TheTrustedMechanic

Ooh! Do I detect a note or desperation to defend one's business decisions? I mean what difference does it make where I buy my parts from? But I'll play your game because I think I know where you're trying to go. I buy most of my parts from NAPA. Most but not all. I have a very low failure rate and I know for a fact that the local store will scan codes but every single counter person has told me they will NOT sell parts and will not give a diagnosis. They will only scan the code and refer the owner of a broken car to a shop, my shop. And many of those who are referred confirm that they were told what the code was but that it required further professional attention to properly address the concern. My second call is to a local independent part store with 3 local stores where no other parts supplier has two. They also have at least 10 stores in outer lying towns and villages. They do NOT scan codes. They are affiliated with AutoValue and a Motorcraft supplier downstate. My third call is to another local independent part store who is the local AC Delco distributor and also is affiliated with AutoValue and a Motorcraft supplier downstate. I am told by the salesman, who I know and trust, that they do NOT scan codes either. All 3 will test your alternator and starter for you IF you remove it and bring it in. I think they all test batteries too. I know the ones that do ask why the customer has a concern about the battery and if it's anything but a bad battery they will advise the customer to seek professional assistance with a shop. My last call is to the manufacturers' dealers. But I stand by my statement, I will close my doors if Advance becomes the only part store in town. It's not just because of the issues raised here. I dealt with them when I first opened because I knew the manager. But after two abysmal warranty issue within a month I was done. Then the following year I had an issue with a brake pad that delaminated and was told it had to be a problem with a different part of the brakes and therefore there was no warranty. All other brake pads (I did four wheel pads, rotors and calipers) had worn 1 mm from new. So there was no other problem. But they refused to stand behind their products too many times so I will NEVER spend another penny with AAP. Oh, and just in case you were gonna try playing "Gotcha" if I said I bought from CarQuest, we don't have a CarQuest in town anymore. And when we did, they were literally my last call and then only if no one else had it in stock and I absolutely had to have it that day. Thanks for playing, but you didn't win.

@HarryTheCarGeek We are in very dangerous times, people seem to have forgotten about God and His commandments. They think of Him as being the same as Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. Morality has been thrown out, virtue is no longer virtue, depravity and licentiousness rule the day. I fear for all of us, and pray He will have mercy on all of us and our nation. You want to play the “Christian” card and pretend to be all pious. Well here’s a quote from a fellow member elsewhere on the web that pretty much nails it to the Cross with the hypocritical “Religious Right” “If Jesus Christ were the Democratic candidate the conservative media would be calling him a liberal and a socialist and soft on crime. Can’t you just hear a Fox “News” talking head saying, “while the Democrats thinks he walks on water, our sources tell us he’s been consorting with prostitutes and giving out free food to freeloading immigrants and what he did to honest bankers in the Temple that time shows that he hates capitalism”. The base would sit there in front of their TV’s and eat this all up and have signs on their front lawns that read: Lock Him Up.

