Debate: "Any mechanic making a great living is a crook"

[PushingMyLuck]

I think this deserves another thread. I think a Porsche/exotic mechanic shop and any general purpose mechanic shop are two very different businesses/beasts, so specify which you're talking about in your post. In my comments, I am talking about an all-purpose indy mechanic.

Originally Posted by asphaltgambler

There are always exceptions but largely if the owner is making any real profit these days you can bet the customer and the technicians both are being 'stoked'

You really think it's fair to say any mechanic making a decent living these days is a crook? A lot of failed businesses are simply badly managed by incompetence. Shop hours are $100+/hr. And you can have multiple bays. If you're good, and live in a dense area, you are always full. Billing hundreds of dollars per hour, and easily covering expenses. And you know about book hours vs. clock hours. My local mechanic lives in a good town and kids that go to "good" schools. He's 100% honest. He is so busy that he doesn't need to churn up fake repairs.

Maybe a successful mechanic is a crook.
But, it also could be a combination of skill, socioeconomic location, population density, and the way you run your business.

[fastfredracing]

Hmmm. Maybe I should have a few more morning coffees before I comment on this one.

[mreid]

ANY stereotype is wrong. I know several mechanics who are honest, decent people who make a great living. There's a guy locally who charges $60/hr for Porsche work. He has five guys working for him, so he brings in good money. He's fair and honest. Not all mechanics are crooks and they deserve to make a decent living. Just like not all lawyers are crooks...

[widgeon13]

I know some mechanics and they do great work, are happy doing what they do and have many happy customers. I don't know how much they make but I wouldn't belittle them for what they take home. i'd pay their price any time because I know I'm getting quality and reliable work.

[HardDrive]

I've generally found indy shops to be honest. If they were crooks, I don't think they would last very long.

I've have also generally found dealerships to be a rip off. The Lexus dealership in Bellevue, WA? Utter slime. 'Strongly recommended' that I replace all the struts in my wifes RX330 because of clunk coming from the front end. They wanted $6000 to do the work! Went to an indy shop, turned out to be a bad strut mount bearing. $600 and that included an oil change.

[Gogar]

You can't just take the number of bays and $100 / hr and find the day's take.

My fave indie Porsche shop has three bays and three guys in the shop. One guy is doing accounting and ordering and answering stupid questions on the phone all day. I bet they bill MAYBE 15 hours a day.

I have another friend who has a two-bay shop behind his house, and works alone for $50-60. He can bill 6 hours a day and do ok.
Keeping up with all the current diagnostic tools is very difficult for a one-man shop though.

I think you can make a good living as a mechanic, but nobody's gettin rich, that's for sure.

[ckelly78z]

I usually take my vehicles to a guy who does repairs at a shop on his own property full time. It's always cheaper, a little slower, but completely honest.

The only way I would take a vehicle to a dealership of any kind is if it were under warranty.

[billybek]

I had worked for a couple of people in the past that were ripping people off. I didn't work there long. As a mechanic if you lie down with the dogs....

Most automotive shops I had worked at were pretty honest. The real cost of doing a repair often shocks a customer and they start believing that they are being overcharged.

[recycled sixtie]

Originally Posted by billybek

I had worked for a couple of people in the past that were ripping people off. I didn't work there long. As a mechanic if you lie down with the dogs....

Most automotive shops I had worked at were pretty honest. The real cost of doing a repair often shocks a customer and they start believing that they are being overcharged.

Hi Bill,
I have sent you a pm.
G.

[911dean]

I come from a line of very honest mechanics. The family business was started in '59 by my grandfather and is currently run my brother. The business still has customers from '59 including 2nd, 3rd and 4th generation.
It's just a 3 bay shop and my brother says it's getting tougher by the day. Too much government and people have no clue of what it costs to run a business.

[yetibone]

This debate won't apply to me. I'm currently the only mechanic in my shop, so no employees can get shafted. Apparently, my customers are happy with my work, my honesty, and integrity because they keep bringing repairs to me.

I make a pretty good profit because of a pretty good reputation. Most of that profit, though, goes back into the business thru buying new equipment to stay current.

[speeder]

There is certainly plenty of dishonesty and other shenanigans going on in the auto repair biz but there are plenty of honest operators making a good living. I also believe that a mechanic or shop owner can be honest and still "upsell" jobs; my friend with the indy MB shop has clients who want to maintain the heck out of their older cars and replace everything that is vaguely worn out, and other clients who are broke and only want to do the absolute minimum to get back on the road. I think that up-selling or recommending work is ok as long as you do not exaggerate the need for a repair or replacement of something...that is what the dealers are famous for. People who are not car-savvy trust the dealer WAY too much sometimes because it is the "official" Lexus place or whatever...my elderly father received an estimate of work needed on his low mileage RX that was pretty shocking.

