The Benefits of Remote Vehicle Diagnostics for Fleet Operators

Gone are the days of waiting for your truck to act up to know there’s a problem. Remote Vehicle Diagnostics can be a game-changer, helping you save both time and money. Early diagnosis means timely repairs, helping you avoid costly downtime.

Imagine your driver is delivering goods when suddenly the brakes fail. This could lead to serious injuries or even the loss of your vehicle. Fortunately, this won’t happen to you because, with Cartrack’s solutions, potential issues like this can be detected early, preventing accidents before they happen.

Remote vehicle diagnostics has many other benefits, which we will explore further in this blog.

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What is Remote Vehicle Diagnostics

Remote vehicle diagnostics is a system embedded in a vehicle’s engine. It monitors the vehicle’s health and performance from a distance and identifies and controls any vehicle problems. This system uses telematics and data communication technologies, to provide insights into the vehicle’s condition without needing physical access.

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How does Remote Vehicle Diagnostics work for fleets? 

Remote diagnostics is important for commercial fleets to maintain vehicle health and optimise operations. It allows fleet managers to track the performance metrics across their entire fleet and respond quickly to maintenance alerts.

Here’s how remote diagnostics work:

• Data Collection: Modern vehicles have numerous sensors and onboard computers that continuously collect data from various systems, including the engine, transmission, brakes, and advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). This data, including fault codes, performance metrics, and operational alerts, is stored in the vehicle’s onboard computer systems.
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• Remote Access: Technicians can access this data through specialised diagnostics tools or applications. A technician can send a request to the vehicle for specific logs or fault codes. The vehicle responds by transmitting the requested data to the technician, allowing for real-time diagnosis.
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• Analysis and Reporting: Once received, this data is analysed using telematics to identify potential issues, generate diagnostic reports, and recommend necessary actions. This significantly reduces vehicle downtime.

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7 Benefits of Remote Vehicle Diagnostics for Fleet Operators

Now that you understand how remote vehicle diagnostics work, let’s explore its benefits for fleet operators in enhancing efficiency, safety and cost-effectiveness.

With real-time insights, operators can optimise vehicle performance, reduce downtime, and make informed maintenance decisions, all while ensuring safer driving conditions and lowering overall costs.
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Here are 7 benefits of Remote Vehicle Diagnostics for fleet operators:

1. Real-time Monitoring:
   In the olden days, fleet operators had to wait for the vehicle to break down before discovering the issue, often leading to costly towing and repairs. With real-time monitoring, operators can identify problems before a breakdown occurs, allowing for proactive maintenance.
   This approach not only saves money but also enhances overall fleet efficiency. By addressing issues early, operators can schedule repairs during off-peak times, minimising disruptions to operations. Access to real-time data improves decision-making regarding vehicle usage and resource allocation. This ultimately leads to a more reliable fleet and improved customer service delivery.
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2. Reduce Downtime: 
   Taking the vehicle in for repairs means it will be off the road for some time, this is called unplanned downtime.
   Downtime affects a fleet in several ways, including:
   • ‍Decreased productivity: Your business will inevitably fall behind schedule if some of your vehicles are not operational. For example, if your business is a freight delivery service, if one of your delivery trucks is not operational, it will inconvenience not only you and your business but also your customers (other businesses) and their clients.
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   • ‍Overuse of other vehicles: When a car is not in use, other vehicles will be overused to play catch up. While this seems like a solution, overusing vehicles beyond their scheduled times can lead to wear and tear, compromising the fleet’s condition and lifespan.
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   • ‍Loss of revenue: Failure to deliver goods and services results in a loss of revenue to the business. Because of the inconvenience caused, customers may take their business elsewhere, or worse, they may leave bad reviews about your company, influencing other people to not work with you.
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   • ‍Increased costs: An unexpected vehicle breakdown will require funds to cover repair costs. Since these expenses aren’t typically planned for, fleet managers may need to pull from other parts of the business finances to ensure that the repairs are swiftly attended to.Find outhow to reduce vehicle downtime on your fleet and keep your business running.
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3. Proactive Maintenance:
   Proactive maintenance, also called preventative maintenance, aims to recognise the cause of vehicle breakdowns and rectify them before the vehicle breaks down.
   The benefits of proactive maintenance are:
   • Cost saving
   • Fewer repairs
   • Increased safety and reliability
   • Longer vehicle life spanUnlike reactive maintenance where repairs are done after the vehicle has broken down. Proactive maintenance is scheduled after Remote Vehicle Diagnostics detects the issue earlier.
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4. Fuel Efficiency:
   Monitoring vehicle performance is important in identifying inefficiencies contributing to excessive fuel consumption. By prioritising fuel efficiency through remote diagnostics, fleet operators can enhance overall performance, reduce environmental impact, and save costs.
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5. Data-Driven Decision Making:
   The insights gained from remote diagnostics allow fleet operators to make informed decisions based on historical data and predictive analytics. This capability helps identify trends and recurring issues, enabling more strategic planning for fleet operations.
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6. Improved Safety and Compliance:
   Ensuring that vehicles are in optimal condition helps enhance driver and public safety, reducing the likelihood of accidents due to mechanical failures. Regular monitoring through remote vehicle diagnostics, allows fleet operators to identify potential mechanical faults like brake failure to reduce the likelihood of accidents caused by unexpected breakdowns or equipment malfunctions.
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   Regular checks for faults can help identify and fix issues that could lead to violations of road laws, such as safety equipment failures like lights, brakes, or emissions problems. By ensuring that the vehicle is in good working condition, fleet operators can maintain compliance with regulations, reduce the risk of fines, and enhance overall safety on the road.
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7. Improved Communication with Service Providers: 
   Remote vehicle diagnostics allows better communication between fleet operators, drivers, service providers, and customers.
   With real-time insights into vehicle status, operators can easily schedule maintenance and repairs, keeping everyone informed. This approach allows for quick updates on the timeline and any potential delays, making sure that customers are notified in advance and minimising inconvenience.