They are ignorant. Simple as that, if not, they are criminals. Way to denigrate and dismiss those who disagree with you. The true hallmark of a Christian, which you appear to insinuate to be below. But let’s see if there is another explanation why some appear to dare to think differently than you do. The commenter to whom you replied says that Hillary is corrupt and it’s been shown. That she is getting a free ride. It is undisputable fact that Hillary and Bill have been investigated for decades and nothing has been found that is actionable. Not a thing, no indictments, no smoking gun, nothing, but the sheep keep bleating, “She’s guilty, she’s corrupt, she’s guilty, she’s corrupt.” All without a shred of evidence except their own notions and blind faith of the partisan lies spewed forth by the propaganda outlets. Meanwhile your God and Saviour Trump has a court date for fraud and managed to avoid another for statutory rape by the victim experience numerous death threats. This is fact. Hillary has been investigated and no indictment. He has been investigated and indicted. So the people who think differently than you aren’t criminals, they aren’t ignorant, they are simply making a choice that seems right to them after considering the facts that seem alien to Trump supporters. Now this is not to say I like her, or support her or will vote for her. It is simply acknowledging the truth. Ignorance is the lack of knowledge, which is easy to correct with education. Stupidity is the unwillingness to learn. Seems many who ignore the equal and often far more egregious examples of Trump’s evil and corruption are not simply ignorant but far worse, stupid. We know right from wrong, if you have being desensitized by the public education system to waver and to see truth a malleable, that means one has no principles to stand upon. This coming from someone who appears to be supporting the epitome of one who has no principles to stand upon, who thinks the truth is malleable. If you know right from wrong then you know that lying is wrong. All politicians lie, that’s just a simple fact and one that we must unfortunately deal with. But it is easy to mitigate and diminish the apparent acceptance of such lying. Another simple, easily verifiable fact is that Trump does far more lying than just about any other politician. Indeed if you look at Politifact (I know, they’re liberal. I mean it’s right there in their name, “Fact”) you will see that of nearly equal claims rated (293 Hillary, 328 Trump) Hillary told the truth over 3 time more often than Trump as a percentage of the claims investigated and rated. In fact if you combine True and Mostly True Hillary rated 148 (51%) while Donald scored only 50 (15%). Likewise if you combine False and Pants On Fire (blatant lies) Hillary scores 36 (12%) and Trump scores 167 lies (51%). Tump lied a full half of the times the fact checkers investigated his claims, 4 times more often than Clinton. So tell us again how those who support Trump are paragons of truth and know right from wrong. We are in very dangerous times, people seem to have forgotten about God and His commandments. They think of Him as being the same as Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. Morality has been thrown out, virtue is no longer virtue, depravity and licentiousness rule the day. I fear for all of us, and pray He will have mercy on all of us and our nation. I am a Christian. I too fear for all of us. I however know that our nation was NEVER a Christian nation. It’s people were largely Christian but the nation, the government never was. The founding fathers ensured that religion would not dictate to government. But again, many do not believe as you do so they must be denigrated and demeaned, right. What part of Judge not lest ye be judged and not to bear false witness don’t you understand or are obstinately refusing to understand? Just to be sure, I DO NOT LIKE HILLARY! I just HATE liars and dishonest people. And from my perspective those who wish to complain about all her failings but then appear to excuse the very same and worse from Trump are just as deplorable as he is. Hypocrite comes to mind. I will be voting tomorrow. I don’t know if I will be voting for the office of President or wasting my vote for a Third Party. But I do know that I could not face my God knowing that I voted for possibly the most evil candidate ever to seek the office of President. Therefore I will most certainly NOT be voting for Trump.

@WheelingAuto, I think Joe refuted your point in your holier-than-thou condescending rant. First of all, Joe is 100% correct, the entire motoring public hears the marketing message, either on the radio or on TV that all these services are free so why should they have to pay us? We can market that our battery testing isn't just hooking up the tester and "Yup/Nope" but we check the integrity of the cables, we test the alternator in real world conditions, etc.etc. But all the customer knows for sure, what they come to the counter thinking is "the other guy does this exact same thing for free." It's not the exact same thing, but that's what they think and when we try to explain otherwise, all too often we have lost before we even get to talk. Or how about the check engine light and code scans? I can't tell you how many people think all we do is, "Plug that thing into my car and it tells you what's wrong." You know that's true, that the customer thinks that. But we all know it's not true. That code is only a starting point. Every single code has a minimum of 3 possible causes, 1)the component identified ie the oxygen sensor, 2) the wiring connecting the component to the control module identifying the problem or 3) the control module identifying the problem. But the cheapo DIY stores won't tell the customer that. The official line from these places is that the counter people are NOT supposed to indicate a diagnosis, they are supposed to equip the customer with the knowledge of what the code is and then be referred to a shop. Even in the ideal world where this is the case, that is implying that shops are crooked and dishonest and you need to go to AZ/AAP/O'Reilly's etc. and get the low down so you don't get ripped off when you go to the shop. But we all know what really happens, the customer goes there, gets their code scan and little printout and then comes to you telling you what is wrong. The guys told me this is what I need. But it isn't. Real world examples, from my own customer database: 2002 Ford Mustang, Memory Code P0402, KOER code: P1408 AZ told him AND sold him that he needed an EGR valve. We all know he didn't, that he needed the DPFE sensor. 1998 Pontiac Grand Am 3.4L DTC: P0172 Exhaust is BLACK, engine starts hard, Oxygen sensor registers full rich and does not fluctuate. The parts store told him he needed an oxygen sensor. You can probably guess what he needed instead, a fuel pressure regulator. But they told him so I must be wrong. Same car, 2 years later. The engine was hunting for idle, DTCs P0171 and P0121 and you hear a hissing noise when the hood is opened. The parts store guys told him he needed a TPS because of the DTC. They are just minimum rage guys who can punch buttons on a computer but because they work at a parts store they think they are auto repair professionals. Turns out he had a gross vacuum leak at the emissions hose connection right behind the throttle body. But they told him it needed a TPS so it had to need one. These people ARE our customers, there is no escaping that. There aren't enough "A" grade customers for us to ignore these "B" and "C" grade people. Even our "A" customers hear the marketing and wonder causing us to have to reestablish ourselves as the experts and rebuild their trust in us. Even if they don't lose trust completely it does diminish. Think about it, the typical customer visits the repair shop on average 3-4 times a year. But they hear the marketing message probably at least once a week. No, Joe has it right, these parts stores actively and aggressively market to countermand our worth and then expect us to buy from them to support the assault on our integrity, honesty, knowledge, skill, expertise and worth. There is no comparison to the shops that advertise those discount oil changes. They aren't trying to convince OUR customers that we are overcharging the customer AND trying to get us to buy from them. I wrote on a different thread that buying from these stores is like holding the knife that is cutting your own throat. I still stand by that statement.

