The Aftersales Reality: Why EV Readiness Will Decide Winners in MENA

Electric vehicles are moving from early adoption to meaningful scale across the Middle East. While EV sales growth attracts headlines, it is aftersales capability that will ultimately determine which OEMs, Dealers and Importers succeed and which quietly fall behind.

The real disruption of electrification will not happen in the showroom. It will happen in the workshop.

EV Growth in the GCC and What It Means for Workshop Volumes

EV penetration in the GCC remains relatively low in absolute terms, but growth rates are accelerating rapidly. Over the last three years, EV and plug-in hybrid registrations in the UAE have increased more than fourfold, while Saudi Arabia is following a similar trajectory from a smaller base.

For aftersales operations, this shift is not about volume reduction. It is about volume transformation.

EVs eliminate many routine mechanical jobs associated with internal combustion vehicles. At the same time, they introduce new categories of work: high-voltage diagnostics, battery health checks, thermal management systems, software updates, calibration, and safety compliance.

As EV parc size grows, workshops will experience:

Fewer low-value, high-frequency jobs
More diagnostics-led labour
Greater dependency on software and data interpretation
Higher safety, training, and compliance requirements

Workshops that fail to adapt will not see lower volumes. They will see lower productivity and rising customer dissatisfaction.

The Real Economics of EV Aftersales Versus ICE

A common assumption is that EVs are inherently negative for aftersales profitability. This is incorrect.

ICE vehicles generate frequent service visits driven by consumables. EVs generate fewer visits, but when managed correctly, those visits are more technical, higher value, and more margin-protected.

The determining factor is execution.

EV-ready operations benefit from:

Higher effective labour rates for specialist work
Reduced parts complexity and inventory burden
Predictable maintenance patterns
Stronger retention driven by safety and trust

Unprepared operations experience the opposite:

Longer diagnosis times
Technician dependency bottlenecks
Escalations to OEMs for routine issues
CSI and NPS deterioration

EV aftersales is not unprofitable by nature. It becomes unprofitable when readiness is weak.

Skills, Tooling and Diagnostic Gaps in Dealer Networks

Across MENA, EV readiness remains inconsistent.

The most common gaps observed include:

Skills

EV capability is often concentrated in a small number of technicians. This creates bottlenecks, operational risk, and inconsistent service quality. Certification exists, but structured capability building often does not.

Tooling

Many workshops possess EV tools but lack confidence and discipline in their use. Safety infrastructure is frequently incomplete or underutilised.

Diagnostics

EV fault resolution is increasingly software-led. Without structured diagnostic workflows and data interpretation capability, first-time fix rates suffer and cycle times increase.

These gaps will widen as EV volumes grow unless addressed systematically.

Software, Data and Customer Experience: The New Battleground

EV aftersales is as much a digital challenge as a mechanical one.

Customers expect faster diagnosis, clearer communication, and transparency enabled by connected vehicle data. Over-the-air updates and remote diagnostics are redefining service expectations.

Three shifts are already visible:

Speed and transparency are becoming non-negotiable
Data ownership defines customer control
Service experience now directly shapes brand perception

Aftersales has moved from a back-office function to a frontline brand differentiator.

A 24-Month EV Aftersales Readiness Roadmap

EV readiness requires structure, not improvisation.

Phase 1: Foundation (0–6 months)

Assess EV parc growth, audit workshop safety and tooling, identify skill gaps, and define EV service processes.

Phase 2: Capability Build (6–12 months)

Train and certify technicians, standardise diagnostics, implement EV labour pricing, and align parts planning.

Phase 3: Optimisation (12–18 months)

Improve first-time fix rates, integrate software diagnostics, enhance customer communication, and refine warranty governance.

Phase 4: Differentiation (18–24 months)

Position EV aftersales as a trust advantage, use data to drive retention, and integrate EV service into the brand promise.

Organisations that complete this journey early will protect profitability and customer loyalty as EV adoption accelerates.

THE AMENA VIEW

The EV transition in MENA will not be won in showrooms. It will be won in workshops.

As EV-focused OEMs increase their regional presence, aftersales capability becomes the ultimate credibility test. Customers may accept a new brand. They will not accept poor service.

At AMENA, we view EV readiness as an execution challenge, not a technology challenge. Sales growth without aftersales capability is unsustainable. The winners of the next decade will be those who invest early, train deeply, and redesign aftersales around the realities of electrified vehicles.

At AMENA, we partner with OEMs, Dealers and Importers across the MENA region to turn market disruption into operational advantage. Our work spans Sales performance, Aftersales operations, Parts profitability, CSI and NPS improvement, and end-to-end Customer Experience transformation. As EV adoption accelerates, we support leadership teams with EV readiness diagnostics, workshop optimisation, process redesign, pricing discipline, and customer journey transformation. In a market where aftersales capability will define winners, AMENA helps automotive organisations move from intent to execution with clarity and confidence.

Visit www.amenaauto.me to discover how our tailored solutions can transform your dealership’s approach to performance measurement and management.

Contact Us Today! office@amenaauto.me

We express our sincere gratitude to all the veterans and experienced professionals in the automotive industry for their valuable input and advice when we write our articles. We take pride in our commitment to embracing technology, including AI, to enhance the quality of our articles.