There are dealer mechanics here in New England that make over $100k.
But it’s rare and they’ve been over 30 years in their career.They also are top of the line master mechanic. And New England is one of the highest cost of living areas in the US (top 10), so wages are usually higher anyways.
The upside of being a mechanic…a good mechanic shouldn’t have a problem finding work. The operative word there is GOOD.
What does Roger Barr make per hour as a mechanic?
Roger Barr is the one to answer that question, who ever that is.
He is the elderly mechanic at F40 Motorsports. As you may know, F40 is Wayne Carini’s classic car business. Barr is the lead mechanic on the classic car team. I imagine he is very well paid.
Yeah, we do
And we also know that some of the other regulars also did
But Random Troll seems to think it’s meaningless, unless somebody provides some kind of article, which would prove our point
Unfortunately, I think the two biggest potential problems holding a good mechanic from making that decent salary at a dealership are the service manager and the warranty administator
Those two individuals can make the mechanic jump through many unnecessary hoops, which stifles the mechanic’s efficiency and speed, and will eventually cause him to leave that dealership. It all but ensures that the good mechanics will not stay at that particular shop
There is a happy medium, which allows both the mechanics to earn a decent living, and also satisfies the manufacturer . . . as far as warranty goes . . . but in my experience, those two individuals often take a very hard line, so that the “numbers” look stellar, but at the expense of the mechanics
I’m not going to bother mentioning the numbers. There are several, and for the most part, we know what they are
I agree with you that those who have been doing it a long time often, but not always, have the skills to work fast, efficiently, accurately, while at the same time earning good money for themselves and the dealership
There are also those guys who are great at big jobs, such as suspension repairs, engine repairs, etc. But some of them are too specialized, imo, and things come to a screeching halt when they get a check engine light, for example. Sadly, some of these guys are having a hard time keeping up with rapidly evolving technology
Shops that allow/encourage team leaders, dispatchers, etc. to “feed” their buddies all the gravy, while giving all the 
to guys who are not best buddies with them, can also be somewhat of a problem. It’s great for the guys getting the gravy, but not for those other guys. And there are some jobs that you just can’t turn into a good job, no matter how hard you try, or how fast you work. Some of those who aren’t part of the in crowd are great guys, they just show up to work, not make friends.
In the 1970s GM was struggling in sales. Marketing introduced the Mr. Goodwrench advertising campaign… Factory certified technicians and genuine GM parts at all GM dealerships. Myself, both tune-up techs, and the senior line mechanic completed the emission controls class. It was 4 hours and quite basic but we became factory certified technicians. Hey. It was marketing.
With many (I would venture to say the vast majority…) dealers they flat don’t care if the mechanic has a great attitude or how competent they are.
The dealers live for the moment. Why keep that competent 30 dollar per flat hour guy around if he can be replaced by a couple of freshly graduated techs who together don’t even make what the competent guy does…
Customer complaints? Doesn’t matter. As long as it doesn’t affect sales the machine grinds on.
As db4690 correctly mentions, there are a few who cash in for various reasons but those few are in the very distinct minority of wage earning mechanics.
When I decided to close up, retire and go home my largest fleet customer offered me a salary equivalent to $30/hour + significant benefits to manage their vehicles. While I was tempted my accumulated aches and pains discouraged me and the highly charged corporate politics of the company made going home my best choice.
And political infighting in dealerships may be tougher than what I saw at my customer.
During my career as a HS Counselor, I tried to interest quite a few students in our county vocational school, which was very good–and free of charge to the residents. Unfortunately, some students (and their parents) subscribed to the theory that Lincoln Tech must be better because they charge thousands of dollars for their courses. Once the vultures on the staff at Lincoln Tech got their talons into a prospective student, they never let go, with the result that some of my students did enroll there.
Few people want to admit that they made a bad decision, but one student came back to visit me to tell me that he wished he had listened to me, and had not wasted his parents’ money on the auto repair program at Lincoln Tech. According to him, both the tools and the work spaces were so limited that he would frequently be told, “This is your day to watch”, and all he could do was to sit on his butt and watch another student–who may or may not have known what he was doing–work on a car. Additionally, he thought that the instructors were not good at instructing and were not even personable.
Luckily, around that time, the local community college began their degree-granting auto repair program, in conjunction with both Ford and Toyota. Students paid only a few hundred dollars per year, got to work with the latest cars, tools and equipment while working part-time (at a decent hourly rate) at an affiliated dealership. As they completed courses at the college, their responsibilities at the dealership would be increased, and upon graduation, they were guaranteed a job with an affiliated dealership!
I was able to redirect that student to the new program at the community college, where he and his parents paid a LOT less money, and he actually got to learn repair skills on the latest model cars.