I am a small one man shop. I am a NAPA AutoCare Center. I am the first referral to any Peace of Mind customer in my area and have even been contacted to handle other nationwide warranties the adminstrator handles. I don't remember what the stocking levels required are, but I think I met the requirements with oil and filters and I don't stock a ton of either. Break down what parts you do stock, hydraulic lines, fittings, fluids, chemicals, electrical terminals, etc. and see if your local store will work with you to help you see if you can meet the stocking requirement. After you do your inventory and match it up with NAPA, I think you will be surprised at just how much you do have as "In stock." Not all of NAPA is great. Certain programs are nothing but increase their sales NOT yours. Some are great customer service opportunities and others are huge competitive advantages. All in all, it's a great program. The annual fee is more than offset by the quarterly volume rebate. There's a lot of positives and a whole lot more that I don't take advantage of. But it takes a servicing store that sees you as a partner, not merely a customer or an inconvenience.

"This is what I have been battling with Advance and no one will listen. Why? They made the sale and that's what's important to Advance." To play devil's advocate here for a minute, isn't that what matters to any business, the sale? If you weren't personally and directly affected would you feel the same way? if it were a different industry wouldn't that be justified as "competitive advantage?" Having read your comments for years I think the answer to my question is, "No." But I think you can also understand that to many shop owners, the answer is an absolute, "Yes." So long as they aren't the ones being negatively affected. "The Advance marketing strategy will hurt the independents and send the wrong message to the consumer. Free testing, free battery installation, reading codes in the parking lot,loaner tools sets; will all do more harm than good to the relationship between Advance and the repair shops. How can Advance expect me to buy from them when they want to compete with me? That makes no sense." I have made this same argument for years. I refuse to buy anything from Advance, period. I will close my business if they are my only choice. I refuse to buy from Autozone unless they are the ONLY option. Why so many shops will and do buy from AAP and now CarQuest is beyond me. Talk about holding the knife that's cutting your throat. "And please don't tell me, "That's not your customer." I am so tired of hearing that. It is my customer! The entire motoring public hears and sees the advertising." I too have been making this same argument for years. Often to the scourge of other shop owners. Condescending arrogant types who think they know it all and that because they do this or that in their shops that everyone else should do the exact same thing too. "This is why I have serious issues with Advance, and cannot support them. And nothing will change as long as Advance listens to Wall Street and not Main Street." It's not just Advance, it's almost any corporate interest, Joe. And many smaller businesses follow the same, "Take no prisoners. No price is too high so long as someone else pays it," mentality. i would dare to say some are even members here. It's an difficult reality to acknowledge,but it is reality all the same. We need a better people. But so long as greed is rampant, we will never achieve fairness for all.

You are right. Some people's lives are very heavily subsidized by the government. EVERY single penny spent on "welfare" is in fact a corporate subsidy. In other words, the likes of most auto repair shop owners are subsidizing the lives of the CEOs and major stockholders of corporate interests who get away with paying their employees sub-living wages. So how do you reconcile that with your thinly veiled disdain and contempt for those in the working class who are exploited and oppressed by the business and corporate class? Or are you attempting to dismiss and denigrate our military personnel, police officers and teachers? Many of whom qualify for food stamps, The truth is out there. You just have to be willing to work to find it and honest enough to accept it when it contradicts your preconceived ideas. I am sorry to be harsh, but every time I read an argument like yours, it's always the same, based solely on one sided information and a refusal to consider, accept or adapt to facts presented that contradict the partisan meme.

