Premium Member Content
This content is hidden to guests, one of the benefits of a paid membership. Please login or register to view this content.
We have purchased the Robinar unit end of last year and have used it maybe 4 times. Most of them have been subleted to us by other shops as well however I do expect to start seeing more this year as we have gotten the word out and so far only 2 shops in our community besides the dealerships have it.
-
1
We have had maybe four or five opportunities to use one but of those four or five they all went back to the dealer under warranty so we have held off purchasing a machine. Still waiting, just don’t want to wait too long.
-
1
We've only seen a few vehicles too and they went back to the dealers. Maybe next year if the demand is stronger.
Lexus dealership - Robinair machine is required equipment. We didn't use it for over a year. FWIW - I don't have first hand experience, but I was told that the evac/recharge procedure takes substantially longer than a 134 machine.
We have also seen limited opportunities to use this machine and are holding off on the purchase for at least another year as a local shop already has it.
- 4 months later...
We purchased separate components for servicing 1234YF; a recovery machine, tank, evacuator-pump, guages, scale and a cart (welding cart or small-medium size tool cart in our case). All Robinair brand. Except tool cart; Harbor Freight, which is getting surprisingly better products especially tool boxes at very reasonable prices. Not automatic, but for the limited use, everything was $2500 with tax, instead of $6500 for the fully automatic machine. We can read a scale and spend an extra 10 minutes for that at this point. The electronic leak detector for R134 works for 1234YF. My concern is the very high cost of 1234YF freon when dealing with leaks, especially slow ones. We may use nitrogen charging, as costs can quickly get out of hand with expensive freon loss.
- 2 weeks later...
We bought a dual machine a few months back. We have been seeing older cars (2013 Dodge Dart!) with the 1234. Because fo the cost of the refrigerant, we began using co2 to check for leaks. It has worked well. My advice? If you can get a deal on one, buy it. You will need it very soon if not already
We purchased one for each of our two locations. The biggest struggle is finding the right pricing and also explaining to the customer why the price is so much higher. We have probably used them 10x combined over the course of 12 months so we are a long way away from covering the investment. The process is much, much longer (1 hour minimum to run through all the steps on the machine), but it's still a valuable service as we are able to work on other vehicles while the machine does its thing.
-
1
- 1 year later...
Premium Member Content
This content is hidden to guests, one of the benefits of a paid membership. Please login or register to view this content.
-
1
Sorry- we don't use co2, we use nitrogen!! Works awesome
We have had a R1234YF machine for at least 3 to 4 years, we average using 2 or 4 times a month, mostly for body shops or other shops that can't do the service. We charge 150 to preform the service and 9 to 11 dollars an ounce for the refrigerant. We have done at least 10 to 12 AC condensors in GM trucks this year! We have a Snap On Machine, The service is a little more hands on than an R134a service, it just requires freon to be added and removed for the leak check. The R1234YF is about 550 to 580 for 10lbs, knowing your not yielding 100% out of the tank, I figure we are getting about 1450 for each tank.
Premium Member Content
This content is hidden to guests, one of the benefits of a paid membership. Please login or register to view this content.
Believe it or not, we recharge and dye the systems and drive them if its going to leak you see it pretty quickly. For 134a we always charged them up and dyed the systems and sent them out the door til the ac stopped working and looked for the dye. honestly the only leaks we had so far are Honda and GM condensors, the GM's are hard to see, but we pull the grilles and charge them and you see the leak pretty quick with dye! Honestly I have not had any come back yet with leaks, but I am sure that's coming, and I don't know how we will handle that cause it's so expensive.
Premium Member Content
This content is hidden to guests, one of the benefits of a paid membership. Please login or register to view this content.
Have not looked at one yet, but I will. The way we use to do 134a is not going to work.
-
Have you checked out Joe's Latest Blog?
-
.thumb.jpg.2b345efc275b9df0af2bbb306a10a78a.jpg)
By Joe Marconi in Joe's Blog5 commentsI recently spoke with a friend of mine who owns a large general repair shop in the Midwest. His father founded the business in 1975. He was telling me that although he’s busy, he’s also very frustrated. When I probed him more about his frustrations, he said that it’s hard to find qualified technicians. My friend employs four technicians and is looking to hire two more. I then asked him, “How long does a technician last working for you.” He looked puzzled and replied, “I never really thought about that, but I can tell that except for one tech, most technicians don’t last working for me longer than a few years.”
Judging from personal experience as a shop owner and from what I know about the auto repair industry, I can tell you that other than a few exceptions, the turnover rate for technicians in our industry is too high. This makes me think, do we have a technician shortage or a retention problem? Have we done the best we can over the decades to provide great pay plans, benefits packages, great work environments, and the right culture to ensure that the techs we have stay with us?
Finding and hiring qualified automotive technicians is not a new phenomenon. This problem has been around for as long as I can remember. While we do need to attract people to our industry and provide the necessary training and mentorship, we also need to focus on retention. Having a revolving door and needing to hire techs every few years or so costs your company money. Big money! And that revolving door may be a sign of an even bigger issue: poor leadership, and poor employee management skills.
