Considering these folks have never been to the shop I’m getting people that reach out and ask, “How does it work with y’all to get a vehicle in?”

SO…this is how it works: You reach out to me via text message at 337-274-4260 and you give me as much information as you can. That text message should NOT say, “This is so and so call me back at this number.”

Your text message should include the year, make and model vehicle you have and your first and last name as well as what type of routine service you need done or what symptoms you are having if you are in need of a diagnosis and repair versus just a routine service.

You may also call the shop at 337-436-0755, however, scammers, spammers, telemarketers and solicitors have gotten out of hand considering both the office and the cell phone numbers have been available on the entirety of the World Wide Web for decades. The phone could ring 200 times a day and literally 150 of those calls or more would be junk calls. If text message is just absolutely not an option for you then you may call the office and leave a voicemail but it likely will not be returned until later the same day or even more likely the following morning.

If you can, please include a picture of the license plate or VIN number. Doing so often times saves a tremendous amount of time because before I even return your text message many times I have already been able to look up various different things that matter, like what size engine, what options the vehicle has, whether it’s Two Wheel Drive, Four Wheel Drive or All Wheel Drive. That type stuff absolutely matters when discussing a diagnosis you need on a vehicle or discussing needed routine services. If I already have that information in that initial communication you send then things can move along much quicker.

Once we have that initial communication you will then drop the vehicle off – for your convenience we have a 24 hour key drop box that contains envelopes and pens and you can drop your vehicle off before we open, after we are closed, nights, weekends, it doesn’t matter.

This key drop also has combination lock pick up bins. When your vehicle is ready I will send you a secure payment link to click on that will take you to a secure site and you can pay the bill online. Once the bill is paid I will change the combination on one of the pickup bins, put your key in a bin and send you the new combination and just like you dropped it off, you pick up the vehicle at your convenience day or night. The lot is well lit and there are security cameras literally everywhere.

If you absolutely do not want to drop off the vehicle without personal contact or pay the bill and pick up the vehicle without personal contact, we can make arrangements to do that in the office, however, we have achieved the success and reputation we have not in SPITE of being unconventional but BECAUSE of it. I do not have service writers, I do not have a receptionist, I do not have a secretary, nor someone whose sole purpose is to answer the phone – in fact if you arrive unplanned you may arrive to a locked office if I had to leave to chase after parts or if I’m on a road test or just deeply engrossed in something really technical or time consuming in the shop.

We are not the “you drive up and we walk out and take a look at something” type shop. We are not the “answer every phone call” type shop. We are not the “there is always someone in the office” type shop, again, you may in fact arrive to a locked office if your visit is not planned ahead with me.

I understand we may not be the shop for everyone because we operate via text messages or if you leave a voicemail your call will be returned later in the day or most often the following morning, however, even though we do business that way we typically have more than we can possibly do.

I also understand we may not be the shop for everyone also because we cannot do “appointments” because we seem to be the go-to shop referred for the unusual, highly diagnostic oriented, technical and time consuming work. This is due to the fact getting involved with this type work and choosing to remain unconventional and one on one having just myself and one or two other highly skilled people we may have nothing but routine service work one week and we can get to your vehicle the following day but more often than not we are in one of those patterns where everything that comes in the door is those vehicles that were referred from other shops for some particular job they can’t do and that type work being extremely time consuming versus the routine stuff we do – this unpredictable workload is why we are unable to do appointments. The way we are forced to work our schedule is you have to get the vehicle to us and leave it with us and when the vehicle is left with us that is when you are in line on our current workload schedule and we look at the vehicles in the order they were dropped off.

It is very unpredictable since at any given time we have numerous vehicles that have not been looked at yet and we don’t know if they are going to be a routine in an out job or one of those jobs that is going to saddle us down for two days – one time you come in we may get to you the next day, the next time it may be four days before we can even get a look at it.

I understand the way we choose to communicate and the way we are forced to run our schedule it makes us not the shop for everyone, however, we aren’t trying to work on every vehicle in town, we have a specific niche that we fill in the market and that is how we fulfill it. Please understand that if you were referred to us or have chosen us because of our reviews, the reason you were referred to us and the reason we have those reviews and reputation we do is BECAUSE of how we do business, NOT in spite of it.

MANY THANKS for consider us for your service and repair.

There are a few things you MUST know about automotive technicians, and the auto repair business in general…

First things first! Yes, auto repair IS a service business just like any other. However, it is NOT akin to going in for a haircut or a pedicure where you can just walk in and be served with a short wait or schedule an appointment for an exact time. Maybe getting tires installed at a tire store…maybe getting an oil change at an oil change quick lane….but not auto repair dealing with service engine/malfunction indicator lights, noises, hesitations, intermittent problems, inoperative air conditioning, no starts, stalls, etc…..those type repairs will require significant effort to find the cause of the problem….it’s simple not the same TYPE of service as a brake job.