I'm in Traverse City Michigan. No we do not have really nice roads and we do have a big problem with rust. We just have people who understand that if you take care of your car, it will last longer and that the outward appearance isn't as important as safety and reliability.

Case in point, I have a 2005 Chevy Express that came in for an LOF and a tail light out. Parts are on order for a $2500 RO. That nicely offsets the 2011 Escape with 38,000 that needed nothing but an LOF. With that said, if I am doing my job and my customer is allowing me to do my job then their car won't need more than their immediate concern. After 2-3 visits the car/truck/van should be up to snuff and only in need of maintenance or unforeseeable repairs such as the alternator that tested fine last visit.

I don't disagree with anything you wrote, but I wanted to highlight that part.

@Jeff I know what you're saying about the dealers and some indies being crooks. But they didn't get there overnight. They didn't open their doors with the intent to cheat their customers. It was a slow slide. That was my point with letting your standards slip because you need to make your numbers. I know, I saw it happen. I worked at a dealership with a great reputation. They changed owners, the new owner was known for running an honest place too. Then they replaced the service manager with a corporate "buy the numbers" guy who thought he was God's gift to service departments. He implemented a "spiff" program with the quick service guys, of which I was one at the time. Guess what, that marginal belt suddenly was critical and brakes worn to 30% were unsafe! I would like to say I didn't play that game too, but if it was within the standards we were given for failure, even if just barely or teetering on the edge it was recommended. I saw quickly how that "spiff" program took our focus of doing the job and redirected it toward finding more work, period. Forget the reason the car came in. That service manager lasted about a year before he was shown the door. The service department took about 5 years to bounce back I was told. Regarding the UNDER performed maintenance, yeah, I've seen those bogus numbers too. I say they are bogus because I firmly do not believe that they are accurate. At least not practical. Just because your customer's car hits 105,000 miles and is due for a timing belt, spark plugs, cabin air filter and a valve adjustment does NOT mean that the customer is going to buy it. Does that mean there's potential work there that you left on the table? NO! But that's not how the articles are written. And the authors can explain it anyway they want to but the simple fact of the matter is, that $69 BILLION in unperformed maintenance is NOT going unperformed because we aren't finding it or trying to sell it. Some of that unperformed maintenance is also calculated including stuff that is NOT recommended/required by the manufacturers, ie wallet flushes. Some of that under-performed maintenance calculation also includes the missed oil changes because the customer came in at 5500 miles instead of 5000 so by 60,000 miles you have one unperformed oil change. I do agree that we all miss some opportunities and if we get better so can our numbers. But this "unperformed maintenance and repairs" is really a fallacy. If we are doing our jobs, the work is being found, the work is being recommended and the ONLY reason it is not being performed is because the customer wont' buy it, for whatever reason. They may never buy it or they may need to save up to pay for it. My point I still think is valid, the car will need what the car needs, not what we need (or want) to sell. But to listen to some of these article authors EVERY car needs more than we find, every car needs more than the customer will buy, EVERY car could meet our ARO needs IF we look hard enough. So I guess I'm just a little sensitive to the implicit dishonesty of some of the so called "professional advice" we are given sometimes about inspections, finding/selling needed work and under-performed maintenance. In my mind the bottom line on the un-/under-performed maintenance is this, if it can be sold, it is sold/bought. It is our jobs to look for and find any legitimate repairs and maintenance that needs to be performed. But just because we find it and offer it to the customer does not mean it will be bought. And if we are trying to sell, sell, sell everything possible to every customer we will lose their trust. As I explain to my customers sometimes, "It won't affect the safety or reliability of yoru car and I know this is nit-picky I know but I feel it is my job to let you know what I found is not quite right with your car." I can't give you an example of this scenario but some people will be concerned that the jack is missing, others will say, well I'd just call roadside assistance and they use their own jack.

