phynny

Completely agree, and the customer paid over 2 grand for the "warranty". I am in the wrong business.

Just had one yesterday it was called "CARS", out of a $426 bill they paid $35. They told me they priced 2 coils on a 2007 BMW 525 for $40.... I told him exactly what I thought of them.

Awsome to hear, best of luck man.

That "dentist" is a moron at best. First, I've never seen a $39 exam in my life and a cleaning for $60??? Who's this clown think he's kidding? So does he believe that we are all so math challenged to believe that he charges peanuts and is able to pay his people all 65k/year? Hmmm, really doesn't add up to me. I am a former boxer and I just purchased Invisiline braces which cost me 5200 outta my pocket... A year ago I had my teeth whitened for my wedding and it was like $1500 for a couple tubes and a mold that took 15 minutes... I'd love to meet this clown and have a real intellectual conversation.

I agree with the the above post, call the department of labor for your state and they will fix the problem. That should have never happened and is just a dealer abusing their workforce.

Sounds close to what I billed. My quote was assuming 30 hours of labor time as I seem to remember the last hemi was a bear.

It's funny because I actually said this would start happening not even 2 weeks ago. So the service manager for a Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge dealership called me today to see if we could swap an engine in a 2006 Dodge Durango with a Hemi. He said he can't find engines and it's too hard for their mechanics... Now this is no small dealership so I'm guessing they can't find mechanics that want to work for peanuts. Of course we accepted so we'll be swapping the engine.

LOL hilarious

So it seems I keep running into this same conversation (especially with company vehicles) and I'm wondering if it frustrates anyone else. I'll lay out an example of a real conversation. cust: My van doesn't run right, it has no power. me (after I scan it): There are a dozen codes stored in the vehicle, how long has the check engine light been on? cust: A year or so me: Well since so many sensors and parts have failed its going to be $950 to fix everything cust: WOW WHY SO MUCH? me: Because you have negleted the vehicle for over a year, if you would have brought it in when the light first came on we could have fixed the issues that caused more issues cust: I just never have time me: ...............okie dokie And as you all know it can be a nightmare to troubleshoot a misfire when you have 7 codes that can directly cause the misfire. And the best is when some customers just want the misfire fixed and don't care about the codes and when you replace the first part and it doesn't fix the misfire they get all bent out of shape like it's my fault. Charles

I agree with Jeff and I've tell you why I believe the dealers do and say what they do. A lot of them offer free maintenance for "x" number of years so they really try and stretch the maintenance cycle. It's disgusting if you ask me. Charles

Things like engine stop leak or horrible on vehicles so I do not sell them. Octane booster does nothing so it does nothing for a customer. I would push the higher end synthetic oils due to the improved engine life and better fuild mileage. Do you do tire rotations or anything else?

I'm not sure how much business you actually get due to drive by traffic. We actually have the busiest street in our town in front of us, 30k cars/day and I cant remember getting a drive by customer ever. I also believe that most shops do not pay enough attention to appearence so I would say move to the nice shop.

Years ago we did, but not any more. Too much of a pain in my opinion, it's hard enough getting paid from the used car dealerships.

We have mitchell which is awful to try and schedule with and we have recently tried a white board which is better but not the best. I'd like some big scheduling book or something easier to track, any suggestions?

Electric troubelshooting a whole other matter in my shop. We charge $90/hour and we charge straight time and that is that.

How many employees do you have? Do you have a service write and a shop manager? If so, I would start by replacing them because they are clearly not doing their job.

Are you flat rate or an hourly rate or how does it work?

Just purchased it and what an awesome program with fantastic support. I didn't realize it can be used with your phones too.

I don't think you can get any better than passing out flyers and having giving your customers multiple cards to pass out. My shop is also right next to a used car dealership and we have been preparing a sort of "gift basket" for any new buyers. Maybe a coupon book with some oil changes, coolant flushes etc. We also do a TON of used car dealerships warranty work and we are not cheap. Our key has been quality work and get it done on time. With fleet cars and dealerships you have to understand that everything is going to be last minute and needs to be done immediately so be patient. A friend used to tell me in the customer service industry you are always going to eat crap, the only difference is whether you're going to eat crap on a paper plate or fine china. Do you have a budget and goals written down? Charlie

It's all we use, steel is dead to me

I discount it to 1/2 hour.

I know this is an older thread but my opinion would be to rehire. How many of us if asked by a younger tech if he should take a job with more money and better benefits would tell him NO? I believe people should do what's best for themselves and their family. Oh yeah, I would only take him back if he gave at least 2 weeks notice. I just had a guy I was going to fire miss 2 days then when he came back he said he got a job at AMMCO and asked if he could use my truck to haul his box... I do not hide my opinions and let him know that you don't leave your shop hanging and then expect it to help you. I also know for a fax that he will want his job back and he will not get it.

I love the customer diagnosed problems the best. If a customer walks in and wants me to replace x because its the problem I normally just do it. Too many times have I tried to explain that more than one system can make it look like x failed and they want to debate it or have me diag it for free. More often than not it wasn't the problem and they are so disappointed that they then want to pick my brain and knowledge and have no problem paying for it. I've earned many loyal customers this way and they never question anything I tell them anymore.

I see this a lot and I don't believe it's a bad thing. Younger people today use their brains more efficiently IMHO. Why store all that information when there is no need to? They seem to keep the knowledge of using the programs and machines first and foremost therefore they don't need to have every job memorized.