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mmotley

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Everything posted by mmotley

  1. mmotley
    My insurance runs about $9,500 a year with 3 loaner cars included. Your's seems a little high, but when I was going through insurance shopping, I found it can vary a lot between states
  2. mmotley
    Is it the part manufacturers who are paying you for the labor or the supplier?
  3. mmotley
    How the heck are you getting your parts supplier to pay 75% of labor rate?
  4. mmotley
    I completely think it will happen. I also think it will hugely impact our industry and how we operate. Will be interesting to see
  5. mmotley
    We present to the customer everything that we find with an estimate. Obviously, what we find will dictate if we schedule a future appointment to complete the work or if it's something that can be done that day
  6. mmotley
    We schedule 1 hour also. If its a 2015 with 17,000 miles, I know it's NOT gonna take a full hour, but it makes up for the 2006 model with 145K miles on it that is gonna need a rack, cv axles, v/c gaskets, etc.
  7. mmotley
    No Oreilly's?
  8. mmotley
    We use Identifix exclusively for repair information. Like everyone else said about just every other option, it takes a little getting used to. We're happy with it though. Honestly, we probably don't even use all the features available
  9. mmotley
    That's what I was expecting to hear. I did a little research online and found a replacement battery for ~$50 shipped, and is supposed to last up to 22% longer A couple of phillips head screws and the box comes apart.
  10. mmotley
    Our shop jump box is getting to where if it is not left plugged in every night, you've got a 50/50 chance of jumping off a car with a dead battery. It's probably about 6 years old or so, so I'm thinking it might be time to replace it. I've checked out the tool flyers and I've started seeing these new, smaller jump boxes that claim to do just as good of a job as the bigger/heavier/bulkier jump boxes. Does anyone have any feedback on these? I know snap-on had one in their flyer, but I can't find the link for it. I'll link to one similar for reference. https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-GB40-UltraSafe-Lithium-Starter/dp/B015TKUPIC/ref=sr_1_5?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1473255573&sr=1-5&keywords=booster+pack
  11. mmotley
    For those of us not familiar with activant/epicor, is this something that is available on Mitchell Manager? If so, could you point me in the right direction to get set up or for more detailed info?
  12. mmotley
    Always providing us with positive news stories, thanks!
  13. mmotley
    That is extremely common on pre-96 Toyota/Lexus vehicles. If one comes in with weird issues, especially if someone has already thrown parts at it, that's usually the first thing we look at. Probably have seen this 5-8 times now in the last couple of years. Check rebuild services on ebay. For a little over $100, you can send them out and have it repaired
  14. mmotley
    A good idea is to do vehicle arounds, especially if you do headlight restoration services!!! Also, if the customer is scheduled to come in at a certain time, go ahead and pull up their file and look at previous recommendations. Then you can ask 'I noticed last time you were in, we recommended replacing your leaking radiator. Did you want us to go ahead and take care of that while you are in today?'
  15. mmotley
    Extend your hours? Or continue to raise the labor rate? You're busy for a reason, either marketing or word of mouth. If it's word of mouth, that must mean you are doing a good job and I raise your rate. If it's marketing, dial it back and give it 30 days to see if you need to dial back some more
  16. mmotley
    Exactly! The only way I would EVER consider installing customer supplied parts would be doubling my labor rate and explaining to them that if parts don't fit, I continue to charge 2X the shop rate for every minute it ties up a stall. Keep in mind, you could be making one of your good customers wait while you cater to the customer who is trying to cut into your profits. Really, like mspec pointed out, it's the liability that is the real issue. In the court of law, you are the expert and should have known better if any of these parts cause problems later down the road. Not worth it to me or the guys that work for me.
  17. mmotley
    Tell him he gets what he can diagnose, cause that's how it's gonna be when your other guy leaves *BTW, my technician trainee that has no ASE certs and only about 2 years of mechanical experience can flag about 30 hours a week, and that's probably letting him diagnose a car once a week for experience
  18. mmotley
    I wouldn't cut him loose just yet. If he isn't breaking anything, keep him on board while you look for a replacement. In the mean time, I'd start to transition him toward full flagging. Cut a $1 per hour guarantee and add it to his flagging rate every 2-4 weeks. In the meantime, I'd be looking hard for another tech. 2 hours to diagnose a cracked radiator is clear sign he needs to go or step up his game. Moving more toward flag pay may help increase his output, but I don't think it will help that much. It will at least limit your expense on him.
  19. mmotley
    Care to share some info on your shop? How many techs and service advisors? How long in business?
  20. mmotley
    Definitely interested in the details here!
  21. mmotley
    David, I am a member of O'Reilly's Certified Auto Repair Program. Shoot me a message and I'll do my best to answer any questions you have to the best of my abilities. I'll be up front though, don't count on huge discounts by joining
  22. mmotley
    Highly recommend Barry Barrett with RLO. I was a technician with 0 sales experience who moved up front and he taught me everything I know about sales. PM and I'll pass along his contact info or answer any other questions you may have
  23. mmotley
    Agree with Mike! With their software, not only can you text customers for authorization, you use their software to text digital multi-point inspections AND use it for automatic reminders for oil changes and any other service you want to set up as a repetitive service. As I type this out, I can see a customer just viewed their inspection, so now I know I can call them in a minute and go over what they just looked at. Last week, I had a customer choose us over a shop they had used in the past because of the digital inspections we use with bolt on. How cool is that!?! A customer chose us over another shop because of a tool we use to better sell repairs! A win/win!
  24. mmotley
    Just thought I might save someone some $$$ in the future. Do NOT put 75w90 in a GX460 transfer case. A GX470 is fine, but 460 takes a very specific fluid. One of the techs learned the hard way at the dealership when they first came out. Today, I got lucky enough and caught one of my techs draining the fluid in one and getting ready to fill with 75w90. No damage done, but still costs ~$75 a can (yup, they put it in a freaking soup can that is no where close to practical).
  25. mmotley
    I'm not a legal expert, but I've been told that if you somehow end up in court, the whole 'customer supplied parts come with no warranty' won't hold water. Can't remember exactly how it was explained, but in today's world, it's not worth the risk/headache. I will say though, props to you for charging 1.5X the labor rate. That's probably the only way I would consider customer supplied parts, with a clear understanding that if there is any delay related to the parts, the customer is getting charged 1.5 the labor rate for the time it ties up a stall.

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