@Genuine I agree with you totally about the bottom feeders. I suffered that initially and had choice words for Matthew about it. But then I realized, I don't have to mail those offers to anyone I don't want to. Of course I have something of an advantage, I am the owner, the service writer and the technician. So I know who I want to work for and who I don't. But after 6 months sometimes its hard to remember so I will cull my list and then spend 20 minutes culling it further based on service history. Such as if the last appointment was only an oil change or a vehicle inspection/diagnostic testing with no repair, then they are deemed to be not worth the time to try and bring back in. In other words if I checked it out and found stuff wrong but they didn't have it fixed it's simply not worth my time to give away stuff and not get any work except the freebie. So I remove them from the list. That's why I only mail 8-10 pieces each time. If you have someone do the mailing for you, or you're not the service writer this could be a little harder. My shop management program will export to Excel a report that has several columns but I have started reducing the list (also used as the MailMerge source file) to include the invoice total. If the last invoice total was an easily recognizable amount or zero then I pay close attention to them for removal. But if the last invoice was for say $483.76 then for sure I'm trying to get them back. Curiously I have one customer that the last three times he's been in was with a Long Lost Customer free oil change letter. But his work order totals were, $1068, $479 and $698. He's a city dweller and only drives about 10,000 miles a year so he was just about to the oil change, but past the 6 month window I use when I sent the letter. But I know exactly what you're talking about. Been there, done that. And no amount of car count can make up for the losses from bottom feeders who only want the cheap and nothing more if that's what's driving you car count. I also agree with your comment about location, I'm in a bad location and struggle at times. But I've been here 11 years, have a stellar reputation (I'm the ONLY shop two of the three professional parts stores and a major nationwide warranty administrator recommend) and people who want quality find me. With that said, if I was in a better location I could almost certainly afford to hire a couple techs and winter in Florida (snerk).

I have worked Matthew, "Just the Best Marketing" and have implemented a "Lost Customer" letter campaign where I mail a letter offering a free oil change. My actual numbers from marketing to my "lost Customers" are $9395 spent in paper, ink, stamps, oil, filter, and other parts $23042 in gross revenue from work bought by those customers $12811 in PROFIT And I only mail 8-20 pieces at a time. Now these numbers are only for people who brought in my shameless "bribe" letters. I know some customers return for paid work because of the contact but don't bring the letter so they are not in this calculation. I have even had a couple come back and refuse, REFUSE to let me do the oil change for free. But the bottom line is, as Matthew says, they already know you, they already like you and they already trust you. Sometimes they just forget. Auto repair and your business are not at the top of their list. Also that petty concern isn't a pressing one so they put it off. But, if they have some reason to come see you anyway (the free oil change) then they have that little push that may be just what they need to ask for the work to be done. Auto repair is inconvenient so if they can put it off, your customers often will. But if they are coming to you for an oil change, they've already agreed to be inconvenienced so that belt that's squealing every morning, well, "How about looking at that while I'm here?"

I've read with interest all of the comments. There is a great deal of very good information in those posts. But one thing I see is missing that is so often missing in a lot of the "ARO must be this much" discussions is this, Your customer's car needs what it needs, not how much you need to sell. What that means is this, do not let your need for an ARO of $350 (or whatever you conclude) cloud your judgment and destroy your reputation. If you need an ARO of $350 then that's exactly what it is, average and it is your need, not your customers. I am sick of hearing all of this "you are entitled to fulfill what you need on your customer's dime" stuff from these calculation explanations. If you have a dozen cars come in for an oil change or a tie rod end and that is all they need, then you can't ethically or honestly make $280, or $350 or $700 on those tickets. If that is all they need. But when you have the car on the hoist for the oil change, how are those CV boots or tie rod ends or an easy peek at the brakes through the wheels? Your need demands you look and identify legitimate work, but don't cheat your customers to meet your ARO. It's easy to lose sight of that when you're trying to make numbers on every ticket. I am a horrible business owner. I tell my customers that they will need this work, down the road. I don't try to sell it to them today if they have reasonably 5000 miles before it's due. But if I ethically think it will fail in the next month or so I will certainly try to sell it today. You also have to consider your customer's tolerance for a breakdown or additional downtime. Don't let your bad numbers or desire for better numbers affect how you honestly deal with your customers. They need what they need, not what you need them to buy. You have every ethical right to look for more work, but don't let your standards slip and try to sell unneeded work because you need an ARO of $350, their brakes are still at 50% and they came in for an oil change. It takes years to build a good reputation but only seconds to ruin a lifetime's work.

