Gonzo

Of course your right again Joe, that's the media, the society and people in general... But, on another subject... related to this... One of my old employees stopped by to say hi... wonder if I was busy... I'm not... He tells me he is making just as much as he did when he worked for me... but is doing 3 times as much work... and seems to always have more to do... I asked how is that possible... Oh you'll love this.... The shop he is at now... charges 40.00 an hour and cuts all the book times in half to the customer and the mechanics pay... Talk about a screw job .... This is another reason why I don't like the BBB I know this isn't there catagorey... but wouldn't it be nice if the playing field was level... this shop is staying in business because he is undercharging for his services... Now I'm pissed... again.

This is an article sent to me buy one of my regular customers.... read this and let me know what ya think... I think the guy has had some bad experiences with bad mechanics... you be the judge. Copy and paste it. If needed. 10 Things Your Mechanic Won't Tell You- Yahoo! Autos Article Page

This article was just picked up by Brake and Front end magazine... be watching for it in the April addition... (The story had to be edited to fit, but it's more or less the same.) Gonzo

I should send you the story I wrote about the differences between a doctor and a mechanic...

And they call his business........... A "practice" ......... go figure... If I would say that to one of my customers... I wouldn't have a customer any longer...

I think the doctor has it easier.... he only has two models to work with and his equipment keeps improving... wish I had that kind of luck... LOL

Boy, do I have stories about mice... I think I have three stories published in my book... and I have quite a few in reserve... Maybe I'll put one of those up on the site next... they're hillarious. thanx for the comments.... I think writing these stories down is like therapy.... good for me and a good story for everyone else. Thanx again

