April 2021

R ecent independent market research commissioned by Kalimex and carried out by The Jamieson Consultancy found that less than half of the workshops surveyed were using on-vehicle cleaning to clear blocked DPFs. Most workshops are still removing the DPF either for cleaning on site or sending offsite. Another interesting development is that compared to the research outcomes of the previous year, more workshops are simply replacing a blocked DPF with a new unit, when this is not always necessary. Although offsite cleaning of DPFs is effective, the research showed that in two thirds of offsite cleans the turnaround was at least two days, rising to three days or more in a third of cleans. This means that a customer’s vehicle is off-road, taking up valuable space in a workshop. Inconvenience all round. There is a much better alternative than the current scenarios. Using a tried, tested, and effective on vehicle cleaning system, such as the JLM DPF Clean and Flush Toolkit, means a workshop can clean a blocked DPF in under two hours. This gets the vehicle back on the road fast. Happy customer and happy workshop. The costs are lower than offsite cleaning as well, with 30 AFTERMARKET APRIL 2021 TECHNICAL www.aftermarketonline.net IN-HOUSE DPF CLEANING Too many independent workshops still sending DPFs offsite for cleaning according to Kalimex BY Mike Schlup, Managing Director of Kalimex comparable results. This system is used and recommended by Darren Darling, founder of The DPF Doctor Network and his DPF Doctor members. This is about as good as it gets in terms of trade endorsement. A workshop using the JLM DPF Cleaning Toolkit can not only offer a DPF cleaning service to their customers but can also provide this service to other workshops in the area. This comes at a time when diesel vehicles are showing a marked increase in DPF problems due to reduced running and shorter stop start journeys because of the pandemic. This results in DPFs being unable to regenerate effectively and ultimately becoming blocked with soot. Following a successful on-vehicle clean it is important to understand the customer’s driving habits and style. Recommending a regular in tank additive such as JLM’s Emission Reduction Treatment for diesel will help the DPF to regenerate even under short journey conditions and it will prevent repeated DPF blockages. These additives could be incorporated into a workshop’s service plan to ensure a healthy DPF between regular service intervals. More information is available at: www.jlmlubricants.com