Independents speak up on servicing alternatively fuelled vehicles

GW readers react to research which suggests 19 per cent of electric/hybrid vehicle owners use aftermarket

Independents speak up on servicing alternatively fuelled vehicles
More and more motorists are making the switch to alternatively fuelled vehicles, could this provide an opportunity for independents?

62 per cent of alternatively fuelled vehicle owners use franchised dealers to service their cars, according to a survey which polled 1,000 consumers.

The research which was commissioned by the National Franchised Dealer Association found that just 19 per cent of alternatively fuelled vehicle owners use an independent garage to service their vehicle.

With the results of the survey showing a favouritism towards franchised dealers when it comes alternatively fuelled vehicle servicing, GW readers have been expressing their thoughts on the topic.

Andy tweeted @GarageWireUK saying that too many independents are not willing to invest in the right equipment.

He said: “If independent garages do not buy the appropriate equipment, main dealers will become more preferable to the public.”

“I’ve only ever changed the oil, filter and front pads on a hybrid, nothing more than that but if training was ever offered to me I would take it.”

Embracing technology

Meanwhile, Dan Manning said the “thought of electronic vehicles still seems a very distant issue” at his garage.

“We are all going to have to embrace electronic/hybrid technology at some point,” he explained.

Figures show that there was a 40.3 per cent increase in alternatively fuelled vehicle registrations last year, compared to 2014.

Dan added: “For many, they will hold out for as long as possible before they spend thousands of pounds on training and equipment.

“I’m optimistic that independent retailers will, at some point, be able to compete but like most I’m unsure how exactly that will happen.”

Craig Ford, of Foster and Sims in Lincoln, who has a Lexus RX400h due in later this week, also expressed confidence for the future of independents but said his only worry is about the availability of dealer diagnostic tools.

“In my opinion, the more advanced the technology, the more that there is to go wrong – meaning more work,” he said.

“Complex features are quite impossible with aftermarket scan tools, how long before simple tasks become difficult like accurate live data and actuations?”

Share your comments below. Are you investing in training to cater for alternatively fuelled vehicles in your workshop or are you unsure where to make such investment?

2 Comments

  1. Hi, as the owner of a small independent garage myself, I have always been worried about what the future holds regarding new technology, car servicing and repairing. It looks like manufacturers are getting around the EU rulings that give the indie-garage the right to repair and all the applicable machines available to us.They are somehow retaining their Hybrid customers. It would nice to hear about the methods that the main dealers are using. Or are the guys who buy these cars never going to be our customers anyway? We will probably get the second and third-hand cars in one day, so we will have to be prepared, so long as the information is released from the car manufacturers and the machines are made for resale so that we can service them. I always thought that this would be a problem when the engine management systems first came out, but we were able to get over that problem in time, interesting times ahead I feel. Thanks Eric Roberts http://www.pellonautocentre.com

    Reply
  2. Hi, as the owner of a small independent garage myself, I have always been worried about what the future holds regarding new technology, car servicing and repairing. It looks like manufacturers are getting around the EU rulings that give the indie-garage the right to repair and all the applicable machines available to us.They are somehow retaining their Hybrid customers. It would nice to hear about the methods that the main dealers are using. Or are the guys who buy these cars never going to be our customers anyway? We will probably get the second and third-hand cars in one day, so we will have to be prepared, so long as the information is released from the car manufacturers and the machines are made for resale so that we can service them. I always thought that this would be a problem when the engine management systems first came out, but we were able to get over that problem in time, interesting times ahead I feel. Thanks Eric Roberts http://www.pellonautocentre.com

    Reply

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