Another story for everyone... this one wasn't in my last book... It will probably go into the next one. (I've got plenty more... ) Blowin’ in the wind Another headlight problem to deal with, this time it’s on an old 280z. Both headlights took their turn going on and off. I’ve seen this problem hundreds of times. My first test is to pull the trim from around the steering wheel and pop off this little plastic guard on the back of the headlight switch. If the headlight switch is causing the problem, all you have to do is take your finger and gently push on the terminals of the headlight switch that you exposed when the plastic guard was removed. In this case, that’s exactly the problem. No further diagnostics needed. Chalk that one up to experience. After filling out the invoice I gave the customer the news. He was quite startled that I could find the problem so fast. “I had it at the last shop for hours,” he said, “Until they gave up and sent me here.” “It’s not a big deal I’ve seen it before,” I said. The part was ordered and I had it installed in a flash. Simple repair, made simple with lots and lots of experience mind you. After the install, I checked the headlights. All was well, nothing wrong that I could see. I pulled the car around front and filled out the rest of the paper work. A big thank you and a hand shake was all that was needed at that point. I handed him his keys and he drove off down the street. I figured I just made a new customer… not bad, I look like the genius that I think I am… well, there ya go again… did we forget about the proverbial teeter tooter? Oh, yea, it’s going to slide right to stupid… and idiot isn’t far away. Several weeks later the car was back, again with the blinking headlights. I went thru the whole routine again… it is absolutely without a doubt, hands down, totally for sure… working just like it should. And I mean perfect. It never blinked it never even thought of blinking. Now I’m getting concerned. This isn’t right. Whose playing games here…? Is there one of those hidden cameras around here? Ok, who put this guy up to it? I’ve got a lot of practical joker friends that would love to pull some stunt like this… but I ain’t laughing fellas! Since nobody jumped out from behind a bush or a tool box I guess I better consider that this guy is dead serious about his “blinking” headlights. Time to go talk to the owner. “How often does it do this,” I asked. “All the time, especially at night,” the 280z owner explained. (You know, sometimes in a rush I ask the wrong questions. At night, well of course it would be at night. I’m sliding even closer to idiot right now… I hope there’s a safety harness attached to the see saw.) “Well, I’m having a problem duplicating the blinking at this point,” I said with a bit of confusion in my voice. “Oh, I guarantee it’s going to do it,” he said, “Just wait, it will.” I went back out to the shop and pondered over this odd situation. Now I pride myself on being able to figure this stuff out, I hate thinking I’m going to have to end up like the last shop and give up on it. Oh come on, I seen the headlights blink before, that was cut and dry, this I don’t know. About then one of the tow drivers that brings cars to me came in the shop. Not for a car, just to say Hi. I explained to him what I was up against and I told him I’m running out of ideas on how to solve this one. Not that I expected any help but I could use a shoulder to cry on right about now. He had this quirky smirk on his face… as if he knew something that I didn’t. Something told me he was up to something, aha; he’s the guy with the hidden camera. Ok, ok, I’ll play along. “Hop behind the wheel and turn the lights on,” my tow truck driving buddy chuckled. “Ok,” I said, perplexed by his sudden show of diagnostic abilities. Once I had the headlights on he walked to the front of the car and stood in front of one of the headlights. “Are ya ready for this,” he said, still laughing his butt off. “Go for it there Einstein,” I said … not knowing what he was about to do. I couldn’t think of a thing I missed, and how in the world was he so sure of it. As he stood there looking at me sitting behind the wheel, his legs were lit up with the headlight beam, he reached down and grabbed the bra that was on the front of the car. As he flapped the bra up and down … the headlight… blinked. What the??? I jumped out of the car leaving the headlights on. “What are you doing, man o’ man, I’ve wanting to see that all afternoon,” totally astonished by now, “What the hell are you doing.” The bra is fitted into the recess in front of the headlight, and the attaching “Velcro” strips were gone. So, when the car was up to speed the bra would flap in the wind and make it appear as if the headlight was blinking. Now on the other hand, the other side was tight and was holding the bra down just the way it should. I ran to get the customer, had him sit in the driver’s seat. My still laughing tow truck buddy and I went through our little experiment. The most surprising thing was the owner agreed that was what was happening and it only did it on that one side… which after thinking about it was different than what it was doing with the original switch installed. At least he understood the problem now and everything was back to normal… except… how did the tow driver know…? “I was on a call last night and I saw this same car on the highway pass me,” he said, still laughing, “I knew it was at your shop a while back. You couldn’t miss it, what got my attention was the blinking headlight as he came up along side of me, I thought it was some weird emergency vehicle, but as it passed by my truck I could see what was going on. I was laughing the whole time, in fact, that’s why I came by today. I was stopping by to raze ya about it, seems like I came at the right time.” Well, well, well, I owe him one. Maybe a couple, I’m sure he still laughs about this one even after all these years. That proverbial teeter totter is sure looking heavy on that one side. My bad, I’ll work on correcting that problem, maybe with a little help from a gust of wind and a friendly tow driver. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Luck??? Puerto Rico??? I'm jelaous... Here I am stuck in the shop with a wrench in my hand and your off doing what ever it is you do on a vacation.... I think the earth was flat the last time I had a real vacation. Have a great time... I'll be thinking about ya.... Gonzo

I'm glad to hear you cleared your name and reputation with the paperwork trail. Good job there. But, you left one unanswered question... this one bothers me... WHO CALLED YOU IN??? I don't have a problem with the EPA, but I always run into problems with irate customers. Most of my general repairs are electrical in nature (Auto electric specialist) and I've seen people get bent because of the lack of understanding of how the systems work or over the cost of the repairs. But, I am always looking over my shoulder for that "crack'd pot" customer that has set his vengance on myself or my company.... So.... did ya find out who it was... or have you started to look over your shoulder too....

Ah yes, a problem from the time of the model T.... nothing is different ... but at the same time it is completely different. Training is always a problem. I really think the big thing is that the ever changing industry is going to change faster and faster than it ever has in the past. You may find out that being younger (than me) that what you know today is already out of date tomorrow. For me, in my day... at least I might have had a year till what I knew was useless. (I'm laughing at this whole thing... can't ya tell) It's a throw away era we live in... Like Joe said... we all started out "repairing" cars. Today it's diagnose and replace. Makes me think of the good old days.... LOL

It's a shame.... I'm sad to say I have seen the changes... Sometimes I feel like the buggy whip company... sooner or later we all are just another has been part of society. a shade tree mechanic, a buggy whip maker... same thing... history has a way of repeating itself..

