“Very Few People Love Their Cars”: Asemota Explains Why Vehicle Maintenance & Care is Poor in Africa

In a recent tweet, Mr Asemota explained how he was able to find a solid solution for his 10-year-old Honda CRV by just watching a couple of YouTube videos.

Mr Osaretin Victor Asemota who shared the thread with his handle @asemota noted that with the help of insightful YouTube videos, he was able to find out exactly what was wrong with his Honda CRV and how much it’d cost to fix it before he then drove it to a car repair shop in Ghana, who was able to fix the issue.

He started the thread by stating: “Sometimes, I think how insane it is for people to spend millions on cars and still be held to ransom by the same car companies that sold the cars because quality car maintenance is still not well distributed in most African countries. What is distributed is Morufu or Jacques.”

Going further to explain the challenges with car repair in Africa, and how he was able to find a solution for his Honda CRV, he explained saying:

 “Roadside mechanics are not properly trained and have learned over the years largely from trial and error. I had a problem with my almost 10-year-old Honda CRV a few weeks ago and my first resource was YouTube. I found out what exactly was wrong and how much it cost to fix it.”I used that knowledge to go to a car repair garage in Accra and told them what exactly was wrong without lengthy diagnosis. They fixed it in minutes at minimal cost. That experience opened up my mind to the possibilities of tech in this sector. Most cars on our roads are older.”

He advises other car owners in Africa, reminding them of how the internet is making it easier to quickly access information for our cars. He adds: “There are already tons of information available about them on the Internet from users and the car companies themselves. We already have the basis to standardize car maintenance but we are still using methods that are decades old when the rest of the world has moved on. What I did with Youtube for the Honda wasn’t magic, it was logic. The details are all there to help us do things the right way and possibly reap tremendous benefits but we are still not doing it. I guess like online dating, this is something I may have to fix once again myself.”

Adding to his initial points, he points out that at the root of every long-lasting car is an owner that loves and cares for their car. However, he notes that that’s the issue with car owners in Africa stating that : 

“At the bottom of this problem is the way Africans treat vehicles. Very few people love their cars or even know much about them. Everything is outsourced to others from drivers to Segun the car assassin…sorry, mechanic! We have to start from education and car love. When you love your car, the trade-in value is higher. When others see that you have loved your car, they are also willing to pay more. It is why many prefer the cars that women have used before. Women rarely do stupid things with cars. They should be where I start.”

He ends the Twitter thread by reminding car enthusiasts, car reviewers, and car owners that it’s not just about reviewing celebrity cars and expensive cars. That it’s important that car enthusiasts and lovers engage in sharing valuable information that will aid and promote the knowledge of car repairs in Africa.