Issue link: http://undercardigest.epubxp.com/i/532830
S ave theDate Northern Kentucky The South Side of Cincinnati April, 7-9, 2016 Meeting the Needs of Service Providers & Technicians, Auto TECH expo includes a wide array of General-Repair Diagnostics and Drivability, Transmission, Undercar and Management Seminars www.autotechexpo.net Northern Kentucky Convention Center best prices, and the prices increase as the buying volume decreases. This helps to put some integrity back into the parts pricing struc- ture of our industry but allows any parts-distribution group to price to market at any markup they want. It also prevents a one-time buyer from buying at the same price as a high volume shop. Parking-lot scans Parts stores scanning vehicles in their parking lot and offering re- pair advice, and selling parts based on the codes read, was an- other major concern. Everyone agreed that, for our industry as a whole, this is a bad idea. Some of the comments included: • Untrained people doing diag- nostics. • Cuts repair shops out of diag- nostic fees. • Reading codes is not a com- plete diagnostic and leads to wrong repairs. • Many wrong parts sold and vehicles not fixed. Sometimes the vehicle is re- paired, but a majority of the time it is not, and that continues to give our industry a black eye and a bad reputation. Is selling a few more parts worth the reputation of the whole industry? Just about every auto service center has had a customer come in that has been to a parts store, had a car scanned, replaced the recom- mended parts and still has the same problem, and they don't un- derstand why it is going to cost something to properly repair their car. Some comments went as far as making it illegal for anyone but a professional repair shop to scan vehicles. I don't think anyone wants more government regula- tion, but it would be refreshing if our industry partners would all work together for the benefit of the whole industry. Respect for technicians The last topic will be that of re- spect for all partners in the distri- bution chain. For years the parts industry has referred to the repair shops as the "installers" or "in- staller" market. In today's environ- ment it takes much more to diagnose and repair today's vehi- cles than to just install some parts. In fact, many late-model vehicles won't even function after in- stalling parts if they haven't been programmed to the vehicle. To call today's technicians or professional service center an installer is an in- sult. Of course, our industry has had our share of insulting names over the years, such as car jockey and grease monkey. It is time that we as an industry change our language, respect all members in the industry, improve our image and act like the profes- sionals we are. If we work to im- prove our industry, it will yield benefits and profits for years to come. Charlie Elder is the owner of Ray Gordon Brake Service, Tallahassee, Fla., and is a former ASA president. Circle No. 100 on Reader Card