Stop Warranties Before They Happen By Juan C. Grube When we attend ; yy a trade show we © travel as a group ina heed van pulling acargo = y trailer. The hours be- >A tween gas stops are often spent in some anti conver- sation. Well, we just got back from a long trip to the Automotive Parts Rebuilders Association (APRA) show in Orlando and yes, we talked! This story starts with the realization that today’s auto electric rebuilder finds his business being squeezed by the dis-count auto parts store chain. If there’s not one in your area now there will be when someone builds the sec- ond house in town. The only way any of us can com- pete with these megachains is by add- ing value to our product. That added value has to be service. Service is what sets your shop apart from any chain. It’s safe to say that every rebuilder has rebuilt many an alternator that was operating correctly before anything was done to it. These may have been cores from a salvage yard or some other source. But a few were alterna- tors that were removed from a vehicle that had a charging system problem, not an alternator problem. Taken at face value I think this alternator repre- sents the biggest chance ofa warranty claim and more importantly a danger to your reputation. Why? Because this is the alternator that on its return trip to you comes with the phrase, “This doesn’t work any better than before you rebuilt it!”” This may not have been a serious problem in the past but it is today be- cause many alternators now “interact” with the vehicle control system and may take several hours to remove and replace. How should you deal with it? Here are some ideas: – Always ask questions. Remem- ber, “It don’t work” isn’t an answer. How do you know it doesn’t work? What’s it off of? Maybe there’s a com- mon vehicle problem that should be checked first. Why is the car in your shop? Anybody who doesn’t like questions can’t handle answers. You cannot ask too many questions. – Check the alternator while the customer is still standing there. If it performs correctly, help your customer find the real problem. Take a few min- utes to explain the function of each ter- minal and how to verify its operation. Help him prove to himself that the problem is the vehicle, not the alterna- tor. You might want to loan or rent him some of your special troubleshooting tools. That’s the service part. Odds are he’ll say go ahead and rebuild it as good preventative maintenance. Help your customer solve prob- lems and he’ll bring you more business. That’s my opinion, “exchange” yours. Juan Grube is president of JIMCO, Inc., Raymore, MO. NOVEMBER, 1999 Page 1 of 1