Local gasoline quality fuels problems and poses challenges

Local gasoline quality fuels problems and poses challenges

Wenda Wonoseputra

and

Eko Yulianto

Contributors
Jakarta

The writers are respectively president director and head of
after-sales service at PT Car and Cars Indonesia, the authorized
sole agent for Volkswagen cars in Indonesia

In contrast to the huge automotive market here, along with its
yearly growth in sales, local fuel quality is lower than that in
developed countries. This affects the performance of car engines,
however robust they may be, and their lifespan is reduced. By
now, due to this factor, Indonesian customers know better than to
put the blame on car brands or manufacturers.

A number of car manufacturers regularly send samples of local
fuel to be checked accurately. The results have always been
disheartening. Among the various unwanted components, gum, for
example, exceeds what is allowed -- index 4 -- as local fuel
contains gum with an index of 19.4.

The existence of gum in such large quantities causes bonding
with certain other elements that eventually results in excessive
carbon deposits in the combustion chamber of a car's engine. It
also degrades the quality of oil in the engine as the oil turns
to a sticky, muddy gel.

For most European cars that are manufactured to use fuel of
Euro 4 emission standard, local fuel quality is really
problematic. In fact, a "death sentence" for the engine lurks at
hand. The plan to implement a higher emission standard, only Euro
2 -- still lower than Euro 4 -- is still a few years away, in
2006. Until then, automotive manufacturers here have to deal with
existing problems in relation to local fuel quality and all its
implications.

Communications is probably one effective tool to help
customers get the best performance from their cars in a given
situation. Some companies suggest certain additives when filling
up with gas. However, not every car owner does this regularly.

Most manufacturers and authorized sole agents or importers
have taken a precautionary step. The regular service is now more
frequent; from the standard interval of every 15,000 kilometers
(km) applied in country of origin, the authorized sole agent of
Volkswagen cars in Indonesia recommends servicing every 10,000
km.

Volkswagen workshops in the country categorize the damage to
engines caused by low fuel quality as critical and less serious.
For less serious cases, the engine is flushed. Instead of filling
it with four liters of oil, the mechanic uses three liters of oil
and one liter of diesel fuel. After revving up the engine for
about 30 minutes to reach a high temperature, the oil and diesel
fuel are discharged. This process is repeated three times to
ensure that the engine is perfectly clean. For engines in
critical condition, in the worst cases they must be replaced.

With customer satisfaction uppermost in mind, the parent
company of Volkswagen in Germany has decided that the entire
network of workshops plus relevant paraphernalia have to be ready
before any variant or model is launched. Again, this is to ensure
that from day one a customer has no worries over any problems
affecting the latest model he may purchase.

Major car makers have incorporated excellent after-sales
service into their corporate business and global marketing
strategy, as after-sales service to the highest international
standards set by the parent company is the order of the day.
Hence, training, again of international standard, is given to
every tier of engineers and mechanics, who are then referred to
as service specialists in certain aspect of engine maintenance.
Not only technical expertise, these specialists are provided with
the necessary intangible skills, like communications and customer
care, to ensure customer satisfaction.

Most leading players in the automotive industry, like
Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and Volkswagen and several others, have
equipped their workshop network with sophisticated gadgets that
are connected online even with the parent company in its country
of origin. Next to professional specialists who are also
computer-savvy, diagnosis and trouble shooting are much helped by
computers.

Apart from the preparedness of workshops-cum-sales centers to
provide the best "3S" (sales, service and spare parts), which is
a basic requirement, today they are also required to have ready
the latest intranet system. This means huge investment for them
compared with years back when almost anyone could type up a
proposal and submit an application to be appointed as an
authorized workshop costing comparatively less.

In the case of the creme de la creme with a prestigious
vehicle, taking the car to the workshop is the least of their
worries. Their drivers do it. From the moment they have purchased
their expensive vehicle, they have already assumed that
workshops, with an entire regimen of specialists and
state-of-the-art equipment, will solve each and every problem.
Here lies the challenge for each car maker, along with the
workshop: To prove to the customer that whatever the problem,
including the existing low quality of local fuel, they can meet
any challenge and that their car is up to the job.