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  • Going to paint school
    By Erica Schulz - Monday May 6, 2013
    I had the opportunity to sit in on a Sherwin Williams Automotive Refinishing training course. Sherwin Williams specializes in manufacturing and distributing a complete line of advanced technology paint and coating systems for automotive and fleet refinishing industries. Students participate in a three-day course, filled with classroom and hands-on experience, to learn the properties, applications and best practices of how to use Sherwin Williams' Genesis line of paints for fleet applications. "We offer training to teach the customer how to properly use our fleet finishes, proper spray gun technique, proper cleaning, proper use for our products and proper paint mixing," Sherwin-Williams training specialist Robert Smith explained to...

  • Getting the most from your fleet's performance
    By John Walters - Thursday February 28, 2013
    If you manage a fleet of trucks, you know how important everyday performance is to your bottom line. How you treat your vehicles has a direct impact on how efficiently they function, how often they require repairs and, ultimately, how long they last. Be sure that you are taking all the correct operational measures and necessary maintenance steps to get the most from your fleet. Find out if the fuel, lubricant and additive solutions that you use are best suited for the demands of your business. These aspects of fleet management may be the key to making the following operational improvements: Better Fuel Efficiency Poorly chosen or poorly maintained engine oil may be costing you a fortune in fuel. Inferior or infrequently changed...

  • Fuel handling: A safer business is a better business
    By John Walters - Thursday February 28, 2013
    Safety is paramount to the health of your business. This is especially true when it comes to fuel handling. Compliance with all regulatory standards and safety protocols in the transportation, delivery and storage of fuel is critical to the wellbeing of your personnel and the success of your company. When you go to extra lengths to ensure the safety of your employees, your clients and your community, you aren’t just fueling your fleet. You’re fueling the future of your business. Whether your fuel handling is conducted onsite by your employees or offsite by a third-party provider, your compliance with the proper safety protocols contributes positively to the following business objectives. Earnings The Occupational Safety & Health...

  • Does your operation need GPS fleet tracking software?
    By Erica Bell, on behalf of business.com - Thursday November 8, 2012
    For companies that are expanding or looking for a way to keep better track of their vehicles on a day-to-day basis, GPS fleet tracking software can help. But, before you decide to make the investment, it is wise to look at the pros and cons that come from such software, as well as what to look for in a software solution. Reasons for considering a GPS software solution for tracking company vehicles will vary, as will the potential benefits, but the overall benefit is saving time and money. Some businesses have found they can receive discounted insurance rates when using GPS software. Compare commercial vehicle insurance plans to see whether or not you can get a discount by using fleet tracking software. Tracking fleet vehicles with GPS...

  • What will change?
    - Tuesday July 31, 2012
    Today (July 31, 2012) it was announced that the Massachusetts state legislature has passed a Right to Repair bill. If the governor signs it as expected, the new law will require car companies to “immediately make available to the independent vehicle repair industry the same tools, software and repair information that they make available to the franchised dealers.” By model year 2018, they will also be required to “maintain all of their software and service information in an electronic database that is available to consumers and independent service facilities on a subscription basis.” Except for the reference to consumer access, and assuming “software” means control unit update software, this mimics a voluntary agreement...

  • Training Newbies
    By Jacques Gordon - Thursday June 14, 2012
    Tech school training is a frequent topic of discussion at trade shows that offer technician training. It’s agreed that new techs fresh out of school really aren’t all that useful, and that training for new techs should be changed. However, there is little discussion about what changes should be made. I’ve visited tech schools all over the country, and I’ve known and worked with dozens of teachers. They’ve taught me that it all starts with the quality of the individual. Students must be smart enough to understand mechanics, hydraulics, electrics, electronics and computers in today’s extremely complex vehicles, and they need academic skills too. They also need communication and people skills, and some schools include those in...

  • Follow the Money
    By Jacques Gordon - Thursday May 17, 2012
    The 'debate' over E15 is showing up in my Inbox with greater frequency these days. In case you haven't heard, E15 is 85 percent gasoline and 15 percent ethanol. Current EPA rules require refineries to produce E10 as road fuel, and a few years ago the Agency began the rule-making process to change that requirement to E15. (The actual ethanol blend at the pump is determined locally by state government, and the pump must be labled.) Opposition to this rule comes from a group called the Coordinating Research Council (CRC), which includes, among others, the American Petroleum Institute (API) and eight of the world's largest auto manufacturers. The EPA is tasked by Congress with protecting air quality, while the CRC can be seen as an...

  • Can you sell it?
    By Jacques Gordon - Thursday April 5, 2012
    To run a successful auto repair business, being good at sales is just as important as any other skill in the shop. Tell me how you would answer this customer: When they first came out, I had a chance to try a vacuum tool that’s used for leak-checking and filling a cooling system. The brand name was Airlift, and I think there are some other brands now, but these days the tool is generically called an ‘airlifter.’ I remember being impressed at how fast and easy it was to fill a cooling system that I’d had trouble bleeding in the past (VW Corrado with the PG engine). Later I read that some people won’t to use the tool on certain GM engines that suffer a high rate of intake manifold gasket failures. People have also worried about...

  • Fuel Prices
    By Jacques Gordon - Tuesday February 21, 2012
    The price of crude oil is now over $100 a barrel, so fuel prices are climbing again. This time it’s petro-politics. Iran has halted oil sales to France (who buys almost no Iranian crude) and Britain (who buys none at all) and has threatened to halt oil sales to other European Union nations. This is because the EU has announced a plan to stop buying Iranian crude in an effort to convince Iran to halt their nuclear program. If the Europeans are already planning to stop buying Iranian crude, why should Iran’s threat to stop selling it to them raise oil prices everywhere in the world? I don’t know, but it shows how unpredictably fragile our lifestyle here in the U.S. can be. Here’s a more predictable reality: If you’ve got it, a...

  • Scan Tool Dreams
    By Jacques Gordon - Thursday February 2, 2012
    Diagnostics has changed a lot since the earliest days of OBD II, mostly because there are a lot more codes and other information available from the vehicle’s on-board controllers. But, with the exception of additional modes (bi-directional control, VIN info, and permanent code records), the basic structure of OBD II remains relatively unchanged since the first 7 Modes were introduced in 1996. Still, scan tools are MUCH more powerful today than most of us imagined back then, and there’s potential for even more capability. Just as significant is the potential unlocked by the different ways people have found to use the tool. For instance, Mode $06 was originally intended as a production line tool to verify/document a vehicle’s...

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