A local Tuffy Auto Service Center franchisee has signed a deal with a Florida-based company to distribute a filtering device that claims to eliminate the need for an oil change.

Art Rott, the owner of four Tuffy repair shops in metro Detroit, said he has a five-year deal with Boynton Beach-based Puradyn Filter Technologies Inc. as the exclusive representative and distributor of the patented product in Michigan.

The filtering system removes dirt and other impurities from the oil, Rott said. The same oil then can remain in a vehicle and continue lubricating the engine indefinitely.

Rott said he hopes to sell 5,000 to 7,000 of the filter systems in his first year. He is targeting transportation companies, businesses with fleet vehicles and buses at school districts. The product works on both gasoline- and diesel-fueled engines.

So far, Rott has the filter in 15 Detroit Edison Co. vehicles at its Customer Field Center in Southfield.

Marc Rich, director of the Edison center, said the product could save time.

Oil changes on his vehicles are required every 3,000 miles, Rich said. The center's vehicles average 18,000 miles a year, which means they require at least six oil changes annually. That translates into 600 hours of down time for his 100 vehicles each year. That's based on an hour of service for each oil change.

His field personnel thus incur 1,200 hours of down time while they wait for the vehicles to be serviced. The field employees, who ride in pairs, take the vehicles for oil changes.

Rich found out about Puradyn's system from Rott. Many of Rich's employees went to Rott's Tuffy in Southfield on Northwestern Highway and Telegraph Road for oil changes with their company credit cards. That's when Rott told Rich about the new Puradyn system. Rich then agreed to test it.

``A lot of things, when they're too good to be true, they're too good to be true,'' Rich said.

But, he said, he would likely order filters for his 100 minivans by the end of the year. He said the center's fleet is expected to grow to 250 minivans in the next two years.

The filter system ranges from $300 to $700, Rott said. The price is based on the type of vehicle.

Rott became aware of the product through his friend Curt Robbins, a senior supplier quality engineer for Detroit Diesel Corp. (NYSE: DDC).

Robbins said he thought it was a good product and shared the information with Rott. Robbins looked at the product for Detroit Diesel, but the company hasn't decided whether to use Puradyn's product.

The recommendation from Robbins led Rott to meet with Richard Ford, chairman and CEO of Puradyn.

Ford, who had retired from the company in 1995 and rejoined in 1998, said it is projecting $1.5 million to $2 million in revenue this year. It expects to generate $4 million to $6 million next year.

That projection is based on the companies it has signed up for the filtering system.

The Miami/Dade County School District in Florida also uses the filtering system.

Tom Harrison, director of vehicle maintenance for the district, said he uses the Puradyn filtering system in the district's 1,175 buses.

Harrison began testing the filter in 1990 and had it installed in all buses last year, saving the district $45,000 in oil purchases.

The product worked as Harrison was told, he said. He hasn't done any oil changes on his buses.

``I couldn't disprove anything the company said,'' Harrison said.

But Darnell Taylor, an assistant general manager for Brownie's Muffler Service Inc. on Telegraph Road in Dearborn Heights, said he is skeptical.

Even with the use of a filtering system, the composition of the oil is going to break down over time, said Taylor, whose shop does oil changes. He said he would only use a product such as Puradyn's if it came with a solid guarantee.

Arthur Bridgeforth Jr. covers retailing, utilities, and western Wayne, Livingston and Washtenaw counties. He can be reached at (313) 446-0417 or ABridgef@crain.com.

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