Question for those of you that work for MB as technicians
12-23-2005, 12:00 PM
#26
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BMW E30. I've turned to the dark side.
if you want to aviod UTI or other major schooling, i have this recommendation: pick the Dealer you want to work at. DO NOT get hired there first. work at an other dealer for a year or so until you get the product line down. then, when you can "talk the talk" on an interview, apply at the dealer you really want to work at. sell yourself and i guarantee that your pay will be higher than if you trained there from the beginning. i've seen this many times only usually the tech applies where he wants to work first, then gets drawn away to sowewhere else by a pay raise. my advice for real money though is MB car sales. the hours suck but even in a smallish California town, those guys are hitting 120k plus.
12-25-2005, 08:53 PM
#27
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'06 CLS55 P030
Originally Posted by mercedestech2
$$$=Why I work. If I didn't need money, I wouldn't work. I feel $20k can be spent in better ways than attending UTI. I went through all that and speak from personal experience. There are plenty of techs at my dealer that came straight to the dealer with no experience and we trained them. Many are just as good if not better than the tech school guys. With a little common sense, logical thinking, and practical knowledge you can bypass UTI. The question was asked, I answered. I don't think there are wrong answers here. I feel the opinions of many of us is not negative towards the dealer, but negative towards MB.
12-26-2005, 10:51 PM
#28
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ive only worked for MB alittle over a year.
i work at i very large, highly respected dealer in Texas
i went thru UTI, but did not attend Elite program.
in my honest opinion UTI was not worth it to me, i had an okay knowledge of auto's before going to UTI and after going there i did not feel as if i had came out with a larger knowledge base, I was NOT a slacker, i had 3.9 gpa, an missed only 1 day through out my auto/diesel trainning.and i was not there, like so many were to just get away from home. at first i was upset when i could not get into MB elite, due to wait to get in class (5 months before available class would open up) too long for me as the dealer i work for didnt want to wait either. now im thankful i did not attend elite, real world training is alot better in my opinion. my dealer constantly sends techs out for training. i would say as long as you have a descent knowledge of auto's try to get your foot in the door as an apprentice, and skip UTI. maybe a local tech school would be a good choice tho. in my dealer of 80+ techs, i see the pay range going from 6 digits, down to about mid 30k, im sure some make less, and some make more, all
depends on what hours you work and the effort you put in. and hopefully your honest, so you will not have a "scamming level" but instead learn how to work warranty in your favor. and if you can, get in the front end dept(personal favorite), if your dealer of choice has one, or request alignment training atleast.
i work at i very large, highly respected dealer in Texas
i went thru UTI, but did not attend Elite program.
in my honest opinion UTI was not worth it to me, i had an okay knowledge of auto's before going to UTI and after going there i did not feel as if i had came out with a larger knowledge base, I was NOT a slacker, i had 3.9 gpa, an missed only 1 day through out my auto/diesel trainning.and i was not there, like so many were to just get away from home. at first i was upset when i could not get into MB elite, due to wait to get in class (5 months before available class would open up) too long for me as the dealer i work for didnt want to wait either. now im thankful i did not attend elite, real world training is alot better in my opinion. my dealer constantly sends techs out for training. i would say as long as you have a descent knowledge of auto's try to get your foot in the door as an apprentice, and skip UTI. maybe a local tech school would be a good choice tho. in my dealer of 80+ techs, i see the pay range going from 6 digits, down to about mid 30k, im sure some make less, and some make more, all
depends on what hours you work and the effort you put in. and hopefully your honest, so you will not have a "scamming level" but instead learn how to work warranty in your favor. and if you can, get in the front end dept(personal favorite), if your dealer of choice has one, or request alignment training atleast.
12-27-2005, 11:41 PM
#29
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LS7 powered Corvette
All I know is that the "trainees" at my dealer that have 4+ years in already, still don't make as much as an elite tech fresh out of school.
One lead tech in our shop is 23, out of elite, and only has 3 years exp. He makes bank.
One lead tech in our shop is 23, out of elite, and only has 3 years exp. He makes bank.
02-12-2006, 01:09 AM
#31
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Originally Posted by mbtech208
I was happy with UTI and Elite. I learned a lot that I didn't know going in, and had fun doing it. UTI's tuition is now about twice what it was when I went, but when I joined the dealer I was started off at a higher pay than somebody trying to work up from the bottom. Unfortunately after five years with the company, I've just lost interest in the product. Quality is on a steady decline, and the warranty times are being cut, although they're still higher than a lot of other manufacturers. I'm going to start working for Lexus within the next week. True, the cars never break. But the pay is the same, and it's mostly customer-pay maintenance work, so it's easier to make money. I've had enough of manually version-coding W220 clusters, doing SBC pump replacements on W211s and R230s, having the DAS lock-up during delicate flash procedures, having W140 closing assist problems where every part in the entire system has been replaced twice and it still doesn't work right. And let's not forget the check engine lights with self-adaptation codes where MB wants you to do a whole Bible-full of procedures and flow charts, and when it's all said and done, still not fix the problem. And let's not forget the 722.9 transmission where you have to make a phone call to even get authorization and a code to even work on the car.
02-12-2006, 01:20 AM
#32
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Originally Posted by [MB]CRS
I'm not here to start an arguement. I just noticed a few pretty negative comments about the dealer when in fact we are posting on a site used widely by our customers. I'm in no way bragging about how much I made.. who would brag about 60??? Just letting the guy know what he would be getting into if he attempted to take a similar route as I did. Valedictorian doesn't mean much to me, didn't know I was in the running until like the last week. Just one of those things that looks good on your resume, but doesn't neccesarily make you a great technician.
Regional location and negotiated payrate I would think would come into play as well so 40,50,60,70 its all relative. We've had good ELITE grads and bad ELITE grads. My words of advice are be humble to the car, because these cars can and will eventually kick your *** in some way, shape or form. It happens to everybody. Sometimes you get the gravy, sometimes you get the shaft.
