Bosch releases updated part finder app

BROADVIEW, Ill. — The Bosch Part Finder app allows technicians, motorists and others to locate a Bosch part for their vehicles, and it has been updated with more product lines.

The app adds alternators and water pumps to the existing product lines that are already part of the app, including spark plugs, wiper blades, oxygen sensors, fuel pumps, battery chargers, air management sensors, gasoline fuel injectors and diesel engine glow plugs.

The app can be downloaded from the App store (for iPhones and iPads) and will soon be available from the Amazon store (for the Kindle Fire) and Google Play (for Android phones).

The app provides part numbers for vehicles operating in the U.S. and Canada, along with images, product features and technical attributes for those parts.

Officials said that another addition to the app’s features is the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) code lookup function. Part information for a user’s vehicle can be accessed by entering the VIN manually or by scanning the vehicle’s VIN bar code. These VIN functions are part of the latest app update for the iPhone and iPad and will soon be added to the Android version.

“The Bosch app is becoming more and more popular, and mobile communications devices are being increasingly used by customers, service and sales personnel,” said Otto Stefaner, product data project manager for Bosch. “The app features both browse and search functions so users can find information by entering vehicle year, make and model, or simply by entering the Bosch part number if they already know it.”

Separate from the mobile app, the Bosch Vehicle Part Finder found on the www.BoschAutoParts.com website features rotatable and scalable 360-degree images for oxygen sensors, fuel pumps and other engine management components. The user clicks the “360 degree” symbol to open the image player. The player then shows a 360-degree view of the part and includes options to zoom in on the image, advance the 360 degree “movie” manually, image by image, and it also offers a full-screen viewing option. More 360-degree images for additional product lines are expected to be added in the future, according to the company.

A special tab also allows users to view a product warranty statement. Warranty data is available for most products found on the Bosch website.

“The Bosch Part Finder app complements the comprehensive Vehicle Part Finder function on the Bosch Auto Parts website, which lists part numbers for products available on the Bosch Part Finder app as well as for additional Bosch product categories,” Stefaner said. “This makes it easy to find the right Bosch part for virtually any vehicle sold in the United States and Canada. The next update, scheduled for the first quarter of 2013, will add starters, ignition coils and engine management sensors to the mobile app.”

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