How to sell specific services in a low-maintenance world. Today, the brake fluid. One of the most under-recommended fluids out there.
When you are service advising, you must believe in what you are selling. There must also be consistency for the customer's sake in the drive-through.
If you do not believe in something, you cannot sell it ethically. That creates a mental discord. Meaning the thoughts do not align with the actions you are doing. You feel like you are lying and feel guilty. People pick up on that on a subconscious level. So you either need to learn why what you sell is essential, or you will naturally stop selling it.
All staff must recommend things based on the maintenance guide that the manufacturer has created. Depending on your region, the guide must include the factory-listed requirements and the environmentally affected items.
And yes, the environment matters!
For example, when I worked in Ontario, we did caliper services every oil change. The customer paid for a complete brake job every year if we did not. This was due to the caliper slides seizing or rusting to the point the outer pad could not return. This caused accelerated wear to that one pad on each axle.
Of course, a seized slide is not a factory defect. That is a result of the rust building up on them because of the road salt they use there.
In Alberta, when working at the same manufacturer, we can push off the caliper service for much longer with no significant detriment. Therefore, the environment matters.
If you have never worked in a different environment, you will not appreciate how it affects what you need to do to the vehicle and when.
All staff, BDC, techs, and advisors, need to understand what they are recommending, why they are recommending it, and when. The message will only be delivered with posture or consistency if they do. Posture and consistency matter a great deal.
Why does consistency matter? Well, if you have one advisor recommending brake fluid every 50,000 km, one suggesting it at 65,000 km, and one offering it...NEVER. What is your department saying to the customer about the importance of that brake fluid exchange?
Consistency is an important thing to be delivered to customers and staff at all times.
Over the past 3 decades, I have met several advisors who do not believe brake fluid exchanges are important. Just like I have had to explain the reasons to customers, I explained the reasons to them.
If we are managers and trainers, we must educate the people we have selling the services we want to be sold.
Understanding it will help them create value and sell it when it is due. Or, at the very minimum, help them from feeling like they are not doing something unimportant for the customer and their vehicle.
Brake fluid exchanges. Meh, I can leave that for now. It is not that important.
They are not important....they are crucial! Why?
Brake fluid is hygroscopic. Meaning it absorbs water. Where does the water come from?
It comes from the atmosphere or generates internally through the action of braking. So if you plan to use the brakes to stop the car at any point ever, moisture will begin to build up over time in the system. This process cannot be stopped.
Not putting it together yet?
Here is some more technical info.
DOT 4 brake fluid is the most common type of brake fluid at the moment. It has a dry boiling point (meaning no moisture content) of 205 - 300 degrees Celsius. Because brake fluid is a non-compressible fluid, it works well to build up pressure in the system when it is new and has zero moisture content.
That pressure is used when the brake pedal is depressed. The fluid is put into motion, building pressure. It applies the needed force to move the caliper's piston, applies the brake pad to the rotating rotor, and stops the car.
After just 2 years, brake fluid can have up to 3.7% water content, reducing the boiling point to around 155 degrees Celsius. What happens when things boil?
Now you have a lower boiling point. On top of that, at the caliper, the heat generated by the action of friction can reach 200 degrees Celsius. That heat is also passed into the fluid through the caliper piston. Why? Because metal is a great conductor of heat.
You will know this if you have ever grabbed a metal handle of a boiling pot of water with no oven mitt.
Now, if the brake fluid is constantly heated beyond the boiling point, and because we now have the water in the hydraulic system boiling (because water boils at 100 degrees Celsius), this can start creating vapor locks in the system. Those vapor locks are now compressing in a system that is only supposed to have a non-compressible fluid.
This can lead to the brake pedal feeling spongy, issues with brake fade, or the brakes just not working at all.
The flow rate of the fluid increases (which is bad) and becomes more acidic as well because the added water changes the PH of the fluid.
A higher flow rate can have a negative effect on the performance of systems like ABS, ESP, and related traction control systems. Why? Because the flow rate of the fluid is used to calculate when to apply the abs and the traction control systems. If the fluid is flowing too quickly, the computer for those systems will not be using the correct information to apply them.
Increased acidity and water content can accelerate the corrosion internally of other hydraulic components. How much does an abs pump or module cost? Thousands. How much does a brake fluid exchange cost? Around $250.00. Which is cheaper?
Additionally, over time rubber components internally also start to swell and create a huge expense for the owner in the end. I have seen contamination so bad that every piece of the hydraulic system had to be replaced. It was almost $8000.00.
When you brake, the fluid heats up. You cannot stop it! Especially if you drive for extended periods and in certain conditions like stop-and-go traffic and mountainous regions.
Ask yourself why race cars get the brake fluid changed every single race. Think of how much moisture build-up occurs under those conditions. Brakes on race cars generate extreme heat! Even with threshold braking techniques.
When the fluid cools, condensation (moisture) forms in the system. Brake fluid even absorbs moisture from the air as it sits. So even if you are not driving, the brake fluid deteriorates.
Moisture build-up, therefore, is even worse in hybrids and electric vehicles, where the regenerative braking system heats the fluid even faster. The fluid in these vehicles must be changed even more often.
Does it really need to be done? Well, take this example into account.
I had one customer that had a significant amount of moisture build-up in her fluid. We recommended the fluid service, and her son said, "That is not even a thing, don't waste your money."
Three weeks later, her car was on the tow truck. She had no brakes at all. When we looked, we found the brake fluid had actually frozen in the -35 temperatures we had.
Not understanding how that happened? If a system has high water content, and water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius, BAM! We now have frozen fluid.
So, judge for yourself if it is important or not.
I have never had to explain the aspects of boiling points etc., to someone I was advising on a brake fluid exchange. Usually, I say, "Oh, I see you are at 60,000 km. That is right where we start to recommend you change the brake fluid. Did you want some pricing on that?"
If people need clarification on why it is needed, I explain that the moisture build-up in the fluid can cause more significant expenses down the road.
Most people will not care to hear that much information. You may rarely need to pull this much technical information out of your hat. Over the past 32 years, I have never told one other human what the boiling point of brake fluid is. But I understand why it is essential. That understanding gives me posture when selling brake fluid.
Posture makes you an authority on the subject. People like to deal with authority on a subject they do not have a great deal of understanding of.
So become that authority!
Here is a reference for the technical info discussed here today.
If you need help with selling techniques or are struggling with building value, please feel free to reach out.
If you are a manager looking to build a solid foundation of consistency for your advisors:
You can also check out my book.
"Building A Gold Standard Service Advisor: The Evolution of Automotive Service"
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