Autodata shows rise in LCV workshop traffic

The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtably lead to an increase in home deliveries, which of course has meant a rise in the use of light commercial vehicles. LCV technical information is now more important than ever to the vehicle service and repair market.

Since April 2019, Solera Autodata’s workshop application has registered a 15.3 per cent rise in technical data in the light commercial vehicle category. This includes information on repair times, wiring diagrams, tyre and brake servicing, fluids and capacities, and diesel exhaust gas aftertreatments.

As Autodata has information on nearly 4,000 vehicles in the van and LCV variants category, it provides a researched view of workshop trends. In its recent Autodata Most Serviced Vehicle report, the highest total page views for an individual LCV model was the Volkswagen Transporter T5 (09-15) which was accessed more than 100,000 times worldwide.

The 2006 version of the Transit was Autodata’s second most serviced vehicle of 2019, and notably also took the top spot in the Ireland and the United Kingdom.

It is estimated that home food deliveries grew by 192 per cent from February 23 to May 17 of this year, meaning an increase in use of LCVs which has correlated to a bump in maintenance and repair needs.

“While new vehicle registrations for light and heavy-goods vehicles have decreased, we’ve seen an uplift in the aftermarket, with technicians accessing significantly more LCV data,” said Michael Landless, head of product for Autodata. “This likely reflects two trends – an overall aging of the fleet, with vehicles requiring more frequent maintenance or more complex repair, as well as individual vehicles doing greater mileage, and fleet managers putting older vehicles back into active use to support an increase in parcel deliveries.”

Chris Wright, MD of Autodata, added: “We’re constantly working to improve and refine the Autodata product to ensure it remains the leading solution for maintenance and repair. OEMs don’t stop updating technical information once a vehicle is out in the world. It’s updated over time as components age and recommendations change for how frequently they should be serviced and what service items are required. We’re committed to supporting workshops and fleet managers to ensure the data you get for vans and LCVs is the most accurate and up-to-date on the market.”