v8ranger

Flat rate here. We're a small shop, with me and another tech doing diesel. Until about a year and a half ago we both were barely making our 80, even though we had no guarantee, our attitudes were you write us back for diesel, we'll write you our resignations. With our general guys making 110-120 hours, brakes, ball joints, all the big services. It sucked, job comes in they do all 4 ball joints for retail it comes to us for warranty diesel, yee haa. With our new service manager everything changed, he realizes we are valuable. Now if you are not diesel trained you do not do anything on diesel trucks period. Now the other tech and I are busy as hell getting retail and warranty. The way it should be.

I had considered this,until I brought the shops laptop it is running IE7.

I'm having trouble getting into training from home. The window opens but the progress moves about half way and stays there and never finishes. It does the same thing for oasis as well. I'm using XP home and IE7. Any help is appreciated. I asked this same question on the message board and it was deleted the same day. I have brought the shop laptop home and it works but no go for mine.

I got this from our general manager, interesting reading. Please take a moment to review "The Ford Story" web site. It tells of our plan to move ahead, what we have done and how we are doing. Please share with your team members. Family, friends etc. Here is the web link! thefordstory.com

At the time I checked U.S. employment the dealership I had worked fro 10 years had gone bankrupt. The prospects for a job in central B.C. at that time were poor and the oil patch in Alberta hadn't really taken off yet. The only reason I checked out U.S. jobs was at that time there were only U.S. jobs posted. As for where I chose to apply, I had personal motives. I like the outdoors, hunting, skiing etc. So you can see the reason I chose Steamboat Co., Jackson Hole Wy., Taos N.M., and Powell Az. to apply. Where I am now on central Vancouver Island is beautiful, it has everything I wanted. The best thing was my first winter here, I played 18 holes in the morning, rode my mountain bike in the afternoon, and went night skiing on December 22. Tough to beat. Am I sorry I didn't move the U.S.? I still think it was a good opportunity that was missed, but I'm happy where I'm at.

Seems like I have nearly the same story as Rick. Looked on autodealerjobs.com , picked out 4 places sent my resume. The next day I get a call from Steamboat Springs Colorado. They're interested, I'm interested, they're willing to fly my wife and myself down. We go down check it all out. Things look great. We want the to take care of the immigration costs and paper work etc. They agree, I decide to check out if there is anything I can do to speed things up, so I go to the American Consulate in Vancouver. They tell me that because I am possibly taking an Americans job, the job had to advertised nationally for 6 months, I tell them that I found it on the internet (you can't get more national than that,they didn't think it was funny). They also tell me that as a mechanic I am unskilled labor and in the same classification as fruit pickers and cab drivers and there was at least a 3 year wait to immigrate. I took a job here on the Island instead.Needless to say I saw the same dealership was still looking for someone 3 years later.Oh ya I told them at the consulate next time their car breaks down they should call a fruit picker.

I had a customer ask if when I reprogram with our equipment does it erase the after market programming. He wanted to go back to stock but his programmer was stolen.

I wear nitrile gloves ever since I squashed my fingers a couple of years ago, to keep them clean enough to heal. The reason was I noticed after wearing them I didn't catch the usual colds every year. I figured since I wasn't touching the inside of every vehicle, where every customer sneezes, coughs, picks his nose then touches the steering wheel when they're sick. I went for 2 years without a cold, the only change was the gloves.

Oh man I've had a few boneheads answer,but also a few who were brilliant. The one bonehead that comes to mind was from quite few years ago. I had a cougar that the abs light would come on the only code I could get was 19. Only problem no such code existed,try everything, can't get rid of the code. Call hotline, what do they tell me can't be code 19 it doesn't exist, no shit why do think I'm calling. His answer" I don't know then, what do think?" I felt like killing him.

Keith I could use your cable greaser,the cable in my 91 mustang started making noise today. Same as Jim some 21/32 sockets, my 1/4 drive set still has the steel box it came in, from late 50's early 60's, inherited from my dad. A super star II, some Vlchek combo wrenches that are from the 20's.

I remember when the 6.0 first came out,that Harrison character yapping about how he was involved in the time study for engine re and re. How they chose him for his close proximity to Dearborn and how he did engine r&r to do rear main seal. I just had to mention that Walla Walla or where ever in Washington he was from was 3000 miles from Dearborn and no one removes the engine for rear main seal. As for Impy, I have been hoping to see him at the Pacific training center to see if he is as big an ass as he makes out to be on the message board.

I was looking at he forum and noticed the calender. 20 years ago today started with Ford. 2 dealerships, 11 years at the first and now 9 at the second. How anybody else?

Well Jim, habla espaniol? Good luck with your new man. We have a good customer who owns a mine in Mexico, I regularly get phone calls from him when his truck breaks down. It seems that wherever it happens or whatever happens they would want to replace the engine? Even one time they told him that the engine and transmission had to be replaced as a unit. After talking to him we sent 2 7.3l valve cover gaskets and under cover harnesses and voila he's back on the road. By the way the shops were around Zacatacas, hopefully your guys not from there. I took a chance to visit a Ford dealership while in Playa Del Carmen last year, around 2 in the afternoon, found guys sleeping under trucks, siesta you know.

I don't post much (as you can tell) but read a lot. But this subject is one that really gets under my skin. As with Jim I am guilty of breaking shit, but I always admit to it, for the same reason when I find something broken my SM knows it wasn't me. I'm sure we've all worked with people that think that they're only screwing the Blue Oval. I worked with a guy that pulled down huge hours,whenever there was a comeback ,never his fault. After being watched he would only replace the front 3 plugs on a Taurus or Continental during a tune up, or lower half on 7.5l rear main seal. After being confronted, he was given a choice quit or get fired. Unfortunately for you Jim last I heard he was working in your neck of the woods.