliking andacceptance(temporary)

Page 19: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Crafting the Message I

Identified “largest psychographic profile” Women Age 30-60 Use professional oil changers or dealers

Page 20: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Crafting the Message II

Trust the Maker The 3,000 Mile Myth You Can Do Better

Informal pre-testing narrowed the field to “The 3,000 Mile Myth”

Page 21: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Testing on Focus Groups

Two Groups One rural, one urban One coastal, one inland One Northern CA, one Southern CA

Sites were Taylor Research in San Diego and Elliott Benson Research in Sacramento

Consisted of “largest psychographic profile” – women, 30-60, used professional changers

Page 22: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Follow the Manual

3,000 mile myth message: 73% of California motorists believe they should change their oil more often than manufacturer recommends

Improvements in vehicle design result in less engine wear

Oil composition improvements mean people can extend their intervals

Bottom line – Follow Manufacturers Recommendations!

Page 23: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Positive Reactions to “3,000 Mile Myth” Messages

Information believable & represented a clear call to action

Showing sponsorship (CIWMB) provided credibility

Participants motivated to find out more about the issue & perhaps change behavior

Participants wanted more information – Website

Page 24: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Negative Reactions to “The 3,000 Mile Myth” Messages

Participants became more skeptical with more study Data in messages too focused on “efficient” cars Participants felt that perhaps only newer cars could

go longer between changes Participants saw environmental benefits, but

planned on maintaining their frequent changes to be “on the safe side” or to “maintain their warranties.”

Page 25: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Reactions to Synthetic Oil Messages

Big Yawn – Not a subject people were comfortable discussing

Not enough knowledge about costs and benefits

More comfortable with oil change frequency messages

Some participants interested; but none wanted to rush out and try synthetics

Page 26: Busting the  3,000 Mile Myth

Conclusions

Data show that most California drivers change oil more frequently than manufacturers recommend

Biggest fear = engine wear Prompting people with central route

messages creates some discomfort with their behavior choices

Targeted messages to Frequent Changers show potential to produce behavioral change