Drivers Keeping Cars Longer But May Not Be Adjusting Maintenance Habits

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Survey Shows a Potential Gap Between What Drivers Should Be Doing and What They Are Doing

FAIRFAX, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Drivers intend to keep their vehicles longer than they originally intended, but may not be adjusting their maintenance habits to keep pace with their change in plans. This finding is the result of a recent auto maintenance survey1 commissioned by ExxonMobil.

The survey, which polled men and women ages 18 and older who own and/or drive automobiles and participate in the decision-making about automotive maintenance, suggests that the attitude of drivers towards their cars has changed as a consequence to the uncertainty of today's economy. Few of these drivers, however, are adjusting their maintenance habits to account for the extra miles they intend to log on their vehicles.

Key survey findings include: 

    --  Drivers intend to keep their vehicles for a long time. Just over 40
        percent of survey participants want to keep their vehicles for 150,000
        miles or more (and nearly a quarter of them - 23 percent - intend to go
        more than 200,000 miles).
    --  Economic instability changed drivers' plans. More than one-third (37
        percent) of those surveyed say they now intend to keep their vehicles
        longer than they planned when they bought them; of those, nearly half
        (48 percent) cite economics as the reason.
    --  Synthetic motor oil use is very low. Only 11 percent of survey
        participants are using synthetic motor oil in their engine. While more
        people want to keep their vehicles longer, very few are using the best
        possible motor oils in their engines.
    --  Few follow the manufacturer's recommendations for maintenance precisely.
        Only 21 percent of survey participants are following the directions and
        warnings of their vehicle's manufacturer the way they should be to keep
        their car in the best condition.

"It's admirable that so many drivers are looking to get more use out of their vehicles, especially in the current economy," said Ray McDonald, Global Technical Advisor for Synthetic Passenger Vehicle Lubricants at ExxonMobil. "It's important for drivers to remember that the time to prepare their vehicles for all of those extra miles is now, and switching to a fully synthetic motor oil is a very effective way to do that. Synthetic motor oils can provide exceptional protection against engine wear, sludge and harmful deposits. In fact, our own synthetic motor oil, Mobil 1, can keep an engine in excellent condition, even out to 200,000 miles."

Synthetic motor oils deliver outstanding protection for critical engine parts in all types of cars and across a wide range of operating conditions. Other significant performance advantages synthetics have over conventional motor oils include protection under extreme high-temperature and low-temperature conditions.

For more information on the value of synthetic motor oils, go to www.mobil1.com and click on the "Why Synthetics?" heading.

About Mobil 1

The world's leading synthetic motor oil, Mobil 1, features advanced technology that provides performance beyond conventional motor oils. This technology allows Mobil 1 to meet or exceed the toughest standards of car builders and to provide protection against engine wear, under normal or even some of the most extreme conditions. Mobil 1 flows quickly in extreme temperatures to protect critical engine parts and is designed to maximize engine performance and help extend engine life. Mobil 1 is also the Official Motor Oil of NASCAR.

Mobil and Mobil 1 are trademarks of Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) or one of its subsidiaries.

1 The survey was conducted online by Impulse Research with a random sample of 1058 men and women, 18+ who own/drive automobiles, participate in the decision-making about automotive maintenance and have personally taken their vehicle to a service station/mechanic or shop for repairs or maintenance in the past year -- all members of the Impulse Research proprietary online panel. The Impulse Research proprietary online panel has been carefully selected to closely match US population demographics and the respondents are representative of American men and women 18 +. Research was conducted in April 2009. The overall sampling error rate for this survey is +/-3% at the 95% level of confidence. 


    Source: Exxon Mobil Corporation

Released June 22, 2009