Autel helps distributors match diagnostic tools to shop needs
Key Highlights
Produced with support from MEDCO.
This show takeover was sponsored by our MEDCO Customer Show coverage partner, MEDCO. See more coverage on our MEDCO Customer Show page.
There is no shortage of options when it comes to diagnostic tools. For distributors, the challenge is figuring out which capabilities a customer actually needs before recommending the right system.
During Autel’s Full Line Review at the MEDCO Customer Show, Kevin Oliver, regional sales manager at Autel, walks attendees through the company’s diagnostic lineup, ADAS offerings, and several of its newest products. The session focuses on the differences between the tools and the questions distributors can ask to narrow down the right fit for a customer.
Autel’s diagnostic lineup ranges from service tools to professional systems and its S2 Series. Depending on the tool, capabilities include all-systems diagnostics, bidirectional controls, coding and adaptations, J2534 pass-thru programming, oscilloscope testing, OE repair information, and ADAS functions.
“Starting from the top, look at those capabilities like the measurement side, the waveform generation, the four-channel oscilloscope, that kind of thing, and then knock that down,” Oliver says. “As a customer says, ‘Hey, I don’t need all that,’ okay, let’s go down to the next level.”
Some of the questions Oliver recommends asking include whether a technician performs advanced electrical testing with tools such as a four-channel oscilloscope or waveform generator, whether the shop needs J2534 module programming, and what other services it may be looking to bring in-house.
Those answers can help distributors move beyond simply comparing price points and focus instead on the work a technician needs the tool to perform.
A look at the latest additions
The session also gives attendees a closer look at Autel’s second-generation Ultra Series diagnostic tablets, including the MaxiSYS Ultra S2, MS919 S2, and MS909 S2.
The Ultra S2 features a 13.7" anti-glare display, 512GB of storage, Wi-Fi 6, an upgraded processor, and an enhanced docking station with fast charging.
Its VCMI2 combines several functions into one device, including a four-channel oscilloscope, J2534 pass-thru programmer, multimeter, waveform generator, CAN-Bus tester, and Remote Expert functionality.
Oliver also covers several software features available within the newer systems. Live Data Fusion allows technicians to select PIDs from multiple modules and display them on the same screen, which can make it easier to compare information across systems during the diagnostic process.
Another product highlighted during the training is the AC909 Advanced HVAC Diagnostic System. The system includes guided testing, pressure monitoring, refrigerant leak and moisture detection, nitrogen pressure leak testing, and variable displacement compressor testing.
“Nowadays, we can take individual measurement parameters out of multiple modules and put them together into a custom list, which is very, very helpful on a drivability-type problem or some type of an issue where you need to see data from more than one place,” Oliver says. “I can merge all that together, and it gives me as a technician a nice, clean way to be able to watch data a lot easier.”
Connecting alignment and ADAS
ADAS is another area where Oliver encourages distributors to ask more questions.
One of those questions is what the shop currently uses for wheel alignment and whether the customer understands the relationship between alignment and ADAS calibration.
Calibration can be required following a number of common services, including wheel alignment, suspension repair, collision repair, windshield or mirror replacement, and changes in ride height or tire size.
That conversation can be especially important for shops currently subletting ADAS work. Understanding how often that happens and what services the shop wants to keep in-house can help a distributor determine whether an investment in additional equipment makes sense.
The same approach applies across Autel’s other product categories. A customer may begin with TPMS or battery service equipment and later add diagnostics, alignment, or ADAS equipment as the shop expands its capabilities.
“I can’t believe how many guys that I talk to, and then I mention their tablet having Remote Expert, and they’re like, ‘What? You mean I can program modules?’” Oliver adds. “They’re paying somebody else to do this, and they’re taking the vehicle across town to the dealer.”
For distributors, the takeaway from the Full Line Review is less about memorizing every tool in the lineup and more about knowing what to ask. Understanding the work a customer performs today and where the shop wants to grow can make it easier to recommend the capabilities that fit.
About the Author
Nadine AtiyaNadine Atiya
Editor-in-Chief
Nadine Atiya is the editor-in-chief of Professional Tool & Equipment News (PTEN) and Professional Distributor magazines. She has been covering the automotive aftermarket since 2021, after graduating from Kent State University with a bachelor's degree in journalism and marketing.
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