May 2021

MAY 2021 AFTERMARKET 33 Climate change is all around us – its evidence is incontrovertible, and we are now more than ever aware of our contribution to our planet’s rising temperature. But the past year spent in lockdown has allowed us to rediscover the beauty of our natural environment, to hear and see what before we hadn’t noticed. We can be forgiven for not knowing some of the detrimental effects the products we use to make our lives easier are having on our planet – such as keeping cool in your car on a hot summer’s day. Scientific discovery permitted the introduction of the Solstice ® 1234yf refrigerant in all new cars in Europe manufactured in the last 5 years, totalling over 65 million cars to date in Europe and over 120 million Worldwide, totally eradicating the previous fluid R-134a from first fill. R1234yf has a global warming potential of less than 4, that is over 350 times lower than its R134a predecessor. Whilst existing vehicles are serviced with the old refrigerant, there are some new lower GWP alternatives which we expect to be available towards the end of 2021 which will further help lower our industries contribution. Don’t let your cars climate control affect our planets climate control! There’s only one choice The right choice Help stop this Turning this Into this ADVERTORIAL R1234yf Also, in modern vehicles that rely on an intricate network of pressure sensors to gauge vehicle health, not having correct levels of gas in your A/C unit can lead to warning messages or system errors.” According to Adam, right now, we’re heading into something of a perfect storm on the air con front: “Many cars’ A/C systems may have been compromised while out of use for an extended period during lockdown – just in time for the warmer summer weather and higher pollen count. There is a natural, gradual dispersal of gas from every air conditioning unit, which can lead to a loss of around 5% of its capacity every year. This can mean that the system is unable to filter air with maximum efficiency, and can cause moisture to build up in the filters, which, in turn, can attract pollen, spores and bacteria. In addition, a prolonged period of non-use can cause air conditioning seals to weaken, worsening refrigerant loss and leading to problems elsewhere, such as engines or batteries overheating, or warning messages due to false pressure readings.” Health and performance Adam continued: “Delivering noticeable improvements in comfort through both air quality and temperature, as well as enhancing the long-term health and performance of the vehicle, is a great way to ensure your customers leave the workshop happy and inclined to come back in future. Currently, no manufacturer mandates that air conditioning checks form part of a regular vehicle service, but we still recommend that technicians include them as standard. As long as you explain to customers why having a check is a good idea, the chances are they’ll go for it.” LKQ Euro Car Parts can help, Adam pointed out: “Our Autoclimate solution provides technicians with full-service technical support when they’re working on customers’ air con systems. This support is provided free of charge over the phone, with the aim to get equipment up and running the same day. We also have 12 full-time Autoclimate engineers on hand to support customers working in independent garages, franchises, bodyshops and fast-fits. As the largest automotive air con supplier in the UK, the team carries out more than 8,000 service and repair activities in an average year, for more than 14,000 customers. “While most air conditioning machines will operate and work in a similar way, we do recommend that technicians complete dedicated refrigerant handling qualification courses via our AutoEducation Academy, to help them gain a better understanding of the system and products they’re working with – rather than following just the legal obligation of holding a qualification to meet the requirements for handling R134a.” For more information, visit https://omnipart.eurocarparts.com/auto-education Compressor failure Often, if there is an A/C problem, the cause is the compressor, and with this in mind, DENSO has identified the five key causes of A/C compressor failure. “From an