Consumers - consume you. Your time, your patience, your good will, your generosity and charity. They do not value you, your knowledge/experience/expertise/education & training or what you do. They do not appreciate what you do for them because and they do not want to pay a fair price for it because they see no value in a proper repair with proper parts for the application. They do nothing but consume. Customers - They see value in what you do even if they don't like the cost. They want to pay no more than they absolutely have to pay for an honest job but they are willing to pay a fair price for the peace of mind they get from the trust they have in you. They will trust you to do what they want/need to have done and nothing more. This trust is fleeting but they still trust you and value you and are willing to pay for that. Client - They trust you completely and will agree with your recommendations no matter what, so long as they can afford it. They know you, they like you and they truly value you and your expertise. They will readily and eagerly recommend you to their friends because they trust you without fail. They are even willing to pay a higher price for your work because they see the value in the trust they have in you. This person is very precious and fragile. That is why we call them our best customers and reserve nothing but the best of us for them. Now which definition do you think really fits people who want to supply their own parts?

When you, the shop buy a part through your supplier, your supplier has an obligation to you should that part fail. When you the shop owner allow the consumer to supply the part you are the final step in the liability path, no one there to back you up. So I NEVER install customer supplied parts. Now if it is an accessory they received as a gift, like a back-up camera or a remote starter, that's a whole different story. If it is a vintage car and they have that specialty catalog where they can get that one supplier only part, well I have to buy the part even if I charge them exactly what they can buy it for. That way my insurance covers me and the supplier is responsible to me. I of course charge a higher "Vintage" car rate for the increased insurance exposure for possible damage to the car and lost parts profit. Possible damage to the car, like this guy with a 1966 Ford F-100. He thinks its a $65,000 "show truck" while anyone else would look at it and see a maybe $15-18,000 mild modified restoration (1974 V-8 to replace the original straight 6 and aftermarket power brake booster). He thinks it's this great truck and complained that I got dirt and grease on the seat. It's a white seat and there were dark marks like I get on my personal car seats so I agreed it was from my pants and I cleaned the seats. A year later he comes back and I put down the plastic floor liner and a fresh fender cover over the seat. Guess what? He still claimed I got his seat dirty. But what he didn't know is I took a high-res picture of the seat and I used a hand cleaner wipe to clean a small section as a "before/after" and showed him. He shut up, paid his bill and found another shop to pull his scam on. I heard his next bit was "a scratch" in the paint near where he had some rust bubbling up. Guess what? He expected the other shop to pay to fix the scratch and because they had to blend it over the rust, he expected the shop to pay for fixing the rust too. I think I dodged that bullet. Consumers wanting to supply their own parts are not above pulling scams on you because you show a chink in your armor and a softness to their plight. They are not worth your time or your good will. That is why I refer to them as consumers.

What you have now is a consumer who will tell all her fellow drivers that you will install their parts. Hope you got thick skin and a "special" labor rate to make up for the lost parts profit/productivity/warranty comebacks and inevitable complaining. You could do everything right, and they could provide "Premium quality..top shelf" parts but we all know that there is a warranty for a reason. Well you installed the part, you get to warranty it if it goes bad and there is nothing in the world that will change that customer expectation. You could have them watch a video, read a disclaimer and have their signature notarized while recording the whole process and email them the video and you will have consumers who will NOT remember the "NO WARRANTY" on customer supplied parts discussion and agreement you two had. I hope I am wrong, but I suspect this will come back to bite you. I suspect you will have a string of cars on Saturdays with customer supplied parts and they will not all be "Premium quality..top shelf" parts. I really do wish you the best of luck.

Whoo Boy are you asking for it. I agree but there are so many anti-gubbermint anything types that usually populate boards like these, I think you kicked the hornet's nest. And don't forget, these "use taxes" have been on the books in many states all along but simply aren't enforced but to the faux cable "news" watchers and listeners, the "internet sales tax" is a NEW TAX. It's not a new tax but the politicians believe it is because the pundits tell them it is and because of the NO TAXES pledge they took to that unelected, unaccountable idiot who wants any country on earth to be able to drown our government in a bathtub. And that pledge means more than serving THE PEOPLE of the United States of America.

