Hybrid drives already power two percent of vehicles newly registered worldwide; this figure is set to rise to around seven percent in the next ten years. With hybrid vehicles becoming ever more popular automobile workshops are increasingly faced with this drive technology. This poses new challenges for the engineers in terms of their specialist knowledge and skills. The hybrid vehicle has a twin drive; this makes troubleshooting more complex and means that specialist knowledge is required to handle the high electrical voltages and currents safely. The new technology is a perfect opportunity for the automobile workshops to get ahead of the game and establish themselves as experts in the field. Bosch is supporting the workshops in their efforts with diagnostics systems, the latest technical information and practical training courses.
· Increasing number of hybrid vehicles
· Getting to grips with new technology requires specialist knowledge
· Workshops are familiarizing themselves using Bosch diagnostics systems and training courses
Bosch played a pioneering role in developing new components for hybrid technology and currently supplies original equipment for the hybrid vehicle technology. Bosch has even taken the needs of the workshops into consideration. The result was a special Bosch handheld FSA 050 tester that can be used on high-voltage systems and communicates wirelessly with the basic series 7 FSA vehicle system analysis devices. The tester can also be used as a stand-alone device. The new FSA 050 handheld tester is due to be unveiled in September this year at the Automechika exhibition in Frankfurt, Germany.
The Bosch workshop software Esitronic already contains the technical data and diagnostics values for the latest hybrid vehicles. A full control unit diagnosis can be carried out for the Toyota Prius II, and from July 2010 the Prius I model. This will also include the new Toyota Prius III, the Honda Civic 2 and the Honda Insight from October 2010. More new models will be added when the software is updated every quarter, for example the VW Touareg in April 2011.
To enable the workshops to keep up with the latest requirements of a modern hybrid vehicle, Bosch is providing a new training course ‘Safety procedures for specialist work on HV (High Voltage) vehicles’. The course includes practical and theoretical modules where experienced trainers can pass on their expertise in dealing with the new high-voltage technology, as well as principles, hybrid components, drive concepts and control electronics. The workshops can also direct any questions relating to hybrid vehicle technology to the Bosch technical hotline. This will ensure that the workshop is prepared for the future market when it comes to servicing and repairing hybrid vehicles.