Just think what the world would be like today.... If, back in the 40's or 50's before plastics took over everything... that a law, reform or whatever you want to call it.. that said, ..... everything that was made or imported into the states had to be either biodegradeable or could be recycled and or repaired back to working condition... no exceptions. Now, everyone has to fix what they bought, and, you can't "throw" it away. What a difference that would have made. (dream world of course)

I was a farm kid, always thought Grandpa was so cool ... cause he could fix anything with a hammer and a cresent wrench. Boy, are those days gone...

Another article I'm working on... thought I would put it out here for the group to review... Love to here your comments before I send this one off. That shade tree is getting old Is it fair to say that the shade tree mechanic is a thing of the past…? I think so, that is if we are talking about todays modern cars that we all drive and depend on, and we are trying to get a car repaired by your next door neighbor who is pretty good at fixing cars. But, that doesnt mean you wont see a 68 Camaro or a Model T up on blocks in some guys garage. I think that will be there for a long, long time. The American shade tree mechanic is now an antique. Years ago it wasnt uncommon that a relative in the family was known as the guy to go to if you had car problems. In some instances that shade tree relative still exists. But dont count on it being the norm these days. Todays cars are so complicated and so much more electronically advanced that youre not going to be able to repair them without a lot of expensive equipment. Which, by the way, depending on the type of vehicle…. might even be as obsolete as the cars themselves. The one thing to keep in mind is that the manufacturers ambition is to sell cars, the independent shop or in this case the shade tree mechanic is trying to make the car last longer. Which is counterproductive to what the manufacturer is trying to do. So it makes sense that technician has a hard time keeping up with the changes. In other words … why else would the manufacturer be so hesitant about handing out the latest greatest scanners and tools required to maintain their cars. (self preservation) This is probably the leading factor in the evolution of the shade tree mechanic. Not to say the early pioneering shade tree mechanic didnt come up with some innovative way to repair or improve on an existing technology. He did, and that could happen even in our modern times. However, its not wrenches and screwdrivers anymore, its laptops and software. Tuning a car with timing light was yesterday, going through a crank angle relearn procedure with a scanner is today. Hey, thats the times, thats the way it is. For me, Im an old salt of a mechanic now, back in my younger days I would grab a dwell meter and a timing light along with my specially sized screwdrivers specifically designed to get into those tight distributor housings and carburetors adjustments. I would listen to the engine; let it tell me what to do. Sometimes you would have to make a little tweak or slight adjustment from the factory numbers to compensate for a weak cylinder or internal part wear. You might even have to adjust for altitude or octane. There was always something to do under the hood that made the mechanic essential to be there rather than behind a computer screen. The day of the adjustable engine parameters for the sake of argument… have gone into the history books. The computer has taken over and there isnt much use for those old tools and techniques today. I still keep them in a drawer near the bottom of my tool box. Each year they keep getting shoved further and further back into a corner. Oh, probably someday Ill get them out, knock the dust off of them, get all nostalgic and tell those old war stories to that young tech standing next to me. Im sure he probably looks a lot like I did when I was his age. All that young, fresh attitude, eager to learn and wanting to know more and more about cars. He probably looks a lot like me when the old mechanic I learned the trade from pulled out his growler and showed me how to test generators with it. (Now am showing my age….) Lets face it, change is a good thing. Cars will always evolve and become more and more sophisticated than they are now. Can you imagine the cars of say… 30 years from now?? Customers, or should we call them vehicle occupants of the future still will need some sort of service performed on their mode of transportation. The idea that cars will drive themselves is still a possibility. Will the cars of the future run on something other than fossil fuel… sure why not, were almost there with the hydrogen systems. Will car accidents be a thing of the past …. Good luck with that one. Could it be that the car can fix their selves… maybe, maybe not, but… whos to say… its all in the future…when we get there, well be able to answer those questions. My personal take on all this new fangled electronic-self driving-accident avoidance-fix it themselves vehicles is quite simple…..man made them. Theyll break….they always do, nothing last forever. Even Mother Nature hasnt grown anything that hasnt died, so I guess the same holds true with the shade tree mechanic. Sooner or later he will pass into the history books. Dont give up on those wrenches to soon though…. Were not quite there yet. But I would suggest that you keep one eye towards the future. Its coming…..

