O/T- Possible new job offer. Dealership vs. Independent

I just received a new job offer and I am having a tough time deciding what I should do. I am posting this not to have someone tell me what to do, rather tell me about personal experience or what you have heard.

I work at a Chevrolet dealership as a mechanic and have been working at dealerships for the past nine years. I am a flat rate tech, paid by the job, and have lived with a very inconsistent pay check for some time. Business is very up and down, it always has been. I have been offered a job at an independent shop that has a good reputation and will pay me a descent hourly rate. I have heard that dealership and independent shops are very different, both good and bad. This will be a big change, but I feel I am a descent enough mechanic to make the change. The obvious plus for the change is a steady paycheck. The side shop does not offer medical/ dental insurance, but what I have now is horrible and not much different in cost to what I would pay on my own.

Just want to hear if anyone has made the change either way dealership to independent shop themselves, know someone that has made the change, heard stories, or has good solid advice.

Thank you.

-Jeff

 

How long has this independant been open for business? They are the first to close during hard times so watch out for that.

 

I recently mad the switch after 10 years at a dealer. I like it so far. I worked independent before at a dealer. Sure got some good training though. I'm still flat rate. Flate rate pay is a motivational tool. It has its pros and cons. I personally like it I usually come out ahead.

 

This particular independent shop has been open for 18 years and has had the same owner. I don't have a problem beating my time with flat rate. I usually always come out ahead too. Would be nice to have a steady consistent paycheck sometimes. Thanks.

 

Go where the money is, a good tech is in demand anywere!

 

Did you initiate the job offer? In other words, were you already looking?


Independents require knowledge of general theory more so than dealerships because they usually work on numerous makes. If you know your theory, you'll do fine. An L1 always helps.

I had my own shop for 6 years. My best Techs were those that knew how to keep a customer by means of personal attention and knowledge of what they were doing. In an independent shop you will have more interaction with customers. If that's your thing, you can do quite well.

What ever you do, don't burn a bridge. You may need that dealership job someday.

 

Kind of a heads or tails deal - my Dad had warned me about new car dealerships years ago. An old guy I worked with back in the 1970's had warned me about new car dealerships. I always thought as long as I did my job or went above and beyond and worked hard I would be okay. Well it held true for me for 30 years in the parts dept. & then one day - their words came back to me when I was kicked to the curb (along with others) without even so much as a thank you...I did not go back to another dealership - in my case I went to a fleet operation. Amazing how many of the techs there had been at new car dealerships before as well. Just my 2 cents worth of food for thought.

 

at least at a dealer you don't have to fight to get your check
flat rate is a cruel joke , I demand a guarantee of at least 35 hours

 

one thing i know from working in a dealer parts dept, the techs loved borrowing "test" parts . really cant do that at an independant. but then again, most better techs didnt need to do that.

 

Thanks for all the input so far guys. I really appreciate it. I wasn't really looking for a job. This one kind of just appeared. I know the son of the owner of the independent shop. Worked with the son and he came to me when his dad asked if he knew of any good mechanics he could hire. Thanks.

-Jeff

 

I've never worked for an independent, but I did work at a dealership. Personally I hated the dealship, and would rather be at an independent. There is too much "politics" at a dealership with all the numbers they keep on warrenty work and stuff. We could never win because to improve one number would screw up another one and they were never happy. It got to the point where there we some problems we weren't even allowed to fix because of the numbers. Not to mention favoritism between service writers and tecnicians.

As you stated flat rate can sometimes ****, because if nobody is bringing in cars you are screwed, and you can't force them to bring their car in. If I was you, I would go for the steady check at the independent

 

With so many dealerships being closed by our current government (can I get a high five for our free enterprise system being ruined?) it might be a good time to switch to an independent shop. Around here the independents are becoming overwhelmed with work as everyone is scared whether their dealership will be there tomorrow.

Frank

 

Thanks again to everyone and their input. You all have made some good points and mentioned a lot of stuff I was thinking. I am going to take the job and hope things work in my favor. It sounds like a better deal to me. Thanks again guys. Much appreciated.

-Jeff

 

i went from dealerships to independent and havent looked back since.
i didnt have all the politics and ******** a dealership has.
but that was right for me at the time.

 

Very good point. I have seen help wanted signs at some local independent shops. The Dealerships are pretty slow right now. That might change when there are less of them around and consumrs know where and what the goverment will let them drive

 

I worked for dealerships early on (mainly for paid training) I was warned by old timers and my dad that theres no future at dealerships. I opened my own place five years ago and havent looked back. No bs politics or team system or flat rate ****. A good independent will last and do better in a bad economy cause people turn away from dealers when times get tough. Were slammed with work since things have taken a downturn people are forced to keep there cars instead of trading them in.

