Who here has served their time in the motor trade?

junkyard

Just a question, who here has served their time in the motor trade here on boards.ie? If your a mechanic, a panel beater, a valetor or even a sales man. I think opinions from people who are in the frontline of this business should be very valuable, I know I'd value them anyway. As for myself, I'm a panel beater.:)

milltown

Served my time as a construction plant fitter but did the level 1 motor mechanic's city and guilds too.

Volvoboy

2nd Year apprentice panel beater.

While i'm here Junkyard where do you stand with the solvent based paints being made redundant and being replaced with water based? heard that you have to have a propper booth and waste system for thinners and spare paint, and that without all this you wont be granted a licence to buy paint, hence no more nixers?


-VB-

Anan1

I sold cars for a main dealership, but it was around 8 years ago.

bazz26

I worked part-time as a valetor for a couple of months during one summer at a dealership when I was about 18. Crappy wages but great experience as I was bit of a petrol head at the time anyway.

prospect

I work as part of my companies fleet management. Does that count?

AlanD

I worked all my life in my Dad's Peugeot dealership until he retired out of it and we shut up shop.

Did everything from valeting (did lots of this as a kid), to servicing, to major engine maintenance, to car sales and anything else that goes along with running a dealership.

20+ years in the industry up until recently. I've oil for blood really. Not in the trade now though.

crosstownk

Sold Opels for 2 years - hated the sales thing. Sold VW/Audi parts in a main dealer for 3 years. Was Service Advisor in a VW/Audi dealer for a year and then Service Manager for 3 years. Decided to get out of the retail end of things and moved to the leasing game as a Fleet Controller for 2 years and currently After Sales Manager (3 years now) for the same leasing company. I'm beginning to think I'm a glutton for punishment...................

Dapper

Ive been around the motor industry for a number of years in about 5 manufactures from Mechanic to service manager now a purchase manager...its a strange industry.....

Fey!

I spent time in car sales in a garage that lost it's FIAT dealership nearly 10 years ago. Only had Tipos and Tempras to try and sell, though.

Was rubbish at it and went back to antiques!!! Still sell the odd car now, though.

johncm

working in stores for a main dealer

Lucifer

I'm a 3rd year apprentice mechanic in an opel main dealer.

junkyard

Thats interesting, I never though there were that many people involved on here, I know of another few though that haven't signed up as it were. As regards water based paints Volvoboy, its going to be at least to the end of next year before it really kicks in. I was in the U.K. earlier this year on a course for water based paints and tbh I don't think there's going to be much change in procedure. We'll need to upgrade equipment, a separate spray gun and technique for the waterbased paint ( it actually air drys quite quickly) Summer time won't be a problem for drying the basecoat, its the wintertime i.e. cold and wet, is where the problems will arise. You won't need a spraybooth but you will need a dryer for the paint. The top coat is still conventional 2k lacquer as it is already. The price of the basecoat paint is going to be considerably more expensive but is going to be more concentrated which might balance things out a bit. I think the license for paint is only going to come into play if your using large quantities of paint. I think its going to be a game of wait and see. I know a lot of spraybooth sellers are scaremongering at the moment in the hopes of selling more units but I wouldn't loose sleep over it.

Cosmo K

In the trade since 1988, first 12 years in germany VAG, Fiat/Alfa and a year as a service advisor with BMW. 5 years in Irland now, working for ...........:D

peasant

Had a very brief stint working for a local main stealer trying to get a fleet management thingy off the ground. The things I witnessed working for that cowboy, visiting other cowboys would fill a book ... I will never, ever, ever, ever again trust a car dealer

Mr.Diagnostic

yes, i am time served......................in fact, I could probably have have done double murder and got less time!

Do-more

For my sins I was a partner in a Jap Import business back in the hayday of the Jappers around '97/'98 it could best be described as a "hobby business" as it was just a sideline but we had a TAN no. trade plates etc. brought in about 40 cars in total, mainly sports and 4x4's, Eunos Roadsters, MR2's, MR2 turbo's, Preludes, Celica GT4's, Supra's, Soarer's GT 3000's Pajero's Bighorn's etc. the company was called TopGear Imports and we had the url topgear.net it was probably the company's most valuable asset until some twat in the hosting company didn't renew it and we lost it without knowing until it was too late. Our website featured a logo that was a direct ripoff of Top Gear magazine's logo, we just inserted the words import ltd. instead of magazine! The magazine used to have a feature on the last page of the mag called "copyright, copywrong" where readers sent in ripoff's of the topgear name from around the world, after mentioning our website they never ran the feature again, I guess they figured nobody could surpass our cheek!

These day's my trading only run's to buying my own cars right and runnin' them for 6-12 months and then selling them on,trying not to lose on them.

Blue850

Worked on service desk in a Fiat dealership and then a Ford dealership in the early 90's, then left motor trade until 99, went back to another Fiat/Alfa dealer processing warranty claims, kept me busy:) , stuck it 6 months.

RedorDead

Been working at distributor level in the product end of things for about five years now. Three with one distributor and am into my second year with the current one. If the walls could talk............:D

fightin irish

Been in the trade 15 LONG years now. I'm a parts manager for a main dealer, also did sales for a few years and warranty admin. I've come to hate the motor trade for many different reasons, But in fairness there are good times like most jobs.

