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A Mechanic's Life - Tales From Under the Hood

2892 messages,  Last post on May 22, 2013 at 9:48 PM

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Messages Page 137 of 290

#1355 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [thecardoc3] by steve_ HOST

Feb 13, 2013 (8:47 am)

Replying to: thecardoc3 (Feb 13, 2013 12:10 am)
The dealers bought a lot of it on themselves by getting all their self-protection laws passed. Some state laws now require the manufacturer to pay retail prices to the dealers for repair work. That costs the consumer more (since dealers have more incentive to raise their rates) and discourages the manufacturer from investing more in repair training.
 
And woe be to any manufacturer who tries to come up with some way to bypass the dealer and fix car problems directly. I'm surprised the dealers haven't sued GM for remote diagnosing car problems with OnStar.

#1356 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [steve_] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Feb 13, 2013 (9:11 am)

Replying to: steve_ (Feb 13, 2013 8:47 am)
Well that's a franchise issue. You can't charge mega bucks for a franchise and then undercut your franchisee by selling the same hamburger for .25 cents less on Amazon.com

#1357 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [thecardoc3] by xwesx

Feb 13, 2013 (10:30 am)

Replying to: thecardoc3 (Feb 13, 2013 12:10 am)
I can't argue with you on that. My son loves diagnosing and fixing issues, but while I will encourage him to be familiar with vehicles, I could not, in good conscience, encourage him to become a professional automotive technician.
 
As for the Fiesta, I filled it up last night and, of course, it had no issues at all.

#1358 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [Mr_Shiftright] by steve_ HOST

Feb 13, 2013 (10:36 am)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Feb 13, 2013 9:11 am)
Why not? Microsoft sells their products themselves or you can go to Best Buy and get a mouse or Excel. They have authorized resellers, and spiff and incentive programs, so in a lot of ways it's not much different than McDonalds.
 
There are lots more dealers than car factories around so the laws are stacked so that the dealers profit, and the heck with the car makers' ability to ride herd on the dealers. That makes distribution and retail and repair costs higher.
 
And if a dealer has lousy techs or doesn't invest in all the latest scan tools, or overcharges customers for service, there's not much the manufacturer can do about it in a businesslike fashion.

#1359 of 2892 Re: How would you have handeled this? [thecardoc3] by srs_49

Feb 13, 2013 (11:34 am)

Replying to: thecardoc3 (Feb 12, 2013 9:44 am)
So how much do you know about their cost of doing business
 
Let me turn that around. Do you think (the shops) they would provide me a breakdown of their hourly rate, so I, as a consumer, can truly evaluate whether I think the rate is fair or not?
 
Direct salary
health care (if any)
workman's comp
retirement (if any)
capital expenses (several categoried here)
overhead (secretary, etc)

#1360 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [Mr_Shiftright] by thecardoc3

Feb 13, 2013 (12:27 pm)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Feb 13, 2013 7:49 am)
I'd gladly welcome my daughter to work in my shop if she desired it. I would not want her to work for a dealer under the current system. There are some independents that I would be happy if she worked for them.

#1361 of 2892 Re: How would you have handeled this? [srs_49] by thecardoc3

Feb 13, 2013 (12:33 pm)

Replying to: srs_49 (Feb 13, 2013 11:34 am)
Having that information in hand, my accountant constantly tells me that we average 30-40% under priced..... The amount varies because some jobs simply produce greater revenues per hour.
 
whether I think the rate is fair or not?
 
To do that you have to put yourself into a position where you also dictate the standard of living for the business owner. That's wouldn't be "fair" in anyone's book. You wouldn't tolerate someone else (like me) deciding that for you would you?

#1362 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [steve_] by thecardoc3

Feb 13, 2013 (12:43 pm)

Replying to: steve_ (Feb 13, 2013 8:47 am)
Some state laws now require the manufacturer to pay retail prices to the dealers for repair work. That costs the consumer more
 
Now wait one minute, you've tried to push the idea that warranty work was "free" to the consumer when challenging some of my posts.
I've always said, nothing is free, someone is paying for it somewhere.
 
discourages the manufacturer from investing more in repair training.
 
The technicians don't work for the manufacturer, they work for the dealer. When it comes to warranty pay rates the manufacturers labor times are according to certain manufacturers an agreement between the O.E. and the dealership and are not intended to have any reflection on a dealership employee's wages. That they say is a seperate agreement between the dealer and the employee.
 
And woe be to any manufacturer who tries to come up with some way to bypass the dealer and fix car problems directly
 
Why would they want to do that and have to pay real wages and benefits?
 
 I'm surprised the dealers haven't sued GM for remote diagnosing car problems with OnStar.
 
I'm not surprised that you still hang onto the idea that OnStar is actually capable of really performing diagnostics.

#1363 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [steve_] by thecardoc3

Feb 13, 2013 (12:47 pm)

Replying to: steve_ (Feb 13, 2013 10:36 am)
Microsoft sells their products
 
Look at what that says, and then think about this over all issue. If it doesn't occur to you what the difference is then think about it some more.

#1364 of 2892 Re: Diplomacy isn't my strongsuit [thecardoc3] by steve_ HOST

Feb 13, 2013 (1:36 pm)

Replying to: thecardoc3 (Feb 13, 2013 12:43 pm)
The technicians don't work for the manufacturer, they work for the dealer.
 
And the state franchise laws won't let the manufacturers open repair shops.
 
I don't understand your MSFT comment - they sell service too and will be happy to diagnose your computer problems for $60 and up depending on whether it's a software install issue or an "advanced" issue. The "advanced" rates are like $260 an incident.

Messages Page 137 of 290

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