I'm a service manager, ask me stuff

solfly wrote: ask for the old parts back

This isn't always foolproof. I recall a news story a while ago where a shop kept used parts like plugs on-hand to give back to customers who asked. They busted them by making little engravings on the plugs before they went in and were able to prove that the plugs they got back were the same type, but not the exact same ones, that were on the car when it went into the shop.

Klayfish wrote: What's the one car that makes your techs groan/roll their eyes/call out sick when it shows up in your shop? And the follow up question...do you then give the car to the high school kid who's apprenticing with you and say "Here kid...fix this."

There isnt really one specific car. Volvos and VWs suck for diagnostic type stuff. Anything over 10 years old up here can tend to be pretty nasty with rust

Ford and Chrysler can be a pain to work on but it's more jobs that suck than a specific brand.

Every make has that one model that just makes us queasy.

The high school kid typically cleans, handles stock and does oil changes. He has been branching out to smaller parts swapping type jobs with supervision and double checking

Good question.

Cone_Junkie wrote:

solfly wrote:

DrBoost wrote: Do you pay your techs flat-rate, hourly, commission, or a combo of both? Why?

we pay our tech hourly. flat rate = someone getting screwed if the job takes longer than book time the shop and the tech get screwed if the tech rushes to beat book time the customer likely gets screwed hourly allows us flexibility and to ensure each job gets the attention to detail it needs to get done right the first time

I think the whole industry needs to move back to this. They want to pay techs on commission because they don't trust their work ethics, but that means they have to trust their morality to not over-sell just to make a buck. It makes sure the customer is more likely to get screwed then the shop I guess. I'm looking to get out of the business myself. I am sick of riding the paycheck roller coaster because most of my customers can't afford the European car that they bought. I have a lot of experience, a lot of certifications, a lot of training, and a LOT of money invested in tools. Yet, I could put an 8-10 hour day in and only get paid for an hour (or less) because there is no work.

Are you a tech or owner (or both)?

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: If a hen-and-a-half could lay an egg-and-a-half in a day-and-a-half, how long would it take a monkey with a wooden leg to kick all the seeds out of a dill pickle?

Which leg is wooden?

DaveEstey wrote: Is this a rash?

Does it smell infected?

gearheadmb wrote: Flat rate is good if A) You work in a dealership. You work on the same cars with the same problems most of the time. You can get pretty fast and beat time without cheating anyone, and B)You have the right number of techs for the work load. A tech isn't going to be tempted to upsell things the customer doesn't need if he knows there is more work waiting for him after this job is done. Flat rate doesn't work in most independent shops because you work on such diverse stuff that you have a hard time getting fast enough to beat time on most jobs. But when I was at the ford dealership I liked flat rate. Recalls made me killer money on flat rate.

All true.

N Sperlo wrote: How many times had the diagnosis been, "That is not a purse hanger"?

Ha! Never for us but I do recall a story told either by my dad or a instructor at college.

A woman brought her car back several times with a drivability issue. None of the techs could replicate the complaint. The storyteller went for a ride and the first thing the customer did was pull out the manual choke cable and hang her purse on it.

Brett_Murphy wrote:

solfly wrote: ask for the old parts back

This isn't always foolproof. I recall a news story a while ago where a shop kept used parts like plugs on-hand to give back to customers who asked. They busted them by making little engravings on the plugs before they went in and were able to prove that the plugs they got back were the same type, but not the exact same ones, that were on the car when it went into the shop.

Find a new shop.

solfly wrote:

N Sperlo wrote: How many times had the diagnosis been, "That is not a purse hanger"?

Ha! Never for us but I do recall a story told either by my dad or a instructor at college. A woman brought her car back several times with a drivability issue. None of the techs could replicate the complaint. The storyteller went for a ride and the first thing the customer did was pull out the manual choke cable and hang her purse on it.

This made me laugh.

What... is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?

dean1484 wrote: What... is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?