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Overall, Remote Vehicle Diagnostics helps fleet operators run a successful business. With a healthy fleet, operations run smoothly, services are rendered on time, there’s improved communication in the business and customers are left satisfied.

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How Does Cartrack’s Fleet Management Solution Work with Remote Vehicle Diagnostics?

Cartrack offers a fleet management service that helps you manage and run a successful fleet. We also connect with a vehicle’s existing CANbus. Short for Controller Area Network Bus.  It is a communication platform for different parts of a vehicle.

This communication allows your vehicle components, such as engines, transmissions, and sensors, to share information in real-time.

So what do we do with CANbus? Cartrack taps into the CANbus in the vehicle which allows clients to see their vehicle information such as mileage, fuel-related information and RPMs on the fleet website.

The type of data that CANbus collects is dependent on the make, model and year of each vehicle.
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Benefits of CANbus:

• ‍Vehicle diagnostics: CANbus allows remote diagnostics resulting in lowered maintenance time and costs.
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• ‍Transferring data quickly: Data can be transferred at speeds of up to 1 Mbps (megabit per second).
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• ‍Communication between different devices: CANbus allows different devices to communicate with each other.
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• ‍Vehicle Network: It is the backbone of modern vehicle networks which can connect up to 70 devices.
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• ‍Provides real-time data: CANBus provides real-time monitoring and analysis of data.
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• ‍Fuel efficiency: The data can help optimise fuel efficiency, reducing emissions and fuel-related costs.
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• ‍Driver behaviour analysis: CANbus data can be used to analyse and coach driver behaviour.
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• ‍Industry-standard: CANbus is an industry-standard, that ensures compatibility across various vehicle manufacturers and models.

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You need a reliable way to manage your fleet efficiently, and Cartrack’s use of the CANbus system delivers just that. With real-time access to key vehicle data, you can enhance maintenance, optimise fuel use, and analyse driver behaviour, ensuring your fleet operates smoothly and effectively.

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Case Study: Success Story in Remote Diagnostics

Cartrack has helped many clients with their fleet management, particularly in remote diagnostics. We have managed to reduce fuel costs, downtime, delays etc. We have ensured that their services run smoothly so their customers are satisfied.

One business we helped was a Burial Society based in Limpopo. They approached Cartrack with the challenges of sudden breakdowns, hot weather conditions and traffic delays. Given the sensitive nature of the items they transport, there must be no delays.
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Here’s how Cartrack helped them:

• With Cartrack’s real-time vehicle diagnostics and scheduled maintenance, their routine and emergency maintenance can be handled more efficiently. By knowing which vehicles need maintenance and when the business can optimise vehicle usage and reduce unnecessary downtime and breakdowns.
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• The Burial Society has area managers across different locations, who use the Cartrack Mobile App from anywhere at any time to see exactly where drivers in that area are and determine whether drivers have arrived at a funeral or are delayed. With this information, area managers can then call and seamlessly communicate with drivers and customers on job changes or delays.
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• At peak times, the Burial Society can monitor the movement of over 300 vehicles simultaneously from their control room using Cartrack’s web platform. This provides them with total visibility of their fleet so the controllers know the exact whereabouts of each vehicle at all times to track productivity, job completion, and can instantly dispatch assistance in case of a breakdown to avoid delays.
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• Furthermore, Burial societies often transport temperature-sensitive items, such as flowers, embalming fluids or other perishables. By installing up to four temperature sensors in their transport vehicle, they can remotely monitor the temperature of their cargo. This system allows for real-time tracking of temperature variations, enabling burial societies to set up alerts that notify them of any fluctuations. By ensuring that these sensitive items maintain the appropriate conditions throughout transit, the burial society can arrive in the condition expected by the families they serve.

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Our solutions have enhanced the quality of service the Burial Society offers. We have also helped the business build trust with their clients, assuring that their loved ones and associated items will be treated with the utmost care and respect.

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Transform Your Fleet Operations With Cartrack Swaziland

Transform your fleet operations with Cartrack’s advanced remote vehicle diagnostics using CANbus technology. Monitor vehicle performance in real-time, identify issues early, and keep your fleet running smoothly—all from your device.

Don’t let breakdowns and rising costs hold you back. Partner with Cartrack to enhance efficiency and safety.

Contact us today to optimise your fleet!

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How long does vehicle diagnostics take?

A: The duration of a remote vehicle diagnostic varies based on the vehicle’s complexity and the tools used. Initial results can often be available in minutes, while a thorough analysis may take a few hours to a day.

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Q: What should I do if an alert is triggered?

A: Have the vehicle inspected by a qualified technician as soon as possible to prevent further complications.

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Q: Is remote diagnostics only for large fleets?

A: No, remote diagnostics can benefit fleets of all sizes, as well as individual vehicle owners seeking to monitor their vehicle health proactively.