Confessions Of An Auto Technician
Three important lessons are learned by the time we reach the legal driving age. They are: Number 1: Wear your seat belt. Number 2: Don't speed. Number 3: Never ever trust your auto mechanic. These gospels are passed on to you by your older generation.
A few days ago I met with an auto mechanic who agreed to provide me with some honest revelations regarding the car repair industry in return for a little privacy. "Max, that's what we call him, has experience of more than 30 years in the car repair industry.
Max admits that even though the auto industry has been mending its ways, there are still some errant mechanics who replace used parts in peoples cars and sell them as new.
I would say years ago, it was more pars for the course. I would say it happened about 40 percent of the time, he said. Today, I would say it probably happens a whole heck of a lot less. You're probably looking at about 10 to 7 percent margin, but it does still happen.
A bane in the form of shady auto mechanics
Max pointed out three things to remember when looking for a good car repair shop. The first is the Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certification from places like AC Delco, Ford Motor Company or Bendix. While ASE certification does not indicate that they're really good, it does indicate that the technicians go on their own time, or the business has given them the incentive to study, to take the course and go and show their skills are worthy of certification. (Ed. Note: ASE is a non-profit, independent organization founded in 1972.
Max insists that it is very imperative that the car repair shop has all the right equipment in place to do a proper job like a good tire mounting machine with rubber mounts that don't scratch your wheels or an alignment rack with laser measurements. I want to make sure they have the proper diagnostic equipment. A shop that has invested in the proper equipment to service today's automobiles is usually a shop that you can trust, because they are not going to buy that expensive equipment and then have people who are not qualified to use it."
According to Max cleanliness of the car repair shop is equally important. Max says, "I'm looking for a clean shop. I don't want to see Jake the Junkyard Dog chained in the office. I don't want to see a lot of dirt around the place. It shouldn't look like it's going to be condemned by the health department."
Max says there should be no ambiguity in pricing. The prices for car repairs should be clearly posted. In fact, the car repair estimate should be given to the customer before beginning the work on the car. Positive feedback from the earlier customers would be an added advantage. Positive feedback must not be about how nice they are or how well they treat you but should be about their track record of providing good quality repair.
Old ladies should stay alert to avoid getting conned
Due to his thirty years of experience, Max is well aware of several car repair shop scenarios that would convince a person to get the car repaired. Max informed me about a situation where an assistant used a shocking method to convince an old woman to get her car repaired. Max passed on the waiting room discussion between Mrs. M and the auto mechanic.
Mechanic: Mrs. T., what street do you live on?
Elderly Woman: I live on First Street.
Mechanic: I live on that street as well. What time do you come home at the end of the day?
Elderly Woman: Oh, about 4 o'clock.
Mechanic: Good. Then I'll know what time to tell my kids to get off the street because I shudder to think of you driving down the street in this car with my children playing in the street because you're driving a death trap and it could kill them.
The poor little old lady had heard enough to get into a panic mode and started crying. She said just do it, fix it, do whatever you have to do! This is how the guy got her to get her car repaired. Max said that nowadays these unscrupulous tactics are a rarity.
Plain inquiries
Max possesses an experience of more than 30 years and has encountered many frustrations that gets his oil pressure going up. I asked him what types of things customers do that really annoy him and with no hesitation he says, "People who are shopping auto repair prices."
Max explained it with a hypothetical situation where people call up inquiring about the cost for a tune-up, when in reality they have no idea what is wrong with their car. The symptoms they specify over the phone require a different treatment. The diagnostics test is the one most are terrified of as they do not like to pay for it. Max says that this test is time and money well spent. You're paying for a skilled technician to take an hours worth of labor to diagnose your vehicle with the proper computer scan tools to determine where your drivability problem is.
Can you give me a deal?
Max finds some conversations with certain customers very unpleasant. Can you make me a deal? is another question from the customers that annoys Max the most. This does not mean that he does not help those who are really in need of help and are not just out to score a discount.
If a pregnant woman, along with her two kids, working at McDonalds comes to him crying about her car repair problems and had little money to fix it, he told me, "I'm going to the ends of the Earth, to the gates of hell for that woman to get that car running as reasonably as I possibly can and still maintain a profit for my business." Even when helping others, Max says that his line of work is not a charity organization. "I don't wear a white collar and consequently, I can't stay in business if I give away everything I do."
Trust " an ingredient for loyalty
Max appreciates the customers who rely on him. He had a client couple of years ago who would just deliver his car and ask Max to take care of the repair. He barely cared about the cost and never made any telephone call. He purely believed Max as his auto mechanic to find his car running again. "And I never breached that trust," Max said.
In return for the trust placed in him, Max tries to adjust his booked schedule to squeeze these customers in and let them out the same day. "I took care of him. Did I give him a discount? No ... did I do everything I could to get him back on the road as quickly as possible? You're damn right I did. And I did it over, say the guy who came in an hour before and said, 'Can you make me a deal? - 21393
A few days ago I met with an auto mechanic who agreed to provide me with some honest revelations regarding the car repair industry in return for a little privacy. "Max, that's what we call him, has experience of more than 30 years in the car repair industry.
