European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 11, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Monday july 11. 1994 automotive the stars and stripes Page 9 Chrysler a town amp country minivan and Toyota a entire truck line tied for the top ranking wednesday in a Survey of truck owners satisfaction with their vehicles and their dealers. Both scored 156 and exceeded the Industry average by 20 Points in the . Power and associates 1994 customer satisfaction Index for Light trucks a category that includes pickups vans and sport Utility vehicles. Filling out the surveys top five were Oldsmobile at 146, and Mercury and Plymouth at 142. Light trucks that carry the Olds Brand Are sport Utility vehicles and minivans. Mercury and Plymouth Quot trucks All Are minivans. Placing sixth through 10th, in order were Pontiac Mazda Dodge Ford and Mitsubishi. Nine truck lines were at or below the Industry average with Isuzu Suzuki and Volkswagen at the Bottom of the list. _. A a Ford motor co. Said it is voluntarily recalling some Taurus and Sable vehicles registered in High Altitude areas because they May exceed Carbon monoxide emissions Levels. Owners of about 22,000 1988-90 Model cars in federally designated High Altitude areas Are being notified of the recall by mail. The exhaust system catalysts will be replaced on cars that exceed acceptable Carbon monoxide emission Levels. Mazda motor of America and the Ford motor co. Are recalling about 14,400 Ford built compact pickup trucks to inspect or replace fuel lines that might crack leak and create a potential fire Hazard. No reports have been made to either company of accidents fires or injuries related to the defective lines Ford and Mazda said in separate news releases. The affected Ford vehicles Are about 12,600 1994 Ranger pickups with 3-liter or 4-liter v-6 engines including about 1.000 in Canada. Ford said fewer than 3.000 had been sold to retail customers. Most Are still in company or dealer inventories. The Mazda recall covers 1,789 1994 b3000 and b4000 pickup trucks of which fewer than 400 have been sold. The governments Auto safety Agency is upgrading an investigation into fuel line problems in some jeep grand cherokees. The National Highway traffic safety administration in its monthly defect investigation report said last week that 22 complaints have involved 21 fires stemming from fuel line connector failures in 1993-94 grand cherokees with 5.2-liter, v-8 engines. About 153,086 Are on the Road. The investigation could Lead to a recall of the vehicles but most cases Are dropped. The Nitsa opened an investigation into 1986-91 Hyundai excels and sonatas in connection with 81 complaints that an electrical Short May develop in the charging system. Other investigations opened last month include a 1994 Chrysler Dodge pickups a six complaints that the steering wheel locked up while driving. A 1990-91 Ford probe a 22 complaints that the motorized shoulder Belt locked up was Overly restrictive or failed to release. A 1994 Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac sunbird a three complaints that the Horn Button Falls off the steering wheel. A 1993 Chevrolet Corsica and Beretta a one complaint involving the Driver Side air bag modules separating from the steering wheel Hub after deploying in a collision. A from the associated press is King for Auto scents for dollars draw vehicle owners to air freshener by John Beifuss Scripps Howard news service. They re an unfathomable inexplicable craze. They seem to be As ubiquitous As bumper stickers though they apparently Appeal to a different constituency. A some people think they represent a club or a religion or a gang a said Shan a Freeman 21, a cashier at the Auto zone store in Memphis tenn., which Sells about 40 of the Auto accessories each week. What they Are in fact Are air fresheners. But they Are most often referred to As Quot those  As in a have you seen those crowns a the softball sized plastic crowns Are placed on the dashboards or rear window shelves of vehicles where they exude a scent for about 30 Days. Scents include Vanilla perfume Green Apple Jasmine Strawberry and others. They Range in Price from about $3.96 to $5.99. A they sell super fast a said Diana Marr 22, Shandao a co worker. A we get Mem in on a tuesday and id say they re gone by wednesday  a we get Mem in we sell Mem. We get Mem in we sell Mem a agreed Jeff Paterson assistant manager at an Ike a discount store. A the last thing we had that sold like this was  pork  Noel Molina sales representative for american Auto accessories inc. In Corona n.y., said his company originated the Crown craze about four years ago. A they have some imitations out there  Are better built a he said. A even our refills they done to leak or  in four years the company has sold millions of crowns Molina said. They now sell at a rate of about 35 ,000 every two weeks. A in the beginning they weren to very popular. But they started catching on two years  Why a i really done to have no idea a he said. A it makes your car look Good even if your car looks bad a was the answer Given by Larry Jones 21who was Riding around Memphis in a 1986 Blue Cadillac with a Crown on the dash. A the design Calls attention to your car even from a distance a added David Morris 22, who was driving the  a it san Urban item a said Herb Weiner sales manager for the Allison corp. In Livingston n.j., a Crown distributing rival of american Auto. A a we re big in any Urban area. .chicago,detroit.�?� Molina said the crowns have displaced the once popular tree shaped air freshen ers that dangled from rear View mirrors. A we done to sell the Trees no More a he said. A even though i done to take nothing away from them because they re a Good product but we do better with the  Weiner a whose company also makes those Playboy Bunny car accessories a acknowledged that Crown supersaturation eventually will kill demand. A in two three years it la run its course and Well have to find something else to sell a he said. Roaring rally motorcyclists Thunder through Prague czech Republic on saturday during the world rally of Harley Davidson owners. The rally Drew about 200 bikers from eight countries including the United states. A smart cars need smart repairers Washington apr the crowded waiting rooms at automotive repair shops May soon get even busier. The nation is facing a shortage of about 60,000 technicians to work on cars which have evolved in recent years into highly computerized a smart  and the problem is expected to Worsen when new clean air act requirements that enhance emissions inspections in Many cities take effect in january. A Many Many vehicles Are expected to fail these tests and to require repairs to emission control systems a said Geoff Sundstrom a spokesman for the american automobile association. A Kaaa is very concerned that motorists have Access to technicians with the ability to fix these problems the first time. Right now we Are not confident that enough trained personnel Are available to service these vehicles.�?�. The environmental Protection Agency which administers the clean air acts requirements said 60,000 More technicians Are needed to meet the demand. Chuck Groves special training programs manager for the customer service division of Ford motor co., said the problem is unquestionably due to the growing complexity of automobiles. For example in 1990 models just 18 percent of a cards functional pieces were controlled by computer. Just four Model years later that has increased to about 83 percent Groves said. In addition to the shortage of people Many of the technicians already on the Job just done to have the skills needed to fix advanced electronics a such As brakes and transmissions a and other technical components. The Epa says the average technician is six to eight years behind in training. Groves said specially trained technicians will be needed to service Corneli rated air conditioning systems replacing old versions that pollute More. Technicians with unique expertise will be needed to handle alternative fuel vehicles and a smart car technology. The Good news is this creates a readily identifiable Industry that Job seekers can enter. A technician typically needs a two year degree from a technical school. Starting salaries Are about $25,000 to $35,000 a year and More highly skilled technicians a can earn As much As $75,000