I finally spoke up when a shop owner said all new techs need to start on oil changes for a full year

Heard this at a meetup in Cincinnati last week, and I just don't agree. I started at a dealer that put me on brakes and suspension after 90 days, and I learned way more under pressure. Holding someone back for that long just makes them bored and they might quit. How do you all structure training for new hires at your shops?

3 comments

3 Comments

anna_ross1917d ago

Honestly, starting on oil changes builds a real foundation. It teaches you the shop's flow, how to talk to customers, and you see a ton of different cars. Throwing a green tech into brakes too fast means they might miss a simple leak or drain plug issue later. That year builds discipline and attention to detail that you just can't rush. I've seen guys move up too quick and develop bad habits that are hard to break.

jesse99416d ago

Yeah the part about missing simple leaks later really hits home. I used to think oil changes were just busy work to keep new guys out of the way. But we had a tech who jumped straight to suspension work, and he put a car on the lift last week without even noticing the oil drain plug was finger-tight from the lube guy. That could have been a disaster. You're right, that year of repetition builds a kind of automatic check for the basics that you can't skip.

miles7212d ago

Remember that old saying about how you have to walk before you can run? My uncle managed a tire shop and told me about a kid they pushed into alignments too fast. He kept using the wrong specs from the computer because he never learned to double check the manual on common models, ended up ruining a set of brand new tires on a customer's truck.