Joe Marconi

Ear trumpet? That's not what I see!

Tim, great question. It is vital that each vehicle visit includes a history record search to see what was done, was needs to be done and what was never done. I use Service Intelligence on my Mitchell program. It gives me a quick and easy report on vehicle history; average miles per day driven and the report can be modified to meet your particular needs. SI was developed by E-Auto club and was sold thru Mitchell, but now they are their own again. Your Mitchell Rep can help you. Other than that, I don’t know of any other program that does the trick. And, looking back at the history records takes too long.

Thanks for posting the new law. Great info. I have a feeling there will a lot of shops out there that are not aware of this new law and may get stuck with the old lead weights or they will just use them up, and not worry about the law. And wheel weights falling off? I guess is does happen, but I wonder how big a problem it really is.

Lead has been on the "hit list" for a long time. Now we need to find a viable solution.

I have been using Mitchell for nearly 8 years. Do you have Manager Plus? If you use the Part/Labor guide the labor time is transferred over to the estimate. You can also build "can jobs" for those jobs used on a daily basis. For example, Tire Rotation, Wheel Alignment, LOF, etc. For those jobs you can set up a generic labor time. You can also create vehicle specific can jobs. For example, if you do a lot of work on Honda Vehicles, you can set up a Honda Rear diff service can job, with the parts and labor already set. This is where the program is powerful because it lets you tailor the program to your needs. You can also add the labor times as you need if the job you are doing is unique. For example; removing a hitch for a customer. This job is not found in the Parts/Labor guide and something you would not make a can job for. For this, you simple hit the labor tab and add the labor time as needed. The Mitchell system has a lot of help screens and video, I recommend going thru them. Also, ask your rep for help.

Alternative to Lead Wheel Weights? Has anyone started using alternatives to lead wheel weights? I know many states have already banned the use of lead weights (California, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Vermont and Washington) and many are soon to follow. There is a lot of talk about zinc, steel and other composites. My state, New York, is considering the ban too. If any shop is using wheel weights other than lead, I would appreciate any feedback.

Congratulations and the very best to the entire family! These are the things in life you can’t put a price on. The miracle of life and of family.

Very exciting news! I wish you the best of luck. keep us updated and ask for help, ASO is there to help in any way. Are you planning any grand openning event? Did you contact the local news papers and local TV stations? Get as much free press as you can.

You must be a Si fi fan, right? I would give a week's pay to see life thru your eyes. You bring out "real-life" witht a spin that most people know may not be aware of.

I just had that case, a customer had his car scanned by AZ and they said he needed and O2 sensor. The customer bought a universal O2 and messed up the wiring. He brought it to us and we installed the correct O2, problem solved. He paid for the Diag, the repiar and the correct O2. He let us know that he COULD NOT return the O2 he bought from AZ. I understand that I should not burn my bridges, but in a lot of ways I am old fashion. But business is business, I guess. Maybe I will send one of my service advisors to the grand openning. For me, I just can't go.

You are right, free food sounds like a nice idea. Thanks! BTW, you guessed right....

Oxygen Sensors: $17.99, Brake Rotors $14.99 Hold on there! I am not selling parts. Please read on…. There is a well know parts company (I will not mention their name: but it’s not AutoZone, O Reillys, Sears, NAPA or Pep Boys) opening up just around the corner from me and is sending out consumer flyers with dirt-cheap parts, most are common everyday parts: Axles, O2 sensors, brake rotors, alternators, etc. They offer free installation on batteries and even sell scan tools so the public can check out their car, buy the part and then come to US to install it. That’s why I deal with CARQUEST. They have their over the counter trade, but they would never think about undercutting the repair shop business. The area rep for this new parts store came to me an invited my staff and myself to their grand opening. I laughed and walked away. Was I wrong not to accept his invitation? How would you react?

2010 End of Year Tax Tip Purchase needed business assets now If you are thinking of buying significant assets, such as major equipment for your shop, you still have two more months to qualify for bonus depreciation for 2010, allowing you to deduct 50% of the cost right away. The other 50% is recovered through regular depreciation. Bonus depreciation can be claimed on new assets with useful lives of 20 years or less; including machinery, equipment and land improvements. Act quickly, this tax breaks ends after 2010.

