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Did you find any sign of milkshake in the transmission? I’ve seen trans coolers inside radiators leak. ATF in the cooling system isn’t a big deal, but any coolant in the transmission your transmission is done. The coolant gets into the bands and clutches, as well as the TCC and such, it’s over. You might be able to flush it out but it’s not likely.
Like you said, it makes you more efficient. No it doesn’t make you a better tech, but can help you be a better tech. Right now I’m working out of a US General (Harbor Freight) 56″ bottom and top. The box is suffed, things on top of each other. Sometimes I know the crammed box gets in my way and slows me down. I’ll get a better box sometime this year, but I am not doing what I did the first time and drown myself in debt buying a box off the truck. Either a Snap-On used for cash, or an Extreme from StrictlyToolBoxes. Next trip to FL I’m going to go to their store there and see them for myself before making a purchace.
I’ve been in this business a while, and I’ve seen quite a few people get fired and quit really quickly. I’ve seen a few that came to work their first day DRUNK.
I quit the first hour of one job because I started my first day and the manager came out and said he couldn’t pay me what we agreed but he would pay me even more after a 90 day period. I finished the car I was working on, got my box and left.
Another, first day quit was I started at this shop and the owner had a 20 year old son with downs syndrome. The shop was his playground. I was told not to leave the keys in the car because he likes to get in and start them even while you are working on it. Basically told I was responsible for his safety. Also told not to upset him because he can get angry and throw fits, and had hurt people throwing wrenches and stuff. This is a shop, not a daycare. When I was there, a pretty girl came in and he was all over her, harassing the crap out of her, she was so uncomfortable and the owner did nothing. I feel bad for someone with downs but a auto shop is not a place for that, so I got my things and left.
A lot of horror stories being told here. During the recession some shops got used to treating their techs like dirt, and well, many of them haven’t gotten the update that the economy is rolling again. While the economy is strong, it doesn’t mean every shop is booming. New competition and new ideas often kill off the one’s that can’t adapt. So, if you are at a shop not taking care of you right now, you might want to start looking. Check out Indeed and other sites, there is a technician shortage.
Toolboxes have wheels for a reason, so keep the greased. I think one way to keep yourself from a bad position and a way to handle them if you do get in them is to be ready and able to roll out. Get all the certs and titles you can, have a resume professionally made, get a Linkedin account, make some connections, and keep your eyes open to see who’s looking and where the best companies are located. When you’re not happy, roll out!!! Be sure to do so in a professional polite way because you don’t want to burn bridges (we know about that in Atlanta). Also, search wide, you might have to move, but if the job is worth it, it might be the best decision you have ever made. I think if everyone did this, shops/dealers would know they had options and wouldn’t pull some of the crap they do.
With our type of pay, unstable paychecks is just something you have to learn to budget around. There will be good pay periods and bad pay periods. Now, if you are getting too many bad one’s, spend your time polishing your resume and start looking. We are in a boom time again, and there are so many businesses that are looking for techs. Looking at my linkedin and indeed, it’s really surprising how many jobs are out there. The only thing is that some areas are much better than others so are you willing to relocate?
I can relate. Sounds like what happened to me. I had full ASE Master status and was still put in the quick lube when I went from a independent to a dealer. Well, I just became the best lube tech they ever had, and proved it was too much for being a lube tech. They moved me to used cars, and then on the line, sent me to school and now I’m a Nissan Master. It took over 3 years, but I’ll say it was worth it.
Dealerships are all about certs, so you need to do all their online training and get all that you can. It’s not hard to look good in this field.
I’m a Nissan Tech, so I don’t know Acura, but here is some universal dealership insight. You’ve got to know how to story the ticket. So the car has an issue. To test components there is a procedure. Those procedures should pay time. If they don’t, call their tech line and tell them what part they want you to replace. If they ask you to run test, tell them what the OP code is for that test, if they don’t pay, stand your ground and say then you don’t test. Either that or start throwing parts at the cars. No communication with the ECM, order a ECM. That doesn’t fix it, order the next part in the step, harness, other modules.
So, you are starting out fresh, and actually have the aptitude and discipline to go to school? Yes, diesel is the better way to go, but before I’d sign up for that, I would look into Aviation. If you are going to get a formal education, you might as well go where it’s appreciated. To work on aircraft, you have to have formal training before anyone will even consider hiring you, and you have to have an A&P license to touch them. Automotive is flooded with dropouts who really should be flipping burgers or stocking shelves. Not everyone is like that but until you get the training, skill, and experience you’ll be experiencing low pay and bad conditions for a while. Diesel intimidates many, many can’t do it, so it’s a good route.
Like everyone is saying, there are pro’s and con’s of every type of pay. The best thing to do is look at your overall income and decide if it’s worth it or not. If so, stay. If not, leave and do something that does pay what it’s worth. Start training for something else. Be aware though that most real jobs do pay on some type of commission system. Even most salary jobs are paid on a salary/bonus plan. Sales is usually pure commission. You have to learn with accepting that sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Just learn how to win and now to not lose as much.
