Retailer news

Carrying on the Inside Line series, we move on from looking at the BMW 1 Series and turn our attention to the Ford Ka. Now in its second generation, this car remains a firm favourite with those wanting an entry-level car to run around in a town or city, or as a first vehicle. In this issue we are focusing on the first generation Ka which entered the market back in 1996 as a budget city car. A testament to its success is its longevity, with huge numbers sold for over a decade until it was replaced in 2009 with an updated model

Lucas Oil has reinvigorated its Deep Clean Fuel System Cleaner for petrol engines by making it even easier to use. The new design by adopted by the American firm has been developed with capless fuelling systems in mind, where it makes dispensing fuel additives from traditional bottles difficult without the use of an aperture-widening tool.

TMD Friction has won the accolade of Supplier of the Year 2013 from Autoparts UK. The large independent motor factor, which is part of the Arnold Clark Group, announced the winner of the trophy at its Burns Night celebrations, where Richard Gleghorn, Sales Manager at TMD Friction UK, picked up the commemorative award and a bottle of malt whisky.

Remy has added 44 new rotating electric products to its range, which has seen it launch 250 new references in the last six months. The new additions will see 14 starter motors and 28 alternators increase Remy’s range to more than 4000 parts covering over 35,000 vehicle applications.

The Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation has issued a rallying call for businesses to get behind the organisation ahead of an active 2014. The call came from President Graham Knight following the organisation’s annual general meeting where he said that the IAAF is ready and able to take on any challenges and embrace opportunities that face the aftermarket this year.

Ecobat Technologies, the parent company of battery distributor Manbat, has announced the acquisition of French trader Batteries Accus Technologies (BAT). The move highlights Ecobat’s desire to continue its growth and strengthen its position in Europe, as it acquired its fourth European trader for its Global Battery Distribution Division, with Manbat, Hefra in The Netherlands and Belgium’s ACA being the others.

Aftermarket businesses are more likely to get accepted for finance than they think and could provide a significant boost to the economy if they applied, a new report out today suggests. The British Bankers Association (BBA) survey of 15,000 small to medium-sized enterprises found that just 37 percent thought they would be successful if they applied for finance.

A glittering £50,000 tin of T-Cut has been created to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the colour-restoring scratch treatment

Created from 26,000 Swarovski crystals, which could pay havoc with even the most robust of paint finishes, the encrusted tin took 75 hours to piece together and has been insured for £50,000.

Schaeffler’s clutch division LuK has launched a new clutch repair solution aimed at commercial vehicles. The German giant has a high performance, long-life repair solution which is ideal for CVs doing high mileages and which are expected to be in service for a long period of time.

It has quickly emerged that Wendy Williamson will be Brian Spratt’s successor at the Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF). She has been named as the new Chief Executive, and will take over the reins from Spratt in July.