Do fuel injector replacement problems track quarterly job separations as a share of auto repair shop employment across states?
Fuel injector replacement complaints run higher where quarterly job separations is higherNHTSA owner complaints about fuel injector replacement run 16% above what the makes sold there would predict in the 10 states with the highest quarterly job separations, and 11% below in the 10 with the lowest.
What it shows: States with more quarterly job separations as a share of auto repair shop employment tend to sit higher on the chart across 37 states: a pattern in the data, not proof of cause.
Data: Census LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators 2024, NAICS 8111, joined to NHTSA owner complaints, downloaded 2026-10-12 · 37 states. Chart: CalcScrape · calcscrape.com
A moderate pattern, probably real but not certain: about 1 in 6 patterns this clear turn out to be false alarms. Weak spot: hold solo operators as a share of all auto repair businesses equal and only 8% of the quarterly job separations pattern remains, so part of it may be that factor.