[quote=”Generation_X_Dad1974″ post=183053]
I left the dealer in 2012 due to personal conflicts and politics and bounced around to a half dozen different shops. At one point I encountered a flat rate shop that had a 35-hour guarantee and I think that’s the best way to go. Give techs a cushion in case things are slow, but also give them the opportunity to produce more if things are busy.
Honestly, a flat rate system with a 30-40 hour guarantee to me is the best system because if you get your ass handed to you on a silver platter with all the trimmings by a job that goes south, you don’t need to live off hot dogs, pork & beans, Kraft Dinner and ramen noodles. If you get some killer jobs that you’re good at and can make extra time, you have the beneft of earning more than a standard 30-40 hour paycheque.[/quote]
You bring up a good point. You never want to be a tech that needs a guarantee BUT the shop should never not be able to supply you with work. So, in other words, you should never fall back on the guarantee because your shop keeps you busy. If I go looking for another job, I think part of the negotiation will be some type of minimum. I don’t want a guarantee but I want to be guaranteed the opportunity to make the hours. It’s going to be hard to put that in writing though.
We all do have a guarantee…. by LAW you have to get at least minimum wage for your clocked hours worked. I have one issue with that, and that is because with my level of ability and just my equipment, I am worth far more than min wage and my time is worth more to me. Imagine I put in a transmission, and then no work the rest of the week. Very easily it would come out about the same, so what I would end up getting is them having me “on call” for the whole pay period and got the transmission job done? That’s not right.
What’s wrong with using anti-seize? It’s not made for the purpose you are using it. Different viscosity, melting points, properties. Sure, it’s great for keeping things from seizing up, but not a lubricant. Also, it can attract dirt and cause issues. It tends to become more liquid and can get on the friction materials and then soak in. There is specific product, with Nissan it’s called Molycoat. It’s this thick black substance that doesn’t smear on everything or melt down, doesn’t seem to make dirt stick, just all around better. But the anti-sieze works good enough right? Do you take pride in doing things right? You have been at a dealership for six years, and they haven’t sent you to training? Read the service manual, what does it say to use?
As far as the times you get, you should be able to make it doing everything right. Also you should be able to make it being honest. Don’t get me wrong, although my posting style seems kind of sharp or maybe even rude, I’m just being straight to the point. If you really want to make something of yourself in this field and make a good living, fist, don’t pay attention to the hacks, or the rip-off artist upsell specialists. Do things correctly, using correct proceedure, materials, ect. Be honest, do everything right. It will come around and in the end, you will be making more and doing much better than those hacks, and they will look like the shade tree wannabe tradies they are. Be professional.
I think to be successful in this field you need to be able to do both, so you need to be able to learn academically and then you have to be able to learn by doing. It’s important to know how the systems work, and then know how to fix them. It is one thing that makes this field complex and is one reason why so many do not ever really become successful.
One major issue in this field is that so many people come into it, decide this is what they want to do, but they don’t know much, so we are trained to go to school. So they invest 1–2+ years and they still don’t have what it takes to hold their own as a mechanic. I truely believe that a more succesful program would be one where each class would be broken down into 3 different levels, Fundementals, Intermediate, and Advanced. These classes would be shorter but more often, except the student would spend a majority of time working, and would take a class maybe a few nights a month, every other month. So you learn a little bit, go practice it a little bit, go learn a little bit more. They way standard schooling is done, it’s too much, too fast, information overload. They have learned all this information they cannot use, because they are just trying to learn the basics, and by the time they get to where they need it they have lost it because they haven’t been doing it in a long time.
I have the US General 56″, both top and bottom. It’s probably the best you can get for the money, and will hold up in a professional shop environment, and is very well built. Must stronger than Husky or Craftsman. It has nothing on the Mac, Snap-on, or even Matco boxes but for the price? My setup the top is about 2.5 years old and the bottom 6 years. Because I had it so overloaded the slides took a crap and I can’t find new slides, but considering the price, and what it’s been through, I’d say it’s an excelent option.
Well, lets be fair to OP, although I see why he’s being attacked. OP is now been in the business for long enough to probably outgrow the lube tech (express?) position but not at a level to really make it as a flat rate tech. WE HAVE ALL BEEN THERE. This next step up is where most people fall off and for understandable reasons. They will bring him in at $screw/hr and then he will be given crap work, warranty work. He doesn’t know how to work the system, he will be getting experience so he will be losing his arse more than not, obviously lacks the education talking about putting antisieze on brake parts (stop it, there are proper materials for this) in the end will get a burger flippers paycheck, but going through a lot of stress and the burger flipper doesn’t have to buy his own fryer.. Chrysler warranty times are among the worse.