Max_Damage

I was a part time valeter in a main dealership as well last year. Gave it up though due to awkward college hours. Pay wasn't too bad, but driving the cars (even if it was only around the car park) was great!

colm_mcm

sales exec. well known japanese crowd.

dubtom

colm_mcm wrote:

sales exec. well known japanese crowd.

No way,who?:D

crosstownk

colm_mcm wrote:

sales exec. well known japanese crowd.

Never

Captain Slow IRL

3rd year apprentice mechanic, currently with honda (going to phase 6 in january). I worked for 2 years with ford and volvo - honda are the most boring cars, nothing ever goes wrong with them! Volvo on the other hand.........

unkel

colm_mcm wrote:

sales exec. well known japanese crowd.

Daihatsu?

colm_mcm

unkel wrote:

Daihatsu?

Bless You!

junkyard

unkel wrote:

Daihatsu?

I didn't know you could still get them here, I haven't seen one in years.

old boy

toolin with cars for 33 years, still havent learned,

Silvera

I served my time as a Panel Beater from '89 to '96 with a Renault specialist. I have been working on cars and machinery since I was a kid. My father worked in the Plant Hire business and always did his own maintenance, servicing, overhauls, etc.

I also did a 6 months stint in car sales with a Toyota dealership. Didn't like the sales end of things at all ......I'm just too honest to be a good salesman:D

I also worked for Avis in New Zealand in 2004 where I got to drive some nice 'motas'... V6 Holdens, Saab Convertible, etc. :cool:

Captain Slow IRL

Silvera wrote:

Didn't like the sales end of things at all ......I'm just too honest to be a good salesman:D

It's not a business you'll find a lot of honesty in anyways - you have to lie through your teeth if you wanna make money imo, that's why I'm still poor:(

Having said that though, I have to admit, my current employer is as straight as they come - why I moved in the first place

MercMad

I never saw this thread hence my late reply !

Anyway I started as a car valeter 3 days after leaving school at a large Opel dealer, then did an apprenticeship at Bolton street, day release, then was asked to handle the service dept.,then I moved into sales, then changed to Mitsubishi/BMW and I did well as a salesman but again like a lot of you guys I was too honest and loved cars more than the other guys who were just selling commodities.

Finally every time I saw a nicely looked after car, someone's pride and joy, I just saw a pound sign, and I started to think of every car as a trade in value !!

In the end I just decided I needed a change, and I needed to keep cars as a hobby, so I joined an engineering company with other family members. Now I do mechanical repairs, sales and design, whatever it takes !!

I work on cars only as a hobby now and I love it !

alias no.9

Used to valet trade in's at a main dealers when I was in school. It's amazing how much difference a powerful vacuum and some elbow grease can make. No involvement in the trade since then but I do most of the maintenance on both mine and my partners car, anything that can be done with the car on the ground or on axel stands, except cambelts, I'm afraid of cambelts.

AsphaltRisin'

Not a tradesman as such but i do work with a fleet management company

$Leon$

Worked for the last 2 years in a main dealers.
Firstly in stores then as a service advisor.
When you work in service you have to lie a bit.
I hate that but I only try to tell good lies like "the wrong part came in for your car, we should have the right one for tomorrow" rather than "we actually forgot about your car"

junkyard

land9 wrote:

It's not a business you'll find a lot of honesty in anyways - you have to lie through your teeth if you wanna make money imo, that's why I'm still poor:(

Having said that though, I have to admit, my current employer is as straight as they come - why I moved in the first place

I think its a bit unfair to make out that most people in the motor trade are dishonest. Just look at all the other professions and you'll find dishonesty is widespread in all businesses, auctioneers, builders, politicians, shopkeepers, these are just a few that spring to my mind and that took only seconds. Sure, there a lot of crooks out there but its not just in the motor trade in fairness.

fightin irish

$Leon$ wrote:

Worked for the last 2 years in a main dealers.
Firstly in stores then as a service advisor.
When you work in service you have to lie a bit.
I hate that but I only try to tell good lies like "the wrong part came in for your car, we should have the right one for tomorrow" rather than "we actually forgot about your car"

ah a shining example of the service dept blaming the parts dept as bloody usual :rolleyes:

crosstownk

junkyard wrote:

I think its a bit unfair to make out that most people in the motor trade are dishonest.

Agreed. I think that the motor trade has a reputation for dishonesty, but I think there is a lot more honest people involved. Why else would I, and others, offer sound advice here in order to help people out.

Typically, we all get tarred with the same brush...................unfair, imo.

Owen

Sales Manager here. And I still love the job, I suppose the people you work with help a lot.

MercMad

Well I certainly did not mean top imply that the people I worked with, or the trade in general were dishonest. In my experience it was quite the opposite, with most decent mainstream garages doing their best to dispel the myths or preconceptions that average punters had in their heads !

In an era gone buy there were shady traders, and there always will be but when I stated I was too honest I meant that I was personally unwilling to place a sparkling veneer over every deal. I like calling spades............spades !

Most of my friends are in the trade still, and I deal with traders every second day and rarely have anything to complain about !