Jim Warman Posted April 9, 2011 Share Posted April 9, 2011 In another thread in another forum, I mentioned that we have the SuperStarII tester handy and ready to use... with the note that I still get the joy of working on Lincoln air suspensions (you need the SS2 right up to 1997 for air suspension). Anyway, that triggered another train of thought. It seems that there isn't a week goes by that I don't see at least one tech working in an independent shop berate dealership techs in general and quite often they even seem to specify FORD dealership techs... This usually gets my attention since I am proud to a fault of where I work, what I do and where I am. The usual diatribe indicates that we couldn't fix a sandwich if our life depended on it, we are thoughtless and inconsiderate and, if there are bandits in the trade, it is the dealer tech that is a bandit while Mr. Independent "I can fix anything without proper tools and manuals" has only his customers best interests at heart... Up until you see the gem that will eventually come - sometimes not very often, but always bringing delight. From the keyboard of an independent tech on iATN - "If I can't figure this one out, I will have to send it to the dealer. I hate doing that because those guys don't know anything". Not only that, he is calling down the very people that would help him... Insert adage about making sure the boot you piss on today isn't attached to the ass you kiss tomorrow. Sidebar... much of the (there's a better word but I can't think of it right now) 'disdain' that other techs feel for dealer techs is generated, in part, by the fact that we wont babysit them through a repair that they are ill equipped (skills or manual wise) to perform. In our town we have a "big box" auto repair facility... In western Canada, we lovingly call it "Cambodian Tire". Now and again, they will undertake something they shouldn't and their service manager will suddenly feel that, since he knows my name, him and I are "buds". Phone call number one will dangle a few "treats" for him - like a carrot on a stick for a donkey, I try to lead him to the realization that he needs a better scan tool, factory manuals and someone on staff that can read. Phone call number two will get a slightly larger carrot or (more often) be designed to send someone in the wrong direction. Phone call number three has me on a road test or with a paying customer. Hmmmm, maybe dealer techs are hateful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Saunoras Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 EW! don't mention lincoln air suspensions. I breathed a sign of relief when I learned my last bag job was a 1996 MY towncar. I thought to myself...... surely that has an inflation procedure through the OBDII connection WRONG! How surprised do you think I was to find out via wsm that the old OBDI connector is now used strictly for air suspension diagnostics and i would have to pull out ss2 and try to get that thing to work. Ours has more tape on it than a hockey stick. Somehow I managed to trick NGS into thinking it was a 95 towncar and found the procedure that way. Don't even ask me how I got it to work, it falls under the blind squirrel finding a nut category. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Clayton Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 Phone rings in the service area, I happen to be walking by, "hey this guy on the phone has a question", "Well have him pull the car up next to the phone and I will take a look at it".... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted April 10, 2011 Author Share Posted April 10, 2011 I'm often handed customer calls from those that spend a lot of money in our store. I'm caught betwixt the devil and the deep blue sea. I am "supposed" to be affiliated with the service department yet answering a phone call might benefit the sales department or the parts department - depending on the customer and/or the question. I do my best to avoid "wasting" time... but I have written "SCHMOOZING" on my time card more than once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSHTech Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 From the keyboard of an independent tech on iATN - "If I can't figure this one out, I will have to send it to the dealer. I hate doing that because those guys don't know anything". Not only that, he is calling down the very people that would help him... I love how dealer technicians are generally seen as overcharging, arrogant, pricks, from technicians in other sectors of the industry. Until they have a vehicle that can't be figured out. Then they just ship it to the dealer. Why? Becuase they do realize, whether they like it or not, that the dealership personnel are more capable of diagnosing and fixing it. That "arrogance" is actually experience. The higher labor rates are the price to pay to have access to the advanced diagnositc equipment, the OEM manuals, the hotline, the message boards. All those resources. And as for being pricks...well maybe that one does fit in most cases. Originally Posted By: Brad Clayton Phone rings in the service area, I happen to be walking by, "hey this guy on the phone has a question", "Well have him pull the car up next to the phone and I will take a look at it".... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Clayton Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 The sad thing is, with the addition of webcams and Skype services, customers can pull their cars up to the "phone" so we can have a look see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted April 12, 2011 Author Share Posted April 12, 2011 Several years ago (maybe 4 or 5 give or take) I saw a news article on TV or the web (it was a video) where some outfit was proposing a drive-up kiosk... plug in the DLC, swipe your credit card or debit card and receive a printout with codes, code definitions and "diagnosis" - this would be that vague kind of 'radio talk show' type diagnostics, I imagine. Recently a customer (Dwayne knows him - he has a BIG truck with a stovepipe) had trouble trying to clear a P1000 - he suggested that I reflash his truck to get rid of it..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrbudge Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 The saddest thing about this story to my mind is how one technician or group of technicians will criticize another technician or group of technicians in a public forum. We are all the same in the public's eyes, and fighting among ourselves as a trade only makes us all look bad. I have had my share of handoffs from other shops, but never would I throw someone else under the bus to make myself look good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbriggs Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 When was the last time you heard a doctor say something bad about another doctor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 When was the last time you heard a doctor say something bad about another doctor? My "ex" primary care physician had a dislike for chiropractors. Not my chiropractor specifically but the general practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exmod110 Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 In my small town if you see one dr. then the others will not give u test results or be that helpfull on a walk in basis... do they say anything bad... no.... but saying nothing is sometimes worse!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Hey, I am an idiot? (lower lip starts to quiver) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Clayton Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Not sure why a doctor would not like chiropractics. Anyone who works on diesels should see a chiropractor once a month. Hell anyone who gets out of bed should see one on a regular basis. Oh well, the world is out of whack, asymmetrically speaking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshbuys Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Had one of the lube guys rack an E-van(extended length) like that....it pulled the rack out of the ground....LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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