Adding on a service task while the vehicle is undertaking other work is no longer a strange idea to the customer. For example, it is now common practice, if not expected, to add on alignment services when the vehicle might be in for tyres. The public is not only educated on this concept of add-ons but they have embraced it.

It still has to be the right type of service bolt on; one that does realistically add benefit either through effect on the vehicle or positive cost-to-value correlation. To look at the tyre example, good alignments can help with avoid poor tyre wear patterns therefore getting more value out of the tyres.

This ‘extra added services’ practice is the perfect mechanism to build extra value for your customers and find those extra opportunities for your business. It means you can make the most out of every vehicle that comes through the workshop, while building a good reputation for delivering tangible benefits for your customers and excellent customer service.

By having Hartridge products in your workshop it has never been easier to maximize these opportunities during the difficulties covid-19 has presented. These are top 5 service ideas to add on for your customers.

1 CR Injector Health Readings | Sabre CRi Series

It has never been more important for your customer to avoid costly repair bills, especially for major components that come with a big price tag such as the engine. Injectors are the perfect indicator for this. They sit at the meeting point of two major systems; fuelling and engine, and both being healthy are critical for your customer.

While a vehicle may be in for servicing or to add in during other investigative work it is worthwhile to do a health check on the fuel injectors. The Sabre CRi Series allows the workshop to run a comprehensive health check on key aspects of the injectors, even including advanced test steps like NOP & MDP. The Sabre CRi Masters & Experts can run in automatic modes so the technician can add this service into their work on the vehicle without taking up extra time to stand by and monitor it.

There are many benefits to the customer for adding in this regular monitoring. Extra checks that come with a small cost are much more preferable than a huge bill that could come unexpectedly at any time.

Not only can it help detect a worst-case scenario fault but the flushing & testing can improve overall operation of the injector passing on better fuel economy & engine performance to the customer.

2 Flushing GDI injectors | Excalibur GDi Master

Similarly to the suggestion to include CR injectors into regular service work, GDI & PFI injectors are just as suitable for having health checks. GDI injectors are getting more costly themselves as their pressure capabilities & therefore the complexity of the injector itself increases. PFI injectors may be lower pressure but are commonly used in hybrid applications and so they also need to be working at optimum levels to not compromise the economical demand on the vehicle.

It is worthwhile adding on basic back-flushing and spray pattern checks for these injectors. Like their diesel counterparts, they are also intrinsically connected two major systems combustion systems. But, as mentioned above, can also be working in connection with hybrid system so it is essential that the traditional combustion side of a hybrid vehicle remains in good health to deliver the economic benefits and battery range of the electric side.

The Excalibur GDi Master has the flushing and spray pattern functions integrated into the test plans, along with the other diagnostic parameter test steps. These checks are fast, with a full test taking approximately 5 minutes.

This fast testing combined with patented, rapid change over tooling means this add-on is easy to integrate in the working time. The software is straight forward and intuitive so technicians of all experience levels would be able to get results from the machine without necessarily being experienced in injector diagnostics.

3 DPF Heat Treatment | DPF300 Master Series

This particular service is a good example of the right type of add-on matching with the right circumstances. In this case, if the vehicle is going to remain with you overnight anyway then it may be suitable to offer DPF heat treatment to your customer.

If the vehicle would be in overnight already i.e for battery charge, cold start investigation, or waiting for parts to come in then why not also add on DPF heat treatment.

Overnight is the best application for this type of service because it takes 9 hours for the DPF310 Master oven to do the carefully controlled heating & cooling. Heat treatments present many benefits to your customer including:

• Remove more soot and ash compared to typical static or dynamic regenerations
• Extending service-life of expensive DPFs
• Get better fuel economy & engine performance
• Avoid harmful alternatives such as trying wet treatments
• Avoid future unplanned down time as a result of clogged DPF

The issue with DPFs is that there will always be some build-up of material that needs burning off. After all, catching and storing that particulate matter is their literal function & purpose. You don’t want to wait until the back pressures are so bad that the customer has engine warning lights or the filter became unsalvageable.

Heat treatment is a really worthwhile process but not often done as that 9 hour window is not always convenient. However, doing as much as possible with a car which will be there overnight builds extra value for your customer and can mean they have more time on the road as a result.

4 Servicing Injectors | Hartridge Repair Tooling

While working on a vehicle you might have ascertained that some injectors are faulty through your injector tests, and your critical question is- what next? Maybe you just do a straight parts replacement or maybe you send them off for refurbishment. Either option presents an impact on your business processes or high cost to the customer.

Offering to service the injectors in house immediately streamlines the process because you aren’t sending the work, and essentially your revenue, to another business and don’t have to wait for them to be worked on.

It is more cost effective for your customer to be offered serviced injectors than expensive brand new ones, and labour rates provide the business with better margins than can be found from parts.

This is that rare case of a win-win situation for both you and the customer, and our Hartridge Repair Tooling makes it easy to introduce to your business. There are more than 50 instructional videos spanning 13 different kits, each separated into multiple, easy to follow play lists. You can access these videos at any time however many times that you like. Allowing that rookie technician and master technician alike to introduce these to your workshop and begin offering this add on benefit to your customer.

You can also take this process to the next level once you have repaired and reconditioned the injector, by putting the injector back onto your Sabre CRi Series machine, retest and get a new code to those new measurements there and then.

5 Pre-emissions Test Cleaning | DPF200

Until recently vehicle ownership cycles were shortening, As a result of healthy car markets and accessible finance. It is likely that ownership cycle will start to extend as covid-19 may mean customers aren’t in a position to change out of a vehicle as fast as they did before. They will now encounter something they didn’t have to worry about before as a result of entering service life with the vehicle; emissions testing.

Emissions monitoring and testing is becoming key practice in many countries and in some cases a legal requirement, happening at fixed regular intervals such as one or two years. The UK is a good example of this, as emissions measurement is now part of the MOT test required annually.

In the same way that it is common place to offer pre checks on likely test offenders like brakes and tyres, why not offer pre-test cleaning with the DPF200 Master. There are 2 main benefits to the customer. The first benefit is immediate with a passing emissions test and a method of detecting failed cells within a sealed canister that you can’t see into. The second is longer lasting because it improves the service life of the component, and improves the MPG of the vehicle.