On this episode of Grease The Wheels, Uncle Jimmy goes for the trilogy of things that you see roll into your shop that spell doom, because you know you’re eff’d. From poorly done wraps, to harlequin models of cars that are not 90s Golf’s, and underbody lights, there are a lot of things that we see that spell doom and gloom for our profit margin. Seeing an old car that is still being daily driven darkening your door is somehow more of an omen of impending doom than the banshee’s howl, while seeing car club stickers on a PT Cruiser was just hilarious. We’d like to throw a shoutout to Sibley, Iowa and somehow this series gets a part 4 at a later date. It’s the one series that you have nodded along to at least once — and hopefully hasn’t caused any weird synchronicities where you hear about it in the podcast and it immediately shows up in the shop! 

Also Uncle Jimmy goes thermonuclear on marketplace sellers who sell as “parts only” and explores of the concept of “Convertible Sunk Cost Fallacy”

On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy comes up with a list of interview questions for mechanics to observe and take into account when they are looking to move to a new shop. Is there enough parking, are there enough bathrooms, and where exactly did all of these dead and abandoned cars come from? There are tons of criteria that we use when evaluating where we are going to work, but this episode brings a lot of them to life with some of the most insane examples you’ve ever heard! 

Also Uncle Jimmy side hustles as a garage door repairman

On this episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy goes to practical goal building mode for 2025. Getting better isn’t going to be negotiable in 2025, as the pace of technological change in the cars is continuing at break-neck speed. Look at the year end total for your W-2, divide it by your hourly rate and that gets you near how many hours you worked. This of course isn’t taking into effect all of the house that you turned but didn’t get paid for! It also doesn’t get into the amount of hours that you quoted. All oof these numbers are easy to figure out and give you a good idea of the value that you bring to your company. So needless to say, if you don’t like something, Grease the Wheels! 
 
 Also Uncle Jimmy discovers Gasoline particulate filters. 

On this episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy revisits some of the common signs and portents of things that you know are going to result in a rough day in the shop. From bullet holes and hypodermic needles, to an entire goodwill inventory of clothes in a trunk where you need to replace a battery, there is little limit to the chaos and carnage that customer roll in on a daily basis. We also go into a scientific breakdown for an answer to every single complaint about a sunroof. 

Also Uncle Jimmy pulls off a flawless Moody Blues reference while really hammering home just how old he is with the price of batteries. 

On this episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy lifts the cover off of one of the truly weird and genuinely innovative technician/mechanic development programs: The K-Plan. Developed with the help of people way smarter than us, the K-Plan lays out all of the areas of knowledge that someone will need to be successful as a mechanic, with tailored resources for that particular shop. It utilizes technician development bonuses to encourage institutional and brand specific knowledge in order to lead to more developed technicians that can make you more money. Long story short you get to send the work that you have to the people that can do it, while keeping track of the pace of development of the staff within your shop. Want to learn more? Need it in your shop ASAP - hit us ups on the Facebook page! 
 
 Also Uncle Jimmy prepares to vacation somewhere with an average temperature 30 degrees lower than his current location. 

On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy gets back to proper form and takes customers to task. Every area has that one shop that when you see a car roll in with their plate frames, you know you’re (more specifically the customer) are eff’d. Dozens of bumperstickers, turning your interior into a series of various claymore landmines and much, much more! This series literally wrote itself, but if you have some specific examples please let us know over on the Facebook page. 

Also Uncle Jimmy wishes you all a very happy Thanksgiving and corroborates some hilarious family lore. 

On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy unveils the K-Plan. This is a system that shops and dealerships can use to basically build a farm system for their new technicians while rewarding the technicians that train them to a level of autonomous productivity. It benchmarks what people know against what the new people have to learn, providing clear expectations for knowledge and how a shop wants things done. We also get into the Master-Apprentice relationship and what that needs to be like for long term success. We have been working on it for a while, and that is why the episodes have been bi-weekly! We finally needed it so bad, that we ended up building it! 

Also Uncle Jimmy calls his shot and does an impression of the outgoing president. 

On this weeks episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy gets into how to get along with your coworkers better. As the weather begins to cool, yes even in Texas, the doors of the shop are going to stay closed more often and you’ll be working in closer quarters. The better that you all get along determines the overall vibe in the back of the house as well, so try to be helpful and courteous. Creating a cohesive atmosphere in the shop is important to getting along, which can make you more money in the long run and lead to lower turnover. 
 
 Also Uncle Jimmy keeps it above the belt when it comes to service advisors. 

On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy wades into the foggy, brutal game that is internet reviews. In many ways reviews are one of the most important parts of your business, often taking massive precedence in the way that your company appears through search results. This allows customers to quickly form an opinion on your company, with huge potential upsides when you treat customers right. However, in the situation of many auto repair shops, the customer comes with preloaded anxiety about how long their car is going to be broken, and how much it is going to cost to fix. This makes for a delicate balance of realism and optimism, entirely decided by what the rest of your shop has going on at that particular moment. Managing customer expectations and setting them up for a better user experience is key, but in the end sometimes bad reviews cannot be avoided. Bottom line, this is an important part of your brand voice, and getting it right in a timely manner is key to continued success on the internet. 

Also Uncle Jimmy makes the perfect onomatopoeia for a flat tire.

On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy takes a serious look at mental health with way more F-Bombs than Dr. Phil could ever muster. Due to the potentially disturbing nature of this show, we are actually going to put up a content warning for marked discussions on Suicide, while putting a link to the relevant people below. This is a big deal in this industry, worldwide and since the pandemic specifically. We as an industry don’t talk about mental health very often, and when we do it is mostly masked in self-deprecating or gallows humor. The real fact remains that the constant march of technological progress combined with the overall chaos that the human element brings to the situation, working in a shop can create an incredible amount of stress - and if you can’t deal with it you need to find ways that are not self-destructive. Sometimes that is taking a different position in the company, sometimes it is changing occupations entirely. The bottom line is that in a world full of problems the people who solve those problems have never been more valuable. As a result, you wrench twisting bastards are valuable - so don’t solve a temporary problem with a permanent solution that leaves your friends, family, coworkers and acquaintances wondering why.  Because none of you are allowed to die before Uncle Jimmy. 

Also Uncle Jimmy wants you to reach out if things in your head aren’t going great right now. If it is more serious than that we suggest following this Link