Hello all, So recently I have been giving the opportunity to be a mechanic for a Ferrari dealer. I have over 10+ years experience with BMW as a master technician so I am hoping that the transition will not be too hard. I was wondering if there are any Ferrari mechanics out there past or present that could give me their opinion on working with and on Ferrari's and any challenges that they have had(from diagnosing, repair, maintance, pay, etc) . This will be a big move for me and my family and I just want to have as much information as possible before making the move. I thank you for all your advice and info.
I wish you the best of luck with your new challenge. My take is that to be a really successful Ferrari mechanic you will need a very high level of professionalism, honor and integrity. From what I have read in these pages reputation is of paramount importance to success. What you do both good and bad will stick like gum on your shoe. I for one am glad to hear that another has the balls to take it on. Go for it! If you don't mind a little sage advice: If you are ever faced with a choice during work always pick the "right thing to do". Oh , welcome!
To be really successful, I say he first needs to be a good Ferrari mechanic and then the rest Good Luck
GOD can't meet the warranty flat rate times with a chain saw... the MINUTE the car goes to cash/customer pay-the thing is 80-90% gone to the independent repair shop network. RUN, do not walk back to BMW... if not too late....your skills are-in all likelihood-better suited to vintage racing/restoration shops. The Dlr environment is about 1 thing-and 1 thing only(the same as BMW...), the after sale support of new merchandise until warranty is at over 50%(then it almost certainly requires "zone" authorization for any "real" expensive repairs and parts). I was a foreman at a German new car delivery point west of the rockies(#6 in deliveries / month), we had a zone depot twenty miles away...I KNOW how this works... You go to work for a check-just like everyone else who "works for a living"....Ferrari wrenching is not for "glory", and it certainly isn't for money...its a disease....I know, I was invfected 40-45 yerars ago! The owners that post can't possibly know what it is to walk in your workboots without having walked the walk-then they can talk the talk... Why should YOU, essentially, pay to work on some rich guys car? Thats the plain and ugly truth. Your wife WILL divorce you.... How much can you earn reprogramming the ECU network or LOFs, or, changing window lift switches? .2, .1, .9 hrs, then lunch? I know you can relate NOW.... "Just the facts, Mam"-Sgt Joe Friday
I think it may be up to the Dealership you work for. I can only speak for my team ( 4 technicians and 1 trainee ) and they are all doing well. While warranty labor times for repairs are low, there are honest ways to make your time without cutting any corners. Services and General repairs are about the same if you do them correctly and again, do not cut a corner. I have team members with over 10 years Ferrari / Maserati experience. They were the best of the best when they were with other car lines ( Porsche, Audi, Mercedes, etc ) and when they came on here, they were able to understand the inner workings of the Italians. if you have been a Master Tech for 10 years, you have the basic's down, you just need to learn how the Italians do it. There is ALOT of training to get up to speed. Yes, you will need to attend classroom 101 , dozens of online classes, and start up the latter to Master Certification. With the correct training, the correct tools, the correct work program, you have the chance to do well. If you were in the area, I would invite you to come by and talk with some of the guys, they will tell you the way it is. Good Luck and let us know how you are doing! S
Ouch. Bitter much? As I stated above , I can only speak for my guys, they are all flagging an average of 9 hours, per 10 hour work day. We have lost alot of our clients to indi shops, but since we have started turning things around, we are getting many clients back. I don't want to start a Dealership vs Indi debate as I have also been on both sides of the table there. Dealerships have the chance to be THE place to service your car, its what they do about it that sets them apart from one another. S
Thanks you all for your input it really does help to see everyones input on the matter and I greatly need it. SAFE4NOW I sent you a PM with more indepth questions. Thanks
It seems as though you want input from someone who has BTDT. As if that would sway your mind. I can tell by the smell, you got it....the Ferrari bug. Some techs get it, and find it's their calling. Kudos to them, some of them post here regularly. For others, like me, it's just a romance, that can only end one way - in an ugly divorce. If you have 10 years experience on BMW, you are already familiar with reflash procedures and their associated travail; (I'm working as fast as the DIS will go, boss, honest. I know the customer is waiting...). And you have swapped out many faulty VANOS units and actuators, Ferrari VVT should be no surprise to you. And I could tell you...but. OK. This little recollection is going to hurt me a lot worse than you. Unless you choose to accept the job. You will find the Italian cars are a lot more sophisticated mechanically than the Bimmers, not so much so electronically. You will never make flat rate time on Ferrari. Do NOT work for a flat rate dealer. If they aren't willing to pay salary, they have no interest in retaining you and you are just as less likely to get ANY Ferrari training. In my 5 years at the dealer I consistently earned less than a city bus driver. The top tech at our dealership earned the bus driver's pay. In my first year as a M-B dealer tech, I earned more than 2 years Ferrari pay. In terms of respect, we got no more from FNA and Ferrari S.P.A. than the goggle-eyed drooler outside the showroom window. NEVER sign off on an R.O. unless you are absolutely certain that you have