Drive specialist GKN has highlighted the growing aftermarket opportunities in the propshaft market with a rising demand for all-wheel drive systems. GKN is the world market leader of drive systems and their components such as high-speed joints, side drives and propshafts, and supplies all major global motor vehicle manufacturers as well as the aftermarket.

Originally developed for off-road vehicles, all-wheel drives are now being used in all vehicle segments. Manfred Neumann, Director of Marketing for automobile spare parts at GKN Service International says the rise in SUV and all-wheel drive registrations is a trend that will continue and which will increase the demand for components for the all-wheel drives like propshafts.

GKN offers a special exclusive range of replacement propshafts including one-, two- and three-piece propshafts for the repairs. The product range currently includes OE-compliant propshafts for vehicles such as the Audi A6, A8, Q3, Q5 and Q7, Dacia Duster, Fiat Panda 4x4, Land Rover Range Rover, Freelander, Defender and Discovery, Mercedes Vito and Viano, Porsche Cayenne and Tourareg, Renault Kangoo, Seat Alhambra, Toyota Hilux or the VW-models T4, T5, Phaeton, Tiguan, Sharan, Amarok and Caddy. The offer is being constantly expanded, so independent garages can also obtain the OE-identical SPIDAN or LÖBRO propshafts through local suppliers.

GKN says that propshafts are technically sophisticated, individually designed components for use in specific vehicles. In development centres equipped specifically for this purpose, GKN aims the development of a propshaft to precisely meet the demands of the vehicle manufacturer, which ensures that the desired product configuration is complied with in the manufacturing process. This involves length, weight, material, precise fit, and the structural form of the joints and the specific connections as well as the NVH and crash performance. Defined, consistently high-quality standards of all individual components ensure the required vehicle safety.

It is often impossible to disassemble individual components of the propshaft system without causing damage, so GKN recommends complete shaft replacement for safety reasons.  Manfred Neumann says, "We at GKN work on solutions in our specialised processing plants to professionally recondition defective propshafts, even those with difficult configurations, together with the support of our development engineers in order to continue to expand the tailor-made range for the repair market".

Details of all SPIDAN and LÖBRO brand propshafts can be found on TecDoc. For more information, see www.gknservice.com.