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 pay, toxic shop politics, unpaid diagnostic time, tool debt, burnout, and the constant pressure to “just hit your hours.” If you're a tech, mechanic, or service advisor who's tired of the lies, this one's for you. No sponsors. No filters. No corporate polish. Just the truth. Disclaimer: This podcast reflects personal opinions based on real-life experience in the automotive repair industry. All names, locations, and identifying details have been changed or omitted to protect privacy. The views expressed do not reflect those of any current or former employer, coworker, dealership, or manufacturer. This content is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. If you recognize yourself in this podcast… ask yourself why. Produced By Flat Rate Life Media™
Episodes
“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 ...
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 eve...
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.
THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
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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 lu...
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...
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 t...
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 ...
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!
THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
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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...
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 EPISO...
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...
!! 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...
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 fla...
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 ba...
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...
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...
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 o...
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 di...
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 in...
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.
THE BOOK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FK654G57
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Flatratetechpodcast.weebly.com
FlatRateTechPodcast@gmail.com
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