Let’s say one day you wake up with a pain in your gut, you are peeing blood and sick as a dog….to find out what is the cause of all this will require hour upon hour of cat scans, pet scans, upper and lower GI’s, biopsies, blood tests and more tests AND THEN….FINALLY, THEN the actual procedure that will cure the problem will have to be done. If you call us and you need a front brake job, or a 30,000 mile maintenance inspection or some other preventive maintenance, it is likely we can get you in the following day and get you out in one day…..those type services require no such diagnostic time…however, a service engine light on combined with a random hesitation will require diagnostic time…..so will a roaring noise at road speeds, or a fluid leak…or overheating…and if we already have SEVERAL of this type repair on the schedule already, it may be a day before we can even take you in…..please do not let this discourage you, it is the nature of the beast with REPAIR work, it’s simply much more complicated than MAINTENANCE work, and will be the same story at all REPUTABLE repair facilities…..if you call a shop and they are in a position with their schedule that they can immediately take in a job that may well consume hours just to find the problem and then repair correctly, they must have a pretty bad reputation….any good shop simply cannot do “walk-ins” when it comes to repair of modern vehicles.

Secondly, you must not fall victim to the asinine notion that there is some magical “machine” we can “put your car on” that will “tell us what is wrong”…..the diagnostic equipment we use is 100 times more sophisticated than that $500 device you can drive up and have connected at one of the parts stores, but even as sophisticated as our equipment is (much of it the same as used by the dealer) it is JUST A TOOL…and like a blood test, it may take hours of examining the results and after examining the results MORE tests may be required!

There IS no device that “tells you what’s wrong”……that is a fallacy….and believing this can cost you HUNDREDS of unnecessary dollars…..how? Because there are ACTUALLY those folks that work on cars and call themselves technicians that ALSO think the circuit description the tool references is the part that needs changing…..this is WRONG, the information the device reads out is merely a general circuit description that set the fault code in history, but there may be 15 possible causes for that particular fault code. When you have some clown that thinks you just replace the part listed in the description and if that does not fix it, change the next part listed, and if that does not work, change the next part listed, it can cost you dearly……THAT is NOT how it works.

When we look up the information the device reads out in our factory service information system, it may print out one page of 10 tests that take an hour to perform for one fault, but a different fault on a different car the service procedure printed out may be 5 pages of tests that take hours to complete just to find the problem….and when we schedule a job, there is NO WAY of knowing which will happen, an hour diagnostic routine required or a three hour diagnostic routine required. THIS is the REALITY of auto repair. So…if you need a brake job, odds are we can work you in pretty quick, but if you hear strange noises, or your car is stalling, hard to start, hesitates, or has some electrical device that is not working properly, it may be something that will take a couple days to fix…..that may not be what you want to hear, but it’s the TRUTH, not just what I need to say to get you to pick US for your repairs.

Here is a recent conversation that I have with prospective customers day in and day out, I probably repeat this stuff in my sleep….it may answer a few questions you have:
Guy on the phone: How much do you charge to run a diagnostic test?

Me: Well, you can go to a parts store and possibly get them to do a diagnostic test for free…..but that does not tell you what is wrong with the car.

Guy: What do you mean?

Me: There is a difference between a “diagnostic test” and a “diagnosis”….a BIG difference….they are two TOTALLY separate things. Connecting the diagnostic scanner to the vehicle and communicating with the vehicle’s onboard systems will retrieve a list of stored “fault codes” that the system has stored. THAT is a “diagnostic test”…..THAT is not a “diagnosis”…..THAT does not tell us what is wrong, or how much it will cost to fix or how long it will take to fix….

Guy: Why not?

Me: That “readout” is only a code description…which is an overview of the affected components in THAT particular CIRCUIT that is affected. That’s why sometimes it will mention one part or five different parts…it’s just telling you the parts that are used by the system strategy that set that particular fault code…..only one out of ten times will changing the part or parts mentioned in that description actually fix the problem. To arrive at a DIAGNOSIS we have to take those fault codes that were retrieved by the diagnostic test and look them up in the diagnostic service information for that vehicle, and it will specify a diagnostic routine that we we have to complete in order to find the cause of the fault code being set.

Guy: Well, then how much does THAT cost then?

Me: I cannot answer that question. It is not always the same. You may have one fault code stored that needs diagnosing or you may have three, or you may have five……and diagnostic routines will have to be done for all unrelated codes.

Guy: I see…..

Me: To top THAT unknown off, with EACH of these diagnostic procedures, for one code the procedure may be four little steps that take thirty minutes, but for another code the routine may be thirty steps that require accessing certain components for circuit testing…and if the components the manual tells us to access are under the carpet and require removing the seats and carpet, or behind the instrument panel, you can EASILY run into three hours just to find the problem….modern vehicles newer than a 2000 model have upwards of 14 plus computer modules that all “talk to each other” through a CAN bus communications line…..you likely have one in each door, one for the anti-lock brakes, one for the engine, one for the A/C, one for the air bags, one for the body functions like lighting and wipers and such, and one in the radio, another if you have OnStar or some such, one in the trunk, an occupant classification system module……..all vehicle, year model and options dependent.