 

It's been a few years since I worked in a shop and the last one I twisted wrenches in was an independent. I was still pretty well specializing in front end work but ended up doing just about everything else that an independent shop in a small out of the way town gets called on to do. Straight time and it about broke me.

The advantage of the dealerships that I worked in was that each mechanic specialized and the others didn't cross over and do others work just because they didn't have anything at the moment. We all seemed to make money and had good service writers who could sell.

The first independent I worked in had three family members working in the same shop and I got the leftovers and problem cars. I learned a lot but didn't make a lot of money.
From there I went to a factory owned tire store as a brake and front end man and thought I was rich compared to working for s****s in the independent shop. A base wage plus what they called a Brake bonus which could add up to a pretty nice check if we sold enough alignments, front end repairs, brake work, shocks and other mechanical work.

personally I think the best way to make really good money is to work flatrate in a shop that has spe******ts in each field they handle. If you are the best aircondioner mechanic in three countys in Texas why would you want to fight with brake jobs and if you are the best tune up man around why would you want to fight with aircondioners.

Still you are only going to make money if they can get the work in the door and sell the job. But you have to be fast enough to get the work out and turn out work that doesn't get comebacks that eat your lunch.

Right now if I had to leave the job I have and plan to retire from I'd probably put myself in a small machine shop where I could do heads and turn drums and rotors. there is little in the way of a machine shop locally and most of the guys have to go 25 miles in one direction or the other to get simple work done.

 

Things to consider how hard was it to get on at the dealer and could you go to work for another later? are you making something, enough to get by on?
Could be good to pick up some side work. I wouldn't recommend going out and trying to compete with your employer, that would be disrespectful. The advantage you have is you can say "your not paying me to be here when there's nothing to do so I need to bring in some extra dough but I won't be undercutting you I'll be...doing remodel work, hauling, freelance journalism... pizza delivery. start your own small business with your off time and keep up the good work when they need you. broaden your horizons.
Offer to do some sidework for the friend by appointment and keep quiet about it, don't tell anyone.
I took my mack to the mack dealer @$80/hour labor when it was something I didn't want to fix. it was cheaper than going to an independent shop charging 75% to 50% less because they didn't fiddlefart around and it got fixed fast, right the first time, with no cobble work. they also would haggle about the bill if it looked like the tech took way too much time to do something. If I asked for an estimate prior to getting the work done they were pretty good about sticking to it if it went over.
And a dealership can warranty the work in a way that I can get fixed again if it goes bad anywhere in the country there is another dealership without having to go back to that independent shop.
In my general opinion low-ball independent shops are a PITA and when they f-up they don't want to back it up. no disrespect to the good Indies that are out there, the ones that are good are absolutely great.

 

My opinion is that it would depend on the independent shop and the pay rate. Flat rate at an indy shop can starve you if the shop can't provide a steady flow of work. If they pay good, straight hourly is great. Our shop is hourly. Indy shops are more likely to let you off early if it is slow, allowing more time for side work. Dealers tend to want you to sit around at "base" rate to cover anything that might roll in. The dealer is going to have more internal politics than an indy which tend to be more family like. The dealers seem to also like to book more techs than work to cover drive-ins. Which can lead to lower level techs getting s****s. You also mentioned that you work at a G.M. dealer, kinda scary theese days. Another possible bennifit of a long term indy shop is when the owner retires most likely he is going to look internal for new ownership. Most shops change hands that way. Not too many dealers are going to come up and say thanks for all the years of hard deadicated work now I want you to take control. After 10 years at my shop I was offered a share of the company with eventual ownership. All in all it is always an uneasy decision to jump ship. Good luck with it and just feel blessed that you have options in this economy. And you should also feel good that you are valued enough that they would come to you with an offer.

 

If you are paid a flat rate doesn't that make you a contractor?

 

I hear ya bro. I worked with a husband wife combo, she wrote and he wrenched. They ****ed up to all the higher ups too. Anyone who was smart enough and quick enough to get into their cookie jar got ousted.

 

Some shops do pay you as contract labor.

