October 2020

E xisting trends that saw usage changing over recent years has made batteries and charging an increasingly valuable income stream. Add lockdown to the mix, and you will find that batteries are a major growth area for garages right now. Couple this with a massive increase in the number of vehicles coming through the door following the end of the MOT exemption and you will find a valuable opportunity you will not want to miss out on. Remember the better weather? The UK’s recent heatwave during early August, on top of many vehicles being used less frequently than usual, or not at all, over lockdown between March and June could be leading to a sharp rise in battery failures. Temperatures hit 36°C, and some parts of the UK recorded their longest stretch of hot weather since the 1960s as reported by the BBC. In addition, many people continued to work from home or not did not travel to their normal place of work at all. According to VARTA, all of this means there have been many batteries that are in an increasingly weakened state. One of VARTA’s lead engineers commented: “Contrary to popular belief, extreme or consistent exposure to heat can have a severely detrimental effect on automotive batteries. This normally manifests itself the following Autumn/Winter, when older batteries are unable to cope with the enhanced demands of cold weather driving, but the damage is done during hot spells.” Dr. Christian Rosenkranz of VARTA continued: “Many drivers think that cold weather does damage to the battery, but it is the heat that is the start of its downfall. Heat dramatically shortens the life-span of a battery, so by the time winter comes, older batteries are close to their limit. This coupled with many cars being parked up and not having the alternator re- charge the battery will result in higher than usual battery failures. As the temperature increases so does the speed of the chemical reactions within the battery. The increase in chemical reaction speed can increase the speed of battery degradation.” Technical Sales Manager at VARTA Andy Cook said: “We are already seeing a high number of vehicle breakdowns due to battery failure, most likely from cars not being used during the lockdown period. Particularly where households have a second or third vehicle that has not been used at all for many months, or on vehicles that have skipped servicing schedules, these are the ones that are having battery issues.” Then there is the MOT. With MOTs back on following the end of exemption, there is expected to be an additional 1.7 million vehicles due for an MOT entering the garage in October alone, as the backlog is worked through. “Many of these vehicles will have a weakened battery and so advise technicians that all cars should have a battery test carried out to ensure the battery is in good working order and will not leave the driver stranded in the coming months,” added Andy. “While the battery test is not part of a MOT, VARTA are recommending as part of their ongoing Back To Better campaign, garages offer a battery test-check to all vehicle owners while the vehicle is in the workshop.” Andy added: “By offering a battery check to all customers, and replacing or giving advice on those batteries close to failure, workshops will have provided peace of mind and a reliable service to their customer base. For more information on the battery testing and best practice advice for workshops, or to become a member of the VARTA Battery Test-Check network, please visit https://www.varta- automotive.com/en-gb/business-port al/test-every-battery “ Standard Commenting on the post-lockdown situation, Colin Cottrell, Marketing and Central Operations Director at LKQ Euro Car Parts said: “With the Coronavirus outbreak turning travel and commuting patterns on their 38 AFTERMARKET OCTOBER 2020 BATTERIES AND CHARGERS Above: The AGM battery is one of the forerunners when it comes to today’s modern starter batteries www.aftermarketonline.net TIME TO POWER-UP... Find out the latest battery-related methods and products, and how it can help give your business a power boost