“We are where only the wind comes”

The Argentine Automobile Club is synonymous with mobility, which is why it is in the most remote places in the country. In their 120 years of historyits commitment to motorists, its development and growth in motor sports, and its vocation for service turned it into a prestigious institution at a local and international level.

Its tradition was transmitted for generations even until today; times in which mobility has transcended the automobile to adopt the most diverse forms. And that is where the ACA also aims to be.

At least that is what its new president, César Carman III, made clear in an interview with Clarion. Carman is an illustrious surname within the Automobile Club because his grandfather and father also presided over him in office.

César Carman I was president during 26 yearsfrom 1957 to 1983. Under his management, 137 new service units were inaugurated, in addition to having signed one of the most important agreements for the institution: the alliance with La Caja Nacional de Ahorro Postal (today La Caja).

Later his father, who was in charge 12 years (1985-1997), he was in charge of adding new services and improving member service.

In this new stage, César Carman III will have the challenge not only of maintaining and caring for the tradition that his predecessors built, but also of attracting young members who perhaps They don’t have the same passion for the car. than their parents and grandparents.

-How did the paradigm shift in mobility affect an institution as traditional as the ACA?

–Mobility is no longer what it used to be. The new generations do not feel the same belonging to the car as before. They are more detached and mobility today is much more plural; It’s ride-hailing services through apps, it’s car-sharing (carsharing), the electric skateboard, the bicycle and public transportation, which has improved a lot.

-How do you deal with that reality?

–Our internal motto “renewal in tradition” It means maintaining and taking care of our members, but updating ourselves to be more comprehensive and offer services that attract new members. The club still has hundreds of thousands of members (about 300,000). However, we have lost about 100,000 in the pandemic and because of the pandemic, and for a much smaller number other institutions have disappeared.

-Are the ACA partners “big”?

–Yes, the fundamental problem is that our corporate mass is aging. The current average age is 61 years, while about 15 years ago it was 48 years old. The great challenge specifically is to stop this growth in the average age of the member and begin to reduce it. And to achieve that is to achieve more partners.

-What are the proposals to achieve it?

–We are working on offering more services. For example, through alliances with tourism entrepreneurs that transform containers in category rooms. This idea, whose pilot test will begin soon in Puerto Iguazú (Misiones), will take place in the large spaces (one or two hectares) that our service stations have. The objective is that travelers and tourists can stay in these “condo-hotels” while passing through and use all the services offered by our stations.

-What other proposals are you working on?

–We are developing circuits for motorhomes, with spaces where users can have everything they need (water, electricity, waste containers, etc.). Another idea is to establish alliances with new strategic partners. Gyms, for example, to maximize the space of our largest urban service stations. We are also thinking about improving insurance. And there are more projects that will be seen in the short and medium term, but that I cannot count.

–How many service stations does the ACA have?

Currently the club has 158 of its own stations, although the presence reaches almost 190 if the strategic alliance with YPF is taken into account. In many cases we are where only the wind reaches, and although many they are not profitableplay a predominant role for the community. For example, the Encon station, in San Juan, provides water to the town. And like that there are others that are also vital for residents and motorists: Garayalde and Los Altares, in Chubut; Los Menucos, in Río Negro; Hualfin, in Catamarca; and Paso de Jama, in Jujuy, to name a few.

Carman speaks with knowledge of the facts. Before assuming the presidency, he took more than a year to tour his offices throughout the country. “There are places where if the ACA were not there there would be nothing,” he says. “In addition, we have more than 25 inns, more than ten campsites, workshops and parking lots.”

-And the mechanical assistance service?

-It is our main service. We are number one nationwide, with an average delay of 35 minutes anywhere in the country, thanks to the infrastructure and network of stations that allow corridors to be created from posts. We do around 300 thousand services per year, which is little for the installed capacity. Until not long ago we reached 700,000 services. The ACA relief fleet exceeds 500 units. And we have more than 20 mobile tire shops that operate in Mar del Plata and AMBA.

The ACA has a great commitment to the promotion of motorsports. Being a member of the International Automobile Federation (FIA) since 1926, it organizes and supervises all sporting competitions that depend on this parent entity, such as the World Rally and, at the time, Formula 1.

And precisely part of that mix between sportsmanship and social commitment is the Historical Argentine Grand Prix, a competition that brings together the classic coupes of the 1930s with vehicles manufactured until the early 1980s.

-Do you plan to repatriate the World Rally?

-I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but if the country remains stable, without major crises, the Rally will return to Argentina. Not soon, because the calendars are closed. And if things go well, I would dare to say that other categories could return. Argentina is a nutty country that deserves to have those top-level skills again. The club was instrumental in the success of our main drivers: Fangio, Froilán González, Reutemann and now Colapinto. We are behind Colapinto, we want him to do well and I have faith that he will do very well.