Flat Rate Tech Podcast
If you are an Automotive Mechanic or in the industry this is the show for you! The #1 automotive mechanic podcast! We talk about the good and the bad. Flat rate is broken. We’re done staying quiet.The Flat Rate Tech Podcast is the raw, unfiltered voice of real dealership and independent shop technicians. Hosted by a working flat rate tech and the author of Flat Rate Life—the book that exposes what it’s really like to survive in this trade—this podcast pulls back the curtain on the automotive industry.Every week, we call out the truth behind flat rate...
There is NO Team in Your Shop, And Training Schools Are A $30k Joke
There is no team in a flat rate shop. And training schools are a joke. Why pay $30,000 to start at the bottom anyways.
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THE BOOK
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Tech
When A Mechanic Finally Snaps
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This episode is just real stories.
Mechanics.
Shop guys.
People in the same trade…
who lost their shit.
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THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
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Tech
The Flat Rate Effect + Everything is the techs fault
Today there is 2 episodes in one. I been pushing towards getting the YouTube channel going and the episodes have been shorter. I know that sucks for podcasts cause I listen to podcasts all day every day. So soon there will be longer episodes coming. I been working on a lot of for the podcast so hopefully we get back to normal. This episode is about the flat rate effect and how they blame everything on the technicians.
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THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
Follow t...
“Sign This or You Don’t Work Here” The Truth About Shop Hiring
Most shops will tell you there’s a technician shortage.
But that’s not the truth.
The real reason shops are always hiring is because techs keep leaving.
In this episode I break down what’s really happening inside the bays. The revolving door of technicians, the broken flat rate system, the paperwork they make you sign just to get the job, and why so many experienced techs are walking away from the trade.
This isn’t about people being lazy or not wanting to work.
It’s about an industry that expects technicians to carry a...
Your Shop Is Broke And Your Tech Is Paying For It
Most people think independent shop owners are getting rich.
The truth? A lot of shops are one bad month away from closing.
High overhead, debt, equipment payments, and constant pressure mean many independent shops survive because one or two technicians are carrying the entire operation. If one of those techs quits, the whole place can collapse overnight.
This is the reality behind struggling shops, unstable business models, and why techs carry the weight of an entire business.
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THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK...
They Judge You On A Number You Don't Control
Go to my website.
They judge you on four numbers.
Productivity
Efficiency
Proficiency
Effective Labor Rate
In this episode we break down what each one actually means, what you control, what you don’t, and why a slow week doesn’t always mean you’re a slow tech.
Flat rate turns shop problems into your pay problem.
Understanding your wrench time vs billed time shows the real story.
Are you slow
or are you starving.
Know your NUMBERS!
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THE BOOK
h...
Dispatch is where techs get paid or played
Go to my website and order the NEW book 'The Grey Mechanic" I BET you can relate to it.
Training is a scam. The more you know, the less you make.
Support the show
THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
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Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
FlatRateTechPodcast@gmail.com
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Tec...
When Master Certified Becomes a Punishment
The new book is out "The Grey Mechanic" Link below
The Grey Mechanic Book
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GKVGDSPM
They tell you that master certification is the finish line.
That once you hit that level, the stress eases up and the money finally makes sense.
That’s not how it works.
In this episode, I break down what really happens after you become master certified. The heavier workload. The nonstop problem cars. The unpaid diagnostics. The expectation that you’ll fix everyone else’s mess while y...
Starting Over Doesn't Scare Techs. Being Wrong Again Does.
Starting over doesn’t scare techs. Being wrong again does. This episode is about the moment when leaving one shop and going to another starts to feel heavier than staying, and why that happens after you’ve been in this industry long enough. It’s about burnout that shows up quietly, experience turning into hesitation, and what “starting over” really means when you’ve already done it before. If you’re still showing up, still doing the work, and quietly questioning how long you can keep going, this episode puts words to that space. The Grey Mechanic is out now on Amazon...
If You Walk Out, Stay Out.
Is your manager clueless about why techs are leaving your shop?
go to flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com and click the manager link. Print out the form and put it on his desk. This is what will change your shop.
New book is coming the "Grey Mechanic" will be out soon!
If you related to the last one wait until this one comes out.
This industry is a joke and it’s rigged against technicians.
You’re told to trust management, trust the manufacturer, trust the process. Then your hours get cut, your pa...
The Only Thing Keeping This Trade Alive
This trade is being held together by technicians who are burned out, under pressure, and tired of being ignored.
We’ve talked for years about why techs are quitting.
Why morale is dead.
