Entry level in a small shop or dealership

[Kenneth]

Hey how you doing guys well i just wanna know what you guys think about its a better choice for an entry level guy to work in a small shop or an dealership i also wanna know about your entry level experience its always good to listen to other people struggles and good things that happen when they were getting into the bushiness like example me i just graduate from an auto tech school few weeks ago im working in a small shop and i go to my internship in a dealership once a week i feel like im learning more right now in the small shop than my internship since dealership most of the time all they do its maintenance work and once in while big job in the other hand in the small shop its kinda old school take every single job that come in the door small or big which its more stressful when you dont know alot and have to do engine swaps ect … well let me know what you guys think and also about what you think its better if u have work in a small shop and dealership

Topic

[EricTheCarGuy]

Good question. Each has it’s benefits and drawbacks. The dealership will be your best option for making the most money but it may not be the best option when it comes to the work environment. There is a lot of competition in dealerships especially between the techs due to the flat rate system. Everyone is fighting for a paycheck. There are lots of politics at dealerships as well, sometimes it’s not what you know but WHO you know at the dealership that counts. On the flip side you have factory training, factory tools, and tech support which is something you don’t have at an independent shop.

At an independent shop you’ll be a better tech. Mostly because you’ll be working on a variety of things. Working at a dealership you become a specialist in a particular brand and that’s pretty much that. I know some dealership guys that won’t work on anything but the carline they work for, mostly because they’re not familiar with anything else and avoid the work. Also independent shops have a better work environment for the most part and some pay hourly. You’ll also probably have a higher tool investment because of the variety of things you’re working on and you won’t have access to factory specialty tools like you would at the dealer. In the long run I think you’d end up being a happier and better tech working in an independent shop but you would end up making less. Thing is those jobs are getting fewer and farther between so there are less opportunities there. Find a good one though and you may end up with a job for life.

[dreamer2355]

I 2nd the Independent shop. That’s where i work now.

If you can, i would try to start off as a General Service Tech and see how you like the field after 6 months. As stated above, you will have to invest more money in tools though.

It can be a rough and very stressful field to work in but it can also be very enjoyable.

I always tell new people to the field that it can be a baptism of fire.

[Kenneth]

both of the answer are great and its actually true that i would be a much happier tech been in an independent shop just because i know i will get pay at lease 40 hour and most of the time we do over time since we work overtime pretty much every weeks to start off a month ago im a happy tech learning as much as i can. im not just doing oil change like most guys start out but im doing pretty much anything that comes thru the door it is stressful someday when you working the hull day in a car even tho i see it as a learning experience also im very thankful i found a shop which the owner has every single tool u can imagine that help me out with buying all my specialty tools when ever i feel like buying them hahah im still planing to get into a dealership next years just so i can get all my certification with out me having to pay for them, dealership is a thought work environment every Saturday i go to my internship which is a dealership they have work half of the day and then the other half they just sit around with no work

[stingray66]

I have only one question WHY I just talk three people this week out of ever becoming a tech. I have made it my mission to tell any one thinking about out to forget it But I guess you will have to find out on your own. Now as far as a dealership goes STAY FAR AWAY same goes for places like pep boys they are the worst Go to any good independent shop and ask them what they think about this Feld Most will tell you NOT to go in to it In my 40 plus year in this business I do not know one tech that likes what they are doing I have seen so many after 5/6 years just walk away form it
SO I will ask again WHY

[Bruce]

Going to a dealer just for the certifications doesnt seem like a good idea. Besides it is just going to be brand specific certifications anyway. Are certifications even necessary in your area? They are not in mine, I have only been asked about certifications 1 time, they required 2 certifications. Nobody else around here cares about them. But I have never tried to go to work for a dealer.

stingray, sounds like you chose the wrong career. I have been a mechanic for almost 13 years, I still love it. My Dad has been a mechanic for 30+ years, and he still loves working on cars.

[Kenneth]

that’s true you wont know till you try but i will say it all depend on the shop/city that you working some dealership have no work and some like the Toyota dealership around my house i hear that making 60 hour a week i personally prefer to stay at my small shop just because i know i will have 40 hour no matter what at the end of the week i work harder and get shitty work but i still love it and i know what you mean about pepboy/ntb/sears i actually learn my lesson the hard way i quit my small shop job for a weekend bc i though i was gonna have a better life working for a big cooperation and then i found out they were gonna pay me 7 dollar an hour plus coming with 8 other tech competing i had to run back to the independent shop haha

well im just thinking about it but i mentioned to see what you guys think i always like to hear other people opinion from their pass experience. around my area in some shop after a year its necessary in some shop isn’t necessary but i was just thinking to at lease have one of two ase or factory train certificate not because they mean something they just make you look a little more professional

[THERMAL]

Field diesel engines. Working at a dealership you will learn alot because you are the source of latest information available. You will also do alot of interesting repairs. But the pay sucks espescially with the time guides strain.
While at a private garage ( fleet company ), resources are limited to troubleshoot failures because only the dealer has the software to diagnose. The work is boring and dull, changing oil and bulbs every day. The pay is more likely to be better.Time allowed to complete the job is better.

