On the road 32 www.aftermarketonline.net JULY/AUGUST 2024 Open sesame! John Shepherd gets an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the high-tech cavernous aftermarket treasure trove in Staffordshire, where LKQ Euro Car Parts works its magic around the clock to support a supply chain involving thousands of UK garages every week I decided to leave my ageing, but nonetheless reliable Toyota Rav4 resting back home in Sussex for my visit to LKQ Euro Car Parts’ hub in Tamworth. Like me, the 22-year-old motor has far too many miles on the clock, although I have to say its bodywork can still gleam (unlike mine), but I try to keep long journeys in what was once my Dad’s car to a minimum these days. There’s always a lingering concern that this could be the trip that necessitates a call to the breakdown service — not to mention the potential scramble and cost of finding parts. But on reflection, more than enough help would have been at hand in theory, as I soon realised when my taxi pulled up outside LKQ’s mighty Tamworth Terminal 2 — better known as T2 — a veritable Aladdin’s cave of all that any motorist, or dealership for that matter, might ever need. Although I doubt whether even Aladdin’s genie could conjure up what is a car parts ‘oasis’ of truly Biblical proportions. Approaching T2 is impressive enough. The site is vast and I’d done more than enough steps for the day just walking across the car park and through the security perimeter to reception. Think of one of those fabulous James Bond film sets: Visitors are greeted at the gleaming, hi-tech reception area. “We’ve been expecting you,” I’m told, as my guest pass to this automotive labyrinth is handed over
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