Why good people are walking.
Why nothing ever seems to change.
Complaining isn’t the hard part.
Fixing it is.
Over the last year, I’ve been building something quietly, not for techs to buy, not for sponsors, not for clicks, but for the people who actually control what happens in the shop.
It’s a straight, no-bullshit briefing...
When “Professional” Really Means Shut Up
“Be more professional.” That’s the line. And it’s bullshit.
Every time technicians speak up about unpaid labor, flat rate abuse, or unsafe pressure, the same word gets thrown at them.
Unprofessional.
In this episode, I talk about what that word actually means in THIS industry.
Why it has nothing to do with skill, quality, or doing the job right.
And how “professionalism” gets used as a leash to keep techs quiet while the system keeps taking.
Technicians are already professionals.
The problem is the industry punishes professionalism the moment it costs them m...
NEW YEAR. NOTHING CHANGED
It’s a new year.
Same shop. Same pressure. Same lies. Labor rates went up.
Budgets went up.
Expectations went up. Your pay didn’t.
They changed the wording.
They call managers “leaders” now.
They hang balloons, push culture slogans, and talk about productivity.
But nothing actually changed for the people in the bays.
This episode breaks down how pressure flows downhill, why techs are still being squeezed harder every year, and why the industry keeps blaming technicians instead of fixing the system that’s breaking them.
If you’r...
We Were Lied To. There Is No Future
We were lied to.
We were told to work harder.
Buy more tools.
Stay loyal.
And somehow it would all work out.
This episode breaks down why being a good technician was never enough, why flat rate keeps techs unstable, and why there was never a real future built into this job.
Support the show
THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
Follow the Facebook page
Follow the instagram page-- Flatratetech_podcast
Check out the website
Flatratetechpodcast.w...
The Promotion That Never Comes
Dealerships love to talk about “growth” and “training” for lube techs.
What they don’t talk about is how many of them never leave the lube rack.
In this episode, I explain why so many lube techs are promised a future that never shows up.
How “just give it time” turns into years.
Why moving you into the shop isn’t always in management’s best interest.
And how this cycle keeps pay low and turnover high.
Any lube techs watching BEWARE of the SCAM. Don't be a LIFER in the Lube Shop.
Support the s...
Starving in a Billion Dollar Building
Techs starving in a billion dollar building. No work. No hours. No pay. Meanwhile the dealership flexes its giant showroom, overpriced labor rate, and “look at us” bullshit while the guys in the bays are wondering how to pay bills on five hours a week.
This episode is the truth about flat rate starvation, slow season panic, and how fast a dealership will forget you exist the second the cars stop rolling in. When it’s busy they grind you. When it’s slow they hide. Either way, we’re the ones getting screwed.
If you’ve eve...
Super Tech Scammers and the Managers That Protect Them
Every shop’s got that one “super tech” everybody’s supposed to worship. The guy who somehow turns 90 hours every week, never gets comebacks, and magically has every gravy job routed straight to his bay. Yeah. That guy. The one who games the system, steals hours, cuts corners, and leaves the rest of the shop buried in warranty comebacks he somehow never sees again.
And the worst part? Management protects him. Every. Single. Time.
In this episode, I break down how these scammers operate, why they get away with it, and how dealership managers enable the whol...
Dealer Techs Are Just Parts Changers?
People love saying dealer techs are “parts changers.”
Cool story. Meanwhile we’re the ones dealing with new systems, nonstop software updates, warranty-time nonsense, manufacturer politics, and problems the independents don’t even see yet.
This episode breaks down the whole myth and calls out exactly who’s spreading it washed-up ex-techs, YouTube University heroes, and shops that guess their way through a repair before sending the car to the dealer anyway.
I go through:
• Why dealer techs get stuck following stupid test plans
• How warranty, SSMs, reps, and politics force bad proce...
The Real Reason New Techs Don't Last
Want to watch the episode? Subscribe to the YouTube channel.
New techs keep quitting because they’re being lied to and set up to fail. No mentors, no support, no plan, just empty promises. This episode breaks down why shops can’t keep the new generation of mechanics longer than a year.
LOOK IN THE MIRROR FATBODY!
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THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
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Flatrat...
They Don't Own You, They Just Think They Do
They don’t pay you enough to control you. They don’t own you. They just think they do.
In this episode, we’re talking about side jobs, shop control, and the unspoken truth every tech knows: the dealer doesn’t get a say in what you do after you clock out. They want your time, your loyalty, your weekends, your silence… without paying you anything close to what that’s worth.
So here it is.
