EVs and hybrids rose in popularity during 2018 in what was otherwise a very challenging market for new car sales, according to the latest figures released today (Monday 7 January) by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Techs wanting to take part in Top Technician 2019 have until 23.59 tomorrow (Friday 4 January) to take the round one quiz, or risk missing out on the competition this year.

Sukhpal Singh Ahluwalia has resigned from his positions as a Director of LKQ Corporation and as Executive Chairman of Euro Car Parts in the United Kingdom, it has been confirmed today (Wednesday 2 January 2019).

Euro Car Parts announced today (Wednesday 2 January 2019) that Andy Hamilton has been appointed CEO of the ECP Group, effective immediately, replacing Martin Gray who has decided to leave the company to pursue other interests.

Rumours continue to swirl over the current status of the senior team at Euro Car Parts, following  the reported resignation of Sukhpal Singh Ahluwalia and other senior management figures  from the company.

TechMan will be playing a major part in the Top Technician/Top Garage Awards Dinner 2019, as sponsor of the Pre-Dinner Drinks Reception.

With Christmas just around the corner, Ben is running a new campaign and has launched new resources on its website to support individuals to cope with anxiety during the festive season.

In Town Automotive – one of the largest independently owned vehicle servicing and repairs garages in Northampton – has rounded off 2018 in style, after taking home its second prestigious technology award of the year.

The Parts Alliance’s Winter Trade Show returned to Sandy Park recently and smashed all previous attendance records for the event

The NTDA is taking action against a number of UK tyre retailers who are falsely claiming to be members of the Association, are displaying the NTDA logo on their recovery vehicles, websites and marketing collateral, or who are advertising that repair work carried out at their tyre depots is carried out to “the NTDA standard”.

Single use glove specialist Unigloves has launched a new free glove sampling service.

Absolute Alignment  has launched a new consumer website to assist motorists in locating their local Absolute Alignment Approved Centres: www.absolutewheelalignment.co.uk

Automechanika Birmingham has announced that ‘Innovation’ will be the leading theme for the 2019 event, held at Birmingham NEC on 4 - 6 June 2019.

TRICO is teaming up with Top Technician and Top Garage 2019, becoming the latest sponsor to join up with the competitions.

MAFCO Autobar and TRICO have teamed up to deliver an early Christmas bonus to customers, with their “Cash In For Christmas” promotion. In the run up to Christmas, for every £100 spent with MAFCO Autobar on TRICO products, customers will receive a £10 voucher for their choice of either Amazon or Argos.

Ben has launched new web resources to help people cope with bullying in the workplace, just in time for National Anti-Bullying  Week, which is taking place this week (12-16 November).

Andrew Page and Castrol have entered into a partnership to supply the new Castrol GTX range, which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2018.

NGK and Seven-times British Pro Mod drag racing champion and race car builder Andy Robinson have teamed up to launch the MO70 project to transform a standard ride-on lawn mower in to a speed machine capable of reaching  more than 70mph.

Ben has announced the appointment of Steve Nash as Chair of its Board of Trustees.

Comline Auto Parts has received the accolade of ‘Best Stand’ at this year’s Auto Trade Expo Dublin.

Morris Lubricants has reached its 150th year,  and to celebrate the company  has joined forces with their customer and friend Alex Sharphouse to build a John Fowler, Talisman B6 Road Locomotive. The Talisman will be on show at the Classic Car Show taking place at NEC Birmingham from tomorrow (Thursday 9 November) until Sunday (11 November) 

The Servicesure garage network has hit its second major milestone in a matter of weeks with Birmingham-based Manor Motor Company becoming the 500th member.

Following the success of last years TRICO beer ‘Brew 17’ the windscreen wiper blade developer and supplier has launched another new beer, this time named ‘Brew 18’, to celebrate its 90th European anniversary.
 
With a generous amount being donated to the local Community Trust last year following TRICO’s sponsorship of Redditch United, Brew 18 is again exclusively on sale at the TRICO stadium, where once more, a percentage of the profits will go to the local charity.
 
The local Community Trust engages with the Redditch community to deliver  outcomes combating antisocial behavior and crime, working with underprivileged children, reducing health inequalities and providing education to help support employability.
 
Product and Brand Manager Sam Robinson said: “Brew 17 was extremely well received last year, so we decided to launch another new and exclusive beer to celebrate our 90th European anniversary and once again donate a percentage of the profits to the Community Trust.”
 
Sam added: “Look out for the many promotions/giveaways we will be running until the end of the year to get your hands on a bottle or gift pack.”
 

Snap-on has signed up with Top Technician and Top Garage 2019, becoming the first sponsor put its full support behind the  two competitions .

Top Garage is back for 2019, and is open for entries.

TV presenter and journalist Helen Fospero is to be the host at the Top Technician and Top Garage Awards Dinner 2019, being held on Saturday 22 June 2019.

The Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI) is to expand its MOT training offering by opening a new training centre in the South of England.

“It is vital that the government and the EU come together and agree that frictionless, tariff-free terms of trade are in the interests of the whole sector, in order for the retail motor industry to progress and thrive in a stable environment,” said RMI Chairman Peter Johnson, speaking at this year’s RMI Annual Dinner in London last night (11 October 2018).

Top Technician 2019 is back for 2019, and is open for entries.

The Parts Alliance has struck an exclusive automotive UK distribution agreement with Champion air compressors.

