Jim Warman

Greg... there is an old (are you ready for this?) TSB for adjusting the synchronizer on the Taurus if you don't have the positioning tool.... I'll see if I can find the time later to see if I can find the number. This TSB has a very good graphic of roughly what you should be seeing for sensor traces.. Your CKP and CMP (aside from the backasswards crank 'signature')look pretty good.... Recently, I nearly got "hung out to dry" for the third time in the last 10 years... and I have a new rule of thumb. When I am given a set of circumstances where my diag begins with "Maybe it's the....", I'm going to reach over the motor and unplug the alternator... Grasping at straws? Perhaps.... Easy and quick to do? Without a doubt.... What I have learned... it isn't necessarily the amount of ripple... it is the frequency of the ripple that matters. Back when automotive processors were much slower, it was rare to see any concerns.... Now - baud rates are much higher and all of those network circuits festooning current vehicles can be nothing more than a fancy antenna array. It's a long shot.... but what do you have to lose?

What a bunch of vultures... feeding off the misfortunes of a service man, no less.... After that last go 'round, you should be a little more sympathetic to what this young man must be going through..... Somebody want to pass that popcorn down over here? Anybody bring any beer?

Had the apprentice put everything back together and drive around the back lot until the truck wouldn't move... After about 10 minutes, he calls me on his cell.... He's sitting in reverse and the truck wont move..... until I unplug the trans harness.... Laying in a foot of snow, I can hear the trans pressure rise and the truck lurch into gear.... reverse and high pressure are transmission defaults... Anyway... now we know the concern isn't in the trans so we can concentrate on the (easier to reproduce) VCT trouble.... Long story short.... all that work and all the truck needed was an alternator (excessive ripple). I had mentioned that our initial diag stank to high heaven but the "popular vote" in the shop was that I was crazy and it needed a trans. Did I mention that I'm not above saying "I told you so...."?

"excuse me sir..." is the way I "have" to be now.... "oops, did I get ya?" was me then... If you think I can be, errrrrr, brusque now, you should have known me thirty some years ago... Back before I met my loving bride, I was the guy you didn't want your sister to date. After all.... this is Alberta... the land where men are men ..... and sheep are nervous

At various shops that didn't pay much attention to free ranging customers, I seem to have had a multitude of those "little" accidents..... "Awwww, man.... Did I accidently spray you with that?". In the 70s I had one extreme case.... I look up and here's the customer using my tools to work on his taillights... I sat on my bench and started banging my boots against the shelf. Customer asked if I was done and I replied that I wan't... but I felt that if my tools were working by themselves, I didn't have to.... I was called up on the carpet for that one....

Ford reman injectors kinda leave me "cold", anyway. One of our techs suffered through about 30 hours on a FQR 7.3, jumping through hotlines hoops. A set of aftermarket injectors was the cure. If worst comes to worst, pop the exhaust manifolds and look for any "smoking guns".

One other side effect of the modern world that even Ford doesn't consider.... junk mail... How many people might just cast a letter from Ford aside as just another unwanted intrusion into the mailbox? You can beat some people over the head with a piece of information.... and they will refuse to acknowledge it... Much can depend on the "paper trail", too. In late 93, I purchased a lease return F150 directly from the lessee.... Six or seven years later, I got a recall notice for the fuel pressure regulator recall. Similarly, I got the customer satisfaction letter regarding the DPFE on my 02 SuperCrew... also a lease return.... However... the "chain" can be broken if a vehicle is purchased from a non-Ford car lot or in a private sale. In these cases, Ford can only work with the info that they have.... And that leaves us with several "bottom lines".... As a Ford store, I "should" run OASIS on everything that comes through the door... Sadly, I don't always do what I say (something to do with only 24 hours in a day or something silly like that).... A lot of times, I can find an open recall.... and there's going to be a (usually easy) .3 or more that might even tie in with what you're doing. An independant shop needs to subscribe to whatever documentation and/or training to allow them to effectively service their customers needs. Used properly and conscientiously, the independant can use that info to impress his customer. iATN.... the number of times some bozo has 6 or 8 hours of diag time in to a job.... only to realize that his efforts are covered under a TSB (that only pays a fraction of what he has in to the job), an FSA or the damned thing still has warranty. Finally, some of the onus has to fall on the shoulders of the owner.... Folks need to stop looking in the driveway and seeing "old Betsy". That friggin' thing sitting there is a MACHINE... that's all it's ever been and that's all it's going to be. At the same time, it is their best friend and their worst enemy... They should become a little less involved with "driving" it and a little more involved in "owning" it... All mainstream manufacturers have "web presence"... Here, we can register newly purchased products... and, in Fords case, we can even register our used purchases.... (IIRC, "myford.com") and re-establish the chain of communication. The modern world has people trying desparately to abdicate their responsibilities at a time when concentrating on them may be a better approach. But then, I can make anything "complicated".... And that, Joey... is probably a whole lot more than you asked for. But it's a complex world and I'm not sure there are many simple questions left...

