How is the autobody business??

[67cudaResto89]

Isn't there enough money to be made wrenching? I worked flat rate in Honda & Acura dealers for years before opening up my own independent shop & Honda was the place to be. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. I'd start by being honest with youself & ask what it is that makes you want to do something different. Is it the true passion to do body work, or are you just unhappy at what you're doing now & look to that to make it better? I've always loved doing bodywork & making something look new again, but that's been my hobby I do for the enjoyment. I don't do it for money because I don't want the business end of things to spoil my enthusiasm for it. There are plenty of work hazzards to deal with on both sides. You will pay a price later in life for either with sore joints, hearing loss etc. Are you unhappy because of the ups & downs of flat rate? Well more & more body shops are working flat rate every day. So that may not make you happier in the end. I'd think long & hard about this & be honest with yourself as to what you really want.
The grass may look greener, but it may be growing over the septic system & it still needs to be mowed!..
Good luck with your decision.

I agree with you but that is why i went to honda in the first place because i was unhappy with my other job.
Flat rate doesnt bother me at all. I make decent money. It is stressful not knowing what your paycheck is going to be every week, i will say that. BUT this is my problem i am not 100% sure of what i want. Nothing is for certain i'm just trying to get an idea of what may be a better career for me. When i frst started at honda i enjoyed it but it has really made me think of whether i want to wrench for a living. Theres a lot of favoritism in my shop which sucks when your on the other end. and my last shop was the same exact way. From what i've heard most shops are like that so with that flat rate sucks because your writer controls your money.not only that but with warranty work its getting harder and harder to make money. I was surprised for hondas we have a hell of a lot of warranty work. Like i said i'm getting pros and cons. Theres negatives and positives to every job but i will never know if i never try, i'm going thursday night to speak to a representative from the school and see what he has to say. All i know is that when i see our shop dead and we are sitting around the body shop next to us ALWAYS has work i've NEVER seen that shop empty.:banghead: TO think i had all the answers a year ago and now i'm just so unsure...lol

 

[OwdKasd]

I Still say go for it. Learn it and keep more options open. Best of luck with your decision and career choices.

 

[Lonewolf3165]

I agree with you but that is why i went to honda in the first place because i was unhappy with my other job.
Flat rate doesnt bother me at all. I make decent money. It is stressful not knowing what your paycheck is going to be every week, i will say that. BUT this is my problem i am not 100% sure of what i want. Nothing is for certain i'm just trying to get an idea of what may be a better career for me. When i frst started at honda i enjoyed it but it has really made me think of whether i want to wrench for a living. Theres a lot of favoritism in my shop which sucks when your on the other end. and my last shop was the same exact way. From what i've heard most shops are like that so with that flat rate sucks because your writer controls your money.not only that but with warranty work its getting harder and harder to make money. I was surprised for hondas we have a hell of a lot of warranty work. Like i said i'm getting pros and cons. Theres negatives and positives to every job but i will never know if i never try, i'm going thursday night to speak to a representative from the school and see what he has to say. All i know is that when i see our shop dead and we are sitting around the body shop next to us ALWAYS has work i've NEVER seen that shop empty.:banghead: TO think i had all the answers a year ago and now i'm just so unsure...lol

Do they have a body shop where you work now? If they are that busy maybe you could pick up some hours at nights or on Saturdays to get your feet wet. If not there then maybe a local shop. Good help is hard to find.
I found that I could make extra hours doing work for the body shop or the used car dept & keep my flat rate hours up by doing the jobs from those depts that other techs didn't want because they didn't think it was gravy enough. It also was good if I needed to get something done & needed a favor. Like 1 time they let me paint my car in their booth on a Saturday afternoon when I needed to.
Keep in mind the same problems exist in body shop flat rate systems, favoritism, doing other guys comebacks etc. It sucks, but it's almost unavoidable. Also keep in mind collision work is a lot different from resoration & customizing. More pressure with deadlines, parts delays, damaged panels that are fubar, lousy times per job. I wish you luck my friend, but unfortunatley it ain an easy solution. I'm not trying to dampen your spirit or rain on your picnic, just trying to give you a little insight from experience. I wrestled with the same dilemma when I was about 19 or 20. I decided to stay the course & I personally feel, for me I made the right choice & did better financially. For me. You gotta figure out what's right for you.
Best of luck.

