ATLAuto

Agreed. Put a new gas cap on it and clean the opening well. We will sometimes bring a questionable cap next door to the emissions test station (aka a tent in the gas station parking lot). They've got a gas cap tester.

Ouch. That's a lot of hits in one week. We're in the same boat. Downtown, urban environment = extremely transient population. We keep our online reviews and presence strong, so the new transients moving in can find us. There are also two major apartment complexes getting built within a half mile of us. We will be putting some postcards in their new resident welcome bags.

VAST will cross over to whatever filter you are using. When we build a work order, we click package, and it spits out filter number, oil viscosity, and capacity: PH500 filter 5W30 Syn - 4.5qts We use Champ, but it will cross to anything that VAST loads in. We debated Mighty for awhile, which would also work.

We use the Bartec and only OEM sensors, no redi sensors. We ditched the universal sensors after mounting multiple tires and the sensor wouldn't work.

I would highly, highly recommend getting Identifix, regardless of their hotline. Along with a subscription to iatn forums. AllData and/or Mitchell are great programs. However, Identifix is a game changer.

Yeah, that's about the biggest red flag you could possibly find right there. Both of our master techs have multi-channel scopes on their scanners. Matter of fact, one of them just turned in his brand new Snap-On for the older model, since the new model only supports 2-channels, and he wanted the old model that has 4-channels. That said ... an "electrical specialist" without a multi-channel scope is like saying you're a mechanic without a set of wrenches. It's that basic of a tool.

You had any luck on this site? Our craigslist ads are getting less and less traction every time I post. Either folks are tired of seeing our ad, or the economy is heating up, and techs are not as hungry for another shop.

Wow. This is great. Do any of these products actually integrate with the Shop Management software (with the exception of Mitchell)? I would prefer to keep one database of all customer vehicles and information rather than polling two different databases when I want to look something up.

We typically shoot a call out to the Identifix hotline. Roughly $45 for first call, $25 for second call, and third is free. They have saved our tails numerous times.

Apologies if this has been covered already. Is anyone using an online / electronic inspection form for vehicles? I would like to set something up with our techs via an iPad app of some sort, as our current system is not working well at the moment.

Agreed on Champ filters. Their website lookup is great. With that said, any POS software system worth its salt will be able to build an oil change with the filter, oil type, and capacity. Two off hand that I know about are Vast and RO Writer.

Do you matrix this part? I'm still struggling with matrixing dealer parts. The few times we have done it, we ended up 25-50% higher than the dealer...

Agreed with everything Alfred said. We bought a used heater, and I spent 30+ hours getting the beast up and running. Once tuned up and maintained, they will run forever. Had to learn it all from manuals online as nobody in Atlanta services these units. We have a Reznor. Can't say it's the best, as it's the only one I have used. Ebay is full of cheap spare parts for it, though. We saved up all our oil during the summer and then burned it during the winter. We just barely made it into March by the time we ran out. If you're up north, you probably won't keep it fed with oil unless you've got a deal with a nearby quick lube. I also think you can burn vegetable oil in it. I've never done it, but that may be an option too, with that Sonic you've got next door, Xrac.

We went with these guys and installed the system ourselves (or rather, my computer genius buddy did). They have a great HD quality phone app that I can click on and check out the shop whenever I want. Nice to check on night drops before driving in. http://www.techprosecurity.com

I should also add that we burn all of our waste oil during the winter. Even as far south as we are, most winter days, we keep it running all day. I found an old Reznor heater for $1500 and rebuilt it with a few new electrical parts off eBay. Runs like a champ.

Same in Atlanta. Stopped paying for it around 6mo ago. The nice part is that we now mix everything together and let them sort it out at their plant. Brake fluid, oil, antifreeze, etc all goes in one container.

Same. Get a legit walnut blaster and save yourself a LOT of headache. Our techs would spend HOURS manually scraping down intakes and valves with the MOPAR top engine cleaner. The walnut blaster + vacuum has dropped this down to a 1hr process. We are going to start seeing a lot more direct injection problems in the coming months/years. This is going to be a must-have tool.

We installed a dayco belt on a VW beetle two weeks ago. Would not stop setting cam codes, regardless of how we adjusted the cam/crank. Turned out the belt was 1/2 tooth too small, which was just enough to throw the timing off and set a CEL. We threw an OEM VW belt on, and all was good.

This has to be a joke post.... Sounds like a weak battery to me. Charge up the battery and do a test on the starter, alternator, and battery.

Health Benefits - 100% paid by us, entire family Vacation Time - 2wks after 6mo of work. Holidays don't count. Personal Days - 0, same as vacation Use of shop for personal vehicle repairs? Yes, all our techs live a LONG ways away, so no problem after hours. 401K w/ Company Match? No Saturday's Off? Closed weekends Any other benefits? Great scan tools, clean environment, signing bonus, higher than average pay, uniforms, ASE tests paid. Funny how similar we are to MARKSAS!

Wow. Excellent write-up. Thank you for taking the time to review. Joe, please reach out to us if you are ever in the southeast region.

We chose our shop on one of the busiest roads in our city (38k cars a day drive by). Additionally, we are in a very high end neighborhood ($80k+ median income). This means that not only do we get a LOT of walk-ins, but we also get a LOT of high-end "just get it fixed" customers. Our service adviser looked at me the other day and said, "you know, great customers are the majority of our customer base. The weird customers are the minority. Every shop I have ever worked at, it's been the opposite." Simply put, based on our location, we do not have to deal with the normal stuff shops deal with ... - very few price shoppers - most have a spare car - dense urban environment, so a dropoff is only a $5 uber fare away - few arguments with billing - etc. It's not because we are doing an awesome job (we try to), but rather simply due to the location and the people around us that walk in. It's like playing shopkeeper on easy mode... location made it this way.

Wow. I cannot imagine that it is easy getting this stuff sorted out in Alaska ...

This feature is absolutely phenomenal. We type in a customers plate number, and it automatically looks up the VIN, engine size, etc. So so so nice.

Amen, brother.