Digital Dealer - June 2019 - 12

D E A L E R OP S & M ANAGEM ENT: F ixe d Oper at i ons

By Charlie Polston
Automotive Customer Retention
& Profitability Consultant,
BG Products, Inc.

Service
Opportunities
Increase With
Trucks, SUVs,
and Crossovers
Americans are buying
more trucks, SUVs, and
crossovers than cars. This is
not breaking news, but
rather a phenomenon that
has been trending for
several years.
Reasons vary depending
on who you ask, but on a
personal level, I've only
owned two cars in the past
45 years. I was a Ford Bronco fan right from the start
and have had an SUV in my
garage ever since.
Last year, truck sales
captured 69% of the market
(up five percentage points
from 2017). In fact, it was
the biggest single-year
share gain ever, according
to Automotive News Data
Center statistics.
Crossovers alone outsold
cars for the first time in history in 2018 with 1.3 million
more crossovers than cars.
From the way I'm reading
the tea leaves, this truck
takeover will continue for the
foreseeable future.
So, what is the impact on
fixed ops? First of all, let's
look at the low-hanging fruit:
12

JUNE 2019

POWER TRAIN

Front and rear differential and transfer case
fluid exchange services are
often overlooked by vehicle
owners-especially if they
are transitioning from a
sedan to a pickup or SUV.
Many of these consumers
are coming out of a frontwheel drive car that didn't
have gear lube that needed
to be changed, so believe
me when I say any type of
preventive maintenance on
these vital components is
totally off their radar.
How many times have
you had a vehicle owner
step up to the service advisor's desk and say, "I'm here
for a transfer case service?"
Never. Therefore, the only
way this vital fluid service is
ever going to be performed
in your shop is for your advisors to recommend it!
One way you can build
value into these services
is to emphasize to the
customers the importance
of using the right gear lubes
uniquely equipped for their
truck. Make a big deal out of

D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

the fact that you have new
technology fluids for new
technology driveline components. If a competitor installs
GL-5 gear lube in a transfer
case, there's going to be
trouble. An 80w90 gear lube
won't work in a 75w140
application. If an untrained,
unskilled technician leaves
the limited-slip additive out
of most rear differentials,
there will be lots of wear and
noise.
Then there's the huge
difference between non-synthetics, synthetic blends,
and full synthetic. When you
quote the price, if vehicle
owners say, "Wow, I can get
it for $80 less right down
the street," remind them
about the importance of fluid
quality, application (the right
fluid for the right component), and technician skill
level to do the job correctly.
The harsh environment in
which driveline components
operate-high pressure,
high torque, high speed-
demand cutting-edge lubes
and professional installation
that only you can provide!

POWER STEERING

While many late-model
passenger cars have electronic power steering, many
pickups and SUVs don't.
Hydraulic power steering
or hydraulic-electric power
steering can still be found
in these new vehicles. Additionally, there are more than
150 million older vehicles
on the road with traditional
hydraulic power steering
systems.
Power steering fluid is
no different than any other
hydrocarbon; high heat
(caused by high pressure)
causes fluid oxidation, which
leads to fluid deterioration
and ultimately component
failure.
It's cheaper to replace the
power steering fluid than the
power steering pump and
rack. Most of these fluids are
similar (identical) to transmission fluid, and, like gear
lubes, range from mineral
oil-based to full synthetics.
It is critical to use the right
fluid in the right application
and to do a thorough fluid
exchange service using the
right equipment. Goober
Lube can't do that; you can.
Most power steering
systems are covered
under OEM warranties
for 36 months or 36,000
miles. Therefore, if there
is a catastrophic failure at
50,000 miles, the customer
is exposed. By changing the
power steering fluid every
30,000 miles, the odds of
costly failure are significantly
reduced.
SEVERE SERVICE

Arguably, there are very
few places in the U.S. that
would be classified as
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Digital Dealer - June 2019

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