[Tom Sharples]

[quote=”stingray66″ post=39088]I have only one question WHY I just talk three people this week out of ever becoming a tech. I have made it my mission to tell any one thinking about out to forget it But I guess you will have to find out on your own. Now as far as a dealership goes STAY FAR AWAY same goes for places like pep boys they are the worst Go to any good independent shop and ask them what they think about this Feld Most will tell you NOT to go in to it In my 40 plus year in this business I do not know one tech that likes what they are doing I have seen so many after 5/6 years just walk away form it
SO I will ask again WHY[/quote]

Hey, the guy is starting out and asking for useful advise. Just because you’ve had a bad experience doesn’t mean he will. I am a dealer tech, I think pretty good at my job and I love it. In a dealer you’ll always work along side an ass but that’s life. If he likes the job that’s 90%. I respect your opinion but that gives you no right to destroy this guys hopes at a career in the trade. If you enjoy what you do, do it. If you hate the trade, get the hell out and stack shelves for an hourly rate and 10% off at Walmart.

[Tom Sharples]

I worked at an independent shop whilst finishing school and it was a great atmosphere and laid back. I’ve worked at dealers for 11 years and I enjoy the manufacturer training and access to loads of technical information. If your into new tech and don’t mind working with a few ruthless guys, dealers are great. Your job is whatever you make it I think. As far as experience goes, you’ll get a more eclectic knowledge base at an independent shop but there’s nothing wrong with specialising on a manufacturer, doing so lets you do some pretty in depth diagnosis and after all said and done, all cars are nuts and bolts, with good fundamental knowledge and logic you can fix anything.

[SpawnedX]

9 out of 10 dealership jobs suck. Go independent.

I fully support and understand Stingray’s feelings and it has nothing to do with him choosing the wrong career. I still love working on cars and I know I am good at it. Doesn’t mean the industry is worth working in anymore.

[Kenneth]

i have to say i agree with everyone opinion but i guess we all have to agree to stay away from pepboys,ntb,sears ect.. hahah. when it get to dealership and independent shop everyone got their opinion even my self i am working in a independent shop right now im not gonna lie i love my job but i don’t like the environment most of the time the independent shop its small everything pack in one small place great people that know how to get any mechanical work done. then when i go one day a week to my internship in the dealership its a safer environment and the great thing is you get ur own bay so tht mean you dont have to be walking to get ur tools when it get to the pay its hard to say i would say it all depends on the dealership or independent shop you working at

[Chevypower]

I worked for a small foreign car brand dealer and it was an absolute roller coaster ride. They hired a bunch of us young guys, and then they wondered why customers never came back. We didn’t know what the hell we were doing. 0.8 hour jobs taking north of 12 hours, everybody bugging the ONE experienced tech to the point that he threatened to quit “Because I’ve had 3 months at work and gotten paid a total of 200 hours because of these damn kids when I used to make 200 a check!”

I now work in what I’m assuming is a standard dealer with 12 techs, plus 4 of us on lube racks, and 2 guys in the used car shop. We have a dispatcher whereas the small-time dealer had the foreman as the dispatcher. My Service Manager is a Service Manager and not an Advisor like my last shop. We have a parts department with 3 parts guys and a parts manager, versus the not very nice girl at my old dealer who was hired as a parts dept. assistant and became “THE” entire parts department staff by herself when the other girl was fired for drinking on the job.

At the small time shop, the rule was whoever upsells the service, gets the work and therefore the experience. This made the best opportunity for education, but resulted in frustration for everybody, A representative from the brand’s warrenty dept. was flown cross country to conduct ‘investigations’, and all sorts of other heartache. I was actually relieved to walk away from a job that paid massive dollars per flag hour for an entry level guy.

Notice however that I’m referencing flat-rate. After 45 days of experience in the industry, I was given 2 choices: Flat-Rate, or the Unemployment line.

The big dealer will not let me try anything more than LOFs. I don’t think that I am above LOFs, but one of our lube techs is 53 years old and has been a lube tech since he was 16. One is 26 and a screw up, the other guy is the nephew of the Service Manager’s nephew and we all know he spends his time under the boss’ desk. Then there’s me: The guy who is hellbent on becoming the best tech I can be, but can’t catch a break. I went to freakin WyoTech because that was the school that everybody I asked told me that they respected the most. I’ve met community college kids who learned a few things that I didn’t learn in school, but I haven’t met any other fresh-from-school Technician who got an education anywhere near the one I got. Seems like a waste of potential and determination to me…

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