Nearly 300 female motorists in the Detroit area set aside their Sunday afternoon this past weekend to learn more about important vehicle maintenance topics through an innovative car care clinic sponsored by Belle Tire and the Monroe shocks and struts brand of Tenneco Inc.

Held at Belle Tire’s corporate headquarters in Allen Park, MI, the “Car Care Clinic for Women” featured several hands-on workshops covering underhood, tire, steering and suspension, visual warning indicators, and general education topics, with each workshop developed specifically for and led by women. Workshop facilitators included SCCA Pro Rally champion Gail Truess; former SCCA racing driver, precision/stunt driver and CART/Champ Car Pace Car Team member Allison Altzman; school teacher, former racer and Champ Car Pace Car Team veteran Stacy Kuhn; University of Toyota instructor Frankie Marrow; and drag racer and Richard Petty Driving Experience teacher Stephanie Reaves.

In addition to team workshops, each participant had the opportunity to participate in the Monroe Ride & Drive experience. This fun and exciting behind-the-wheel training program enables consumers and professional technicians to compare the steering, stopping and stability characteristics of a variety of popular late-model vehicles equipped with worn shocks and struts and identical vehicles with new shocks and struts.

“Belle Tire was a fantastic partner in this event. They did an exceptional job of developing workshop content that would resonate among women of all ages,” said Susan Ulrey, executive director, sales operations and customer service, North American Aftermarket, Tenneco. “There’s a huge need for this type of educational experience for motorists and it represents a significant opportunity for Belle Tire and other businesses that install Monroe products.”

Ulrey said the Monroe Ride & Drive experience, which already has trained more than 150,000 technicians across North America, will likely be expanded to include more consumer-oriented events in keeping with the Monroe brand’s commitment to growing the ride control market. “Tenneco is taking a leadership role in providing hands-on education for consumers, just as we have in addressing the training needs of aftermarket professionals,” she said. “The Monroe Ride & Drive is the ideal way for technicians and consumers alike to feel the potentially dangerous effects of driving with worn shocks and struts. Women who got behind the wheel for our Ride & Drive session in Detroit told us it really opened their eyes to the need for steering and suspension maintenance.”