8 pounds

solfly wrote:

N Sperlo wrote: How many times had the diagnosis been, "That is not a purse hanger

Ha! Never for us but I do recall a story told either by my dad or a instructor at college. A woman brought her car back several times with a drivability issue. None of the techs could replicate the complaint. The storyteller went for a ride and the first thing the customer did was pull out the manual choke cable and hang her purse on it.

My gosh that story is sooo old and even I remember hand chokes.

In reply to solfly:

I work as a tech. I specialize in BMW, Audi, VW, and MINI. So I have the attitude mentioned earlier that there is no need to fleece any customer because there is a line of broken Euros waiting to be fixed. Between the economy and the fact that used Euros are cheap, seems that half our customers cannot afford regular maintenance, let alone big repairs when they come up. I spend a lot of time diagnosing problems to just have the customer walk when they get the estimate.

solfly wrote:

EastCoastMojo wrote: My intermittant wipers work, but not all the time. How can I fix it?

if you're referring to the vehicle in your avatar then i don't believe you that they work at all

Touché! .

Actually, as much as this was a joke question, it was an issue I had back when I still had the '89 Voyager turbo. It would swipe a few times in it's normal lazy rhythm and then just quit. I used to joke that I was going to call up Click and Clack with that question, just to hear them laugh. But then I never did and they retired.

On with the questions. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

Why is there braille on the keypad of the drive-thru ATM?

Trans_Maro wrote: Why is there braille on the keypad of the drive-thru ATM?

Because Accessibility laws require it to be there.

no matter how STUPID the idea of a blind person using a DRIVE thru ATM is … wanders off shaking his head

iceracer wrote:

solfly wrote:

N Sperlo wrote: How many times had the diagnosis been, "That is not a purse hanger

Ha! Never for us but I do recall a story told either by my dad or a instructor at college. A woman brought her car back several times with a drivability issue. None of the techs could replicate the complaint. The storyteller went for a ride and the first thing the customer did was pull out the manual choke cable and hang her purse on it.

My gosh that story is sooo old and even I remember hand chokes.

Didnt realize it was a popular story. Though it conceivably could have happened a lot.

Cone_Junkie wrote: In reply to solfly: I work as a tech. I specialize in BMW, Audi, VW, and MINI. So I have the attitude mentioned earlier that there is no need to fleece any customer because there is a line of broken Euros waiting to be fixed. Between the economy and the fact that used Euros are cheap, seems that half our customers cannot afford regular maintenance, let alone big repairs when they come up. I spend a lot of time diagnosing problems to just have the customer walk when they get the estimate.

Your shop should be charging and paying you for that diagnostic labor.

Wby the hell do brand new cats and 02 sensors in the wifes Subaru still kick p0420 codes? Stupid frigging subaru...

Also, what haopened to the civic?

EastCoastMojo wrote:

solfly wrote:

EastCoastMojo wrote: My intermittant wipers work, but not all the time. How can I fix it?

if you're referring to the vehicle in your avatar then i don't believe you that they work at all

Touché! . Actually, as much as this was a joke question, it was an issue I had back when I still had the '89 Voyager turbo. It would swipe a few times in it's normal lazy rhythm and then just quit. I used to joke that I was going to call up Click and Clack with that question, just to hear them laugh. But then I never did and they retired. On with the questions. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

That would be an interesting complaint to hear, depending on wording.

Also, the woodchuck wouldnt chuck any wood, the woodchuckers union is on strike.

Dusterbd13 wrote: Wby the hell do brand new cats and 02 sensors in the wifes Subaru still kick p0420 codes? Stupid frigging subaru... Also, what haopened to the civic?

If you dont use a subaru oe cat youll never get rid of it.

Which civic?

why on strike .. too many splinters ?

wbjones wrote: why on strike .. too many splinters ?

E36 M3ty wood conditions. Ba-da-bump.

In reply to EastCoastMojo:

Multi switch on column that does everything. Junk on those. Opinion.