Episode 97: PG Boondoggle

On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy attempts to do an entire episode under the “PG” rating- while maneuvering some of the problems that arise when technicians have to talk to customers. Firstly, when we have to talk to customers we only should ever have to talk about what is wrong with their car and how we are going to fix it, everything else has its own department! Although, if you actually are good with people and a good technician we go over the potential post-tech move of becoming a service advisor, and shutting off the part of our brains that want to say something that’s really only hilarious to us and could potentially upset the customer. When the shoe is on the other foot and a customer is yelling obscenities at you things can really get interesting. For most of us, our natural reaction is to go full-send on a string of insults that would make the entire Mercantile Marine blush. Our advice: just hang up, whatever your job is in the shop they aren’t paying you to take that abuse. If they keep doing it, be just rude enough so that they don’t make you deal with that customer, but not so rude that you just greased your own wheels (even when they deserve it).

Finally we have a short but serious chat about race, gender, religion, and why if you are charging customers more based on these factors you should probably leave this industry immediately before the universe does it for you.

This episode is distributed by The Wrenching Network. Whether you’re a technician, a mechanic, or someone who just loves the car scene, The Wrenching Network is a place that you have to check out. They have all sorts of great content, gear, and snacks to keep you turning wrenches in whatever capacity you do it. Also if you see us over there, make sure you say hi and leave a comment with what you think about the episode!