carpediemracing 

I was exhausted when I replied the above.

So there is me who tries to take care of customers. I go by the book in that if brake fluid tests poorly (for copper content, any significant amount of copper in the brake fluid indicates that the corrosion inhibitors in the fluid are used up and the fluid is starting to eat away at the copper lining the brake lines and caliper internals) then I'll recommend fluid. But I won't do it just because it's 3 years or 2 years (for Honda I think, maybe it's Subaru). I'll recommend air filters if they're dirty, but a few techs ALWAYS recommend them so for them I go and eyeball the things. Often they're not bad at all, so I'll scold the tech then ("dude, you can't rec filters if they're clean. what if they decline and have someone else check. Or they decline and then check themselves. we'll look like liars, and specifically I'll look like a liar. DOn't do this!") and let the customer know that next oil change we'll check again. Etc.

There are two that go by the book, so if it's 30k miles they'll recommend the brake fluid no matter what - they're more rote people, they aren't super sure what each thing does, so they're not good at "feature benefit" like "I'd suggest replacing the brake fluid because the corrosion inhibitors are used up and that means you could have more substantial problems down the road, like a sticking caliper or even a failed hard line". Instead they just say "at 30k you should do the brake fluid". They're good about coupons because that's part of the rote process.

There's the manager, who will put stuff in the work order as recs but then tell the customer it's for pricing purposes only. He recommends actual required work. He's like me, but he's a bit more willing to sell maintenance stuff that I don't necessarily sell. He's super good with pricing, coupons, etc. His intentions are good, and it reflects in his quotes. He also understands the importance of covering our butts so for example if we do a diagnosis on a toilet car, it has a whatever terrible thing (blown engine, transmission, rusted frame, etc), he'll waive the diag fee but write it all up so there's a record of it (and he'll pay the tech too). If we can't do a repair because it's a dealer thing (PCM has to be reflashed at dealer) then I'll waive the fee - there are others that still charge the diag, which I don't think is right, and eventually it'll come back to bite us. I'll charge if the diag uncovers work suited for us but the customer declines.

There is one that goes by the book but if it's hard to find a part he won't recommend it because he doesn't feel like calling the dealer for the part or hunt it down otherwise. So he gives incomplete recs, like he won't recommend something needed because he doesn't feel like finding the part/s (or figure out the labor) but he'll recommend "by the book" stuff that's easy. So maybe he'll skip the brake fluid because the bleeder screws look rusted and instead he'll recommend the air filters which are pristine but way easier to write up. At least he does all the coupons.

Then there's the guy that scares people into buying stuff. He won't get into dealer stuff (air bag warning light, wacky dash stuff, super heavy corrosion) but he'll sell a ton of stuff on a car that's falling apart. I don't agree with it but I've come to realize that some people can't replace their car and they need it to have tires or brakes or struts or whatever, put it on the store card that gives them time to pay, then just deal with it later. So with him I agree with some stuff, not with other stuff, but I end up changing my mind on some of the work he recommends because the customer does it to get by for another year before buying a different car. This guy never puts in coupons either, so I put them all in before cashing out the customer.

I think a lot of the customers rack up huge bills to keep their cars on the road. And a lot of people come in with absolutely destroyed cars that they just bought and "the place's mechanic checked it out and it's all good". Well, it's all good except the head gasket is blown or the engine "has a loud clanking noise", or the transmission is effed up, subframe has three rust holes in it, etc. One car came in with "no AC". Condenser had what looked like bullet holes in it (or someone poked a bunch of holes in it with a metal rod), and it was held in place with angle iron. And they bought it from a used car dealer.