u/hate-the-cold

Hi everyone. I have a few interviews and a job offer to start on 8/31/2026 (but I'm hoping other jobs come through and I get to cancel this one). What exactly do I need to do now? Should I call and report this? Just not file a certification for the week of 8/31? Any help or clarification is appreciated. TIA.

Hi everyone. My girlfriend drives a 2022 Kia Soul with the 2.0. Automatic transmission. Did rear brakes on it a year or 2 ago, can't remember when exactly we don't have history from RockAuto so I'm assuming we went to a local parts store.

She texted me yesterday morning saying her rear brakes were so hot she could smell it. I know the pads and rotors are gonna be cooked, but what could have caused both sides to wear out prematurely and at the same time like that? She had squeals when driving, that would stop when braking, for a while so I looked at them probably a few weeks ago and the pads were huge, maybe 7 or 8s, and the slide pins moved freely (I did re-grease them anyway though, just because I was already there and had stuff apart). I looked at them again before she left for work today, still alot of pad material left.

She has a mechanical parking brake that goes to the calipers, not a shoes in hat setup. Parking brake seems to engage and disengage as it should. But something is definitely wrong. I took an infrared thermometer to her wheels when she got back from work today, 150 degrees in the front and 230 in the back. TIA

I see that alot of service advisors are there from open to close, 5 days a week, for salary + commission or other types of bonuses. My question is, why is it necessary to work 50-60 hour weeks? I hear the rationale is that customers would "be confused" dealing with one service advisor on drop off and another on pickup, but isn't that what the note taking is for? So that anyone can pick up where anyone else left off? I was thinking about trying to get in to being a service writer but looking at service dept hours and learning you're there from open til close, and not even on 4 10s or 4 12s, that's actually ridiculous to me.

Hi everyone. I used to be an automotive inspection mechanic but something happened with my shoulders, I can't keep them raised for long periods of time any more. Other jobs haven't really been working out for me, so I'm thinking of getting into powersports. Is this a good idea for someone like me? I'm under the impression that parts aren't as heavy (especially tires) and I'll be working mostly on a stool or on the ground with my arms mostly at chest height. If this is a good idea, is there anything I can do to stand out without personally having rode a motorcycle before, and very little experience with dirt bikes/quads? I have a decent amount of tools from when I worked on cars, and a set of JIS screwdrivers in my Amazon cart. I'd need to get my Class M but I can have the permit ready to go for interviews? If it helps I was probably a B level mechanic making my way to A level, 95% of the repairs/r&r's I've done is brake/steering/suspension/exhaust work to pass safety inspections. I know there's a fair amount of carb work on bikes and I've never done something like that but I'm sure I could learn? TIA for any advice/tips.

Hello everyone, I am newly unemployed in PA and am just very scared about messing up my application/claim/etc. Can anyone break this process and requirements down for me as if I was a 5 year old, because apparently that's my level of competence. Thank you so much in advance, I have an extreme amount of anxiety surrounding this

Hi everyone. I'm an ex-mechanic that got permanently hurt and has been out of the game for a few years. Trying to get back into the automotive industry as a service advisor. I'm at a smaller independent shop and about to start my 6th week tomorrow. My boss wants me to ask him less questions and be more independent, which I agree with, but him and the shop foreman are also very particular about how everything is done. For instance, I can't even use the Ctrl + F search function on our management software to find ROs quicker without hearing about it. I'm not gonna sit here and lie and say the previous 5 weeks have been the smoothest, I only started having days with minimal/0 mistakes the past 2-3 days. But I've also been blamed for mistakes that I actually didn't make and just took the fall for it anyway as the FNG.

Just wanna know if I'm really as far behind as they're making me believe I am or if their expectations are higher than normal. I'd like to succeed in this role and have a job I can be proud to say I do again, and if I am fired from this job I'm wondering if it's worth pursuing the same role at a different shop or if I'm just not cut out for this role.

TIA.

EDIT:

If it helps, before I got hurt I was a safety inspection mechanic that basically did routine brakes/steering/suspension/exhaust work to get vehicles passable again. So probably an upper C/lower B level technician. I was attempting to get into electrical and engine diag before I got hurt and never really got the chance to go down those paths. I was also in an apartment at the time so I couldn't really mess around with my own cars even if I was having a day that I didn't feel like garbage physically.

Hey everyone, got a 13 Subaru Impreza, just wanted to know if I have to do anything like burp the system if I just open my radiator cap to inspect the condition of my coolant. Theres nothing in the overflow bottle and I suspect I have a leaking heater core, I do plan to get some coolant to add later but don't have it yet and need to drive that car to go buy some. Should I just wait til after I buy the coolant and have the car cooled off from that trip or can I inspect now without adding/burping? TIA

Hi everyone. A/C isn't working and I wanna get it fixed. The shop I plan to go to to get the vacuum + recharge done at uses PAG 46 oil and I know my car (2013 Subaru Impreza 2.0L) takes PAG 100. They said PAG 46 should work with PAG 100 and that they're gonna get about an ounce of oil out of there and have to replace it even if they don't replace the compressor or any other parts. Is it true that they're gonna get that much out even without replacing parts, and is it true that PAG 46 will cooperate with PAG 100? I just don't wanna mix the wrong oils together and have to spend $2k getting my entire A/C system replaced over an ounce of oil. TIA