February 2020

36 AFTERMARKET FEBRUARY 2020 DIESEL www.aftermarketonline.net I f you believed everything you read, you certainly wouldn’t want to be selling new diesel engine vehicles. Ongoing concerns about diesel emissions levels in general, and the ongoing aftermath of Dieselgate means car buyers are either flocking back to petrol, or heading for hybrids and EVs. Repairing and servicing though? That’s another matter entirely. When it comes to the cars that are already out there, the sheer mass of metal on the roads means that diesel tech will continue to be something you need to understand, and be ready to deal with. This means you need to keep up to date with tech, methods and new solutions to common problems, and not-so common ones as well. Despite the huge numbers of diesel vehicles out there, many garages are still cautious. Worry not though, help is available. DPF business Historically, some techs have decided against fixing blocked DPFs. Reasons are varied and, legitimate. Sometimes an unblocked DPF can block again within weeks leading to an unhappy customer and a vexed mechanic. DPF business may be outsourced in the belief that the investment in expertise and machinery/products required to become an exemplar of all things DPF – is too high a price to pay. Yet Mike Schlup from Kalimex, the UK distributors of JLM Lubricants, said things are changing. “JLM Lubricants’ DPF-related products have seen a massive upturn in demand from mechanics UK-wide. Popular examples include the DPF Clean & Flush tool kit, which is used by Darren Darling, founder of The DPF Doctor Network, and many of his DPF Doctors with resounding success. In fact, sales of JLM DPF products have increased by a staggering 700% in 2019.” Mike continued: “The DPF Cleaner from JLM is a concentrated additive package with platinum, cerium and fuel system cleaners. It’s ideal for dealing with that first warning when the dashboard lights up. Unlike iron- based formulas, platinum and cerium help safely burn the soot off at a lower temperature with reduced ash. It also significantly prolongs the life of the DPF. Simply added to the fuel, there’s no need to remove the DPF unit. The vehicle is back in service in a few hours. JLM also introduced the first alternative DPF Refill Fluid, suitable for all on board DPF (PAT) fluid reservoirs. It’s essential this reservoir is topped up to assist the DPF regeneration process. “In another first, JLM introduced the professional DPF Clean & Flush Toolkit. This enables a mechanic to clean and service a blocked DPF unit in less than two hours, without removing it from the vehicle. Vehicle downtime is a thing of the past. With this piece of inexpensive kit, a mechanic can keep DPF business in-house – fixing even the most blocked DPF and adding a new income stream.” The final word on JLM Lubricants goes to Darren Darling, who added: “A blocked DPF is always a symptom of something else so diagnosing the root cause of the problem is crucial to success. Focusing on the diagnostic side of things comes first. We then introduce the JLM DPF products, confident they work on the most blocked DPFs. The JLM DPF Clean & Flush Toolkit is superb and, in our experience, it pays for itself within a few jobs.” Components When considering diesel engine vehicles, you need to think about the individual components in the system. Tim Howes, Deputy General Manager Above: Darren Darling using the JLM DPF Clean & Flush Toolkit DIESEL POWER Despite falling new car sales, diesel cars still exist in huge numbers. Make sure you are able to take advantage of the situation