Guy: Oh wow…….

Me: There are cases where we get a vehicle in, do the diagnostic test, perform the diagnostic routines, arrive at a diagnosis, formulate an estimate, call the customer for an authorization, procure parts, install the parts, and have the car road tested, all within a couple of hours……..HOWEVER, there are more times where we do the diagnostic test, and the diagnostic routines indicate accessing a module in all four doors…..or under the seat…..or to access a CAN bus communications junction behind the instrument panel and we have to stop there, call you and tell you it is going to take $200 just to perform the diagnostic routine that the service manual specifies……so you see…..I CANNOT tell you how much it will cost to find your problem until that preliminary test is done…..we charge $80 for that preliminary test…and THAT will give us a clue how much the diagnosis will cost and how long to expect…..

Guy: So the free test at the parts store is only that preliminary test?

Me: Yes….that only retrieves the fault codes…..we then have to look them up in the service information system, and only THEN will we have an inkling of how long and how much it will take to find the problem in order to give you an estimate of the required repair.

Guy: Well can I go get the test done for free at the parts store and bring you the results, why do you charge $80?

Me: No. Their device costs $500….mine costs more than ten times that and accesses ALL areas of the CAN network and will OFTEN give us information theirs will not….and….well…..we charge $80 because theirs costs $500 and ours costs much more….

Guy: Well that’s fair.

Me: I know….I’m all about fair. Ten years ago you were lucky to get a FAIR repair done for $500 on a 3 year old car…..today, a FAIR and HONEST repair can easily hit $1000 for what presents itself as a minor problem…….but then on the flipside we get people come in thinking they need a $3500 transmission and it winds up being a $500 electronic repair…you never know until you do the diagnostic test AND perform the diagnostic routines that the service information requires for the fault the diagnostic test reveals.

Guy: Wow. I feel like I just got a year’s education in five minutes…WHY have a never been all told this before?

Me: Many possible reasons. Some shops lack the communication skills. Some you call don’t KNOW all this because you are talking to a service writer who has NEVER worked on a vehicle. Look at it this way too….you need mandatory training and a license from the state to do a haircut….you need to complete training and licensing to even CALL yourself a Realtor…but….anyone can wake up tomorrow morning and decide to open a shop…and that happens…it takes even a mechanically inclined guy a minimum of 10yrs experience to “have it” when it comes to all this stuff…and and many out there in the field have the SAME misconceptions that you did…yes there ARE guys working in shops out there and managing shops out there in the world that don’t know all this. However, probably what makes the biggest difference….I have been there…..I don’t hire service writers, because no matter HOW GOOD they are, how honest they are, how much they study and read up, how well they can communicate or how long they worked on older technology cars in their past, they just CANNOT know this stuff…..and it’s not THEIR FAULT, it’s not their training…and no matter HOW MANY meetings they sit in and are told to tell the customer this stuff, in the heat of the moment you WILL FORGET to cover all the bases unless you have actually lived the reality of it…..it is what it is…..it’s no different than asking the receptionist at the doctor’s office what is causing the pain in your chest…she is not EXPECTED to know….it’s not her function….and…..just like with the best doctor out there, even HE won’t know what is causing your pain until he runs a bunch of expensive diagnostic routines….

Guy: Man…..I feel like I owe you money just for talking to me on the phone……….

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You ALSO need to know this before you choose a repair shop: You REALLY need to know that there is no “test” a technician must pass before doing work for the public…

No “internship” they must go through…

No “apprenticeship”……

No “code” of any kind that dictates an automobile service technician’s or shop owner’s ethics like required to be able to call yourself a “Realtor”………

ALL of the certifications are VOLUNTARY and cost money…

All of the training offered is VOLUNTARY and even more expensive…

There is no mandatory “internship” or mandatory “apprenticeship” a technician must go through and pass before doing work for the public…

There is no law that sets a MINIMUM REQUIREMENT as to the amount of experience you must have AS A TECHNICIAN before opening up a shop…

Anyone can wake up in the morning and decide to work on cars or decide to open up an auto repair shop! Yes ANYONE can…and YES there are some that did just that…

Power Steering fix on a Nissan pickup, Rear Differential repair on a Nissan pickup, couple of Ford diesel engine repairs, Check Engine Light diagnosis on a Lightning, Charging System diagnosis on a Nissan Altima, Ford F350 in need of fuel injector replacement…….

Electrical issues on a Hummer.

Clutch replacement on a Mini Cooper S

Air Conditioning Evaporator Core replacement….

Another Mini Cooper S clutch replacement……

Starter replacement on a Tundra…..

Vacuum leak fix and Charge Air Cooler cleaning on a Harley Edition……

Searching for a Driveline noise on a Ford F150…..

Faulty PCM replacement and programming on an Avalanche……

Engine replacement……….

Driveability issues on a Suzuki and a Soul, Power Steering fix on a Suburban and a Water pump replacement on a Jeep……

Mustang Body Control Module replacement and programming…..