Here’s one more thing to consider, for the most part, technicians don’t leave one job to start a new career, they leave one shop as a technician to become a technician at another shop. The reasons why they leave can be debated, but there is one fact that we cannot deny, people don’t quit the company they work for, they usually leave because of the boss or manager they work for.
Put yourselves in the shoes of your employees. Do you have a workplace that communicates, “We appreciate you and want you to stay!”
-
-
Similar Topics
-
By Joe Marconi
Premium Member Content
This content is hidden to guests, one of the benefits of a paid membership. Please login or register to view this content.
-
By Joe Marconi
Premium Member Content
This content is hidden to guests, one of the benefits of a paid membership. Please login or register to view this content.
-
-
By carmcapriotto
Thanks to our Partner, NAPA Auto Care Customer service is the backbone of any successful auto repair shop. Tom Petty discusses the critical role of clear, effective communication with customers. And guess what? It all starts with your internal team and company culture. Tom Petty, Petty Motorworks, Waretown, NJ Show Notes
Watch Full Video TST Seminars: https://www.tstseminars.org/ NAPA Auto Care Gold status (00:01:24) Tom Petty discusses NAPA AutoCare Gold status and its significance. Technical training and progression (00:03:13) Tom Petty's technical training and progression through the years. Family business and technical training (00:04:22) Tom Petty's decision to start a family business and his involvement in technical training. Engaging technicians and setting shop culture (00:05:44) Discussion on setting the culture for a shop and engaging technicians in training. Apprenticeship and mentoring (00:08:13) Tom Petty's approach to apprenticeship and mentoring young technicians. Automotive vocational education (00:11:10) Discussion on the need for a specialized automotive charter program in vocational education. Challenges in the automotive industry (00:13:03) Challenges faced by young technicians in the automotive industry and the need for development and support. Starting wage and labor margin (00:14:36) Discussion on starting wage for technicians and the importance of labor margin for business sustainability. Post-education career advice (00:15:31) Tom Petty's advice for students coming out of a two-year automotive program regarding starting wage expectations. Structured Raises (00:15:37) Discussion about implementing structured raises for technicians to prevent wage suppression. Setting Technician Wages (00:19:06) Discussion on the importance of setting technician wages based on experience and productivity. Communication and Customer Service (00:23:53) Importance of effective communication, especially through digital inspections, and its impact on customer service. Training Alliance (00:28:00) Formation of an independent training alliance to improve technical training in the local area of New Jersey. Kidney Donation (00:30:44) Tom Petty's kidney donation. Life Post-Surgery (00:33:14) Tom Petty shares his experiences after kidney surgery and discusses the minimal impact on his daily life. Avoiding NSAIDs (00:33:53) The importance of avoiding certain pain medications for kidney health, with a cautionary example. Recovery and Kidney Function (00:34:31) Insights into the recovery period after kidney surgery and the remarkable adaptability of the kidney.
Thanks to our Partner, NAPA Auto Care Learn more about NAPA Auto Care and the benefits of being part of the NAPA family by visiting https://www.napaonline.com/en/auto-care Connect with the Podcast: -Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RemarkableResultsRadioPodcast/ -Join Our Private Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1734687266778976 -Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/carmcapriotto -Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carmcapriotto/ -Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/remarkableresultsradiopodcast/ -Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RResultsBiz -Visit the Website: https://remarkableresults.biz/ -Join our Insider List: https://remarkableresults.biz/insider -All books mentioned on our podcasts: https://remarkableresults.biz/books -Our Classroom page for personal or team learning: https://remarkableresults.biz/classroom -Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/carm -The Aftermarket Radio Network: https://aftermarketradionetwork.com -Special episode collections: https://remarkableresults.biz/collections
Click to go to the Podcast on Remarkable Results Radio
-
By Hands On
Hi folks. A quick search and I did not see any recent alignment machine posts. I have a quote from Hunter, $86,000 includes a scissor life and the concrete work to flush mount it, shipping, the machine with wall mount cameras. Some accessories. If I do conservatively 3 alignments a week my break even is approx 4.5 years, a bit longer depending on financing cost.
I lease my shop, and one of my biggest fears has been getting kicked out of here. Should I be looking at obtaining a location instead? I am always nervous about taking on the massive cost of a bigger building, especially when I struggle so often to hire good people. I talked to a friend that went from a small shop like I have to a larger facility and he said it was a lot more headaches with very little increase in income. I want less headaches, less stress.
Maybe it is my small shop that makes it hard to hire? Is this the right time to try to get a new location? How do I even start finding financing, I do not have a ton of cash saved up right now. Should I get the alignment machine now, and continue to save up for a new location? How much do I need down for a new spot? Should I keep my eye open for other shops that might fail in the coming year and hold off on the alignment machine and continue to stack cash? I am kind of tired of loosing an employee for 30 minutes to an hour to run an alignment across town that may or may not get done to the same quality standards I hold my employees to.
-
-
-
Our Sponsors
Recommended Posts
xrac
Premium Member Content
This content is hidden to guests, one of the benefits of a paid membership. Please login or register to view this content.
Link to comment
Share on other sites