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Service Zone is a free bi-weekly e-newsletter product for the automotive industry. It includes news and information to help shop owners, service writers and technicians keep up with a rapidly changing marketplace. |
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  Tire dealers and service shop operators should recognize when motorists’ expectations are unrealistically high. Some service personnel insist that erasing trouble codes for motorists is a valuable courtesy and convenience, but unfortunately, this practice also may be counterproductive. Free diagnoses ultimately reduce the value of all professional automotive service providers.  Chrysler Some 2008-09 Jeep Grand Cherokees with 6.1L engines and automatic transmissions may idle roughly on cold startup. In many cases, the Check Engine light will also be on, with trouble code P050D stored in computer memory. If normal troubleshooting fails to reveal the cause of the problems, a glitch in the PCM software is the likely culprit. Reprogramming the module with an updated calibration is the only reliable fix. Check with a dealer for the application specifics of the software upgrade. FULL ARTICLE  A shop owner in Bay City, Texas, writes: “We called some other shops to find out the cost of repairs and sure weren´t ready for what we found. After doing some management training, we´re pretty much setup using national standards. It appears all the other shops don´t have a clue. Labor is pretty standard, but parts seem to be priced from cost only up to a very low markup at best. We´re the newest guys and commonly hear ‘I can buy this for $XX.XX’ from customers. I´m trying to figure whether I should follow their routine to blend in, or go with common sense and try to make a living using established standards and being generally higher. I´m an outsider in a town with the other shops owned by some popular folks and that adds up as well. I´ve been crunching numbers on this all weekend and it´s frustrating. Suggestions?” |