Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 3
FIXED OPS JOURNAL
inside
December 2017
12
features
22
9 Big verdict: Jury awards $42 million to victims of crash linked to
faulty body shop repairs
12 Ho-ho-ho: Dealerships tout service gift cards as holiday stocking
stuffers
14 Battery charge: How mass-market electric vehicles will transform
fixed ops
22 Price is right: New twists in debate over whether to advertise service
department prices
24 Tomorrow's techs: Dealers work with schools, colleges to train next-gen mechanics
28 Selling accessories: How your dealership can capture more of the specialty market
30 SEMA dreams: The big show unveils the latest and greatest shop equipment
32 To the rescue: Service specialist hits the road 24/7 to help customers in need
36 On the line: Don't let botched customer phone calls drain service profits
38 Real time: Software helps shops assign jobs better, improve promise times
41 After hours: Techs work on their own vehicles when business day ends
42 Efficiency expert: Founder of vAuto offers advice on
shop scheduling, productivity
43 Longer lasting: Extended warranties build
service business, but check the details
14
30
departments
32
4 Editor's Letter
6 Service Counter
8 Legal Lane
34 Profit Builder
35 Richard Truett
37 Letters
40 Feedback
44 Shop Talk
45 Five Minutes With
46 Fixed in Time
Fixed Ops Journal Staff
EDITOR: David Kushma
DIRECTOR OF EDITORIAL OPERATIONS: Dave Versical
DEPUTY EDITOR: James B. Treece
DESIGNER: Steve Massie
REPORTERS: Richard Truett, John Irwin, Jackie Charniga
COPY EDITORS: Tom Fetters, Omari Gardner, Tim Good, Elizabeth Hardy, Karen Faust O'Rourke
CORRESPONDENTS: Eric Freedman, Jim Henry, Jenny King, Alex Kwanten, Stephanie Hernandez McGavin, Rick Popely,
Alysha Webb, Ken Wysocky
ADVERTISING: Karen Rentschler, director of sales, krentschler@crain.com
DECEMBER 2017
PAGE 3
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017
Contents
Editor’s Letter
Service Counter
Legal Lane
Big verdict
Ho-ho-ho
Battery charge
Price is right
Tomorrow’s techs
Selling accessories
SEMA dreams
To the rescue
Profit Builder
Richard Truett
On the line
Letters
Real time
Feedback
After hours
Efficiency expert
Longer lasting
Shop Talk
Five Minutes With
Fixed in Time
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Intro
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Cover2
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Contents
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Editor’s Letter
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 5
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Service Counter
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 7
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Legal Lane
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Big verdict
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 10
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 11
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Ho-ho-ho
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 13
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Battery charge
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 15
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 16
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 17
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 18
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 19
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 20
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 21
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Price is right
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 23
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Tomorrow’s techs
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 25
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 26
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 27
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Selling accessories
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 29
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - SEMA dreams
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 31
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - To the rescue
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 33
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Profit Builder
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Richard Truett
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - On the line
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Letters
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Real time
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - 39
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Feedback
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - After hours
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Efficiency expert
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Longer lasting
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Shop Talk
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Five Minutes With
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Fixed in Time
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Cover3
Fixed Ops Journal - December 2017 - Cover4
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