ATLAuto

Agreed. We pass on jobs every day. It's on a case by case basis. Our only firm rule is nothing pre 1998 and even state that on our website. Most customers understand policy when it's explained clearly. We also have another shop we refer them to, so they are not left wondering where to go next. Regarding that Cadillac engine ... I asked our master tech to fix three oil leaks on one a few months ago. Turned out great, but never again....

(apologies, as I know this has been covered before. However, I could not find much when searching...) We are currently in the process of standardizing the time we pay technicians for diagnostic work. We currently have no standard, so a typical Check Engine Light diagnosis will vary between 0.5hr and 1.5hr depending on how complex it is. Most is an ad-hoc discussion with the service adviser on "what's fair?" Naturally, we would like to standardize this to something firm. Curious if your shops have a set policy on this?

That's hilarious. We have an Infiniti in our shop right now. Crank, no start condition. Customer claimed that it was running great until his uncle installed new plugs as preventative maintenance, then it wouldn't start any more. Compression tested at 70psi, all cylinders. ...something about this story isn't adding up.

Agreed on all. I did ours myself. 6600sf. Cost roughly $10k in materials alone. Shop was built in 1940 and had been bare concrete ever since. I cleaned it with the following: - Orange citrus cleaner, industrial strength - Power washing - Organic bacteria that eat oil - Power washing again - Power washing again - Muriatic acid - Power washing again This worked good in 90% of the shop. No peeling or chipping after 13 months, except in one area where the grime would simply not come up. I would probably have someone else do it after the hassle we went through. Grinding is probably the only real good option on an old floor.

Nice one. We topped of a lady's brake fluid a couple months ago (while she watched). Called back that afternoon asking us what we did to make her A/C stop working...

Joe, are y'all ever in Atlanta?

Nice one. Agreed, the Ford method is garbage in practice. Once our master tech mentioned doing it hot and seeing it work in practice, we never looked back.

Got it. Was thinking there were some features we didn't have, but it looks like VAST is solid in this area. Let me tell you, that quick VIN feature is awesome. Being able to pull a VIN from a license plate is so nice. When they demo'd the product to us, we just typed in a license plate number of a car driving by on the street, and sure enough, it grabbed the VIN and completely decoded it. Incredible. Regarding the service history, it's a bit hit or miss. Most dealerships report history to Carfax, so we get that; however, many smaller shops do not, so there are big history gaps in many customer cars.

Dave, are y'all running them out with the engine hot or cold? We started doing it engine hot with an impact and have not broken a plug since. I like the induction service idea. May give it a try to loosen stuff up.

We have the CarFax mechanical history in VAST. Is this what you mean, or does myCarFax have more features?

Interesting replies. I'm not sure where I stand on the issue. I've worked across Europe for a number of years (Sweden, Spain, Hungary), and certainly felt unsafe at times. There are nice areas and rough places everywhere. I used to carry a pipe with me when I walked home from work in Budapest, just as a precaution. With that said, guns are not going anywhere in the States. Criminals have a lot of them. Our service adviser carries a 9mm daily (concealed), and I thank God for it.

Ouch. Those stories hurt. Our August has not had any weird issues; however, sales have been down. About 15% vs last month, which is significant.

This one is a pretty easy answer for me. We use Identifix at our shop, which is (more or less) what the Snap-On scanners have built into them. A lot of older guys laugh at Identifix; however, for me it is all a statistics game, and Identifix helps you win that game. I'll give you an example: Let's say you have a normal car with a lean code come in. You could start old school with it ... smoke the engine, spray some propane around the intake boots, scope the MAF and/or O2 sensors, check the PCV for cracks, etc etc... Or...you could go on Identifix, see that 105 techs replaced the PCV to solve this issue. Statistically, it is probably the PCV causing the issue on this particular vehicle. I'll start my diagnosis there, check out the PCV, and move on. Both methods work ... I just like getting to the issue quicker.

We are in the same boat right now. Our shop software does not integrate with any digital inspection process (nor worldpac integration). We are in the process of moving to RO Writer and picking up a digital process within the next 12mo.

Being from the heart of the Old Confederate South, I was just talking with our master tech about rust and the north. How does flat rate even work up there? Do y'all multiply it by 2x for every suspension job? Say what you will about the heat in the south, I'll take southern heat and sweat over snow and salt any day!!

Hahaha agreed. Send them my way. I'm confused as to your problem...

I can imagine. If it helps at all, my friend is in charge of the power tool department of Home Depot. I had no idea that you could bring a weed eater to Home Depot and get it repaired, but apparently you can. Anyway, his main complaint is exactly the same as yours. The guys at the counter gave away repairs, did not charge for small tune ups, etc. It was a giant profit loss center for Home Depot for years. He remedied this in two ways... First, he made a standard menu price for all repairs. This was not difficult, because there are probably ten total repairs you can do on a weed eater. The front counter guys were not allowed to deviate from this list. Then, he changed their employee pay plan from hourly to commission based. While they still don't make a killing in this department, these two changes did bring them out of the red.

What is your labor margin? What is your parts margin? Are your techs flat rate or salary?

Yall are putting us to shame! We bought a 1500 with 270k miles on it for our shop truck. We park it behind back where nobody can see it ...

Agreed. The problem with these experiences is that no matter how well or how polite and customer-focused, an entitled customer can break bad and ruin your reputation online with a one-sided story. We would do absolutely anything to keep a customer happy including comping their entire ticket, and customers still find things to be angry about. We've started filtering these types of customers at the front counter. The main filter we use is "no pre-98 vehicles period." Other filters we make up on the spot when the need arises.

Interesting. I had no idea ATVs had diag tools / software made for them. Although, it makes sense. My buddy just bought the CAT tool for the big equipment.

We've got the following: Ford IDS GM Tech2 Honda/Acura HDS Toyota/Lexus/Scion Techstream Hyundai/Kia GScan VW/Audi Vag-Com Our two master techs have a couple Snap Ons and Autels. If I were to start a shop from scratch, I'd probably buy Ford, GM, VW, and an Autel for the rest. $8k tops for all of that, including a ToughBook. Right now, we're debating getting a Pico Scope. It's an oscilloscope on steroids, laptop based. Trying to decide if it will just be a fun tool to have or actually make a profit.

Ouch!!! http://www.ratchetandwrench.com/RatchetWrench/August-2015/Faulty-Inspection-Leads-to-Manslaughter-Charge

That's great to hear. My friend is a residential contractor. Kitchen remodels, bathroom updates, etc. I asked him ... "do you charge for coming to a house and working up an estimate?" He replied that most customers expected you to stop by for a few hours to measure everything out and provide a quote for FREE. Now that his business has grown, he is starting to charge $150 for quotes, which has eliminated all the tire-kickers.

Good gracious ... I cannot even imagine staying open at $48/hr. Even in a garage behind my house. How do these shops stay in business? For the record, we called every shop in town before opening. Made a massive spreadsheet of labor rates by neighborhood. Then, set ours at the mid to upper side of that curve. $109.99/hr. This also allows us to hit 70% margin on labor.