Key point: believe in yourself and the value you are selling, great points!

I was the second in line at 6:00am! I am listening to the radio all day.

AZ in our area still does the free scan. And, you are right, it kills the diag process when a customer walks thu the door with an O2 sensor from AZ and asks us, "How much to install it". Drives me nuts!

You know, I spoke to a few people and they said the same thing. I was never like that. I was brought up to choose who you think is the best choice, no matter what party. I fear we are drawing lines in the sand, don't you?

This is a reminder, tomorrow is Election Day, so let’s make sure we get out and vote. This is an important election and we need to let our elected officials know that the public cares about the state of the country. No matter what side of the isle you are from, voting shows we care about this great nation. "It is by their votes the people exercise their sovereignty." --Thomas Jefferson

Another great story, Gonzo! The way you tell these stories is truly a work of art. I worked at a Ford Dealer in the 70's as the used car mechanic. I can't tell you how many repair orders I got that stated: "Check Air Conditioner- Blows Hot", only to find that the used car (just sold) did not have A/C. What a scene when the sales person is explaining that to the customer.

There is not a doubt in my mind that we give way too much away. As an industry, we have never charged what we are truly worth. I don't think it will ever change. The motoring public does not know the difference between an $8.00 lube tech and a skilled technician. One of my issues is when a shop DOES try to charge the real price for a job and that shop is considered overpriced. But, that shop did the math and knows the true cost of doing business. We really need to change our mindset. We struggle too much as a group, and for the most part, too many shop owners are not being fairly compensated for the great job they do. And, as a result, they can't pay their techs what they are truly worth.

Selling diagnostic time has become harder and harder. You have part companies offering free check engine light scans, which the public thinks is a diagnosis, dealership lowering their prices on diag work to get customers through the door and now you even have independent shops waving the analysis fee if they get the work. The fact is that diagnostic work is becoming the trend for the future. No longer are we adjusting timing or carburetors. We need to have the equipment to test and analyze a complicated computer network and many times the fix is a program update. The diagnostic work and fix may take a few hours, and all of which the tech never got his hands dirty. Amazing times we live in. And to keep pace with technology, we need to invest in training, tools, equipment; online information sources and we need to hire top techs to perform this work. All of which cost MONEY. Some say, keep the diag charges low so you can get the gravy work. Gray work? Look at where this industry is going….more hi tech! If we concede on charging what we are worth we are giving up much needed dollars and jeopardizing our future. Now, with that off my chest I must admit that due to conditions that are out of our control, I have “adjusted” my diagnostic charges. In the past all diag charges started at $189.00 across the board, no exceptions. That was the past. Here is what we do now. I customer comes in for a check engine light with no obvious performance problems and wants to know how much it would be to check it out and repair. Well, we don’t even have a clue of what the problem is until we at least scan the code. So, we offer to scan the computer, obtain the code or codes, and explain what the code is and the tests necessary to determine the cause of the problem. We tell the customer upfront that only the scan is on us and you could be looking at anywhere from $89.00 to $189.00, depending on what the code is and how many codes are logged. We also tell the customer that only after the anyalysis is done can we give them a price on what the repair will cost. We started this approach Jan 2010 and so far it is working out great. In the past when we would tell a customer that the fee for the diag was $189 before we even looked at the car. The customer would object and we were losing diag jobs; mostly because the customer sees no value at that point. BUT, the customer sees a lot of value to have his car scanned first, at no charge, and then have the scan data explained to him. Do we stand of chance of people walking away after the scan is done? Yes. But so far we have been successful. This diag policy does not apply to driveability problems, no start problems, stalling problems, missfires problems, loss of power, ABS, Air Bag, intermittent problems,etc. For those issues we have base anaylsis charges and sell the diag up front before we start. My approach will no doubt raise some eyebrows with a few members as it has in the past, so let the discussions begin….

That is strange. I wonder if this is real?

If that does not give all of us hope that this is still the greatest country in world, nothing will!