Dwayne.... You work on them when the customer is sitting in them? Not gonna be too safe when you're tangled up in the belt and the customer decides he heard someone tell him to crank it. We have a pretty strict "no customers" policy. If we need to show them something, they get escorted to the vehicle, shown what is needed and escorted back to the waiting area. FWIW, I don't care if a customer watches me work... I just don't need them underfoot. And the distraction of having them there could lead to errors and/or omissions. I explain insurance and compensation regs to them and gently remind them that talking to me in the shop costs over $100/hr.... talking to me at the service desk is free.... I treat them the way I would want to be treated.... all I ask in return is that they treat me the way they would want to be treated. As for up-sells.... I'm not a salesman... never was - never could be. All I can do is tell someone what I would do if it were mine and why I would do it. Bear in mind that I am the guy that will throw away 4 mm of brake lining because "now" is the most convenient time for me to get that task out of the way. I have no assurance that the pads wont tell me they "need" changing when I have the time... (in spite of what Larry says and that damned snow shovel). Gawd... I can almost imagine a spring barbecue with the bunch of us swilling John Molsons finest (in a mug fresh from the freezer and a little clamato for substance - affectionately called a 'clameye').

Didn't know where to put this.... so it's going here. I've been busier than a cat trying to cover crap on a marble floor.... and I'm trying to shepherd this job, too.... I'll try to keep it short and sweet.... 06 F350... 5.4 came in on the hook. Customer had called me previously (just before the tow truck made an obscene amount of money)... "the truck is 'bouncy' and it wont go forward or backward". SHIT happened before I got called in. Our initial diag stinks to high heaven. Coast clutch codes - pull pan - see some crap (I have no idea how much or what) and call a trans.... Once the truck is safely outside in two feet of snow, I get the RO and the request to cost cap it.... OK... I mention that I didn't like cost capping something without an idea of the failure but it's a good fleet customer and the truck is an oilpatch "bandaid" unit (on site "medical" centre) so it hasn't seen any abuse other than too much idling. The FQR is installed and the "bouncy" makes itself evident.... can't remember the code, but the PPT has you change the VCT actuator early in the process. Truck has a Motorcraft filter and the VCT screen is clean. This was for bank two, BTW. Tech changed out the actuator and all seemed well.... except on the road test the truck wont go forward or backward... comes back on the hook.... but the tow truck driver drove the unit up on to the roll-off... and there are coast clutch codes in memory.... So... I'm trying to do all my other stuff (all the while Larry and the snow shovel are bothering me /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif ) while I'm trying to guide a 2nd year apprentice through a maze he hasn't been introduced to..... (the force IS strong in this one, ObiWan). Line pressure goes to zero when it pleases.... and damned if bank two isn't still having contribution problems. I have the apprentice call Lukewarm Line and, in spite of something I can't describe nagging at me, Lukewarm Line and I agree that we can't see any electrical failure that will deliver zero PSI line pressure. Last I saw was - in Park, PCA is at 800ish mA and line is 70 PSI. Put it in drive and raise rpm....mA drops and line pressure rises... looks good to me. Remove solenoid body and disassemble... nothing.... no slag, nothing to indicate any "gotchas". Lukewarm Line tells us to get another trans.... HEY... I'm happy to have one less thing to think about.... until tonight... when I have other things to think about... but I'm thinking about this instead. Bottom line.... I have "something" that is bothering bank two. It gave a VCT code that I am unsure if it came back. An actuator didn't fix it from my point of view. I keep seeing coast clutch codes (from memory a P0751 and a P27??). Sometimes I have no line pressure (he didn't save the movies) but when I do have line pressure, it looks great. I had the tech look for any "commonality" between the bank two phaser and the trans.... nothing circuitwise but I'm going to have a hard time showing any of these guys how to use "harness overview".... So.... here I am - hat in hand.... insufficient information... wierd problem... no personal time to spend on it..... WTF am I missing? Somebody kick me in the dupa....

