Aftercare providers need to adapt to the growing use of electric vehicles (EVs)

While conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles currently rule the road, EVs are a growing section of Australia’s passenger fleet.
In the future, workshops will need to increasingly manage a mix of EVs while still catering to customers who haven’t made the switch.
While workshops are already adapting to EVs, they’ll need to be ready to maintain them at greater scale than ever before – all while handling the different challenges they present.
For example, EVs might be seen as a distinct category by itself, but it is far from a simple case of completely switching from the mechanical issues of ICE vehicles to a single type of EV.
There are three currently available – Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV), Plugin Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) and Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) – and each has its own individual characteristics and its own growth journey.
No single type of EV will take over the roads of the future – meaning that workshops will need the skills and expertise to maintain all three (as well as continuing to provide aftercare for ICE vehicles).
Regardless of type, EVs will still require lubricants, greases and thermal fluids and workshops need to be able to adapt and deliver on customers’ performance expectations.
After all, the fluids developed for ICE vehicles are functionally different and may not meet full EV requirements, special care is required for hybrid/ICE fluids, and for full EV vehicles. This is because the technical demands placed on the fluids used in EVs are much so different than in an ICE engine. It means that the first fill – and using the right lubricants – for EVs is vital.
From thermal fluids for E-Motor cooling to the transmission lubricants used in differential systems and greases that extend bearing life, Shell says it provides a full range of fluids for mechanical and electrified drivetrains.
It says the range has been developed with global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to meet the needs of future generations of hybrid and fully electric vehicles – delivering optimal peace of mind.
Shell says this is just one way it helps consumers to manage their sustainability needs, whichever vehicle they drive.
From reducing the packaging required to offering carbon-neutral lubricants, Shell says it helps you and your customers avoid and reduce emissions from your purchases wherever possible – helping Australia make the transition to a cleaner energy future in mobility.

For more from Shell, visit www.shell.com.au