There’s nothing in this article that you don’t already know.
Now, please continue reading anyway, because I promise that it will be worth your...
Popular Articles
Is it time to move to a new location? A new state? Who should I vote for – the person or the positions? Should I hire or replace some people soon? Am I...
The load PID is displayed on our scan tool and can easily be overlooked. How important is the load PID to engine drivability and transmission operation? The...
There was a time when an overheating problem in an automatic transmission was blamed on a faulty cooler in the radiator, hot weather, or extreme service like...
It’s 1954, and vehicles like the Buick Roadmaster, Chevy Belair, Ford F-100 Panel Truck, and Dodge C Series were among the makes and models frequenting the...
My wife, Jenn, and I, recently sold our home of over twenty years. It was a tough decision because just about everything of meaning happened in that house. It...
In the high-octane automotive world, one name has roared through the ages with the power of a supercharged engine – Jimmy Rodd. For decades, he’s been...
Where are all the good employees? As I’ve seen on forums and in articles throughout my 50 years in the automotive industry, one complaint is constant, “I...
You hear about customer loyalty all the time. Businesses offer “frequent buyer” programs of varying types and people have come to expect that there’ll be...
A lot of things have changed for RK Trans & Auto Repair in Raleigh, North Carolina, since the shop profile we published in April of 2020. We contacted...
GEARS Staff
ATRA’s University Project isn’t a place or even a thing. It’s a concept for advancing the transmission-repair industry — as a whole. This includes not...
Last time we visited, we talked about an EV’s gear train and how it interacted with the electric motor. Most EV gear trains employ a one-speed transmission...
IMPORTANCE OF INFORMATION GATHERING
Diagnosing a transmission malfunction requires gathering as much relevant information as possible before removing the unit...
Last month, ATRA’s Executive Director, Lance Wiggins, shared some history about ATRA. As a rebuilder, I can go back decades and recall the tech I learned...
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about business and life. How did I become a...
Last July , I shared the news about ATRA moving to san Antonio, Texas. Actually, and more specifically, China Grove. Never heard of it? Sure you have. It’s...
It is with heavy hearts that the TCRA Directors share the loss of Martin Dale Brooks. He passed peacefully at his home on January 9, 2021 at the age of 69...
As the great basketball coach Phil Jackson once said, “The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” This...
Welcome, once again to Clash of the Classics. This month we’ll head back to 1970 to look at two of the most popular cars ever produced, the 1970 Ford...
It’s been a few weeks since the 2018 TCRA event, the preeminent training and meeting program for the torque converter professional. This year’s event took...
Every year, as we approach Expo, the enthusiasm at the ATRA home office rises to a fever pitch. Folks are busy putting the finishing touches on their...
Guest Author
The 2019 model year marked a significant update for the General Motors 8L90 automatic transmission. In response to advancements in engine management and the...
I predict that journalists everywhere will soon be writing articles about “2020 Vision.” It’s just so convenient to think about the year as a metaphor...
Over the past forty years, I’ve seen a lot of changes to our industry. In many cases, those changes left people saying, “What’s happening to this...
GEARS Staff
When I started in this industry back in 1987, things were much different. Very few shops had computers, there were no smartphones, and social media didn’t...
GEARS Staff
Knowing what to do is different than actually doing it. Which is why I always ask: What will you do?
What keeps us from doing the things we know we should do...
For the past few years, I’ve heard from many of you about the lack of qualified technicians. For some, this isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s become a...
There are different kinds of buyers for transmission shops: consumers, moms, dads. But, as I learned while speaking at ATRA’s Expo last October, some of you...
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about real business and life challenges. The names...
Here we are, almost a year from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Wearing a mask to a grocery store is commonplace, and we see many other examples of the...
Recently I was contacted by a business creation team from UCLA’s MBA school of management. They had come up with the idea of using clips of films created to...
Simple. Easy to understand.
So why do we find it so hard to tell a customer NO?
I’ve been on the front line of customer interaction for over 30 years. I was...
This is my final From the CEO for 2015; the next time you’ll get a chance to argue with one of my published rants, another year will have past into...
This article is part two of a series that focuses on the limitations and considerations of common measurements performed with one of the most commonly used...
GEARS Staff
For decades, transmission repair was a hands-on mechanical trade. But as modern transmissions evolve—incorporating hybrid and electric drivetrains...
It’s been a while since I’ve written an article about a customer complaint, a small claims court or arbitration matter, or an example of bad customer...
Last year, ATRA conducted a survey of both consumers and shop owners across the USA and Canada. For the industry survey, we were looking for the differences...
Like so many, perhaps including you, I dabble on social media and chat with friends and colleagues. Even more so during the COVID pandemic, since seeing...
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about real business and life challenges.
At this...
Most likely, you’ve heard of the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It’s about a little girl named Goldilocks, who, while walking in the woods...
The Digital Multimeter (DMM), often referred to as the digital volt-ohm meter (DVOM), is one of the most common tools found in a technician’s toolbox. Using...
“Investor First!” was boldly posted on a Real Estate investor’s Instagram. Her message was loud and clear. Among dozens of others in social media...
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about business and life.
I recently had...
GEARS Staff
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about business and life.
The other day I was about...
The term “Advanced Basics” may seem like an oxymoron (which it is), but it’s no odder than statements like fully empty, only choice, liquid gas, or even...
You may already know that “Marvelous” Marvin and Laura Wilson have sold Advanced Transmission in Spanish Fort, Alabama. Marvin and Laura have been the...