We tread carefully, there, Larry.... Too many times we'll need to get a "good" customer back on the road "suddenly". Nearest stock for the desired part will be "USA" (several days away) or <GASP> "no stock, USA"... but some dealer in Armpit, Saskatchewan will have one.... And we want it... we want it bad. He will remember how we've treated him in the past. Flip side, he knows we are looking at him the same way.... If I'm laying face down in the street (needing a part).... I'm going to remember if a guy kicked me or helped me up.... Cashing in on a situation isn't a good option for us.

Not a one, so far... but I'm not sure if any owner letters have gone out, yet... Had several 7.3s in ths shop in the last few days but "did you check OASIS" is almost like a racial slur.... We are currently at 3 weeks booking - we upsell what we find but have to do it "carefully" when it's like this. Once the word hits the street locally, I expect all hell to break loose....

Gary.... it's a little more like starting a popularity contest than brushing off warranty work. For many years, I have held firm to the notion that it is OK to "fire a customer". Customers that you can rarely please - no matter how far you bend over for them..... Customers that only come to you when they are out of money from going to "cheap shops"... and get pissed because you want to be sure of what the other guys have done before you commit to anything..... and get even pisseder (is that a word?) when you, as a better store, want a better store price for the process. You're not going to turn a warranty customer in to a retail customer by shoving him to the back of the line.... If your store is busy, you begin to prioritize customers.... "this guy is going to be a good customer, that guy is going to be a difficult customer". We aren't supposed to do that, but all of our guys need our store to be successful... and they can help the process.... At the same time, in various places, it can be "boohoo... we have nothing in the shop....". Ain't nobody going to be sent to the back of a line that doesn't exist, right? Unless...... a tech doesn't want to quote an estimate because "he" might not be the one to get it..... And this goes back to another thread on another forum..... about costing out the labour on an estimate. Some techs guard this "right" jealously..... Part of my job is to help our guys write a comprehensive estimate that will indicate the labour ops to our SAs - the people that cost out our labour. And to help our SAs prepare a cost estimate that doesn't screw the tech or the customer.... I put my "mark" on all estimates that I feel I need to review and, if I have any doubts, I approach the JOURNEYMAN that wrote it to be sure that he is comfortable with the quote.... even though he may be too busy to get the job in the end.... If your shop isn't too busy or if your shop doesn't get enough of the "right" work, it will be difficult to see the forest with all those trees in the way.... Like Kieths shop, we are booked well in advance... a week and a half.... but only when it is slow. We have had many periods where we are booked 3 weeks... Almost any dealer shop can be like that if we cultivate the customers. Yes... it can be hard work.... yes, it has it's rewards.... FWIW.... we are looking for two licenced techs and will consider 4th year apprentices. And we'll be able to keep them busy - real busy. Since Nov 19 there are only two days I haven't been in the store.... both of them were Sundays and this Saturday coming is my Saturday.... When I get to work in the morning, I hit the ground running and I get home when I get home. Our flat rate guys never fail to book over 200 hours/month... There is always the opportunity to work a long day... and that work will either be gravy.... or put you in a position where your next job will be gravy (oops... make that GRAVY). It should never be about "us" and "them". We are all in this together.... for "us" to do well, the store needs to do well.... and, if the boss isn't willing to share the rewards, it is time to find one that will. Those kinds of bosses are out there.... they're just looking for people to help find the rewards.

Tony... this guy appears to be rich in management skills but he is, by admission, totally bereft of any automotive knowledge. He knows he's heading in to a learning curve as far as what can go wrong in a shop... especially a shop top heavy in "greenware". We had lunch today and discussed many of the things I see as assets and shortcomings in our shop. And he is very receptive to my ideas. This man isn't stepping in to the position with the idea that he's going to be playing CYA from the git-go. Our last service manager did many things very, very right.... but she also did many things badly.... Several times she told me I "didn't know anything about this business"..... I always felt this was an odd thing for someone so young and with only 4 years of total experience to tell an old fart. Sadly, she was partially right.... after this many years, you start to become aware of the things that you DON'T know. Ahhh, to be young again...... the good old days - back when I knew everything....

Larry, we're all in the same trenches (it's just that Ford gives shrimp dip to the guys in the southern end of the trenches /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif ).... Let's not forget it is already almost 2008.... and we will (all too soon) probably see a Ford powered diesel F-series.... While engines appear to be gaining in longevity, their resistance to even minor amounts of abuse seems to be shrinking and the assembly technology seems to be getting harder to deal with. I've purchased more torque wrenches in the last five years than I bought in my entire career before that. FWIW, I've gotten this URL on to the ProTech message board in Canada several times.... never checked to see if they're still there, though...

Tony... with almost the same regularity, we are treated to the same on our message board... With very few exceptions, none are even remotely humourous (but, I didn't get to a curmudgeon without working at it).

