The Deal

• $60 for a full diagnostic check, brake check, and safety check ($120 value)

Safety Inspections: Safely Moving Right Along

Bringing your ride in for regular safety inspections can not only extend its life, but it might also extend your own. See how with Groupon’s introduction.

“On average, Americans spend 18.5 hours a week in their cars,” Anne Lutz Fernandez, co-author of Carjacked: The Culture of the Automobile and Its Effect on Our Lives, told radio host Mike Carruthers in 2010. Despite spending almost two months behind the wheel every year, few stop to consider the science behind this miracle of modern engineering—the iron-tough vulcanized tires hugging the road, the pistons moving in perfect precision, and the interconnected systems that keep the multi-ton vehicle moving safely down the highway. Thankfully, more than 350,000 highly trained professionals backed by extensive training from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence, are available to pore over engines and auto-bodies with a fine-toothed comb. The ASE maintains auto-industry standards for nearly every form of maintenance, including safety inspections. Many auto shops treat cars to detailed safety checkups, examining lights, tires, belts, engines, hoses, and filters as they top off vital fluids and lubricate moving parts to ensure that autos reach their destinations without mechanical failure.

As presented in a 2009 Pennsylvania Department of Transportation study, regular safety checkups decrease the risk of fatal accidents. Because of the proven public-safety benefits, many states have enacted laws that require motorists to have their vehicle inspected by licensed technicians at regular intervals. Though citizens and lawmakers continue to debate whether vehicle inspections should be a personal responsibility or a state mandate, many auto experts agree that when car owners catch defects, leakages, or damages early, it can reduce the need for expensive overhauls or part replacements in the future.