Editor's Page

There are a few items on my mind this month...so I thought that you might like to be served a little potpourri.

I noted recently that Capt. William Kaufman, com­mander of the Florida Turnpike Highway Patrol Troop K reported that out of the first 50 new tires he mounted on his patrol cars almost a dozen had failed within a few days. Nearly everyone, including the state pur­chasing agent, is concerned since these were tires from a new source manufacturer and pretty typical of what can happen on a bid basis.  

In an official report, troopers complained that sec­tions of tread peeled away after less than a week's use and that there was noticeable "effect on the direc­tional stability of the vehicles." Now the specs were for 8.15 x 15 tires of actual four-ply rating. But there was an obvious change in quality.

Sure, the state gained a difference between the $16.91 they regularly paid compared to the new bar­gain of $13.16 but the quality showed in a hurry. Just-to rest your own concern, the maker was not one of the "big five."

The point that focuses in my mind is that all too often the fleet manage or purchasing agent who is in a position to command really competitive pricing with volume purchases tends to forget (or conceivably does not know) that you usually get what you pay for. Aside from the terribly important safety aspect of such a case, the fleet manager can hardly call himself a pro­fessional if he ends up with a purchase of this kind. Similarly, he is neglectful if he does not register strongly with management in the event this purchasing function is resting with the purchasing department which does not have the responsibility for the safety of the drivers.

Just let one liability suit be served and find out how many bargains really are bargains; and the possible loss of life cannot even be estimated.

Our pages constantly urge the fleet manager to be prudent in his daily activities but we do not support a decision of this kind when it does not have the mark of a professional.

In talking with leasing companies during the past few months, I have been pleasantly surprised to note more than a few admissions that on major account bid­ding these companies are finding better and more knowledgeable competition. What is even better than the obvious loss of the fly-by-nighters who do not know what their costs are is the fact that these same reputable "old-timers," who have survived, identify a definite sophistication among leasing sales people as well as the accounts that they are calling on.

Currently, the larger accounts have now had experi­ence with leasing and they know what costs are; what to expect out of a "bum" used car year; the risk of an open-end lease; and so on. And, if they are not cur­rently leasing, you can bet the pressure on manage­ment for tight money dictates that the fleet manager better be as knowledgeable about leasing as he is with his own costing procedure. All in all it makes for a higher grade of solicitation and service. We arc mighty happy to see it.

Postal service grows worse in spite of continually in­creasing postal rates. Zip coding alone was a substan­tial investment for us. So, if you are not receiving your copy by mid-month would you do us a favor and let us know when it does arrive so we can be armed with some bureaucratic files of our own to state our ease. It just might help.