Hybrid vehicles tend to be divided into three categories: full, mild and micro hybrid. Full hybrids can operate by using just the engine, just the electric motor or a combination of both, whereas mild hybrids can only use the electric motor short periods to back up the engine, but can't operate solely on electric power. Micro hybrids on the other hand cannot draw on any form of electric propulsion, but use 'Start-Stop' technology to reduce emissions and improve fuel consumption.

Although the battery is at the heart of hybrid vehicles and integral to the technology they employ, realistically it is only Start-Stop vehicles utilising absorbent glass mat (AGM) or enhanced flooded batteries (EFB), which will be within the reach of the typical workshop: other hybrids and electric vehicles are likely to have batteries fitted for life.

Start-Stop vehicles represent the only viable solution for manufacturers to achieve the 130g/km fleet average CO2 emissions that the current EU legislation demands and also provides the motorist with the range and usability that they need.

Therefore the AGM/EFB battery will provide workshops with an opportunity because these batteries will generate twice the unit revenue and three times the margin of a conventional flooded lead-acid battery. It will also present them with challenges, as these batteries require special equipment and the technicians need training to be able to provide motorists with a high quality service.

Replacing a Start-Stop battery is not like replacing a conventional car battery, as it is intricately linked to the vehicle's on-board electronics via a battery management system (BMS) or intelligent battery sensor (IBS). Therefore, to be fully proficient when working on these systems, workshops will need to invest in the equipment necessary to service these systems.

The VARTA Start-Stop Support Package (VSSP), a Wi-Fi diagnostic tool smaller than an iPad, which allows technicians to manage all the steps necessary to test Start-Stop systems and replace the EFB/AGM battery, was launched to the UK in March precisely for this purpose.

Manbat feels it is equipped with the part numbers to provide members the chance to of this potential future market.