If your customers aren't respecting your loaner car then it is fully within your right to demand they compensate you for their damage to it. If your agreement doesn't spell it out, that is your fault. Also if your customer respects you and values you so little they can't take care of your convenience for them, then perhaps you don't need those consumers, they will NEVER be good customers. Notice the deliberate change in names. There is a difference between consumers (often consuming your time, effort and goodwill with no gratitude or respect), there are customers (they need what you sell and are willing to pay fairly for it) and then there are Clients (they like you, value you, trust you and want what you sell and are eager to pay fairly for it). It sounds like you have consumers, the WRONG type of "customer.": My loaner agreement specifically states that the gasoline MUST be refilled, to FULL prior to return. Customers are normally really good about it. Occasionally they forget and other times they "forget" until they are reminded the refueling charge and suddenly they have the time to go fill it up. Also, if the car is trashed out, food wrappers, baby wipes, napkins, coffee and etc. It is spelled out that the customer will be charged the actual cost to clean the car at a detail shop, subject to a minimum $100 cleaning charge. They take care of the car and clean their double-decaf-half-double-shot-mocha-latte cups and hamburger wrappers. My customers know that the car is not special or pretty or fancy but it's better than walking, cheaper than a rental car and that I have great cost involved in providing them the thoughtful convenience. But then again, I have a good, mutual respect relationship with my customers.

I have used Alldata Manage since I opened 11 years ago today. I tried the QB integration and quickly disabled it. I timed 5 of the first 6 invoices I posted with it and in order to post the invoice without QB integration Manage is done in about 2 seconds. With QB integration it took over 1 minute plus I had to have new accounts set up in QB that my CPA didn't like. I won't use QB integration again. Also, did you know the people who wrote the Manage program are "no longer with the company?" That's what I've been told several times. The desktop version hasn't been updated or "maintained" for over 2 years except a recent beta patch to update YMME. Alldata doesn't care about its customers enough to maintain what we've been paying for. All their efforts and attention have been directed towards their cloud program. And remember, despite what those never-read-always-agreed-to EULAs and You-Have-NO-PRIVACY Privacy Policies say, courts have decided that they who own the servers own the data. It's not your data, you only have a license to access it. Once it's on their servers, AllData OWNS "your" data and use it for whatever purposes they want. And that's another concern, once you decide you don't like or want to pay AllData for their program anymore, good luck accessing "your" data. At least with the desktop program , without a current license or HASP subscription key you can at least still access your data. You just have VERY limited options to add or edit.

That may be in your area but in the town where I live, Kalkaska, Michigan there are four parts stores, AutoValue, CarQuest, O'Reilly and Advance. Notice, in the same tiny town (population 17,253 for the county) we have both CarQuest and Advance Auto Parts. If you take the back streets you can walk out of one, get in your car, drive to the other, get out of your car and walk in the other store in about 2 minutes. I don't mean to argue but to paraphrase the words of Joe Friday, "Just the facts man." And those are the facts for my town. None of which changes my experience and disdain for the horrific customer care I experienced with APP or their active and aggressive devaluation of our services.

Sorry, maybe I wasn't clear, the problems I had were with Advance Auto Parts. I will NEVER buy anything from them. The CarQuest store is and has always been horrible for walk-in customer service. Even when I worked for a mobile repair company and would go in there in my uniform. Never had a problem anywhere else just the one in the town where I live. Every other CarQuest was always pleasant and even if they were busy they would at least say hello and acknowledge you.

And you just know that to their friends it wasn't Just Brakes fault, it was junk that NAPA sold them and you wouldn't do anything to fix their problem.

Yeah, we had a place here that advertised $99.95 lifetime guarantee installed. Rumor (more than just rumor) had it that nobody got out of there with less than pads, rotors and calipers if they wanted a warranty. The guy came up from downstate and the tool guys down there called the tool guys up here and told them don't sell this guy anything on credit. He was there Friday @5:00 and not there Monday @8:00. Not even his (former) employees knew what had happened. Locally he tried to get a parts store to bill him 10% over cost and then cut him (personally) a check for the 10% at the end of the month. That ways his COGS was higher so he could show a "lower profit" for paying his techs and for taxes. He has since moved on to a new town and new pool of suckers. Sad thing is for many of these cheap-price-chasers no matter how many times they get overcharged, cheated, poor quality repairs that cost more in the long run, they will never learn. They say you can't fix stupid. Well it seems more an more people are getting stupid than learning from their mistakes. Value is NOT a cheap price.