Grease The Wheels Podcast

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Episode 197: Customer Crap Jun 08, 2022

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On this week's episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy dives into the disgusting swamps of the forums to find out what customers really think about us as automotive mechanics. In the process, he ends up making the case that typically the most ignorant voice their opinions the loudest on the internet, often with flimsy reasoning or dubious evidence. Some of the negative experiences that people had with their mechanic’s were simple misunderstandings, while others might have been entirely chalked up to ignorance on their/the mechanic’s part. At the end of the day the fact that everything in the world keeps moving is a testament to the fact that at least some of us are good at our jobs. But given the sheer volume of things moving, we would argue that that makes a LOT of us good at our jobs, even when the general public has a less than stellar image of us. We also get into how doing some of the little things can be the biggest word of mouth advertiser there is.

Also Uncle Jimmy misspells “savvy” and gives the killer method to get you off of the “car extended warranty” call lists permanently.

This episode is distributed by The Wrenching Network. Whether you're a technician, a mechanic, or someone who just loves the car scene, The Wrenching Network is a place that you have to check out. They have all sorts of great content, gear, and snacks to keep you turning wrenches in whatever capacity you do it. Also if you see us over there, make sure you say hi and leave a comment with what you think about the episode!

Episode 196: Memorial Day Relaxed Fit Jun 01, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy thanks all of our fallen service members in addition to all of the wrench twisting folks who keep the world moving, However, we are still very much in the throes of “The Great Resignation”, so we are talking about some of the scientific reasons why people quit their jobs. Most of them are complete no-brainers, such as not getting paid enough and not being recognized for the work that you do. However, when you compound that with rapidly rising prices, you are going to get a whole lot of people who are no longer on board. We also get into the very real concept of burnout, and how the average worker in America adds tons of job responsibilities in order to justify higher wages. Those higher wages ARE actually a good way to combat burnout, but they will not solve the underlying problems within your organization that cause people to burn out unless the processes and procedures are improved.

Also Uncle Jimmy does some stereotypically BMW owner driving on the American Autobahn.

Episode 195: Give Me a F#&*)$^ Raise! May 25, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy gets into some of the cold hard economics of the current automotive technician labor market and talks about how to get a raise. When techs can’t afford to live in the city that they work in, you are going to have major personnel problems- you don't have to be JD Rockefeller to figure that one out. When you throw the rampant inflation into the mix, the situation becomes a lot more acute and visible. The pain is real, and wages need to go up. How do you do that? Ask for a Raise. On this week’s episode we take a look at some white collar tips and tricks to getting a raise and jerry rig them to fit the utter insanity of the automotive market. There is a fair bit of science to it, but if you time it correctly and have the skills to back it up, if your manager doesn't give you a raise, they’re asking you to leave!

Also Uncle Jimmy DayDreams about channeling Keith Moon in the exit interview while pitching some of his favorite business concepts.

Episode 194: Don’t Tell The Manager May 18, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy goes over a laundry list of things that you shouldn’t say to your manager in a while collar setting, that more often than not you SHOULD say to your manager in a blue collar setting. Reminding your manager of “The Great Resignation” works well in a white collar setting, but in the trades it punches just that little bit harder. When you get to the automotive trades, it can be a powerful tool to leverage higher wages in the face of a continuing economic downturn made only worse by inflation that Jimmy hasn’t seen since he was a wee-lad. Bottom line, good communication with a manager doesn’t happen in the automotive industry often, because more often than not they are a lightning rod for everyone from the customer, service managers, techs, and other management. When you have good communication with management you’re more able to solve problems they way they are supposed to be solved instead of the way it is always done.
Also Uncle Jimmy drops one of the best conspiracies out there: management listening to GTW!

Episode 193: 1972 May 11, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy fires up the Delorean and goes back to the magical time of 1972 to figure out if technicians were better off then or now. The most shocking thing that we uncovered is the concept of “Flat Rate Percentage” which is an awesome way to get paid that desperately needs to make a comeback (and never, EVER will!). As far as the cars go, technicians were way better off, because odds are that in 1972 somewhere in Middle America, you’re probably not working on anything more or less complicated than a GM A-Body. Now, absolutely nothing on the road is anywhere near that simple because of government emissions standards - but some of the components still work in the same way because the laws of physics haven't changed much. The overwhelming thing that we have noticed though between those two worlds is that the price of everything has gone up, and our wages have not kept up despite the incredible levels of complexity to the systems that we have to work on every single day!

