Bosch Pitches Fast-Track Vehicle Inspection System

NEW ORLEANS – Bosch Service Solutions U.S. is showing off new vehicle-inspection technology designed to increase service-department throughput, while getting a dealer’s customers more vested in the health of their vehicles.

The scalable system, which bases at $6,400 and rises to about $50,000 with all the bells and whistles, allows dealers to conduct complete inspections in less than 3 minutes and supply a thorough, data-driven printed diagnostic report to vehicle owners in the 30-minute time needed to conduct scheduled routine maintenance.

Bosch Services Solutions President and CEO Tanvir Arfi says that unlike other systems, the new technology provides “real measurements, not just subjective assessments.

“There’s a real void when it comes to dealers inspecting a vehicle and being able to show real data to the consumer on the vehicle’s health,” he says during a media briefing at the 2014 NADA Convention & Exposition here.

When a customer brings a vehicle in for routine maintenance or a scheduled repair, technicians use Bosch’s U-Scan handheld technology to connect to the vehicle, read its VIN number and diagnostic codes and upload information wirelessly to the dealership database.

The system automatically conducts a battery test, while technicians employ handhelds to retrieve data from tire-pressure sensors.

The vehicle is then driven over a tire-scanner (an add-on cost above the base system), which uses a laser to measure tread depth and check wheel alignment.

After scheduled repairs are made, customers get a printed health report and can make appointments for future repairs or maintenance.

The system gives a dealership a baseline of the vehicle’s health that can be tracked over time, and Arfi contends that once customers see the report, the condition of their car or truck “becomes a point of pride” that will lead them to want to keep their vehicle in tip-top shape.

Dealers also will see a solid return on investment, the Bosch Solutions CEO says. He points to luxury-car dealers in particular, where routine maintenance often is included in the sale of the car.

“We’re beating by 50% or more what the (automaker) says (the dealer) will do (in service work),” Arfi says.

The new technology works seamlessly with other Bosch diagnostic systems, allowing dealers to add on to existing equipment and scale up at their own pace.

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