 

No, being a 1099 contract hire instead of a w2 employee makes you a contractor.
The difference between a contractor and an employee is that A company may direct all your activities on duty as an employee but may only direct the outcome of the work performed by a contractor. A person must be free to work under his own direction on his own schedule and in his own fashion to be a contractor. if the company exerts any control over the contractor's exercise of his work it is 1099 abuse and is illegal, It's considered tax fraud for getting out of employment taxes and expenses. this does not include company hours of operation, expected completion times, safety regulations and other company mandates enforcing compliance with government regulation.

flat rate just says "it takes x hours to do this task" so whether you get it done in 1 hour or 4, If the flat rate is 2 hours you get paid only for 2 hours no more/no less.
Hourly is paid on how much time you were on duty. Piecework is paid on how many units you complete regardless of how many hours you were on duty, and flatrate pays an hourly wage based on a pre estimated time regardless of how many hours you were on duty.

 

Leaving a dealership and going to work for an independent sounds like the path I took, except I was an city employee instead of a dealership. I went to work at a E**on service station in 1996. I immediately caught on to the fact that I could do this on my own. I stayed at the E**on for 3 1/2 years and at 50% comm I would bring home 1000-1200 a week with a 1099 at the end of year. I learned a lot about running a business from the man I worked for Clifford Rowland who had been a service station owner for over 30 years, plus we both drag raced & owned & liked old cars. During my 3 1/2 years with him I also built up a HUGE clientale that I didn't know was happening. If you are a good mechanic, talk & treat people nice, they will follow wherever you go, even to your home to have you work on their vehicles.Rowland (the guy I worked for) had a job offer to go and run a quick lube and he was social security age and he is still running the quick lube & I went on my own. I could have bought out the E**on but I didn't want to mess with the gas business. I rented a small shop in waco for a few years, had more than enough work. I worked and had 1 hired 50% comm mechanic working with me. I then got to wondering if I could do this at my house 15 miles out of town in the country. Closed the shop in town & moved business out to my house 3 years ago and haven't missed a beat since. I work by myself at home by appointment only and stay busy. NOW this is the only drawback, if I don't work no pay, since I work for myself I have got to get my **** off this computer and go to back to work, but I feel blessed that I can make a living doing something I like at home and have no regrets at all.


PS: if you go on your own start you a retirement account when you start your business

 

Am I getting old or what? When did we start calling mechanics, technicians? Technician sounds too "limited" to me. Mechanic sounds like you know a lot of stuff about a lot of cars.

 

IMO, it's a scary time to work at a dealership right now. I did the dealership route for a few years, couldn't stand the back stabbing and politics. It seemed at the time that if you wanted to get ahead and learn on the latest technology, a dealership was where it was at. But there is alot more aftermarket training available these days for the independant repair tech. And don't think for a minute that "you are up on the learning curve" for what's coming down the pipe as far as new technology is concerned. Automotive technology is constantly changing at a rapid pace these days, and you either stay up on it or get left behind. I have an opportunity to go to a 'big 3' dealership, but after seeing about half of the dealerships signs changing to "USED CARS" as their banner, I don't have that warm-and-fuzzy-job security feeling like I do at an independant shop.

 

I have been at dealers for the past 16 years and probably would not leave for an independant. You have much more security with a dealer, i.e. customer trying to sue you for workmanship. Have you considered looking into a diffrent dealer? I finally landed at one of the top three independantly owned dealers in the nation and it is worlds apart form the other dealers I have been at. Dont sell your self short ! Go Big, you have the time under your belt to get what your worth.

 

I worked at a Ford dealer for 10 yr before being ousted to make room for 2 of the managers family members My boss told me they were looking for a good reason They came up with some lame excuses I said thank you & loaded up my tools my boss laughed his *** off said he could not believe I said thanks. could have drawn un employment but at the time it was a pain in the *** had 4 wk vacation coming & a waiting week I opend my own shop & have been on my own now over 25 yr I tried to go to a dealership a few years ago & they said no I had TOO MUCH experience! & I would not be satisfied I still stay as busy as I want & need to & set my own Hr rate less than them I specilize in Ac & electrial & get referd by other shops around

 

It's great to hear some folks out there have found security in a dealership. I'm certainly not here to bash anyone going that route. While my personal experience at a dealership may have similarities with others here, it's not a reflection of all dealerships. A****st other problems, I simply felt more like a number, not an individual. I guess I'm one of those guys who likes to do things my own way. I'm currently working towards getting my own shop, acquiring the equipment, etc.. 'til I outgrow my backyard garage. Either I'll add on and work at home or find a shop so that I can start my own thing.
Kind of reached that point of wanting to be my own boss-type thing.
..........someday...........

 

The independent shop I work at has a flat rate mechanics. They also have a base salary so when its dead they still get paid to be there. We do towing, auto and truck repair.

I am one of the towers and lately everyone has been avoiding getting towed to the dealer.