"Your Recent Service Experience" Emails.. Mad service advisor

Guys... I have my truck sprayed with Corrosion Free every fall.... never a squeak or anything. I think if you guys just spray some Fluid Film...Rust Check, etc... on the squeaky parts... it will help for a long while...

I'm talking about the "no drip" kind of rust preventative product...NOT penetrating oil...that will work but too thin for long term..!!

 

You have somehow grossly minimized the importance of the service advisor while grossly over-simplifying the role of a technician. I don't even know where to start but here's some things to think about.

A good service writer is worth their weight in gold. Good meaning they can write a valid repair order that leaves the tech with little to no questions, confidently up sell work because they understand what is actually being done, they can manage a customer's expectations, they value the tech's time and move with a sense of urgency when called upon.

Techs don't have time to be out in the drive talking with every customer. They need to be in the shop performing the work. Not one SRT guide has an operation for "helping customer" and there is a reason for that. It comes down to lost productivity which equals lost revenue.

Too many dealers just want a salesman for the service dept. They don't care about anything else other than if they person can up sell and has good CSI. Those are the dealers that have shitty service. A service advisor doesn't need to be a tech but they need a basic understanding of what the fuck is going on in the shop.

Most techs are not very good with people. There's a reason they pick the solitude of the shop. Some guys are good but say too much. Some guys are just awful but are excellent at what they were hired for. I've seen too many techs try to be a writer and fail.

The first thing a manufacturer will tell a service department is that the vehicle is under no circumstance to be diagnosed on the service drive. There are a number of reasons for this but one of the biggest is the writers don't take technical training. There's an extremely likely chance that they say something that will flipa situation upside down before the fun has even begun.

Dealer techs are usually the first to hear about a problem and the last to hear about a solution. When you have a new issue you can spend hours on the phone trying to find a solution. Most of that will go unpaid. So even though you were there for 40 hours that week you might only get paid for 30 because you've been up corp's ass looking for a fix.

The life of a dealership tech is similar to that of the life of veal. You spend all of your days chained to a stall with no end in sight. You go to the writer, lunch and parts. If you're ahead on time you can go poop. Otherwise you better get your body to reschedule to home time.

 

Wow, you say service writers don't take technical training and at the same time say they are "worth their weight in gold". So you think its a good idea to have someone who know basically nothing about cars there to pre diagnose a problem AND to keep us away from techs because their such assholes that nobody can talk to them?

First of all, part of a proper repair is to diagnose it, the quickest way to do that is to just have the tech meet with the customer as a start so everyone is on the same page. This saves a TON of time for everyone. Then its up to the tech to finish troubleshooting, make the repair, and most important and always left out is to verify the repair ACTUALLY worked prior to saying its finished. This is how EVERYTHING else in this world is repaired, you act as though their is something so special about a car that it has to go to the secret guy in the back room who nobody can talk to, LOL WTF is that about, its sounds like you want us to go see the great Wizard of Oz.

BTW, techs are just like everyone else, their just people and if you see one that pissed off then ask him why and I guarantee you he will tell you its because of the corporate BS system he has to work under. Most techs at dealers end up leaving and working for a real shop, and they get to talk to the customer GOD FORBID!!!!

 

You have to read. You don't have to have technical training to have a basic understanding of what the fuck is going on.

Techs don't have time to meet every customer. They're busy fixing cars. Which is what they're paid for. They don't stand around waiting for someone to come in. They're working.

There is no reason a writer can't get the information from a customer and write a proper repair order. I've trained them. They're plenty capable of they're good. That PROPER repair order has everything a tech need to get started.

On rare occasions you'll send a tech with a customer on a test drive to verify a concern. It's not like there's a moat around the department. They can come out if absolutely needed.

Techs often leave dealerships to get out of the bullshit flat rate system. Especially now that the unions have allowed the $10/hr guy to do any and all maintenance. I fought viciously against that and continue to do so.

There is a reason for the structure. A decent dealer runs over 100 cars through a day. You have to be departmentalized to accomplish that. Mom and pop shops might run 10-15 through a day if they're lucky.

I've represented many, many manufacturers. I've been a tech, a writer, a dispatcher, asst manager, independent shop manager and warranty administrator. I've got over 20 years in this business and every shop I had a hand in had some of the best, if not the best CSI scores in the state and region.

Take my experience for value or hang on to your narrow-minded perceptions. I'll stand on my continuing education and decades of experience. Peace

 

There is definitely a time and place for a tech to talk directly to a customer, and while that may save time with certain scenarios, it's not the most productive system. When a tech and an advisor work as a team, shit gets done way faster. This is a win for the advisor, the tech, the customer, and ultimately the dealer.

Most of the time constraints i face, are not as much due to the shitty warranty labor times, but the impatient customers that do not want to leave their vehicle longer than half a day for us to diagnose and repair it. it's even worse when it's under warranty. There is a great expectation from a large amount of customers that they can just drop the car off in the morning and have it done by the end of the day.

