Delphi Technologies’ Julian Goulding is on-hand to discuss why it’s essential for motor factors to offer diagnostic tools that won’t just serve garages’ requirements today, but for years to come.
Capability, coverage and, of course, value have long been the criteria on which many garages and technicians have based their diagnostic equipment buying decisions on. However, with vehicles rapidly growing ever more complex in terms of their powertrain options and on-board systems, it’s increasingly important that anyone considering diagnostics equipment is influenced by its ability to be futureproof.
For motor factors, this means understanding how they can educate their customers on not only how a diagnostic tool purchase might benefit their business today, but also for many years to come. In effect, a diagnostic tool’s potential of what it could do in the future could now be just as important in securing a sale as the essentials of being able to identify any issues quickly and accurately.
The availability of a diagnostic tool that is regularly refreshed with details of the ever-evolving vehicle parc is a massive plus for motor factors and garages alike. It’s an excellent selling point for retailers, which is particularly helpful when it comes to illustrating capability and value against what may initially appear cheaper alternatives. For garages, it negates the need for them to purchase a new tool should it become outdated. Importantly, it allows them to not only explore new business opportunities, but also cater for loyal customers who may have upgraded to a newer vehicle and would otherwise have to go elsewhere for their servicing requirements.
However, as Julian Goulding, Northern Europe Marketing Manager at Delphi Technologies Aftermarket, confirmed, it can make the process of choosing new diagnostics equipment even more involved: “Diagnostics equipment represents a significant investment, so it’s imperative for motor factors to help their customers consider a tool’s operation across a wide array of criteria, not least of all how it is refreshed with greater applications and what is required to receive any updates. For example, it’s incredibly important for licenses to be renewed if customers are still to receive updates long after their original purchase, and that’s something which can often be overlooked.”
Julian continued, “When advising customers, it’s best for motor factors to look for the breadth and depth of existing application coverage, as while certain tools will claim extensive vehicle coverage, many will in fact only diagnose limited systems within them. On top of this, it is also worth finding out how often updates occur and how extensive the support is.
“The regularity and size of the updates, and what is covered will not only determine the longevity of a diagnostic tool, but will also increase the value it represents. If solid updates are easily accessible and relatively plentiful, then investing in a more expensive tool may be the more affordable option in the long run.”
As an example, the latest update to the Delphi Technologies DS tool software introduces 15 new car models, 888 new car unique system selections, 12 new heavy-duty models, and 111 heavy-duty unique system selections. Amongst those are several applications for electric vehicles, plus extra ADAS diagnostics capability across a variety of models.
Julian concluded, “Updates, and access to them, are something that we believe are vitally important, especially as vehicles become more and more advanced. “We’re confident that we’re providing motor factors with a quality, reliable tool that will prove a hit with their customers.”