fixed the car right. The quality of your work on these cars is paramount, it will make you or break you. There's people out there still dissing me for mistakes I made on someone else's car 25 YEARS AGO! As if I haven't learned anything since and didn't improve my work process! Well, HEY! I have and I did. You would be wise to keep a book. In it you will write the VIN #, complaint, symptoms, diagnostic details, repair notes, part #'s, measurements, DTC's, time billed and anything else that might be worthy of review 5 years later when the car comes back 3 owners later. On every car, every R.O. It's for you, not anyone else. It also helps to keep your check straight if you are flat rate. The cars are merciless. You can love them and hate them at the same time, with a passion no German car could ever arouse. The newer cars are much easier to work on than the older cars. Those old gals might seem a lot simpler, but the requisite skill set for a quality repair increases on a logarithmic scale with respect to the age of the car. Unless you want to go to night school and get your B.S.M.E., B.S.E.E., master machinist certification, weldor certificate, work as an F1 pit crew, Nascar fabricator, bodyman and painter, upholsterer, and about 50 other trades you will need to be skilled at to compete with some of the guys at the indies, then well, yeah, you as a dealer tech won't be able to compete with the indies. (Remember the bus driver?) Does the dealer in question have an old distributor machine stuck off in a corner collecting dust? NO? Then you will never be able to tune an old 308. Maybe I should say, you would have to do it the hard way. At this point in my ramble, I'll just come right out and say, that after at least 10 years you are well aware that being an Automotive tech is one of the suckiest careers there is. If you do well, you can not only pay for your tools, but have enough left over to eat, too! Most normal people, like those that read here, might consider you kind of crazy. So you must be figuring, why not go to total insanity and be a Ferrari tech? Because. Insanity is overrated.
I agree with everything cizeta and 335s said. It really is a disease. Still married though. Even got to take my wife to Maranello last year.
why leave BMW if you are making$ why leave. you can only make so much at the dealership. The few that make more then the other techs do so with more then their talent. Talk to a guy that workded for FNA or as a tech . Dont get sucked into a dream. You have a family . Bitter ...lol customers are never bitter or slaes people or service directors that want to Kill the competition or writers that sell annual services for 2 different prices ....you know flat rate. Well it is not getting better.They need the old cars to make up for the lose of service on new crs. 7yr free ferrari maint.how many old tech remember a carb, dist,or how a clutch felt.What wires melt,what drive stub axles break,maounts that go bad and headers that are sold. How many F techs free lance.... think hard friend you heard the head joke... just 2c . best of luck. Find an indie guy.. do something for both of you , not the 5 people up the dealship food chain. BEST of luck no matter FORZA
I'm going to have to show our tech's this thread, so they can see how bad it is at other Dealerships. Seriously, I cannot imagine what you guys must be going through to be this negitive towards the trade. Yes, we pay well, yes we hire only the best, and no , I won't except anything but 110%. At the same time, we don't have to resort to flat rating, cutting corners to meet warranty time, and as for the 7 year service contract... it doesn't cover everything, there are still other services clients request... Maybe it's because we make the investment to hire the right people , train them to the max, supply the require tools to perform the job right, including the vintage tools mentioned above? If you guys are unhappy where you are, drop me a line with your resume', I am always looking to hire the best of the best! It's a win/win from where I'm standing down here.... S
i love this thread i am bitter but its so much sweeter on the outside this way i can possibly afford to buy things and live in the expensive areas thease dealers are located the dealer i was at was a negative place where everyone had to put on a facade i was never treated like i was special part of the elite i was treated like some rich persons undocumented lawn maintenace person I was laughed at for pulling my ocilliscope out to get good waveforms inorder to learn the product a little deeper it was my first and last time working at a New Car Dealer and it didnt feel like i was at anything other than a New Car Dealer with all the hoops to jump warranty ext I do remember everyone being angry and I really feel it was from beeing around all the RED I wonder if anyone else sees this too. i remember when FNA was coming down on our place because our senior tech was "too well paid" FNA preferred to push a tech school program pulling kids out with no experience and set them up to get paid half of what a seasoned tech would get to make up for the tech shortage billing 9hrs on a 10 hr day is nothing to brag especially to a dealer tech that sounds like 7hrs of work and 3hrs of ROL typing waiting for FNA to tell you how they want the car fixed because they dont trust dealers to fix cars on their own anymore just do it, hopefully its a positive environment, and not the sour spot I broke my cherry in, its good for the resume even if its for a few years, and might lead to a stepping stone to something cooler, WHAT COULD BE COOLER "plenty" and preferably something that makes more than 3 figures in automotive
sorry safe4now didnt mean to scratch at your times sounds like you have a nice environment just getting worked up
Well said sir! This job requires passion, skill and patience. Rich it will not make you, as with any dealership location. Worth a try? Why not? You may excel and survive. Good luck and kudos for reaching out with this question.