The reality behind why techs take side work.
Why shops hate it but can’t stop it.
Why the rules only...
Shop Foreman Position Is it WORTH IT?
Every shop’s got one the foreman stuck between techs and management, trying to keep the place running while catching heat from both sides. This episode digs into what that job really looks like the pressure, the politics, the burnout, and the bullshit that comes with being “the middle guy.”
If you’ve ever been a foreman, wanted to be one, or dealt with one who forgot what it’s like to turn wrenches this one’s for you.
WATCH THE EPISODES ON YOUTUBE! Subscribe to the channel DO IT OR ELSE
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...The Last Real Techs
You can feel it, can’t you?
Every year, there’s fewer and fewer of us left. The real techs.
The ones who actually know how to fix shit not just swap parts, not just follow flowcharts.
We’re watching the trade fade in real time. The old heads are walking out.
The next generation’s walking in blind.
And the people running this industry still don’t get it.
They call it a “technician shortage,” but it’s not a shortage it’s an extinction.
Because when the last real techs leave, the k...
The Flat Rate Trap: How AI Will Help The Industry Win
!! NEXT WEEKS EPISODE IS ONLY ON YOUTUBE, VIDEO EPISODE ONLY!!!
This Episode was already out on Youtube days ago. Subscribe for the video episodes!
AI’s coming for every white-collar job out there the office people, the analysts, the “safe” careers.
And when that wave hits, guess who’s waiting with open arms?
The same industry that’s been burning techs out for decades.
This episode breaks down how the auto industry is about to win the AI war not by fixing flat rate, not by paying techs better, but by flooding t...
When the Techs Stick together, THEY PANIC!
SUBSCRIBE to the YOUTUbe channel. This episode was already out last week on there. VIDEO EPISODE.
You’ve probably seen that Lizard Ford guy online the one always talking about the factory side of things. Strikes, contracts, solidarity… all that. The truth is, he only talks about that side because that side actually fights back. The union guys on the line have structure, leverage, and a voice. Meanwhile, the dealership techs the flat rate soldiers are the ones holding the brand together with no backup, no representation, and no respect.
This episode breaks down exactly why deale...
The REAL Reason There is a Tech Shortage
This episode was out last week on YouTube check it out there is you want.
The Ford CEO’s out here crying about the “technician shortage” again.Talking about how hard it is to find and keep techs.Yeah, no $hit. We’ve been saying that for years.
But here’s the truth: this shortage didn’t just happen.The industry created it.
They cut pay. They slashed warranty times. They treated techs like disposable parts.And now that the bays are empty, they’re pointing fingers everywhere except the mirror.
In this episode, we’re calling o...
RENTED PEACE
Every tech knows that peace in this trade doesn’t last it’s rented. One good manager, one solid crew, one fair dispatch, and you start to believe you’ve finally found your forever shop. But all it takes is one meeting, one new face, one corporate signature and it’s gone.
In this episode, I break down how fast stability disappears in this industry, why it’s designed that way, and the toll it takes on the people still showing up every morning. From pay plan flips to shop sales, it’s all part of the system meant...
Weapon Words
https://flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com/
https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/ MERCH!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57 THE BOOK!
Fixed Ops Managers that want to actually fix your shops email
flatrateconsulting@gmail.com
This one’s all about the weapon words shops throw at us to squeeze more free labor. Mandatory. Budget. Efficiency.Opportunity. Team player. Professionalism. They make it sound like motivation, but every single one of those words is just a threat dressed up as leadership. You want videos? You want “flexibility”? You want us to hit budget? Th...
Why New Techs Don’t Last
GET THE BOOK HERE
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
Videon on Patreon
NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/
Managers love to ask why they can’t keep new hires but the answer’s right in front of them. In this episode, I break down what really happens when a motivated tech walks into a dealership and gets thrown into the bay with no support, no communication, and nothing but lies from the interview. From foremen being left out of the process to shops expecting techs to train their own r...
Another Wave Of Techs Leaving
GET THE BOOK HERE
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/
Another wave of techs is walking out and it’s not slowing down. Shops keep scrambling to hire, but nobody’s asking why people are leaving in the first place. In this episode, we break down what’s driving techs out right now: unstable pay plans, broken promises, toxic management, and the burnout that comes with being treated like we’re disposable.
It’s not just “a few bad shops.” This is a pattern across...
