A 26 Year Old Tech Trapped in an Old School Shop with Zach Fogle

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In this episode, Jeff Compton sits down with Zach Fogle, a 26 year old technician from Idyllwild, California, to discuss shop life, training, technology, and the challenges facing modern technicians. Zach shares his experience working at a small multi generation shop with a towing fleet, including the frustrations of being pulled away from repair work, outdated equipment, limited tooling, inconsistent processes, and low labor rates. They also discuss customer supplied parts, diagnostics, programming, ADAS, Tekmetric, documentation, liability, and why investing in the right tools and training can help reduce comebacks and improve productivity. The conversation closes with Zach’s hopes for the shop’s future, the importance of networking, and plans to keep learning through industry events and training. Timestamps: 00:00 Control and Legacy 00:51 Podcast Welcome and Weather 01:36 California Life and Snow 02:52 Zach’s Background in Shops 07:45 Towing Duties and Frustrations 13:14 Paperwork and Processes 22:03 Rates, Pricing and Matrices 27:13 Tooling Gaps and ADAS 32:54 Right Tools and Liability 40:23 Programming and Modern Brakes 45:01 Trust and Service Information 45:30 Hourly Pay Dynamics 46:16 TechMetric Chaos 47:56 Paper to Software 50:23 Canned Jobs Missing 52:19 Older Tech and Tech Gap 53:41 Parts and Customer Parts 55:13 Know Your Numbers 57:20 Tire Plug Interruptions 01:01:51 Free Fluid Check Rants 01:03:56 Coolant Top Off Liability 01:06:51 Charge True Value 01:09:26 Wrong Parts and Returns 01:11:49 One Caliper Debate 01:19:52 Succession and Future 01:23:37 Training Investment Mindset 01:25:16 Training Cuts Comebacks 01:27:01 Self Taught Learning Paths 01:28:31 Proving Your Value 01:32:06 Shop Culture Inspiration 01:34:19 Power of Networking 01:38:29 Finding Your Diag Niche 01:43:28 Avoiding Project Car Traps 01:48:15 Events and Succession Plan 01:56:16 Modern Tech Over Old 01:58:24 Final Thanks and Sponsor

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