Launch UK is warning garages of the dangers of purchasing diagnostic equipment from internet sellers. The company reports that it has found at least 50 accounts claiming to be genuine diagnostic sellers on eBay alone. However, upon further inspection, these sellers are said to have listed “inaccurate company information such as a UK base and fraudulent VAT numbers”.
eBay France has partnered with the 350-branch strong Feu Vert garage network to fit tyres purchased online. The development was hinted at last year’s Equip Auto show when the head of spare parts and accessories for cars and motorcycles in the French, Spanish and Italian markets, Francesco Faà di Bruno, announced that negotiations were underway. Now, Ebay has confirmed, the agreement is final.
As reported at the start of the month, an eBay tyre fitting service is now available in the UK in partnership with Blackcircles.com. The service was launched at the time of the year when the days grow shorter and motorists should prepare their vehicles, particularly their tyres, for winter roads. Kevin Steward, head of sales, Vehicle Parts & Accessories, UK Trading at eBay, has written the following tips for tyre sellers hoping to capitalise on this season’s winter tyre market.
The tyre fitting partnership between eBay and Blackcircles.com trialled in 2016 is back. Promoted as a “fitting option for seamless tyre buying experience,” the new arrangement allows for the fitment of more than 10,000 unique tyre products purchased via the ebay.co.uk site at one of more than Blackcircles 1,200 partner locations throughout the country.
Tyre fitting has been added to the range of services offered by eBay Motors in the USA. As of this week, shoppers in the US who purchase tyres on eBay can opt to have them shipped to a local installation location at no additional cost. Installation can currently be performed at 9,000 sites across the country, and eBay says tyre inventory spans across all major brands.
The global Dunlop Motorsport organisation has taken part in the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning – dubbed Dunlop’s Fastest Coffee Morning in recognition of the participation of sporting stars – to raise funds and awareness for Macmillan Cancer Support, the brand’s corporate charity. The events taking place today (Friday 29 September) included contributions from Drivers and team members from the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, FIA World Endurance Championship and European Le Mans Series.
Beginning this month, eBay will begin adding tyre fitting to the portfolio of automotive services it offers in certain markets. The online giant says eBay Motors will initially offer tyre fitting to motorists in Germany before rolling out the service in the US market this summer. eBay has yet to provide a timetable for the service’s introduction into the UK or other markets.
One of the UK’s leading online car parts finder services, BreakerLink has announced a new collaboration with BreakerPro, a leader in breaker yard stock inventory management software. The move will instantly allow all the current users of BreakerPro to access request for parts from BreakerLink, potentially opening them to new and increased streams of revenue and dramatically reducing the time breakers must allocate to the quoting process.
CAM is introducing a bespoke scalable cloud-based solution that will enable dealers to streamline the administration associated with using eBay and doing so eradicate errors and save time and labour.
According to the company, the solution will also future proof businesses by implementing a core business management system that exerts control across their operations and dramatically reduces the vast amount of manual overhead, freeing up retailers’ time.
Toyota GB has launched official Toyota and Lexus parts and accessories eBay stores. According to the company, the e-commerce initiative gives UK customers a new way to source the parts they need, with confidence that they are purchasing the genuine article, direct from Toyota’s central distribution centre in Lutterworth. It is also designed to reach a wider customer base, particularly among owners of older vehicles. Toyota GB is the first of Toyota’s European national marketing and sales companies to launch a full-scale e-commerce programme. It plans to further develop the online stores by introducing “click and collect” and “click and fit” services during 2014.
Early next year, MAM Software will release a new eBay module for its Autopart management software. The eBay module, which is currently undergoing initial testing, is intended to make it easier for Autopart users to add parts listings to the eBay marketplaces in the UK and Ireland.
At the end of the Silverstone meeting there are five drivers in contention for the 2013 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship. While Andrew Jordan is in command after extending his advantage, two wins for Jason Plato and another for reigning champion Gordon Shedden kept their respective title hopes alive. Two other former champions in Matt Neal and Colin Turkington are also in contention in the final three races of the season at Brands Hatch in two weeks’ time.
The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship will be at Rockingham Motor Speedway in Northampton this weekend, as rounds 22, 23 and 24 all take place on Sunday. With nine of the 30 races remaining the top four drivers are separated by 30 points, with over 200 points still up for grabs. Honda Yuasa Racing’s Matt Neal only six points clear of Pirtek Racing’s Andrew Jordan at the top. The weekend marks the tenth anniversary of BTCC’s landmark first visit in 2003. Tyre supplier and title sponsor Dunlop is anticipating an exciting weekend following 15 year high attendances at Knockhill in Scotland, where 2009 BTCC champion Colin Turkington scored twin victories in his eBay Motors BMW on the tight, twisty Scottish track. Rockingham provides an excellent contrast, with fast sweepers and tight hairpins sure to provide some of the best overtaking opportunities of the season. The entire race day will be broadcast live and in high definition on ITV4 from 10:45, providing the sort of branding opportunity that has made the series so attractive to Dunlop.
Dunlop’s soft compound Sport Maxx tyre, added to the British Touring Car Championship as an option for nine out of the ten rounds, has added a new dimension to the racing in this year’s series. Of the 15 races at which the soft tyre has been made available, six victories have been claimed on the tyre, including two on Sunday at Snetterton, while the medium version has been used to win eight. The final race at Croft was won by Matt Neal on the Dunlop BluResponse wet tyre. Dunlop has been very satisfied by the results of its winter development, having been asked to provide an option tyre with increased grip but reduced durability by series organiser TOCA.
Round three of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship will take place at Thruxton this weekend (28-29 April), with three races on Hampshire’s high-speed circuit. Thruxton is the fastest track on the calendar for the teams and drivers of Britain’s premier motor racing championship with cars running bumper-to-bumper at close to 150mph. Once again, title-sponsor Dunlop will supply the rubber for what will be another exciting round of action, while support races come from the Ginetta Junior, Ginetta GT Supercup, Porsche Carrera Cup and Renault Clio Cup grids.
Launch Tech UK
PRNewsfoto/eBay Motors