Diesel car owners face yet more bad news as ownership costs could increase. The cost of owning a diesel car is set to soar as a result of the latest WLTP-approved diesel models. Last year the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) laboratory test which is used to measure fuel consumption, CO2 emissions, and pollutant emissions were introduced. It replaces the older and less reliable New European Driving Cycle (NEDC), which was designed in the 1980s, and is much more rigorous.
WLTP is said to offer a much refer representation of the real world emissions and fuel consumption of a new car.
Now, the ‘hidden costs’ WLTP have been identified by Fleet Assist. Its analysis of data found that during a typical three-year/60,000-mile or four-year/80,000-mile contract, that a diesel car was likely to require an additional service.
The service interval reductions vary across motor manufacturers and can be impacted by the driving and journey profile, reported Fleet News.
However, it is typically of the order of 2,000-5,000 miles but on some models, a service interval reduction of 8,000 miles was identified by Fleet Assist.
According to the analysis, the WLTP-related changes place increased strain on the engines in the maximum oil change interval.
Chris Crow, head of network and technical services, Fleet Assist, said: “Manufacturers are adopting different strategies with regards to vehicle service intervals post-WLTP regulation testing and that information is gradually bring provided to us.
“Nevertheless, a clear general trend is emerging and that is that some diesel cars – as well as vans as they become subject to WLTP testing – look as though they will require more frequent servicing typically due to greater oil use. That will inevitably impact on fleet servicing costs and trigger a rise in vehicle wholelife costs.
“Given the variability of service intervals across vehicle manufacturers and the influence of condition-based servicing, it is yet another issue that fleet decision-makers and maintenance managers in contract hire and leasing companies must feed into the WLTP-influenced decision-making process when selecting new vehicles.”
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