slowtech

Thanks for the reply! I'll check into the flodynamics unit.

We are searching for better coolant service equipment. We use the old Wynn's attach to radiator hose machines. Hoping something better & faster is out there. Any input would be appreciated.

Just got my e-mail on the latest forum topics. Out of 20 topics 7 are marketing ads from the same person. Also under popular forum topics of 5, 3 are ads also by same person of which no discussion took place. So how are these popular. I get a ton of advertising e-mail. Just didn't expect this from ASO. I do look into some ASO sponsor ads. But this is not necessary.

We are also having an increase in parts issues concerning fit and function. It seams a list of use this, not that, would be helpful.

Not sure what to think. A few bad apples do spoil the bunch. Sensationalized journalism doesn't make it better.

Reminds me of when I coached little league baseball. My youngest son is an all effort type person. Practiced hard to be the best player he could be. Played every game like it was the world series. Always pointed out the positive in everyone on the team. We came in first in our league to the delight of our team. When my son realized the league did not give out first place trophies he was upset. He felt if you didn't get a trophy then all the work was a waste of time. I pointed out that the reward was in the effort. I ask if he had known there wasn't going to be a first place trophy a the start of the season would he have practiced less. Would he have not tried to win every game. He replied he would have done everything the same. It would still be nice to get a trophy. In this business it often seems like you're down too many runs in the bottom of the ninth inning with 2 outs. Yet we still step up to the plate and give it all we've got. Whether we get that trophy or not.

P.S. It would still be nice to get a trophy though.

I have been watching my cc fees go up. Add to that the pci compliance hassle. Does anyone have a good cc processing service?

We have been getting by without any type of smoke machine. Now with the small leak codes its become a challenge. What smoke machine does anyone recommend? What features are important?

Years ago I worked at a shop where we played radio yoyo. The boss would turn it down we would turn it up. One day upon returning from lunch we found the radio smashed to pieces. Apparently it needed one final adjustment to find the correct volume.

We encourage our employees to take vacations during the slower months. Also property & equipment maintenance are easier to do when there are less dollars in the service bays (not going to paint the office when there's money to be made). Training & ase testing is best done at this time. Reviewing profit centers (or those that are not)and adding on new service items we would like to offer. Get out and network,ie chamber of commerce, business groups, local charities etc. Oh yea and shovel the snow!!!

Sounds like the usual auto repair devils triangle. Techs complain that greedy shop owners make all the money and under pay techs.

Shop owners say customers won't pay decent rates to cover the cost of quality repair. Customers feel techs rip them off at every

turn of the wrench. It's a silly merry go round. At some point you have to jump off and get on the ride that makes you happy.

If someone tells me they only paid $200 dollars for the car, my reply is.. then you should have plenty of money left over to fix it.

ADealertech makes a great point. Caring first and foremost about good customer service is what it's about. But cheerful, friendly and a quick to help attitude is how many Indy shops already operate. Having positive marketing on a national scale surely would be of great benefit. Having group purchasing can help bring down cost of service, which also increases competitiveness.

Banning together has been the best solution for many of the independents woes. The problem is independents are by nature just that... independent! Building a coalition of competitors would be a monumental task. But considering the benefits that could be achieved with our massive combined buying power, creativity and hard work ethic does make you think.

I am shopping alignment machines as an add on service. Looking at Hunter pronto 3 vs snapon V2200. Any thoughts or experience with these units. Also any pitfalls to watch out for in general.

As it is now if I ain't working late on a car I am doing paper work and balancing the checkbook

Sounds like you are already open extended hours. Advertising longer hours may only spread the same problem over a very long day.

Sounds like a the perfect technology for a hack shop. Low balling a bid, then installing cheap parts with low skilled parts swappers. The customers assume the risk based on a third party's diagnosis. Every ones happy. Well at least the hack shop will be.

AAA has been doing this for quite some time. Just another competitor to deal with, only this one knows what you're doing.

RLO's gorilla shop management is good and worth the investment. Keep in mind, any training is only as good as you are willing to buy in and fit to your unique circumstances. Also your vision of where you want to be in 5,10,20,40 years is important to help establish a plan to get there.

I believe we need to rethink the route entry level techs are expected to be on. If you're a very large operation a trade school tech can be brought up through the ranks by having plenty of meaningful repair tasks. Training, mentoring and experience will advance a bright and eager apprentice tech. A lot of Indy shops end up being the school and mentor at quite a great cost over the first couple of years. Economy of scale is against them. A small be all do all shop is really at a disadvantage. Perhaps an industry wide grass roots apprentice type program could be developed.

Business ebs and flows when you have an established track record. The ups and downs become manageable to some extent. Even so, events out of our control always get in the way. Being new is hard mostly do to lack of having been through it before. It seems like everything is against you. And in fact it really is. You just have to be patient and dilligent in navigating rough stretches.

If you have always used rotory did they live up to your standards? Was performance and service good? If so why change.

Some weeks it's the cat herding business. Mostly it's client transportation concierge service. Put that on a name badge...

First of all , there is no such thing as customer base in only 6 months. Assume these customers are giving you a test drive. The 90% no shows are probably shoppers also on the test drive. By how you are marketing you are casting a wide net. You can only count on a few good fish at a time. Loyal customers take time to build. A lot of time.

Limit techs to 1 at a time on tool truck. Add a half hour to tool day. Pay flat rate. Fire the techs and get ones that don't buy tools. Or realize that working on cars is a tough job and sometimes a break is deserved.