Flat Rate Tech Podcast

They don’t pay you enough to control you. They don’t own you. They just think they do.
In this episode, we’re talking about side jobs, shop control, and the unspoken truth every tech knows: the dealer doesn’t get a say in what you do after you clock out. They want your time, your loyalty, your weekends, your silence… without paying you anything close to what that’s worth.
So here it is.
The reality behind why techs take side work.
Why shops hate it but can’t stop it.
Why the rules only exist when they benefit management.
And why techs are done letting anyone dictate their lives outside the bay.
This one is raw, direct, and aimed straight at every tech who’s tired of being treated like property instead of a skilled professional.

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

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Tech

Every shop’s got one the foreman stuck between techs and management, trying to keep the place running while catching heat from both sides. This episode digs into what that job really looks like the pressure, the politics, the burnout, and the bullshit that comes with being “the middle guy.”

If you’ve ever been a foreman, wanted to be one, or dealt with one who forgot what it’s like to turn wrenches this one’s for you.

WATCH THE EPISODES ON YOUTUBE! Subscribe to the channel DO IT OR ELSE

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

You can feel it, can’t you?
 Every year, there’s fewer and fewer of us left. The real techs.
 The ones who actually know how to fix shit not just swap parts, not just follow flowcharts.

We’re watching the trade fade in real time. The old heads are walking out.
 The next generation’s walking in blind.
 And the people running this industry still don’t get it.

They call it a “technician shortage,” but it’s not a shortage it’s an extinction.
 Because when the last real techs leave, the knowledge, the pride, and the backbone of every shop goes with them.

This episode dives into what real skill actually looks like, what happens when experience walks out the door, and how the next generation’s already burning out before they even start.
 We’re also talking about the sellouts the influencer techs cashing in on the same system they used to cry about.
 Tag ‘em in the comments.

This one’s for the real ones still standing in the bays.
 The ones keeping it together while everyone else looks the other way.
 The ones who still give a damn.

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

!! NEXT WEEKS EPISODE IS ONLY ON YOUTUBE, VIDEO EPISODE ONLY!!!

This Episode was already out on Youtube days ago. Subscribe for the video episodes!

AI’s coming for every white-collar job out there the office people, the analysts, the “safe” careers.
And when that wave hits, guess who’s waiting with open arms?
The same industry that’s been burning techs out for decades.

This episode breaks down how the auto industry is about to win the AI war not by fixing flat rate, not by paying techs better, but by flooding the bays with desperate workers looking for “job security.”

Flat rate was built for this world  a system that thrives on turnover, protects the company, and feeds off desperation.
And when AI wipes out half the job market, this system doesn’t just survive… it gets stronger.

If you think the trade’s finally turning a corner, this one’s your wake-up call.
Because when the world runs out of options, the industry wins.

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

SUBSCRIBE to the YOUTUbe channel. This episode was already out last week on there. VIDEO EPISODE. 

You’ve probably seen that Lizard Ford guy online the one always talking about the factory side of things. Strikes, contracts, solidarity… all that. The truth is, he only talks about that side because that side actually fights back. The union guys on the line have structure, leverage, and a voice. Meanwhile, the dealership techs the flat rate soldiers are the ones holding the brand together with no backup, no representation, and no respect.
This episode breaks down exactly why dealership mechanics/ technicians don’t have a voice, how the flat rate system keeps us divided, and what “fighting back” really looks like inside a dealership. It’s not about picket signs it’s about finally saying no to the free labor, the unpaid diagnostics, and the silence that’s been eating this trade alive.
Because the truth is, they’ll listen when we stop saying yes. 

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

This episode was out last week on YouTube check it out there is you want. 