Please tell me u olive in sf bay area. Lol. With all jokes aside I think u should go for it. I know that a change is really hard decision to make. Especially if you've been working at your current job for many years. That's a tough decision to make and I have been in that same position before. My advice is go for it and give it a shot cause u never know this might be the best move you made ever. If its better for you and your fam them great it worked out but if it's not you shouldn't have a problem getting your old job back especially with all the credentials and experience that you say you have. Even if u leave in bad terms I think they'll hire u again no problem.
I have not started yet. I am reading all these posts and greatly appreciate everyone's inputs and opinions.
I work with these cars because everyday I'm hungry for the intellectual challenge. Some days I feel like I ate too much and just want to lay down until the feeling of discomfort passes. Most days I smile while the hole gets dug deeper. If my primary concern was end of year earnings, I'd go work on German cars where pattern failures are the norm and speed is the primary challenge. I personally get bored in that enviroment. I like the constantly changing demands at my shop. It's what drives me. My friends in german car shops take home better money than I do. They also like to come hang out at my shop after hours and discuss problem solving. Most guys don't have the stomach for sometimes senseless issues Italian cars are filled with. Most guys I've met just want to go to work and make their money then go home. Being successful with these cars require a selflessness. You have to want to be good at wrenching on them because you get satisfaction from it. Not because you make a big salary.
reading thru the responses really highlights why we say these cars have a 'soul', they are temperamental fussy spoiled 'women'. Not many marques can lay that claim, it's also why working on them can be a fools errand. You'll need a strong grasp in mechanical engineering and also accept that sometimes the Italian way of doing something makes absolutely no sense whatsoever! No two cars are ever the same, esp the early models and all vintage ones. There is a masochistic joy in solving and repairing some elusive problem with what can only be described as 'black magic' and that if it were any other car would be a simple fix and 20mins of your time. Ferrari's have a way of getting under your skin and ruining you in more ways than you can imagine, like any excellent Mistress should, oh and they are your Mistress, you'll rue the day you let it happen - like we really had a choice, denial helps here. I haven't touched a Lamborghini, I imagine it's the same there as well. Besides, I haven't gone completely mad just yet, I don't think? The BIGGEST issue with this marque is time, they are so labor intensive that 9 out of 10 times your paying for the privilege to do the job, on that other 1? well minimum wage isn't that bad I also noticed that this hasn't been mentioned, that gut dropping nervous feeling when your done with a major job and the key is just a click away from bringing her back to life...and then again when she's on her way home and you hope she doesn't throw a fit and cause more trouble. It's been said many times and I think really needs to be said again; the devil is in the details, and this is one of those jobs. the details will break you if you miss them, and there are sooooooooooooo many of them!
That feeling of reaching for that key the first time........Oh yeah, BTDT, then that call from the customer the next day, or worse the same day.......... "Car runs GREAT!" Nothing better LOL
Ok here is another option. You will make alot more money working on German cars and there are alot of them. I remember reading posts on the old ferrarilist about how most ferrari techs are treated with no respect and underpaid for the privledge to work on ferraris. Ferraris are cheap nowdays and you can buy one or two and wrench to your hearts content. Most owners miss out by not getting their hands dirty and seeing how special these cars are. And if you are so inclined, word gets out and you can work on friend's cars. Maybe even switch to Porsche for a carear challenge and alot of owners are racing their cars (tearing them up). Seriously, 360's are what 70? Or a toasted F1 for 50? FWIW Jeff Pintler 89 348, 86tr, 99 360 3-pedal Can we all stop doing the +1 thing and add insight to the discussion?
My dream job would be to work for a ferrari dealership. I love ferrari. But another avenue is keep your BMW job and buy a ferrari and then you get to work on it every weekend like the rest of us! !!!!! Image Unavailable, Please Login
+1 That pretty much sums it up. After 40 years of being a Master Craftsman, I would certainly find another career that pays better. I work on my Ferrari in my free time but I would much rather be pulling 200K a year and let someone else "live their dream" than me unscrewing another "great Italian idea".
I just read through everyone's advice and there are a lot of interesting points. I also should say that I am an auto tech, but with less experience than you, so take it with a grain of salt. My dream was alway to work as a Ferrari tech. I live two miles from Cauley ferrari, and every time I drove by I dreamt about working there. But some of that has changed as I've become a better tech and been able to buy my own toys. I realize that as passionate as I am for the cars, I don't want to have that stress in my life. I cannot imagine doing a timing belt on a 355. The work is probably very straightforward, but turning the key for the first time cannot but an easy thing. No matter how many times you check the timing belt alignment marks, you never know 100% until its running. Ultimately, its not for me. If you really want this though, then give it a shot. If not, you'll regret it for the rest of your life. And a job like this can open up so many doors to different jobs at this level. Bottom line, If your family can handle it, DO IT.
