Why Mechanics Are QUITTING

Why Mechanics Are QUITTING
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[tonym.]

This was back in the 80s. On Thanksgiving day my brother ( a locksmith) was called out for a keys in a car. We went out and my brother told the client if the vehicle could not be unlocked in one minute it would be free. My brother unlocked the vehicle in twenty seconds. The costumer than said he was not going to pay for such a easy job. At that moment my brother locked the door with the keys still in the car and we left....

[bcampbell]

just like everywhere else...it's not a labor shortage...it's a pay shortage

[midwestron]

I did it for 25 years, quit 18 years ago. I worked at new car dealerships on flat rate. You couldn't get a job anywhere that was not on flat rate. The warranty times got shorter and shorter, the repairs got more and more difficult. I got tired of working 42 hours a week and getting paid for 38 hours. When I left, I was making $17.50, and the dealership was charging $90 for my labor.

[lenBrill]

I'm a good mechanic, and that's why I drive 1983 F250 6.9.

It gives me no troubles and when repair is required, it's easy and very affordable to fix.

[curtisstewart]

I pay $125 flat rate to an independant mechanic. We have done business for years. When I was running 3 F350's with V-10 engines he kept me in business. I had them pull in his shop at 7PM and ready for the road at 7AM. If he was doing PM and found something, he fixed it. Cost was and is relative. The revenue I could generate in 10 hours paid for his services. I had those trucks in there every 5, 000 miles for PM. I never looked at the time, just the cost, and wrote him a check when he gave me the bill. No credit card swipe fees. Sometimes, it was $12K. But he made me money.
A good mechanic is worth every dime.

[jesse]

Even if you are a good mechanic, people don't treat you with respect.
It's crazy.

[John-wpsu]

Today's mechanic you have to be an electrician and a software engineer so you better pay more than $40 an hour

[BradMacc]

Was a lead mechanic and state inspector, and in MD, inspectors are in high demand. Just got tired of busting my ass in shops that didn’t appreciate me, didn’t know how to build a ticket properly, or could treat their employees decently. $130k in personal tools and toolbox, walked away from it all.

Got a govt contract gig. Damn I wish I had done it sooner.

Youngbucks - if you’re smart enough to diagnose/wrench on a modern car, you’re smart enough to find a career that’ll pay better and not hammer your body to hell and back. Trust me.

[chrissoto]

I've been told many times that being a mechanic/tech is a "noble" profession. It's noble because it requires tons of tools, knowledge, and physical endurance at times for a less than stellar reward. It's satisfying when it goes right, but job satisfaction doesn't pay the bills.

[yoyo]

He forgets to add that automakers are not designing these cars for repairs anymore. They want 7 years and you junk it and get another. Sealed transmissions. Sealed engines. Spark plugs buried inside an engine. No accessibility in many areas.
So trying to repair these are much harder now than in the past.

[jackboyd]

My brother was a mechanic. I asked him why he always bought from snap on. He said, when you spent hour trying to get to one bolt. Snap on pulls up. And he's got a wrench designed for THAT bolt. You buy it.

[blkeclipsel]

He is absolutely right about the blend door actuator. Mine was fine but the blend door itself snapped. It was $15.00, but just like he says it requires removing the dashboard and windshield for my car (2013 Camaro 2SS). The difference is i was quoted $1200.00. It is indeed a labor intensive job.

Instead, I found a "hack" online where you can cut a small piece of plastic out to the upper right of the gas pedal, slide the blend door out, and slide a new one in.

Took me 40 minutes and cost me maybe $50 bucks for the blend door and tools. I saved myself over a thousand dollars and if the blend door breaks again or i have to replace the actuator, I know exactly how to replace it. That of course was for MY make and model thats not the case for every vehicle.

[SRKNFL]

Most car dealers in South Florida charge around $300-$500 an hour to service customers but wont pay technicians more than $15-$20 an hour so they had enough

[RedTekno]

I had a good business as a mobile mechanic but got overwhelmed and started to look bad because I couldn't keep up. So found a shop for rent and it got even worse. People don't want to wait and they don't want to pay. Got in a big hole financially because of that. Mechanics don't want to work even the shade tree. Found a tech job for the Fed Gov. No 🐂💩 with people's cars and make more than before because clock in clock out and back to my life. They supplied the tools too. Not doing work for anyone anymore. Edit: I've been doing some work at home for a handful good clients that won't leave me alone 😁.

[yanglue]

As a mechanic who's been in this for 3 years, I went to college for a diesel mechanic. Graduated, and wanted to work at the shop where I have my internship. They declined me because of my lack of "efficiency and experience." Like, I am fresh out of college and I really don't have much experience.

In my area, they are always looking for diesel mechanics, but they want the experienced mechanic. Not someone who is fresh out of college. This discouraged me from wanting to working in the shop. I am still frustrated since (May, 2023).

So, I just do some side mechanic work and just work at a manufacturing job. It's tiring but I love it.

[jjstile]

I worked a salvage yard where a customer needed a mode door motor out of the dash. He wanted to see how to take it out. It was an older model and part was unavailable. So i smashed part of the dash out took out the 3 7mm bolts and handed it to him. He had agreed prior to 50.00. After that he refused to pay saying it wasnt worth that because i didnt put much effort in it. He said it basically wasnt worth anything. I threw in the furnace on the way out to the office (i live in the north east where it's very cold) i said well it's worth something... heat. Then went about filling my next order. I hate walk in customers so much. 😂

[pcharles]

I had a shop sold it and went back to the military after 5 years . Too many people with $ 1500.00 cars needing $1000.00 in repairs and $ 100.00 in the bank . Just not worth it .

[tjhurlburt]

I was using a mechanic, a fantastic guy with smarts and integrity, for over 9 years to maintain and repair the 4 vehicles that I own. Last month I stopped by his shop to drop off some cookies my wife had baked and he was busy packing up his stuff. He had sold his business. I asked him why and he said 2 reasons; one, his employees were costing him too much money and he was losing money on too many jobs that had to be repeated because of the work they did. Two, new parts that were no good and had to be replaced, for no additional charge. He told me that he felt at least 50% of the parts he got from Napa and other sources were bad and using your example of the $20 blend door actuator, if you take apart the dash and install a part that doesn't work which in some cases you may not know until you've put the car back together and now you have to take everything apart again, you don't get to charge the customer additional labor. Other than learning to do things for yourself, I'm not sure there's a good answer. Repairs are just too expensive.

[damderrick]

I'm a tech at a dealer for 20 yrs now. To all the young people wanting to get in, DONT do it. Until the pay model is changed and flat rate is abolished, it's nothing more of scam. The shortage is a creation in its on making by dealers, manufactures and some shop owners

[b.a.hwyndham]

I was an ASE Master Automobile tech. $15 to $20 an hour was all most shops and dealers were offering at that time. I gave up due to the crappy pay and piss poor management. Plus, my family once owned an auto repair shop. Taxes, environmental costs, filing fees and the Great Recession put an end to that endeavor. My auto tech career availed me nothing.