You've touched on a thorny subject, Gary. It shouldn't really matter if the tech that found the upsell get's it or not - because the shop should be busy, anyway.... busy enough that everyone has "too much" work. While we must all look out for ourselves in many fashions, it isn't just about us as individuals in this sort of circumstance. Kieth is talking about cultivating retail customers for the store. Making the store successful is part of the process of making ourselves successful. The warranty period is our opportunity to win these customers over for the future, after their warranty expires.... Same thing for FSAs - another chance to show customers that we are better than the "other guys". Yes, I'm big on us learning and perfecting our craft.... but that isn't going to help us if the bays are empty. We are the crew and the store is our "ship". It's important for us to look after ourselves - but just as important for us to make sure our ship isn't going to sink.

Getting back into my role as "posting !@#!?$!".... may last job of the week (finished on what should have been a day off and barely two hours before me and my smiling face were due at the staff Xmas party) was an early 04 that ran bad cold and not much better warm. It already had the induction heating flash, two memory codes for cylinder 3 and a couple (IIRC) of boost related codes - most likely from the misfire on 3. As part of our normal test routine, we have started looking for ICP bias... Just wondering if anyone else has started to include doing this in their normal diag and what guys are finding when they do look at ICP_V?

You mean????? Yessssssss... Here it is, Sunday lunchtime - and I'm at hhhhoooommmmeeee!!!! Thanks, Larry... I am finding a new life.... but it involves a snow shovel /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crybaby2.gif I met our new Service Manager last night... no automotive experience but he has an impressive grasp (and background) in people managing skills. Close to my age, we think alike about things work related. We're "doing" lunch tomorrow to hopefully lay out a framework for what seems like it might be a rewarding relationship. I've never had the pleasure of this experience and I hope we can form the team we need to be. Usually it's a case of "this is our new service advisor/writer/manager... see ya later.". Wow... I just realized I'm actually a bit excited about all of this... I'll keep you posted... Now... If I can only find my damned pipeliners (a particularly nasty looking winter boot NIOSH and CSA approved) and my insulated covies, I'll be all set for this new life that Larry has talked me into... Thanks, Larry /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif

I know how you feel, Kieth... two green people on the front desk and the DP helping (he was once a SM but is rusty as hell) and still the same overload of green apprentices in the shop. The way I feel this AM, I might start yelling at people for no reason.... /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/shrug.gif Staff Xmas party tonight.... I hope I'm smart enough to get shit-faced and sit in the corner with my mouth shut....

I can't speak for Tony.... I have three trucks in the shop right now but I only have one bay. We use evert last square foot of floor space when we need to. As for "lucky"..... (Larry... here's some "ammo" - I really don't have a life)..... Once again, "duty" calls.... Tomorrow will mark 20 days in the shop with only one day off in that entire time (might explain some of my "edginess" this past while). Bad enough that the taxman likes me so much.... my loving bride has gotten used to having that kind of money around....

Kieth, I'm told over and over that Canada accounts for about 10% of Fords <something>... production? ... sales?.... profits?.... I can no longer remember.... We are small potatoes.... and small potatoes we will remain. We are subject to the same shrinking SLSTs that you guys see (well, not ME anymore... but I am paying a "debt" that flat raters wouldn't want). Given that many failures are generated by demographic and/or climatic influences, we can see stuff that many US based techs don't (and it works the other way - to a point - too). At the same time, we are treated like the bastard redheaded step child (well, I am - or used to be - a redhead.... and I can sure be a bastard some days) that Ford refuses to acknowledge but must bear responsibility for. FQRs are the responsibilty of the lowest bidder. We can be sent on fools errands.... "try this" - "try that"... and Ford will never admit that their rebuilder is churning out substandard assemblies and that they are charging mark-up that doesn't reflect the quality of the piece. This may be something you US guys might be feeling too. No UMT Challenge for us.... no cruise (no shrimp dip either) for us... we're not even allowed to call ourselve "Senior Master". Instead, we get a DoM suggesting that disconnecting EGR valves is a viable repair alternative and will reduce our warranty rate... this will make him look good and he will treat us accordingly. I have no idea where this !@#!?$! wound up... but I hope it's unpleasant We're the wierd people up north.... Our dollar is worth more that the US dollar.... but a diesel truck with a small load of toys costs us $20G more the equivalent truck south of the border. We all carry a lot of the same burdens.. but we aren't exactly equal... FWIW... there is a "Canadian attitude" that has us face many concerns differently from what (dare I say) "most" US citizens might. When I go to Stars2, I see a pretty hefty list of countries served from this one gateway.... Ford has seen fit to keep us from talking to each other.... Thankfully, Kieth has seen fit to allow it.