Can you imagine that? Paying less and getting more…
There has become a seemingly sanctimonious movement toward any and all institutions that herald the mantra of exclusive elitist profits. But all too often what we are sold is just image. And of course regulation has become anathema as laisez faire grows to become a license for the savvy shuck and jive hustlers to pick the pockets of the gullible.
Whether considering a car, a home or a profession/education it pays to look beyond the facade, smoke and mirrors.
Aliens haven’t invaded and forced us to choose the most-expensive over the most-effective: we have chosen.
I’ve never worked at a dealer, but have spent 20 years as either lead tech, manager, or owner of an independent shop. Over that time I have hired or worked with several mechanics who were happy to earn 10-20% less than at the dealer but be able to put in a regular day’s work with no worries other than fixing cars. It’s my understanding that the infighting and political structure at a dealer rivals that of any other business–blue collar or white collar.
Marketing is now a highly regarded science. If well packaged and portrayed toward a particular market segment a great many products and services can and are lifted from total obscurity to ‘can’t live without it’ prominence. Bernie Madoff wasn’t an alien. Nor was Nike’s board of directors.
I believe you’re correct
During my time at the dealer, I was encouraged to take part in that infighting, but I wisely declined
One of the assistant shop foremen, with whom I was on a friendly basis, intensely disliked my team leader. And he felt I should speak out against him . . . to the top dog shop foreman. On the “agreed upon” date, I walked into the top dog shop foreman’s office, at the “agreed upon” time and just stood there. He asked me if I had anything to say, and I replied that I did not. He asked me “Are you sure?” and I said I’m sure. He then said “Well, I guess there’s nothing to discuss.”
And I left
I don’t like it when people try to use me
Mind you, I never agreed to talk smack about that team leader. It wasn’t my idea, and I just showed up at the top dog shop foreman’s office at the time I was expected to appear. Nobody could make me say something I didn’t want to
I left that dealership in good standing, on my own terms, unlike some other guys
As Tonto allegedly said to The Lone Ranger when a hostile group of Indians was closing in, “What do you mean by ‘we’ Kemosabe?”. Some of us are still aware of values–both monetary and otherwise–and those of us in that camp do not automatically choose the most expensive approach.
Surely you, I, and most of the members of this forum can’t be the only folks who know a con job when they see one.
It’s a fact of life that politics, backstabbing, and a pretty fair amount of sheer ignorance permeates most dealers. I’ve always tried to avoid it but sometimes it comes looking for you and drags you into the mess.
By sheer ignorance I mean performing a certain repair in the best way possible and having a service writer or service manager overrule the process and do something that is stupid beyond belief.
I started this thread because I didn’t know the article to which I pointed is a con job. I posted it here to get the feedback of knowledgeable people. I don’t watch TV, so I’ve never seen the ads for UTI, Lincoln Tech, and the other predatory for-profit schools. I know about other predatory for-profit schools: it doesn’t surprise me it’s happening in auto mechanics too. ‘They laughed at me when I told them I was going to learn electronics!’
DeVry opened a veterinary school on a Caribbean island. One of the faculty explained the unpromising financial prospects young veterinarians face - they fired him.
You don’t have to fool all of the people all of the time to have a successful con, just some of the people some of the time. If it’s just the people keeping up with the Kardashians - you can make a lot of money.
How many people drive their cars until they fail completely? Ignore screeching, grinding, toxic smells, the failure of a gear… and keep on driving anyway? Do you expect they’ll know how to avoid a con job?
In his Politics Aristotle wrote, ‘Man is a political animal.’, by which he meant that, given the chance, he’ll get together with his fellows and argue about how the polis (=city) should govern itself. In his Athens every citizen (which meant only property-owning men born in the city, not women or slaves or foreigners, who made up the majority) served in the legislature sometime and on juries sometimes (501 were on Socrates’ jury). Idiot was the word for the person who refused to participate in politics; it means ‘a man who rules only himself’.
Many of us use the word to refer to the dishonest schemer who tries to advance his personal interests without regard to the public interest. This is only the worst sort of politician. We aren’t going to stop working together to wage war, build roads and water works… If honest people leave politics to the dishonest, they’ll make the decisions. It isn’t always illegal to stab backs or have personal interests: we can’t lock such people up. We can dilute their influence by participating ourselves.
Participation is sometimes difficult when those in control know listening to an other opinion is a matter of courtesy, rather than necessity. Even in politics.
It’s not just these national tech schools that are a problem. Every college for profit I’ve dealt with are a joke - especially if you graduate with a a degree in the IT field or A degree in computer science. Not impressed at all with the graduates I’ve interviewed. I no longer waste my time with graduates from those colleges. Let other companies waste their time with them.