It may not have been the Ryder Cup, but competition was fierce when NGK Spark Plugs (UK) Ltd held its 27th Northern Ireland annual golf day.

TRICO  provided almost 100 winners with prizes recently following a promotion it recently ran with A1 Motor Stores.
 
TRICO has been working with A1 members for nearly 10 years and its latest incentive, with a minimum £50 spend on its wiper blades, offered them the chance to win an Apple Watch, Amazon Echo or iPad, along with a selection of multi tools and wiper blades through a specially designed scratchcard.
 
David Hunt, manager of Specialised Motor Components, managed to scoop the Apple Watch. He said: “I was really surprised and pleased to win. It’s good to know that through such a great incentive, they appreciate our efforts  selling these quality products.”
 
Kilgetty Motor Factors’ (KMF) owner, Alan Holt, a long-standing TRICO customer said: “We were delighted to be one of the lucky ones that won an iPad and a couple of the multi tool sets, which will come in very useful in our store, so thank you TRICO!”
 
Shabbir Rajani from Hinckley Motor Spares won the Amazon Echo. He added: “It got the work place excited as we all took turns on a scratchcard. We are over the moon with our Amazon Echo, and we hope there are more promotions to come!”
 
Mark Doney from Mon and Border Motor Factors said:  “We are very pleased to have won an Amazon voucher, which will come in very useful.”
 
Senior Product and Brand Manager at TRICO, Sam Robinson, concluded: “We have been working with both A1 Motor Stores and the members for a long time and we really appreciate their support and feedback - so this is our way of giving something back - I hope the winners enjoy their prizes.”

New changes to the MOT testing rules mean that 65,000 MOT Testers must complete new annual training assessments to remain compliant.  In response, the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), has launched updated Tester training which includes a free eLearning course enabling Testers to access the new assessment via their smart device and qualify them to test under the new EU directive.  

A new tongue-in-cheek multi-media campaign with an underlying serious message for ZF brand Lemförder, is about to go live across Europe. The campaign, which deals with the Germanic obsession with precision and perfection – underlines a very serious safety message.

The Race Group has announced that it has strengthened its partnership with Castrol with a new five-year contract, extending its supply of lubricants for automotive and heavy duty vehicle customers in the South of England.

Morris Lubricants ambassador Rebecca Jackson is presenting Modern Wheels or Classic Steals, a new series on TV channel Dave where, together with Elo King (the owner and founder of The London Motor Museum), she will guide confused buyers to find their ideal car, whether it be a contemporary vehicle or a vintage ride.

Malvern-based Daniels Vehicle Services has become the 100th garage to join the Servicesure garage network in 2018.

Changes  in the way the Lucas brand reaches the market in the UK and Ireland were announced at Automechanika Frankfurt this week.

NGK is a big supporter of Speedway racing and now one of its managers has been testing his own skills on the track.

The Parts Alliance is rolling out ‘The Big Drive’ as the latest in a series of national promotions. Billed as the ‘Luxury Edition’ and running until the end of November, the promotion gives garage customers the chance to win a Jaguar XE in either the Portfolio or R-Sport models.

Launching today (Tuesday 11 September) at Automechanika Frankfurt, the IMI is showcasing its new Electric Vehicle eLearning modules designed to transform the way people undertake training within the workplace.

NGK Spark Plugs (UK) Ltd will be holding product training sessions at the forthcoming MechanEx exhibition at Sandown Park following their success at its sister show in Manchester earlier this year.

The Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), has voiced its concern for the safety of technicians after electric vehicle sales reach a record high.

Dayco has completely redesigned its websites. In terms of content, the new sites highlight Dayco’s growing product portfolio and technical innovations.

The Parts Alliance is gearing up to run its second major event of 2018, announcing its Winter Trade Show will be held in November in the South West.

The Parts Alliance says it is continuing to see impressive sales growth across its DriveTec range.

LIQUI MOLY is continuing to expand its sport sponsorship: the company is now also the official sponsor of the 2019 World Handball Championship, which is will take place in Denmark and Germany in January. "This world championship is one of our global lead sponsorships," says Peter Baumann, Marketing Director at LIQUI MOLY.

Federal-Mogul Motorparts is sending two lucky technicians from Top-notch Motor Repairs in Tamworth to the USA to see the thrills of NASCAR at the Daytona International Speedway in Florida. The winners entered a prize draw sponsored by MOOG, Federal-Mogul Motorparts’ steering and suspension specialist. MOOG has sponsored NASCAR for over 50 years and supplies parts to all cars in both the European and US series.   The grand prize was a trip for two to watch a NASCAR race in the US, including flights, accommodations and track transfers. Runner-up prizes included hospitality tickets for the Brands Hatch leg of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series, while over 500 limited edition prizes were also awarded, including t-shirts and caps.   “We have only just taken in the good news,” said winner Kevin Taylor. “To say we are both really chuffed is an understatement. We chose to go to the race at Daytona in Florida so that we can take full advantage of the trip and indulge our other great passion, big game fishing. We are both keen anglers and the combination of Florida, NASCAR and some time out on the sea is just about as perfect a holiday as we can imagine.”

Euro Car Parts has added a distribution hub in Maidstone, Kent and two new branches in London and North Yorkshire to its rapidly expanding UK network.

Automotive marketing agency Chicane has launched new recruitment service. Chicane Executive Search (CES) will find the right candidates to fill key vacancies in the sector.