Hofmann Megaplan Blog
Over the years, our range has continued to develop into one of the most comprehensive offerings available in the UK market. In fact, Hofmann Megaplan have one of the largest choices of alignment and balancing products the industry has to offer.
Last year, the company invested in a further 20,000sqft of warehousing to be able to accommodate an expansion of the range; an expansion that saw several new wheel alignment products added and an increase in the availability of the product that cemented our popularity across the industry and is still to this day our best-selling line – wheel balancers.
One of the most significant introductions in 2020 was the new Logik 6 CCD wheel aligner, which can work on a 2-post lift or short platform scissor lift; a feature that has opened up the opportunity of wheel alignment to a whole new market.
A word from the VP...
Hofmann Megaplan’s Head of Product Development & Vice President of ISN Europe, James Boon commented...
“Many customers simply don’t have room for a 4-post lift or large scissor lift, or the ability to carry out alignment on a 2-post lift; but thanks to significant software and hardware developments, we can now offer 2 post alignment making this a real game changer especially for smaller garages”.
All of Hofmann Megaplan's alignment equipment is managed by 5 dedicated geometry experts, further supported by another 55 regional technicians across the UK handling the full range of product including tyre equipment, lifts, MOT and diagnostic products.
Focusing on the right balance
Despite a huge emphasis on alignment in recent years, Hofmann Megaplan continues to focus heavily on wheel balancers, where an enviable history has seen us become a clear market leader.
By far the most popular is the megaspin 420, which is a high-performance balancer offering the fastest floor-to-floor balancing time in the industry. This is achieved through the patented OWB (One Weight Balance) software, whereby the balancer can achieve both a static and dynamic balance with the application of just one single weight. To speed up the balancing process even further, the megaspin 420 has a ‘No Check Spin’ function, so the traditional zero/zero check spin simply isn’t required.
As all garages will know by now, tyre changing, wheel balancing and wheel alignment all go hand in hand when it comes to your customer's tyres. The simple fact is all these services provide crucial steps to ensure longevity, safety and efficient tyre/vehicle performance.
The only issue is, many of your customers are not aware of this.
Educating your customers beyond a price-driven view of tyre fitting services can be difficult, especially when it can be misconceived as upselling your own services.
Some garages don't see the need for a vehicle alignment machine as their customers don't want it. Many owners, therefore, opt to purchase a tyre changer and a wheel balancer as a package, then see wheel alignment as an added extra if the demand is there. These garages often end up turning business away as customers are smart enough to ask about alignment.
So, where do you stand when it comes to providing wheel alignment to your customers?
Why is wheel alignment so important?
It is always strongly advised for your customers to have their wheels aligned when new tyres are fitted; but again, customers mistake tracking for proper wheel alignment, and even mix up wheel balancing with wheel alignment.
A wheel aligner simply looks at the position of the wheels in relation to each other and the road surface, so that any corrections can be made.
Missing out this crucial step can cause minor and major issues to the tyres and driving performance, in both the short term and long term.
Check out our previous blog to discover the full importance of wheel alignment services!
The need for wheel alignment in your garage is clear. Especially if you are dealing with numerous tyre fitting jobs per day.
Not only will your customers reap the benefits of that extra service, but you can see many advantages within the garage - not least an obvious increase in revenue!
The right wheel aligner for your garage!
Think about the amount of tyre fitting jobs you complete each week or even each day...
Every single tyre fitting job you complete should have an alignment check when the tyres are installed onto the car!
A simple question then - are you completing those checks? Are you even offering them?
Ensuring you purchase the right wheel aligner for your garage services needs a considered approach. By making sure you have the essential footprint to install the wheel aligner, guaranteeing the durability to cope with your garage services, and the all-important budget to consider, you can be well on your way to conquering the perfect set of tyre fitting services.
Check out our entire range of wheel alignment machines online today!
Don't feel abandoned when considering your wheel alignment options!
Check out our range of Wheel Aligners and ADAS Calibration Equipment today.
Contact us online now or call us today on 01480 8-9-10-11 to speak to one of our dedicated team for more information.
Looking to enhance your garage revenue with wheel alignment? Maybe your customers are becoming wiser to alignment and searching for a more comprehensive service? Offering 4 wheel laser alignment could be the answer.
Every garage is looking for new ways to strengthen their services - especially within alignment. Having proved to be one of the most lucrative sources of revenue throughout the automotive equipment industry, wheel alignment is continuing to evolve.
4 Wheel Laser wheel alignments may be the next step in conquering your closest rivals. Step one: understanding it!
4 Wheel Laser vs Optical Gauges
From the uninitiated, we often get asked the difference in these terms and how they are related if not the same thing.
Put simply, 4 wheel laser alignment measures on all four wheels ensuring the car is no longer crabbing, a phrase to remember is the "rear wheels steer the vehicle". Also when you consider 70% of manufacturers now have rear tracking as well as the front, there is extra revenue to be made, but the most important aspect is you will have a straight steering wheel which means no more driving down the road making adjustments on the side of the road.The generic process of Optical gauges will check the track of the front and rear wheels only, but will not straighten the steering wheel or stop the car crabbing which is highly important on todays modern cars because of the highly complex electronics such as ADAS.
Naturally 4 wheel laser alignment is a more lucrative service to offer when compared to Optical gauges, and the results from 4 wheel laser alignment means better performance from your customer's vehicle.
4 Wheel Laser Wheel Alignment Explained
You shouldn't be overwhelmed by this technology as it is becoming common place in garages across the UK.
Car wheels are not just set up to just point forwards. To ensure the car drives smoothly and functions properly, the wheels are set up to point at specific angles. These angles can be tiny but failing to set them up can ruin the driver's experience.
Laser alignment makes this process simple, using light beams to project any misalignments onto the 3D image screen so that adjustments can be made.
In need of upgrading your wheel aligner for your workshop? See our full range of wheel aligners online now.
Contact us online today or call us on 01480 8-9-10-11 to discuss your requirements in more detail.
I'm going to start this blog series by talking about one of our most common issues those working with wheel alignment equipment can face, and that's turn plates.
If not used correctly, turnplates can cause big problems when trying to achieve a straight steering wheel. Whats worse it can lead you to produce different results each time you attempt to align the same vehicle which quickly becomes infuriating.
Steer Clear of…
Some garages will try and use their MOT plates to save time and these can be ok to just turn the wheel and look for defects. The risk is that they get covered in dirt and that will get into the plate and cause a restriction. To complete an alignment accurately the plates need to be completely free moving.
Others might use their old style dish type turn plates. These most commonly come from an older laser system. They will turn but don't slide, meaning they build up tension and can give you wrong results.
Another common mistake made by alignment engineers is simply not using the pins provided. This is surprisingly common and can cause irreversible damage to your to your wheel alignment system.
Remember to…
We should always drive on the turn plates with the pins in. As soon as you are ready to remove a vehicle from your alignment station, put the pins in. Failing to do this can lead to damage when the car is reversed. The plate can tilt and bearings become loose, impacting the accuracy of your machine.
Some people simply fail to maintain their turn plates. Metal bearing plates will need regular lubrication for example with grease. Nylon bearings don't need any grease or oil but should be cleaned regularly depending on usage by removing the top plate and brushing out any dirt.
