How garages can choose the right emissions brand

PMM hears from the exclusive UK distributor of JLM Lubricants products, Kalimex, about what it takes for a garage to truly put its trust in an emissions brand.

Choosing the right products is important for any garage business. But with the market full of brands, keen for you to buy their products, who can you trust to do the job right? Chances are, if you try one product from a brand then the likelihood is that you will find the confidence to try other products from the same company knowing they’re likely to meet your standards.

Mike Schlup, Managing Director of Kalimex, explained why trust in suppliers and brands has become so important over the past year: “The pandemic has hit the automotive sector hard, but with new car sales plummeting by 33% in 2020 (SMMT data) motorists are hanging on to their existing vehicles.

“A minority may be overlooking vehicle servicing and with the MOT smash-and-grab largely behind us, some garages could be experiencing quiet periods. However, motorists can’t ignore faults and breakdowns. So, the independent technician is not going anywhere, but to attract new customers and keep existing ones happy they must demonstrate value.

Repairing rather than replacing whenever possible is crucial, which is why I believe JLM Lubricants products tick the box.

“The JLM range has been developed for the trade and tested by the trade. We’ve been supplying these products to mechanics predominantly via motor factors for 10 years. Demand has gone through the roof, with sales in December 2020 eclipsing those of our global bestseller K-Seal for the first time ever. We discovered the following DPF Doctor member case study which says more to a technician about the real value of JLM products than I ever could.”

Doctor’s approval

Stuart Dawson of The DPF Doctor Autotech Cumbria, is one such member of the network. Here, he explains how JLM products fit into his work: “I recently had my most heavily blocked DPF to date. The Qashqai in question had been recovered by a breakdown service. The DPF was so badly blocked it couldn’t sort itself, so we had to work in reverse order.

“The first step was the JLM 3-stage ‘on car’ DPF clean in order to reduce the exhaust system back pressure. After completing the assessment, we found another issue which would have caused problems if left undetected.

With the DPF cleaned and repairs made, the final step before releasing the vehicle back to its owner was the extended road test. Incidentally, the measurements we had taken meant that the the road test revealed that the DPF pressure had gone from ‘off the charts’ to ‘as new’ condition. Stunning results as always from the clean. We saved the customer unnecessary work which would have been well into four figures.”

Without the JLM DPF products and Stuart’s expertise, this vehicle would likely have been taken to a dealership with a hefty price tag at the end. It just goes to show how you can benefit from the JLM DPF range. It opens a new, ongoing revenue stream with the potential to sell maintenance products in between DPF servicing and repairs.

Top five repeat purchases

Here are the top five repeat purchase JLM products ordered by garages on a prevention and cure basis: