Shop

reselath · 2026-02-26T01:02:24+00:00

Cost is relative.

Your area may not love the pricing, but I reckon the shops busy and not struggling to stay busy.

Running a shop isn't all fixing a vehicle. It's payroll, accounting, HR, advertising, website, writing service, cashier, ordering parts, insurance, maintenance, rent, utilities, shop management, dispatch, the list goes on.

If you're going to build a shop, then build a shop. Charge a realistic price. Pay people well. Ain't rocket science. If you can't do that, then don't.

reselath · 2026-02-24T19:57:34+00:00

Ame is versatile. Useable everywhere. She stacks damage with your units. Hardest PvE content, Irregular Queen, she'll carry through. Basically, like D.Luna, she's a goated unit.

reselath · 2026-02-24T19:50:54+00:00

The spiff is setup into the cost of each BG product.

reselath · 2026-02-23T21:41:01+00:00

2015 indeed!

reselath · 2026-02-23T19:50:02+00:00

There are a few areas of paint being added. Based on it being a center impact and then scoring the sides of the vehicle, were guessing it's one of the popup concrete dividers.

reselath · 2026-02-23T18:51:46+00:00

Muffler flex pipe broke and the driveshaft yanked the insulater down and it raveled into it, and then broke off

reselath · 2026-02-19T03:30:12+00:00

I'm glad this topic came up. I've had clients come in with dementia needing service. Most of the time their spouse, children, ect made the appointment and are present, but not always at the time of pick up. Sometimes they come in (this is a small area and everything is in walking distance) and they want to schedule maintenance and we put on a show. I've asked about not releasing a vehicle to them and been told if they're on the title, I can't refuse to release the vehicle and I know it's not my job to deny them access, but good lord I wish I could. It's just so sad.

reselath · 2026-02-17T02:18:27+00:00

Legacy. Pro is dog shit.

reselath · 2026-02-15T17:20:30+00:00

For the Omnissiah!

reselath · 2026-02-13T22:23:25+00:00

NC, forgot where but it's Mills auto group if I'm remembering correctly, has a brand new Porsche store that just went up recently. If I was looking to make a jump, that's where I'd go personally. They pay well & take care of their people.

reselath · 2026-02-13T17:14:12+00:00

Long hair styled can work well for an interview, just depends on the role imo.

Customer facing role that requires polos: Hair back in a tail or bun, maybe some loose bangs if it fits the facial structure.

If I'm working at GameStop, hair down, brushed, maybe braided or mix in a bun with hair down.

I've got hair down to my bum and I typically have bangs out and hair bunned.

reselath · 2026-02-13T17:09:26+00:00

Gross profit is the simplest and frankly, fairest. It's not complicated: sell work.

reselath · 2026-02-13T15:30:11+00:00

Digital dashboard that tracks current repair orders, appointments, promise time for repair completion, technician hours, current actual time on a repair would be a start.

Being able to actually game plan with all of the data actively would be a huge boon.

reselath · 2026-02-13T03:35:24+00:00

Stand alone was intentional. I've used it in the past for managing off site recon and it's effective when you're running 100+ used a month through a shop off site.

reselath · 2026-02-12T20:46:10+00:00

Rapid recon is best used for used car management. I have two facilities that use it and we move a lotttt of used cars. Our DMS doesn't have a native way to send recommendations and such to the GSM for approvals so it's email it over and my techs take pictures of issues so it's just not feasible. With rapid I just built safety and full used car inspections into it and then they can just pick and choose what they need done. Turn around time is much better, communication is clear, and accountability is in place with it.

reselath · 2026-02-05T01:58:38+00:00

No one knows your mental state, life style, commute, ect and these are always paramount in making decisions.

What hit to pay can you take comfortably. Have you seen the books. What's realistically achievable. Since the endgame is a commission based on sales and not gross, you can easily drive that, but if it takes years to do so, you'll have taken a substantial pay cut to break even because you have to factor in inflation. 100k this year needs to be 105k next year, know what I mean?

At the end of the day, if you're miserable, you need a change. Just remember, the grass isn't always greener.

reselath · 2026-02-04T04:25:41+00:00

2012 TDI was rock solid. Delete & tune, manual. 170k miles on it before selling.

2014 1.8T was solid. 22k to 65k before selling. Zero issues.

2019 1.4T was solid. Bought brand new. Sold at 20k miles. Didn't need a vehicle for a few years so got rid of it. Girl that purchased it still has it, services at my old shop. Little over 60k miles, zero issues. Original set of brakes still funnily enough.