 

[67cudaResto89]

Thanks lonewolf your advice is definitely taken into account. But our body shop is seperately owned by faulker so even tho its in our building its a different dealer and used cars only get handed out to our team leaders and like i said favoritism is a ***** when you work flat rate

 

[gunbunny]

I can say this, your going to run into warranty work and writers who feed their pets regardless of where you go.
It's the same across all makes and all lines. If it's any consolation at all, I'm 42 and still don't know what I want to do when I grow up.

 

[67cudaResto89]

I can say this, your going to run into warranty work and writers who feed their pets regardless of where you go.
It's the same across all makes and all lines. If it's any consolation at all, I'm 42 and still don't know what I want to do when I grow up.

At least im not alone! Lol

 

[340john]

I have been working in body shops since 1986. I started because it was my passion...and it still is. I am in a shop now that stays pretty busy, when the collision work slows down, we have restoration work to fall back on. If you want to learn, do it. Even if you don't do it for a living, it is always good to learn another skill that you might use for yourself or for sidework.

 

[alleyoopmgv]

I've been doing Body/Paint work for 25+ years now. I do collision work by day and restorations by nights/weekends.
If I had any advise to you at all it would be, you gotta do what makes you happy!
I wouldn't go to school for it though, you'll end up owing a school $30K for something a guy like me could teach you in 2 years, the right way. I got advise from my oldest brother (he's been doing it for about 35 years now) when I was about 17. He told me "if you want to learn how to do body/paint work, get a job in a body shop", so thats what I did.

In all honesty, I would rather do restoration work all the time, but thats not where the "easy money" is, it's in the collision industry.

It is hard on your health also, but tell me what isn't? A desk job? No thanks! Just my opinion.
Some inspiration for you!

 

[AdamR]

I agree, I learned a lot in the 2 years I worked at a shop and I read as much as I can find about it and I ask the guys that do it for a living a lot of question even when I know the answer.

 

[HEMI-ITIS]

I am self employed in the transport end of the biz.I have managed large shops in the past and they just work you to death thanklessly:wack:
I have vertigo and parked my toolbox and ended up in a tow truck so I could still get my junk to the track.That being said,the economy is so messed up that even the regular local shops that are normally packed are very slow the last month or so.How do cars know not to break down or wreck because money is tight.There is no rhyme or reason to how my phone can ring 30 hrs a day & 8 days a week.I am in the GOLD coast of Long Island and do alot of high end cars,but everything seems so SLOW right now.If things don't pick uo soon,I will not be able to make some of the racing events that I normally would travel for.You guys in the body & repair shops,I give you alot of credit for working in the conditiond thst you do.Not many places provide A/C when it's hot and the heat in the colder times is marginal:sad4:

 

[67cudaResto89]

I would love to do that unfortunately id probably be taking a huge paycut and i cant afford that with the bills which i was i opted for the school method. I have to work full time and continue to make what i am to make ends meet. Now if i could find something at night or weekends that would be great but alot of guys/shops around here arent very willing to take someone under their wing and train them.

 

[Bickel Motors]

My dad and I have a small shop. We buy damaged cars and redo them for resale. We have bodyshop and frame shop. We do mechanical also. I think you need to be as diverse as you can if you have a small shop. The more you can do for the customer, the better off you'll be, IMO.I've been at it for 30 yrs. It can be tiresome,but it's all I know. Around here, the ins. companies direct people to the bigger shops. They cut out the small guys, cause the big shops overlook their silliness more. It is tough business but it pays when you do it right. If you don't do it right, your business will suffer just like any business out there. Good luck with your future choices. Ask us old guys if you have questions. We are usually brutally honest.

 

[67cudaResto89]

Being brutally honest is also a trait of mine and i respect that very much lol. And i do plan on being as diverse as possible with my shop. I need to start small and work my way up and get my name out there thats the only way im going to succeed. I do sidework now more mechanical than body but now that my garage is set up i can start doing that as well. All the advice is appreciated guys and believe me im taking it all in. Just hope i make the rigt decision for me and my wife. Cause lets face it shes gotta deal with whether or not im happy.