Also Uncle Jimmy briefly talks geo-politics.

Episode 192: Survey Says! May 04, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy gets into the weeds on some of the perceptions that the general public has about various factions of the automotive repair industry. For good or for ill, your reputation as a mechanic is tied directly to your shop’s reputation, and as this survey suggests, having that reputation being well represented in the form of glowing reviews can make you a lot of extra money. How trustworthy are dealerships? How well do quick lube places know their stuff? Do Indy shops sell unneeded work? All of these questions and MANY more are answered in this podcast!

Also Uncle Jimmy works on the theory of “Genre Shops” and shamelessly plugs his love for Rock Auto.

Episode 191: What Did I Say?Episode 191: What Did I Say? Apr 27, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy takes aim at some of the glaring fallacies of articles running down mechanics on the internet. This article states that saying a phrase like “I wouldn’t drive that very far” as a mechanic should disqualify them from servicing a customer’s car. However, this fails to take into account whether or not cords are hanging out of the tires and the brakes are metal to metal, and the ball joints are hanging on by a thread; this becomes less a matter of feeling and more about objective reality that you shouldn’t drive that car very far if you’re not going to get those issues fixed. We also get into the savage statistics of “common problems” and what constitutes that designation. There are a lot of major misconceptions about mechanics mainly propagated by the management of our shops and dealerships, but we definitely have a solution that will not only allow us to rebuild our reputation with the public, but also put more money into your pocket for the work that you do.

Also Uncle Jimmy explains the mechanics of lighter weight oils and “Loaner Car ghosting” before rattling off some of his favorite knockoff tire brands.

Episode 190: Angers Away Apr 20, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, we talk about how we respond to the naturally chaotic and often perpetual stupidity that we deal with on a daily basis. The natural response to this is anger, but if you’re in Texas like Uncle Jimmy, they will kill you if you kill someone- even if they are stupid! Instead we talk about some of the more practical ways to not get old sparky when you lose your cool with people. Trying to remain calm almost never works when it comes from the outside, but when it comes from within and is met with being able to recognize some of the physical signs of anger, you can get out in front of it. Throw one tool and someone sees it, congrats you now a “ tool thrower”. At the end of the day though, being able to control and use your anger is a very useful skill to have, because small doses of anger get the job done. However, this comes with the very human fact that some of the most irrational stuff that people do happens because they’re angry.

Also Uncle Jimmy describes his father’s mood-ring setting and massively underestimates just how funny he is when he is losing his shit; specifically in the content coming out of his mouth as opposed to it just being funny that he is pissed off.

Episode 189: Scumbags Unite! Apr 13, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, we deal with the image the public has when it comes to the people who fix their cars: they think we’re scumbags! Are we dirty? We definitely can be; when you’re dealing with things as gross as other people’s cars you can get really dirty! As far as looking the part, point taken but the second part of being a scumbag lies in how you treat others. If you are one of the people who keeps the world moving by fixing things, it is hard to actually be a scumbag because you are performing such an important service. However, if you’re not doing it above board, not fixing the problems correctly, or just blatantly ripping off your customers - congrats you’re a scumbag but in the pejorative way. We say that we are all scumbags because that is the light the society has cast our profession in, in what Uncle Jimmy calls, “employment racism”. There are a lot of ways that we are working to improve our image as a whole, but the biggest way that people are doing that is with their feet, as they leave the industry in droves with no one to replace them. All we can do as the people who turn the wrenches is remind the general public, “when was the last time you paid THE MECHANIC?”

Also Uncle Jimmy describes pick-and-pull haute couture.

Episode 188: Appreciation Apr 06, 2022

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy doesn’t skimp on the praise as we talk about how employers can appreciate their employees, and tailor it more to the automotive industry. Appreciation is best shown in the Automotive Industry through paying well and trying to make the job as bearable as possible. Balanced feedback prevents managing from the negative, which can be a big problem for more sales based managers. Also, a healthy amount of respect also goes a long way as well, because all of the wrench twisting bastards really were the people who kept the world moving in a time when the veil of society seemed(seems) perilously thin. Also Uncle Jimmy goes over an R/O with the sitting president, and goes over science fiction that car’s have become in the last two decades. As the great Squirrely Dan says, “and that’s what I’s appreciates’s about’s ya’s”

Also Uncle Jimmy tackles complex paradoxes: 1. Getting more work done when your manager ISN'T there. And 2. How good employees never stay and bad employees never leave in poorly run shops.

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