Anyone involved in the independent aftermarket will know that with a trend to e-mobility the future is one of change. What is very much up for debate is the speed this change is likely to happen and how workshops should adjust to this changing market. 

A new study of German speaking workshops has highlighted the attitude of garage operators on the continent, finding that for most the great electric switch remains a distant prospect.  

While 47% of independent workshops see e-mobility as a growth opportunity, only a small fraction (16%) has invested in training or equipment so far. Instead, 53% continue to focus on the familiar combustion engine business.

A total of 274 independent garages in Germany, Austria and Switzerland were asked about their current and future challenges and opportunities. The study is part of the "IAM:CONNECT" dialog platform, which the Hamburg-based manufacturer is using to increase dialog with the industry. 

Only 3% of workshops said they generate more than half of their turnover with electric vehicles. 39% said they plan to make a large proportion of their turnover from electric cars during the next ten years, a longer time period that previously predicted. 

40% of customers said they work on electric vehicles at least once a week on areas such as tyre care, general repair and brake service. Only 25 % of workshops are qualified to work on de-energised EVs and high voltage systems.

Interestingly 19% of workshops said they had no plans to work on EVs in the future. 83% of garages identified ADAS as a future priority, while 75% said they wanted to improved their vehicle software capabilities. 

64% of independent garages said support from parts manufacturers would be crucial for the future, followed by software and diagnostic tool providers (58%) and wholesalers (52%). 

Michael Grimm, Innovation Manager at MEYLE AG comments, "We need precisely this kind of insight in order to understand the challenges and pain points of workshops so that we can tailor our services accordingly. The results show that independent garages need solutions beyond the usual parts production in order to keep pace in the future. Most independent players are far too small to make a difference on their own. That's why we at MEYLE want to work with the industry to develop ideas for the independent aftermarket of the future. The basis for this is our dialog platform IAM:CONNECT." 

For more information on IAM:CONNECT please click here.