Also, I've worked in independent shops, and several dealers (3 different manufacturers), and I would never go back to an independent shop. Most techs I've met that leave the dealer, do so because they can't hack it.

 

I agree with everything you have posted in this thread. Well said.

 

Ok, so tell me this, if the system is so good then why doesn't it work? YOU are missing the obvious, its so big you can't even see it.

 

If I were the OP, I'd be going in and having a talk with the Service Advisers boss...and maybe his boss's boss. I'm quite sure they are not cool with him/her running off customers who do not feel a 5 star review was earned with their experience.

Bill

 

After my first service I called the salesman that sold me the truck and left a message "my purchase experience was great, my first service, not so much". Within 1/2 hour I got a call from the service manager wanting to know what my issue was. After I explained to him, he apologized, explained that some of the basic service techs were not very experienced, and offered to come and get my truck, check what I had asked them to check, and return it to me. That is customer service. It shouldn't have gotten to that point but he was willing to go the extra mile to make it right. It should be noted that I live about 45 miles from the dealer.

 

This adds to my point, there are way too many unqualified people working at dealerships. In this case the newbie tech should be be mentored by the experienced techs and just fix it right the first time. What they want you to do is play employee roulette and just keep bringing your car in/playing the game until you get a good tech, this is the new norm and how it works now, it only benefits the dealer and not us. The system of training new techs is a joke, in just about every other field you must first qualify as an apprentice and then move up to journeyman. The dealers throw the brand new techs right at it right out of the gate, they call this dive in and learn and you get to be the sucker who gets to donate your car for training. This is also the primary reason that I am now DONE with warranties on cars.

 

It's not broken. If it doesn't work at the dealership by you then they either have shitty management or shitty employees. That's not the system's fault. Multiple manufacturers of vehicles large and small employ the same service system all across the world with great success.

 

That is quite the blanketed statement - better hope you're wrong since we are your only hope of social security, and all those pensions your peers managed are now worthless.

Many of us just value our time and are far more efficient than you may think - heck i'm 26 and help develop the drugs that keep you kicking!

 

I read the OP and some other posts, just to clarify, all if this is because of the leaf spring squeak? Is it really THAT bad?

 

Yes it is and there are some brilliant people in your age group, apparently they don't work at car dealers though lol. What type of drugs to develop, the ones that actually help us or the ones that just mask the symptoms and keep us coming back for more.

 

The leaf spring problem, no. The way the dealers handle it, yes.

 

I've been to at least 20 dealers around the twin cities that deal with all different makes over the past 30 years, its the same BS everywhere. Please tell me where I can find this awesome service you are talking about? I'm not trying to be a dick or funny, I seriously want to know who they are.

 

Twin Cities as in Minnesota? If so, I will tell you that Park Jeep, Dodge of Burnsville, Apple Valley Ford and White Bear Lake GMC/Buick all have great service. I've heard Burnsville Toyota is supposed to be really good but no first hand experience.

I will tell you to avoid Jeff Belzer like the fucking plague. Actual most GM dealers in the areas REALLY suck. You'll get your way but you have to punch and claw.

One thing that will help you is to make sure you're dealing with quality people. Make sure your service advisor listens, understands, and correctly documents your concern. Word for fucking word. When I wrote service, I read each job, word for word, back to every customer. A good advisor makes contact at least twice during the day. Even if there's nothing to report. Just so you know you're not forgotten. If you haven't heard anything after 4 or 5 hours then call and ask what's up.

Some advisors are good but you have to find a way to make them care about you.

Some advisors just suck. If they can't get a maintenance spiff off of you then you're nobody to them. Sadly, some managers actually promote this way of thinking.

Make yourself available for test rides to prove your concern.

Mechanics hate no problem found issues. They often don't get paid for their time on one. Don't be afraid to ask for some time with the tech working on your truck if it's completely obvious that your advisor still isn't getting it.

The surveys really are a great way to give feedback to the manufacturer. Each one is read and recorded. Debt to the dealership as we all know. I won't accept an advisor giving me the "it effects our pay" bullshit. Do what I ask and you'll be fine. Be a cunt and I'll cost you money. I will give them 1 chance to make it right before filling it out. Then it's on them.

A lot of manufacturers get and give money based on survey performance. Hold the bad ones accountable. But understand what a manufacturer problem is and what is a dealership problem. Don't burn the wrong guy.

 

yeah, unfortunately i dont have control over the immoral money hungry people in this industry - i do know for a fact that there are many many passionate ones though, and for the right cause ... those are the ones I support!

 

I have never dealt with any of those dealers but will give burnsville toyota a chance next time around, thanks.

I feel the biggest complaint with service is trying to reproduce a noise, diagnose and verify what it is, and then make the determination if its safe, a characteristic noise, or something about to fail. I feel its important to come to a REAL conclusion on every odd noise made, dealer generally don't spend the time to do this, there's no money in it for them so to bad so sad.

 

Every industry has its evils, yours is no different. Keep up the good work and stay away from the dark side lol. You know what I mean better than I do.