Imagine traveling to the automotive hub of Las Vegas, where the buzz of cutting-edge technology and the hum of thousands of attendees fill the air. In this...
“What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas!”
That’s the slogan that the city of Las Vegas, Nevada embraced as a brand message. It seems that they...
Much of our waking moments are spent with exchanging ideas with others. And much of that is trying to convince people of the merits of our thinking. That is...
Many people fear investing in the stock market because of the ups and downs associated with it. Short-term market volatility is normal, but the long-term is...
GEARS Staff
GEARS Staff
A deep recession might not happen in 2023. While the current equity and bond markets seem unpredictable, there are telling trends on where opportunity will...
A client of ours recently sold an auto service business for a price just north of $3MM. He heard about different financial investment strategies that offered...
Just for the fun of it, I’ve been reading a lot of fairy tales and fables lately. It brings back childhood memories, but I also see life lessons and...
First, I want to thank the GEARS readers. Due to your positive response, we have been invited back to feature more Amazing Women in Automotive articles...
A drivetrain is needed in automobiles to propel the vehicle; otherwise, it would just be a horse-drawn buggy. Several main components make up the drivetrain...
We’ve all heard the old adage, “The only thing constant is change.” We’ve heard it so much that many of us have stopped listening to it. Or we might...
GEARS Staff
GEARS Staff
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about business and life.
In last month’s article...
In the second installment of this AI series, we’ll look at how AI can assist you in diagnosing problems. Think of all the times a customer has come in...
“Why doesn’t that guy just do what needs to be done? He always waits for me to say something!”
Yep, that’s the case, exactly. Some people need a...
Back when you opened your business, one of your first considerations was probably, “How am I going to get customers in the door?” It’s a reasonable thing...
While exhibiting at ATRA Powertrain Expo this year, more than one transmission shop customer of ETE REMAN’s asked, “How do I get the customer to choose...
The 2022 “End of Summer” Powertrain Expo is a wrap. It was held in Las Vegas at the Caesars Forum. What a magnificent facility this is – in beauty...
Fuel trim has been a tool in our diagnostic tool chest that we have relied on for some time. Can modern fuel trim strategies be misleading? Can we apply the...
There have been COVID challenges since 2019 that have affected us all. Expo 2020 went virtual because Nashville shut down, and 2021’s show was...
As geopolitical tensions continue to rise globally, the defense sector remains a critical area of investment. The fiscal 2025 National Defense Authorization...
TransColonial Auto Service stands as a symbol of the art of automotive excellence in the charming town of Chagrin Falls, Ohio. For owner Eric Uchbar, the road...
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about business and life challenges.
As we approach...
SINCE WE ARE ALL, IN THIS TOGETHER…
Come visit the Superior Technical Seminar at Bally’s Las Vegas ATRA Powertrain EXPO 2021 LIVE in person.
We welcome you...
I love racing! Drag races, NASCAR, Formula One, Moto GP, motocross, dirt track, stock cars, mud racing, foot races, horse races, heck, even turtle races...
Up Your Business is an exclusive GEARS Magazine feature in which I share stories, insights, and reflections about business and life.
Sometimes, there’s...
In 1976, I joined my first and primary professional industry association, The National Speakers Association (NSA). As a speaker, trainer, and consultant whose...
GEARS Staff
Each year around January, we begin to arrange the speaker lineup and seminar topics for the upcoming Powertrain Expo. Sure, we have a general idea before the...
Among the many amazing achievements we got to watch in the recently concluded Winter Olympics, two stand out in my mind for the deep lessons they can teach us...
Hi, I’m Lance Wiggins, I’m Generation X! I listen to alternative music, love coffee and if there’s a system to buck, I’m your man! I like wearing...
GEARS Staff
Today, as my motorcycle crested the hill above Camarillo, CA, a woman in the car next to me told me that I’d lost a saddlebag. Glancing down I could see it...
While attending an automotive technical seminar recently, the topic of overheating and the various causes and current solutions came up during the lunch...
Guest Author
Welcome to this new column, “Hi-Rev.” The name comes from a book Jim Cathcart and I co-authored, “Hi-Rev For Small Business.” Jim has written over 100...
Flat rate credit card processing is a relatively new term. More importantly, it is a very expensive illusion that is based more upon Tom Foolery than realistic...
One of the greatest sales trainers of all time said, “You can get everything you want in life if you just help enough other people get what they want.” –...
What scares you?
For most people it’s uncertainty that scares them the most.
In a doctor’s office when they say, “Brace yourself, this procedure might...
For a lot of people who attend Expo, it appears that much of what happens in Vegas stays in Las Vegas. That may be reassuring for some folks, but for most of...
So much of sales has to do with attitude and mindset.
Want to grow?
What do you believe about your products and services? How do you perceive your work? Are...
There’s never a wrong time to think about success planning for your business and your personal life. However, January seems to be when most of us do it. As...
January is a time for reflecting on the past year, committing to new goals, and planning the next 12 months of our lives. Sometimes you have a year you wish...
In our current business climate, clear and timely communication could be a matter of life and death. Meetings, whether in a group setting or by web...
It seems like the news of industry veterans’ passing has become all too common in recent years. But Stevie Lavallee was much more than just another industry...
Brad pulled into the service bay and said, “The noise is back!” Our faces dropped as we all knew that this third service was going to be mostly a waste of...