I think that there are certain niches in auto repair where there is a lot of money to be made, such as good exotic car mechanics and maybe Audi/VW repair, as long as you stay away from the real "down the rabbit hole" jobs and bad clients. The techs at the local Audi dealers are making a lot, many over 6-figures and one who makes $200+ every year, according to my buddy who is the service manager.

[widgeon13]

How does one make 200K at an Audi dealer as a tech?

[RANDY P]

Originally Posted by PushingMyLuck

I think this deserves another thread. I think a Porsche/exotic mechanic shop and any general purpose mechanic shop are two very different businesses/beasts, so specify which you're talking about in your post. In my comments, I am talking about an all-purpose indy mechanic.



You really think it's fair to say any mechanic making a decent living these days is a crook? A lot of failed businesses are simply badly managed by incompetence. Shop hours are $100+/hr. And you can have multiple bays. If you're good, and live in a dense area, you are always full. Billing hundreds of dollars per hour, and easily covering expenses. And you know about book hours vs. clock hours. My local mechanic lives in a good town and kids that go to "good" schools. He's 100% honest. He is so busy that he doesn't need to churn up fake repairs.

Maybe a successful mechanic is a crook.
But, it also could be a combination of skill, socioeconomic location, population density, and the way you run your business.

1)- lots of people subscribe to the Peasant's Mentality (real term FYI) where anyone who succeeds / wealthy stole it or is "greedy" (Whatever the **** that means depends on how much money the Peasant has in relation, of course), but largely the view comes from an ignorant standpoint.

2)- with that said, the person you are quoting IS a mechanic, he ought to know the in's and outs.


YMMV.

rjp

[bell]

I work for a successful Indy shop.......
We are all doing pretty good, shop is busy, we work constantly on our efficiency, have a daily schedule for which cars get worked on etc, cause you are always waiting on parts for something the key is to schedule you're billed hours......
When things click right everyone makes money, customers get their cars fixed correctly in a timely manner, and everyone happy....

There are many cars which snowball into projects which the customer doesn't anticipate......and they want to go piece by piece........those are the ones which can suck the life out of time profit

[RANDY P]

I'd rather pay full book time and have it done right at a good shop with piece of mind VS a discount where I have to take it back several times and the car is butchered...

In other words, pay to have it done right. The guys are paid for their skill. If they do it quickly with accuracy, cool with me.

rjp

[afterburn 549]

People see themselves through the keyhole they look through.
If they are a crook, they think everyone else is !
Also, When one has NO understanding of the job done and all t entails, its EZ to come to the conclusion with out the education everyone is a crook.
If one knew what was going on, they would not be at the shop.
Simple

[ODDJOB UNO]

golly gee whillikers ! what would SCOOOO-BEE DOO, if ya found out NOT (1) buttt (2) indie wrenches here in phx and scottsdale have FREEKING DOCUMENTED CRIMINAL RECORDS with maricopa.gov

hmmmm. the statement that if they were crooks they wouldnt stay in biz very long is a MORONIC STATEMENT!


how do they stay in biz? until they have screwed every last p-car owner...............and they(customer) have figured it out............then they still have customers.


its not hard to figure out if ya have an iota of a brain.


maricopa.gov click on case history on left, click on criminal courts and then punch in their names with correct middle initial and spelling of last name.


consider this a AZ p-car owner warning. and its the freeking LEAST WE can do to warn others. because as a native here i wont tolerate it EVER!


ONCE A CROOK ALWAYS A CROOK!


NEVAR EVAR TRY AND SCREW A NATIVE.................bad ju ju will follow FOR-EVAR! because we CAN! and WE DONT EVAR FERGIT!

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by yetibone

This debate won't apply to me. I'm currently the only mechanic in my shop, so no employees can get shafted. Apparently, my customers are happy with my work, my honesty, and integrity because they keep bringing repairs to me.

I make a pretty good profit because of a pretty good reputation. Most of that profit, though, goes back into the business thru buying new equipment to stay current.

meh, they are just diggin' that groovy Super Beetle

[yetibone]

Originally Posted by Tobra

meh, they are just diggin' that groovy Super Beetle

It has brought me some VW work, whether I wanted it or not.