Dealerships should have a balcony to watch mechanics do work.

We should all wear body cams on our jobs...
Wait. Nevermind ;-)

 

People do it in my profession all the time. Everyone has an opinion but very few have actual knowledge. Even fewer of those are going to trust someone else when they have said knowledge.

The idea sounds good but you can ask police officers, nurses, doctors, mechanics and countless others about people who think they know what they're talking about making a big stink about something they actually have no concept over.

 

I worked in dealerships for 10 years. There was nothing worse than when a customer was standing there watching over your shoulder. Usually that’s when things also tend to go wrong or something break. Most dealers and people are honest. It’s like anywhere/anything. There are shit bags everywhere.

 

Stop it with your environmentalism, Bill. Not everyone’s an activist.

 

I have no desire to watch.

I request the used parts be returned to me before the work begins.

I do check the work BEFORE I PAY.

These simple steps give me the tools to verify the invoice and the completed service.

Trust but Verify.

 

This is very reasonable and I stand behind people checking over our work. In my shop, after I'm done working on a truck, I look over it. Then my foreman does a quality check on my work. Then if a truck driver is responsible, they should also do a pre-trip inspection before getting on the road.

 

Aren’t you a white collar office engineer?

 

I sure wasn't going to watch the plumber install a garbage disposal a few months ago. I cleaned all my stuff out of the sink cabinet and let him have at it.

This post is just more proof that the general service industry folks just need to call out for a few weeks and Karen and Kevin can change their own fucking oil and make their own fucking pasta

 

That's why the call it an "Operating Theater"

 

Nice, a venting thread.
Everybody have fun tonight, everybody Wang Chung tonight.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BoXu6QmxpJE#

 

Just do your own work.

 

I should build bleachers on my shoulders so folks can watch me set tile?

 

There is a fundamental problem with watching, especially if you're watching for execution errors.

Do you know every step in the procedure? If not, then how can you notice an error?


I have seen fast service bays when 4 techs are working an oil change. 1 tech in the pit, 1 tech in the engine bay, 2 techs rotating wheels. How would you be able to watch all the techs????

Frankly, I don't care how the procedure is executed. The work needs to be complete before I leave.
Its up to me to TRUST the work is complete and I need to VERIFY the work has been completed.

In reality, your home is a much larger investment. Did the OP watch their house being constructed???

 

Or maybe a closed circuit tv in the wait area that would be neat.

 

Go Pros feeding You Tube.

Might gig for HGTV if the right person watches.

 

That strategy worked out real well for PATCO in 1981.

 

Nobody likes being watched at work it's the most annoying thing ever

 

Must all have better luck than me at the dealership.

I've got more than one story of a lube tech totally botching the most basic jobs.

My most recent is another painful reminder that at the very least you should either double check everything once they hand you the keys back and be prepared to sit back down for a good amount of time.

Some things to consider since I know I'll get both sides with this one. I am a mechanic, in the semi conductor industry, but most of my daily tasks are far more difficult than a broad range of automotive mechanic work. At this time my opinion is Toyota has offered me free services, I should be able to take them up on that without drama or being put out for additional money or time as the services in the first 20k are the most basic things that anyone with a few months of work should be able to handle them. This is the only reason I take it there as I have been burned in the past. Ok..

Took my Tundra in for the 10k Toyota care oil change.

Wheels and tires rotated and came back missing about 4oz's in weights as the tech had knocked them off hitting the rotor shield.

Didnt realize that at first, only caught it because as I left I noticed a rattle that wasnt there before service. Pulled off the road into a parking lot and began checking. First saw one of the 4 bolts that hold the oil filter cover on the TRD Pro skid was sticking out about 1/8" further than the rest. Tapped on the cover but it wasnt loose. Checked the wheels and found the weight so figured that was the rattle. Picked it up and noted the 3 other missing weights and the remaining residue from the adhesive they left behind.

Continued driving home aware that I would have to check the filter cover at home, rattle now worse. Again, in the next parking lot, got under the truck. The tech had loosened the rear mounting bolts on the skid and left them hand tight. This is not necessary for the oil change, my guess is they started there and realized it had a filter cover for maintenance. One of the bolts had fallen out and I was lucky enough to find it in the parking lot. Also lucky that I travel with tools so I was able to resecure the bolts.

Finally I got home and addressed the bolt on the filter cover that was sticking out, unsurprisingly it was cross threaded. I removed it and found the fat thread was the 2nd thread on the bolt, the bolt took 5 rotations to remove, so the tech had crossed it immediately and then turned it 5 more times, ultimately damaging most of the threads in the skid plate as well.

I spoke with the dealer and they agreed to fix everything but it would take time as these actions (actions a normal mechanic should be able to do) would require one of their senior techs to fix and it wasnt something their lube techs could do. I got a tap and die and fixed everything in about 5 minutes.

The dealer ended up paying for everything that I paid for in the end and all is well now.

My point is these are basic tasks and there are plenty of stories of the entry level guys messing it up. They have to work fast and be efficient, a challenge that is a core part of my job in a 24hr field. Had I let the dealer fix their mistake I would have gone without a truck for essentially a day, all for an oil change and tire rotation. Seeing how Im not the only one with stories like this and why so many people say to do it yourself or to double check is unfortunate. Yeah having people watch over you will likely increase your chance of screwing up, I personally hate it when management decides that it would help if they stand there and watch me work, to ensure everything is being done right. Hell, that really lends to the why watch if you dont understand the work, somehow they can devine if Im troubleshooting something correctly, despite being an administrative employee. But I get the OPs sentiment.

 

Out of order!

Everyone is an activist. Even those actively working to suppress the activists.