You should encourage vehicle technicians to promote regular winter checks, including users of all-season tyres, advises Stuart Mcleod, technical support and training lead – UK and Ireland for ZF Aftermarket.
For a safer drive, it’s important that you push maintenance of not just the wheels during a winter check-up, but on checking the entire vehicle. The right spare parts for the chassis system – up to and including air suspension – are available from ZF Aftermarket with its Lemförder, Sachs, TRW, and Wabco brands.
The chassis systems of many passenger cars worked harder than normal during the summer season. Holiday trips and trailer operations were added to the usual usage for many drivers and put immense stress on the vehicle, particularly on its suspension system. Now the winter season is here, bringing with it salt spray and debris from the roads, you need to ensure they are prepared for an increase in demand of certain parts due to the cold, wet conditions with snow and ice.
ZF Aftermarket recommends stocking up of popular parts and promote the importance of winter checks. When it comes to seasonal tyres, the need for a check is self-evident due to the wheel change, but it’s just as important to check and replace all-season tyres.
Despite the current difficult economic situation in many households, the willingness to keep one’s own car safe and fit for purpose remains high. In a recent survey by the German expert organisation, KÜS, 100% of respondents said that it was important to them that their car was in good technical condition. Eighty-eight percent have damage repaired as soon as possible, and 75% think proactive contact by their workshop is good or even very good.
‘Full parts and service solution’
With its Lemförder, Sachs, TRW and Wabco brands, ZF Aftermarket offers a full parts and service solution for the entire chassis system. New to the range is the Wabco brand with its range of air suspension compressors for many passenger car models. This is OE technology that has been installed in millions of vehicles.
The TRW range includes brake discs, brake pads and spare parts for drum brakes, brake fluid, hoses and all other brake service components. Under the Sachs brand, ZF Aftermarket supplies all types of shock absorbers, and air springs. Lemförder is the specialist in steering and chassis technology, with control arms, coupling rods, wheel joints and more.
To make the winter check a success for both the workshop and the customer, the experts at ZF Aftermarket have offered the following five tips:
- Offer training evenings for workshops: Ask manufacturers and suppliers to provide relevant training on their product ranges and give top tips around recommended winter checks.
- Host open days: Invite customers in to show off winter products in the range and encourage them to stock up on in-demand products, such as wipers, steering and suspension, tyres and car cleaning accessories.
- Carry out a social media campaign: Utilise social channels and push it to drivers, advising them to take their vehicles to their local garage for a winter check-up.
- Offer discounts on winter accessory bundles: Give technicians the option of ordering seasonal accessory packages when they make a purchase – care products, snow chains, rubber floor mats or similar – or introduce incentives for workshops, such as discounts to technicians who complete a set amount of winter checks.
- Expand damage diagnosis: When changing wheels, encourage technicians to not only check the condition of the brakes, but all of the suspension components as well. Coil springs damaged by stone chips, for instance, can corrode under the influence of salt in winter and break later. Even minimally leaking air springs can cause expensive consequential damage.