Max admits that even though the auto industry has been mending its ways, there are still some errant mechanics who replace used parts in peoples cars and sell them as new.
I would say years ago, it was more pars for the course. I would say it happened about 40 percent of the time, he said. Today, I would say it probably happens a whole heck of a lot less. You're probably looking at about 10 to 7 percent margin, but it does still happen.
A bane in the form of shady auto mechanics
Max pointed out three things to remember when looking for a good car repair shop. The first is the Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certification from places like AC Delco, Ford Motor Company or Bendix. While ASE certification does not indicate that they're really good, it does indicate that the technicians go on their own time, or the business has given them the incentive to study, to take the course and go and show their skills are worthy of certification. (Ed. Note: ASE is a non-profit, independent organization founded in 1972.
Max insists that it is very imperative that the car repair shop has all the right equipment in place to do a proper job like a good tire mounting machine with rubber mounts that don't scratch your wheels or an alignment rack with laser measurements. I want to make sure they have the proper diagnostic equipment. A shop that has invested in the proper equipment to service today's automobiles is usually a shop that you can trust, because they are not going to buy that expensive equipment and then have people who are not qualified to use it."
According to Max cleanliness of the car repair shop is equally important. Max says, "I'm looking for a clean shop. I don't want to see Jake the Junkyard Dog chained in the office. I don't want to see a lot of dirt around the place. It shouldn't look like it's going to be condemned by the health department."
Max says there should be no ambiguity in pricing. The prices for car repairs should be clearly posted. In fact, the car repair estimate should be given to the customer before beginning the work on the car. Positive feedback from the earlier customers would be an added advantage. Positive feedback must not be about how nice they are or how well they treat you but should be about their track record of providing good quality repair.
Old ladies should stay alert to avoid getting conned
Due to his thirty years of experience, Max is well aware of several car repair shop scenarios that would convince a person to get the car repaired. Max informed me about a situation where an assistant used a shocking method to convince an old woman to get her car repaired. Max passed on the waiting room discussion between Mrs. M and the auto mechanic.
Mechanic: Mrs. T., what street do you live on?
Elderly Woman: I live on First Street.
Mechanic: I live on that street as well. What time do you come home at the end of the day?
Elderly Woman: Oh, about 4 o'clock.
Mechanic: Good. Then I'll know what time to tell my kids to get off the street because I shudder to think of you driving down the street in this car with my children playing in the street because you're driving a death trap and it could kill them.
The poor little old lady had heard enough to get into a panic mode and started crying. She said just do it, fix it, do whatever you have to do! This is how the guy got her to get her car repaired. Max said that nowadays these unscrupulous tactics are a rarity.
Plain inquiries
Max possesses an experience of more than 30 years and has encountered many frustrations that gets his oil pressure going up. I asked him what types of things customers do that really annoy him and with no hesitation he says, "People who are shopping auto repair prices."
Max explained it with a hypothetical situation where people call up inquiring about the cost for a tune-up, when in reality they have no idea what is wrong with their car. The symptoms they specify over the phone require a different treatment. The diagnostics test is the one most are terrified of as they do not like to pay for it. Max says that this test is time and money well spent. You're paying for a skilled technician to take an hours worth of labor to diagnose your vehicle with the proper computer scan tools to determine where your drivability problem is.
Can you give me a deal?
Max finds some conversations with certain customers very unpleasant. Can you make me a deal? is another question from the customers that annoys Max the most. This does not mean that he does not help those who are really in need of help and are not just out to score a discount.
If a pregnant woman, along with her two kids, working at McDonalds comes to him crying about her car repair problems and had little money to fix it, he told me, "I'm going to the ends of the Earth, to the gates of hell for that woman to get that car running as reasonably as I possibly can and still maintain a profit for my business." Even when helping others, Max says that his line of work is not a charity organization. "I don't wear a white collar and consequently, I can't stay in business if I give away everything I do."
Trust " an ingredient for loyalty
Max appreciates the customers who rely on him. He had a client couple of years ago who would just deliver his car and ask Max to take care of the repair. He barely cared about the cost and never made any telephone call. He purely believed Max as his auto mechanic to find his car running again. "And I never breached that trust," Max said.
In return for the trust placed in him, Max tries to adjust his booked schedule to squeeze these customers in and let them out the same day. "I took care of him. Did I give him a discount? No ... did I do everything I could to get him back on the road as quickly as possible? You're damn right I did. And I did it over, say the guy who came in an hour before and said, 'Can you make me a deal? - 21393
About the Author:
Rand Stuck is a BMW certified mechanic with over 12 years of experience. He currently manages the online parts department of a BMW parts retailer. You can find additional information on car repair and BMW OEM parts at AutoWerks.
posted by X - Men @ 4:44 AM
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