IRVINE, CA – According to the results of a national survey conducted by Kelley Blue Book Marketing Research and Taco Bell Corp., nearly 60 percent of all vehicle owners eat or allow someone to eat in their vehicles, yet only 34 percent rank a clean interior as “the most important attribute to the long-term value of their vehicle” (versus 66 percent for exterior). The Kelley Blue Book Marketing Research and Taco Bell survey also found that people who allow eating in their vehicle were less concerned with their vehicle’s overall appearance, ranking all vehicle attributes lower than those who don’t allow eating in their car. Some other highlights of the study include:

• Burgers and fries are the “messiest food they have eaten in their car” (34 percent).
  

• A combined 90-plus percent of respondents indicate auto body (72 percent) and exterior paint (19 percent) are the most important attribute to long-term value of a car, compared to just 5 percent who named an interior part as most important.
  

• When given a choice of 13 attributes to rank in importance with regard to eventual resale value, stained seats and carpets ranked as numbers 10 and 11, respectively.

  Kelley Blue Book Marketing Research administered this nationwide, random survey on kbb.com from Jan. 30-Feb. 1, 2006, to 1,223 drivers who own or lease their primary vehicle.