Service workshops must deepen technology interface

There are very strong indications that many fleet operators and individual car owners are being short-changed by both the road side mechanics and even the so-called established and purportedly well-equipped auto workshops.

It is even more worrisome these days and times when the cost of used and new car ownership in terms of parts replacement and services is climbing the roof-top without any possible sign or prospects of reduction.

Experiences of vehicle owners have also shown that that almost of regularly basis, they don’t get satisfaction for services paid for. It is either that proper and comprehensive checks have not been carried out on these vehicles to the most critical details or that, the necessary tools required auto dealerships workshops are not there.

These days, modern workshops are supposed to be more likely to search for malfunction codes than pull out the dipstick to check the oil level. The reason is simple and understable as cars are getting smarter every year.

In some parts of the world, connected cars in some parts are already communicating with dealer networks and these days, a mechanic is more likely to use a laptop to search for malfunction codes than pull out the dipstick to check the oil level in the engine.

During a car inspection, technicians regularly gain access to the various vehicle subsystems by plugging into the on-board diagnostic interface. In future, drivers will have access to more detailed information about faults without having to go straight to the repair shop.

Volkswagen for instance was the first carmaker to introduce an on-board scanning system in 1968 and the current standard is OBD II. Many modern cars now have their own SIM card – like the one used by mobile telephones. This means that they can communicate with the workshop.

“These are often SIM cards which are not suitable for speech communication, but rather for transporting large amounts of data,” said Nicolaus Gollwitzer, head of the global telematics division at the Vodafone telecommunications provider.

These cards are used to relay technical information which can even include the number of occupants in a car, while sensors detect how many airbags are inflated if the vehicle is involved in a road accident.

Data can flow automatically, but only if a car is equipped with e-Call, a feature which allows the vehicle to call the nearest emergency centre after a crash, even if no passenger is able to speak.

For instance, the e-Call system is due to debut in Europe from 2018. In every other case, the car owner must give his or her permission for the use of data transmitted or received via a SIM card.

The umbrella term for all this data trickery is telematics and if a driver agrees to the exchange, the car and its periphery can enter into a useful dialogue. BMW already sends out online updates for its navigation systems instead of using hard storage such as a DVD.

Cars can send their malfunction codes to the local workshop which helps diagnose on-board faults more quickly. If particular codes are given priority, the car can then transmit these to a workshop automatically and the customer can get in touch with a mechanic straight away.

For some dealer workshops for instance, whenever a car comes in for repair, replacement components are already in stock. “This enables the entire workflow in the workshop to be streamlined and the customer can expect a detailed cost estimate over the phone before the car arrives.

The technology in modern cars are so advanced these days that some components makers like Continental predicts that cars will be able to warn about impending faults, before they happen.

In contemporary cars, warning lights indicate malfunctions that have already occurred and must prompt owners to seek the nearest garage for an immediate repair.

Both locally and internationally at present, there is no standardised telematics platform which every garage is permitted to use, so owners are usually forced to approach an official dealership of their brand.

“The work done on cars in garages will not change a lot in future, but there is much scope for the development of tools and services,” said Ulrich Koester of Germany’s ZDK car repair shop federation.

MIKE OCHONMA