The Ford CEO’s out here crying about the “technician shortage” again.Talking about how hard it is to find and keep techs.Yeah, no $hit. We’ve been saying that for years.
But here’s the truth: this shortage didn’t just happen.The industry created it.
They cut pay. They slashed warranty times. They treated techs like disposable parts.And now that the bays are empty, they’re pointing fingers everywhere except the mirror.
In this episode, we’re calling out the corporate spin, the fake “solutions,” and every CEO, OEM, and YouTuber still pretending this is a great trade while cashing their checks off techs getting screwed.
It’s not a shortage.It’s fallout.And it’s been a long time coming.

This is the truth from a 25 year technician thats seen it all and even wrote the book. Flat Rate Life the life of a Flat Rate Tech available on Amazon. 

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

Every tech knows that peace in this trade doesn’t last it’s rented. One good manager, one solid crew, one fair dispatch, and you start to believe you’ve finally found your forever shop. But all it takes is one meeting, one new face, one corporate signature and it’s gone.

In this episode, I break down how fast stability disappears in this industry, why it’s designed that way, and the toll it takes on the people still showing up every morning. From pay plan flips to shop sales, it’s all part of the system meant to keep techs off balance.

Plus, a new Shop Culture Decoder segment calls out what “fast-paced environment,” “unlimited earning potential,” and “opportunities for growth” really mean when you see them in job ads.

This one’s for every tech who’s ever felt that rug get pulled. Because until the system changes, peace in this trade will always come with rent due.

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

https://flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com/

https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/    MERCH!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57  THE BOOK!

This one’s all about the weapon words shops throw at us to squeeze more free labor. Mandatory. Budget. Efficiency.Opportunity. Team player. Professionalism. They make it sound like motivation, but every single one of those words is just a threat dressed up as leadership. You want videos? You want “flexibility”? You want us to hit budget? Then pay us. Because “mandatory” without a paycheck ain’t mandatory—it’s just bullshit.

I break down the language they use, what it really means, and why techs keep getting played into working harder and longer for nothing. If you’ve ever been told to be a “team player” or “professional” while they cut your pay plan, this episode is for you.

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

GET THE BOOK HERE

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Videon on Patreon

NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/

Managers love to ask why they can’t keep new hires but the answer’s right in front of them. In this episode, I break down what really happens when a motivated tech walks into a dealership and gets thrown into the bay with no support, no communication, and nothing but lies from the interview. From foremen being left out of the process to shops expecting techs to train their own replacements for free, it’s no wonder guys walk out as fast as they walk in.

We’ll talk about the lies, the egos, the NPC new hires, and why the system keeps eating its own. And yeah I’ll have some fun calling out the “top 1%” techs and the podcast clout-chasers too.

This one’s for every tech who’s seen a new guy show up, sit at a toolbox all day, and disappear a week later.

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech

GET THE BOOK HERE

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/

Another wave of techs is walking out and it’s not slowing down. Shops keep scrambling to hire, but nobody’s asking why people are leaving in the first place. In this episode, we break down what’s driving techs out right now: unstable pay plans, broken promises, toxic management, and the burnout that comes with being treated like we’re disposable.

It’s not just “a few bad shops.” This is a pattern across the industry, and it’s hitting harder every month. If you’re still in the trade, you’ll relate. If you’re thinking about leaving, you’re not alone. And if you’re a manager who doesn’t get it yet—this is the reality your techs are living in.

Support the show

SPONSORED BY BAY DIAGNOSTICS

www.BayDiagnosticsGroup.com 

You've heard the problems on this podcast for years — technician turnover, broken communication, bad dispatch, lost productivity, pay-plan issues, and shop culture problems.

Bay Diagnostics helps dealership managers find out what's actually happening inside their service department.

Built from more than 30 years of firsthand dealership experience, Bay Diagnostics provides anonymous technician feedback, workflow analysis, and diagnostic reports designed to identify the problems that can cost a shop technicians, hours, repair orders, and profit.

Truth from the bays. Solutions for the shop.

Dealership managers: Want to find out what's really happening in your shop?

Email: [email protected]

THE BOOK

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57

Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website 
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
[email protected]
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!

Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for your support!
Tech