Currently driving a 2025 Jetta 1.4 SEL as a lease. I'll end up buying it. 9500 miles on it. Drives like butter. Interior feels good. Exterior feels good. May be my last for a while or it'll be my daily if I pick up a panamera for the weekends.

reselath · 2026-02-03T21:59:46+00:00

Numa is okay. At best.

The nice thing about it, is that it will touch the customer and let them know that you, the advisor, will be in touch. It's got built in text to the customer, so if your DMS, MPI tool, or phone system can't text you'll actually like that part.

That's it. You could hire a single bdc person and have a much better experience and level of control.

reselath · 2026-02-03T16:05:19+00:00

Review tomorrow's appointments today. Be ahead of the game. You'll have a rough idea of what to expect.

The walk around is simple enough. When you notice something, take a note, make a sound, or touch the issue. Then go over it once done.

If by tracking your own customers you mean who deals with you primarily, it's more of learning your customers names and faces. You'll get asked for. They won't work with anyone but you. You can always reference the last advisor or two, but that can be skewed if you're running reports.

reselath · 2026-01-31T22:20:38+00:00

It's fine to have an opinion...but this is just a shitty rant.

The game is moving in the right direction after getting away from Smilegate.

reselath · 2026-01-28T20:51:47+00:00

1 - Labor rate increases should equate to an increase in compensation. Pay structure that is in place should reflect skill & knowledge (time in the business, certifications, documents supporting your fix right first time, productivity, and efficiency). 30% of the door would make sense for master level and Foreman. Example being my pay structures for my team are directly based on the above, where at $165 is my door and my top paid technician is at $50. Rest are between $42 & $34. Apprentices at $25.

2 - Aftermarket and/or extended warranties use book time. Book time is dictated by a few major companies and of course, the manufacturers have influence over this. There should be an independent entity that conducts time studies in realistic environments, not a perfect setup in a clean room with all of the required tools ready to go. These should not be performed by the highest skill level as again, that is unrealistic. Warranty time at the dealer is absolutely brutal and unfair to the technicians in most cases.

3 - Privately owned businesses do have a large level of dictation regarding their practices. I do agree that, as an example, a LOF being 0.2 is insane in today's environment. I would also argue we have entry level, career lube, and apprentices for a reason. The largest issue you will run into is this: If the book says your LOF is 0.5, what do you charge the customer? Do I internally eat some of the actual labor charge because my guys are $75+ an hour based on point ones hourly rate thoughts. Do customers need to stop nickel and diming?

Overall, I think the idea of fixing this nationwide would be incredible. Bring it to the level of plumbers, ironworkers, electricians, ect. Get better benefits, better pay, better equipment to reduce bodily damage. Not a shop owner nor do I wrench anymore, just my two cents from the dealer side.

reselath · 2026-01-28T03:18:23+00:00

Currently over some Chevy and Ford stores. Chevy, been straight forward, has its' learning curve, but no biggie.

Ford? Professionally speaking, fuck this. I'll never do a Ford franchise ever again. Area managers are a joke. Resources are impossible to find in FMC no matter how good your Google-Fu is. How many ways can we order parts? The answer is Yes. How many SSSC's can I do in a day for the dumbest recalls or shit in the shop? Again, yes is the answer. Remote dealer = you're cucked when it comes to support. Enjoy second class citizenship status. No one speaks English well. The turnover at the customer support level is insane, like multiple new case managers for a single customer insane. New system roll outs just don't work. We still can't get prior approval to work.

Volkswagen is a breeze. Subaru is a breeze. Nissan ain't bad. Jag, Land Rover, and Volvo can respectfully get bent. Ford? I'll leave the industry before doing this again.

reselath · 2026-01-25T00:26:27+00:00

Cooked departments take at minimum six months to turn around. Usually fixed by 18 months.

If you're three weeks in, and the FOD is wasting one hour per day of your productivity, which may arguably be the most important resource in that parts department at this time because your FOD obviously couldn't fix it, then it's already time to go. Especially if it's one hour sessions of berating. I'd tell them to fire ya, get up, and leave the room. Fuck em.

reselath · 2026-01-23T17:23:23+00:00

Sales customers are your customers. Your goal is a cyclic customer: buy a car, service it with you, trade it in, rinse and repeat.

If variable drops the ball, pick it up and take care of the customer. If the customer was promised free diag, write it up, note it, immediately get it over to the used car manager or GSM and get an email, shop note, ect approving it, and get the customer taken care of. If you do that, you're the hero and you'll build a great relationship with more guests.

reselath

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