Originally Posted By: ComfyShorts
Most shops use this pay system its called flat rate. The tech doesn't really get a "bonus" if a job pays 2 hours and you finish in hour you get paid for two, but if the same job takes you 5 hours you still only get two...now days pay rate on most jobs is so low it most of times can't be completed in assigned time. I've yet to see a tech installing drain bolts with impact anything, stop going to shady repair shops. And anyways the tech who is working on your driveability/brakes/suspension concerns is not the one changing your oil, they got kids making min wage for that.
I should have made it a bit clearer actually. Most dealerships in Kuwait use the "bonus" program I described, and the techs they employ are all "multi-skilled".
So basically the tech that changes your timing belt also changes your oil, as opposed to one tech changing the timing belt and the vehicle going into another service bay for someone else to change the oil. One vehicle is assigned per tech, and it is their responsibility to complete all the tasks assigned on that particular vehicle - unless it is something they do not specialize in.
Under these circumstances, things are rushed to finish before the allocated time so the tech gets his bonus, and impact wrenches are used whenever possible. Sometimes, a fellow colleague is asked for a hand, and they try and get the job out the way faster than the guy the vehicle is assigned to. I've seen situations where most of the oil is out the pan, and the drain bolt being put back in before the oil starts to drip (still draining). The bolt is then screwed in by hand just enough so that it doesn't fall off, and in comes the impact wrench to drive and (over) tighten it into place
The oil pan on my truck was actually damaged by the dealership because of practices like this, and they never took responsibility for it. No matter what size drain bolt I try and install, I have to change my oil pan in the not too distant future. With the front differential immediately under the oil pan, I'm either going to have to take the engine out or the entire front axle. Needless to say, the truck hasn't been there since I came back from abroad and took over its maintenance. I'm now using the biggest drain bolt possible, wrapped in thread seal tape, as a temporary measure.
For just oil changes, they have designated bays known as "Quick Service Centers" instead, where they employ people with basic knowledge just to change your oil. If the vehicle is in for a "major service", like spark plugs, filters and a timing belt, then even the oil change is done by the tech the vehicle is assigned to.
Dealership techs here are paid a basic monthly salary of anywhere between $585-$912 a month, and rely on these so-called "bonuses" and overtime to make their living. At the end of the day, you get what you pay for and I don't know which is worse - losing your warranty on a new vehicle because it was "serviced outside the dealership", or trusting these people to carry out maintenance for you at Western labor rates of $50-$60 an hour. I tend to do my own work whenever possible, or take it to an independent mechanic I've known for many years, but even he can be careless at times, and I end up with scratched paint or broken plastic fasteners.