ENCORE!!!

Seems like almost any thing I say is on the "list".... sometimes.. Spelling mistakes help, sometimes.... In "P1211 nightmare", Andy wrote a post that was taken under review... I had him back up one screen and change the spelling of some words... spelling mistakes but the intent was still evident - passed with flying colours. But don't anyone listen to Alex... it's not like I'm a shitdisturber or anything..... /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smirk.gif

Most of our customers like those stainless steel screen fronts... We rarely see any "traditional" vinyl winterfronts... But we do have a couple of guys that go whole hog.... belly tarp and the whole nine yards. FWIW, it's been zero F or right around it for the last week. I can't say if it's the vehicles that have changed or the customers.... we don't even see that much cardboard stuffed in front of radiators, these days.

Hi, Chris..... I think I may have earned the title of "soapbox king"..... You can't bring up any subject that I can't spout off about.... Before I start... tell your friends to go pound sand.... I don't know if they work in the trade... if they do, THEY are going to be on the stinky end of the stick if they don't work at a dealer.... A while ago (OK, it was sometime in the early 70's) I was young and full of piss and vinegar. I was "EVERYMAN!!!". I didn't need a sound knowledge of product 'cause I could fix damned near anything. Oh, I did pretty good on my wits and abilities... if nothing else, I did put my heart into my work (you will often see me use terms like "work", "job" and "career"... they are all very different from each other).... But there were ever so many times that I was a day late and a dollar short. Five years ago, I came back to a dealer.... I"m gettin' long in the tooth.... If there's a bad habit, I have it.... I was real worried about going back on flat rate.... I was real worried about the technology I would need to embrace.... I'm old and I can remember the first HEI distributor I saw - WTF am I going to do with that? Today, here I am.... I am customer oriented - happy customers = many good things. I have decent and ever growing product knowledge (clue - think electronic feature group.... be the guy that knows accessories.... how to train TPMS sensors without furbling through manuals.... learn radio displays... be "the answer guy") - spend your own free time at it (those reality shows will rot your brain, anyway). Play with electrical.... learn how to use your DMM properly... learn how to use the PC/ED to your advantage.... Powers and grounds get load tested... matter of fact, if your testing a wires continuity, load testing is the only way to do it. The guy that wrote the PC/ED is a moron and probably still has trouble at school when it comes to "sandbox" time. Speaking of electrical... work very hard at electrical.... Kirschoffs law is probably one of the most important. Learn how to do voltage drops properly. Electrical is THE hardest thing for any man to wrap his head around.... surprising because it is so very simple and the "laws" never change. If you're good at electrical, you are in the catbird seat. When you work at a dealer, you are at the cutting edge of technology. Working on this stuff is what will earn you a living.... Separate yourself from the "mob". Be judged by your own abilities, accomplishments and knowledge. We all make mistakes.... admit them and acknowledge them and show that you have learned from the experience.... Be honest with your bosses... help your service advisors... be good to your customers. Every time you do something - have a "why". Some day, you will see the importanmce of having a "why". If something is worth doing, it is worth doing to the best of our abilities. It also deserves all of our attention. I've seen too many "techs" with "neck down" syndrome.... They get into a job and go on autopilot... no thought process involved in the repair. This is getting long, and I have so much else to say.... It's getting late so let's skip over a few things and get back to "job", "work" and "career". Career.... this is what I do.... it doesn't matter where I do it. If I am to earn a personal reputation.... there are those things I must learn to enhance that perception. I must also learn how to handle a customer.... how to handle a service advisor.... so many things. This is my "career".... My "wurk" (always put "you" in your "wurk").... this is what I am doing in my bay. It needs to be of the highest quality that "I" am capable of.... The things I do are all about "me". My job.... this term is a little bit interchangeable. In the main sense.... my "job" is where I do "wurk" that involves my "career". It comes natural to call one instance of my "wurk" "A" job. When I punch out at the end of the day.... I try to leave my job behind... I take my "career" with me where-ever I go. Cut to the chase.... I make a nearly obscene wage... My hours can be long but that can be the nature of the beast. I do what I need to do to make me better than the next guy (I have a very low thresh-hold for substandard repair or anything else that may place me or my chosen career in a bad light... I'm not about to hack my way to stardom). Decide where you want your trade to take you - the go there. How obscene is my paycheque? One recent "impulse" buy was an 05 Mustang convertible... My wife rarely gives me the opportunity to drive it /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crybaby2.gif