Career Growth: The Shop Will Pick Your Path if You Don’t
GET THE BOOK HERE
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/
Career growth in the automotive industry isn’t as simple as climbing a ladder. Some techs want hours, some want titles, and some just want out. In this episode, I break down the real paths techs face—from grinding it out as a master tech, to getting trapped in leadership roles, to burning out and leaving the trade. No sugarcoating, no industry fluff—just hard truths, rants, and stories from 25 years in the bays.
Becau...
Ford Tech
Get The BOOK HERE! Flat Rate Life
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/
Today's guest is a Ford Tech, we talk about all kinds of stuff.
Support the show
THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
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Check out the website
Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
FlatRateTechPodcast@gmail.com
Don't Forget To Rate And Review!
Thanks For Listening, and Thanks for...
Loyalty Isn’t Free — They’ll Still Lie to Get You Here
The BOOK Flat Rate Life GET IT HERE
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/
First we talk about the true cost of loyalty — how giving a shop everything still leaves you with nothing when they’re done using you. Then we dive straight into the interview lies: the fake promises, the sales pitch, and the managers who convince techs to uproot their lives and move across the country… just to drop them in chaos and walk away when it goes bad. I wrap it up by read...
The Death of Mentorship and the Short Life of Good Shops
Flat Rate Life The Book Get it NOW!
https://www.amazon.com/Flat-Rate-Life-Mechanic/dp/B0FK654G57/
NEW MERCH https://tech-shop.fourthwall.com/
Mechanic mentorship is disappearing fast in the automotive industry, leaving new techs to figure it out alone. In this episode I talk about why veteran technicians aren’t teaching like they used to, how to spot a bad auto repair shop before you get hired, and the signs you’ve found a good one. I also explain why even the best shops rarely stay that...
Flat Rate Life Is OUT NOW! Link Below
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
Flat Rate Life is live on Amazon.
I didn’t write this to be perfect—I wrote it to tell the truth.
This book is for every tech who’s been underpaid, burned out, overworked, lied to, and still shows up.
It’s not some motivational fluff. It’s what it actually feels like to survive in the bays.
If you’ve ever thought about walking out, breaking down, or calling it quits—this one’s for you.
Support the show
THE B...
Grey Mechanic
book is available NOW!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
There’s a type of tech they never talk about. Doesn’t post, doesn’t brag, doesn’t suck up. Just shows up, keeps their head down, and sees everything. The one who doesn’t play politics, but knows who’s full of it. The one they underestimate—until they need him.
This episode is about that tech. The one who lives in the grey.
If you’ve ever kept quiet just to survive, if you’ve ever watched th...
Book Release
Book is available NOW!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
The book will be live Tuesday august 5th. After years in the bays and years behind the mic, Flat Rate Life is finally here—and this episode is the raw, unfiltered sendoff. No marketing fluff, no corporate polish—just a pissed-off tech dropping the truth.
Support the show
THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
Follow the Facebook page
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Check out the website
Flatrat...
They Could've Fixed the System. They Branded it Instead.
My book "Flat Rate Life" order NOW. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
The truth about this industry—finally in print.
Real stories. Real shops. Real techs.
No filters. No sponsors. Just what they don’t want you to say out loud.
This one’s for every tech who’s sick of watching shop owners turn failure into content.
You ever notice how the same people who grew up in the trade, who used to be techs, are now the ones with podcasts...
This Job Used to Mean Something
Flat Rate Life The book order it here https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
There was a time when being a mechanic meant something—when the job carried pride, respect, and purpose. But somewhere along the line, that got stripped away. In this episode, I talk about what changed: the loss of identity in the bays, the pressure to just “shut up and produce,” and how the trade went from a skilled profession to a revolving door. This one’s for every tech who still gives a damn, even when the system doesn’t.<...
Professionalism in a Broken System
In a trade full of broken pay plans, flat rate pressure, and corner-cutting techs, what does professionalism even mean anymore?
This episode of Flat Rate Life goes straight into the bays—where real technicians are still showing up, doing it right, and trying to survive in a system that rewards the wrong things. Whether you're at a dealership, indy shop, or looking to leave the auto industry altogether, this one’s for you.
Because no matter how crooked the system gets… you can still choose to be a professional anyway. Or not.
Support the show...
The Industry Influencer Circus
This episode is a full takedown of the fake voices in the industry—YouTubers, TikTok techs, podcast guests, and influencer mascots who pretend they speak for working techs… while cashing in behind the scenes.
They don’t turn hours. They don’t fight dispatch.
But they’ll gladly sell you a torque wrench they got for free.
We let these clowns become the face of the trade—and now it’s bleeding out while they keep smiling for sponsors.
This one’s for the real techs still grinding, still breaking, still showing up to a system t...