I read the article... very good article I might add... VERY long winded article. I have to agree with everything he wrote in his artilce. I said the same things in my article ... (which is more than likely going to be reproduced in Brake and Front end this month or next) I didn't get as lengthy as he did (LOL) Myself, I do what this guy does ... but in my own stationary shop. I'm the guy that other shops bring the car to when they can't figure it out. I do 99% electrcial diagnostics and repair. From anything like an automatic sliding door system to the "engine spits and sputters" routine. Seen a lot of weird stuff in my 28 years... and I doubt that I have seen it all. This business isn't the business I started out in... times have changed. We, as an industry have to change. Charging for the diagnostic time is just the first start in reworking the independent industry. Maybe.... just maybe... before I'm retired and the wrenches have been put away... we might be able to make a difference in the future of this industry. Thanx for the article, thanx for being a part of the change. Gonzo

Carman.... link wouldn't work... whats the "www" address

Here is a place to list your ideas on what a Code of Ethics for the independent auto industry should/could/needs to abide by... keep in mind the ethics we are talking about are for anything... and everything that is involved with running a shop. Those already proposed ideas that have been mentioned are; WAITING ROOM AREAS BATHROOMS LOBBY PRESENTATION DIAGNSOTIC FEE STANDARDS ADVERTISING HONESTY And much more... Please take the time to list what you would like to see... thanx Gonzo

At this point... I don't know exactly what I would put in there.... BUT... the real issue is... it will not be my idea... it will be the general automotive independent market speaking... that's what I believe would become the true CODE OF ETHICS... So think of a few things, I'll write them down and I'll try to get it published to as many places as I can.

You wouldn't have to ask twice... YES, excellent idea... as a matter of fact... that would be a great new article for me to write.

That's a great name for it Joe.... Code of Ethics... I like that... In fact I'm talking with "Brake and Front end Magazine" I might have the "Diagnostic fee Diagnostic free" story reprinted in their magazine. We should get a lot of repsonce. If possible I may even mention this website.

An across the board standard... yes... I'm for that.... if everyone is one the same page... then it's not so hard for the customer to feel more confident.. then it's just "who" the consumer wants to do the work... not so much the price.. In my book there is a chapter on this subject... page 168... it's not the perfect solution.. but just like the diagnostic article... it's an idea, an opinion... it's thoughts on paper... something for all us to think about. Gonzo

I've read most of the posts on this page, and I have to say.... this is why I wrote "Hey Look, I Found the Loose Nut" We all have experienced these same situations with customers and I've written story after story based on those situations. I call it "therapy" for the tech.. we all need a little down time after a rough day and reading a couple of these stories lets you know... you are not alone. My stress level drops a notch or two after reading a story... I usually walk away with a smile by then. To bad, there isn't a physcologist on hand at every shop to deal with the aftermath. I've known techs that were far better than myself, but they either lacked the ability to maintain the dollars and cents side of the business, or more times than not... they couldn't handle the daily situations with the customers. The latest story I'm working on is one that I'm sure we will all face sooner or later. The story goes something like this; With the advent of the modern elecrtonic world it's harder and harder to have privacy. I recently had an encounter with a "new" customer that felt it was absolutely neccessary to get in contact with me after hours... She searched the web until she found an obscure listing I posted (probably after too many beers LOL) where I listed my home phone. Here it is, Saturday, 11:30 at night and this lady calls my house and wants me to go to the shop so she can get her kids basketball out of the back seat. Well, you can see where that story is going to go... that'll be the next book. Gonz

My website isn't as much for my shop but for my book. It's has a lot of fun stuff to do along with videos, trivia, unbelievable photos... etc... Trying to lighten things up in the world of Auto repair. www.gonzostoolbox.com