The increasing use of diesel fuel injectors in fleet vehicles has led to a corresponding growth in demand for diagnostic tools, particularly in remote areas.
Clive Mount, the owner of diagnostic tool distributor Mount AutoEquip, says fleet managers are now performing diesel particulate filter regenerations more frequently.
“Fleet vehicles with diesel particulate filters must to comply with emission control legislation,” he said. “Some areas have pretty average quality fuel, so this can cause a lot of problems for anybody running a fleet.
“We typically receive about three to four tech support calls every day about running a diesel particulate filter regeneration or injectors that have been damaged with dirty fuel or water.
“This is not only affecting larger trucks; even smaller SUVs fitted with diesel engines are being affected. It’s across the board now, thanks to the growth of diesel injectors.”
For fleet operators in remote areas, particularly in WA and the NT, it can be very expensive to fly in a technician from the nearest centre.
“It becomes a logistic nightmare whenever a service light comes on or a bad lot of fuel is run through the vehicle,” Mount said. “For instance, it can be upwards of $6000 per day to send a technician out to a mine site.”
Accordingly many fleet managers, particularly local government operators, are turning to diagnostic tools to keep it in house. In fact, Mount says many fleet dealerships are now recommending fleet managers purchase an after-market scan tool, such as the G-Scan.
“I would estimate around 50 per cent of all Australian councils would be using a G-Scan diagnostic tool,” he said. “It’s becoming more cost-effective for council workshops to invest in diagnostic equipment.
“For instance, I live in the Manly Council local government area in Sydney. They run a lot of Isuzu road sweepers and coaster buses and have problems with the constant stopping and starting, and the low speeds.
“They found the return on investment time on the purchase of a diagnostic tool was certainly justifiable, considering how often they had been outsourcing their diagnostics.”