Chris, Hogi, and Adam address a bizarre, viral forum post targeting Chris Collins Performance on a competitor's platform. The team breaks down the obvious inconsistencies in the post—from fake claims about techs quitting to misinformed takes on labor grids and parts pricing—and explains why real service advisors who understand business profitability actually thrive under proper operational systems. The guys also answer a direct hotline question comparing automotive parts departments to heavy-duty truck parts operations. They break down the fundamental differences between B2C car dealerships and B2B truck dealerships, how wholesale operations drive millions in outside revenue, and the exact process needed to stop special order parts bleeding before cleaning up obsolescence. Plus: Adam checks in live from his hot Florida vacation with 15 family members, detailing their annual family drink competition, fish boils, golfing in 106-degree heat, and the team's weekly workouts at Planet Fitness. (Note: SDR Live Academy returns next week on Zoom, where Hogi leads an interactive workshop on building and mapping high-performance service drive systems!) KEY TAKEAWAYS - Debunking Online Forum Drama: An unfiltered breakdown of a fake forum post, addressing why right-sizing labor rates and pricing matrices is essential for shop survival. - The "Mom Test" for Maintenance: Why advisor integrity means never selling a client something you wouldn't sell to your own mother. - B2C vs. B2B Parts Operations: How auto parts departments rely on internal service drive volume, while heavy-duty truck parts departments generate millions in outside fleet and municipality sales. - Stopping the Obsolescence Bleed: Why cleaning up old inventory fails if you haven't fixed your prepaid special order parts processes and technician returns first. - The Planet Fitness Business Model: A funny look at how low-cost gym memberships rely on members never showing up—and what happens when everyone actually does. - SDR Academy Systems Preview: A look at Hogi's upcoming workshop on outlining and executing a seamless operational blueprint. GOT A QUESTION OF YOUR OWN? Call 833-3-ASK-SDR — we answer on the show! Get special deals on our books and training at offers.chriscollinsinc.com #ServiceDriveRevolution #FixedOps #AutomotiveLeadership #ServiceManager #ServiceAdvisor #DealershipLife #CarBusiness #ChrisBulldogCollins #AutoIndustry #DealershipTraining #ServiceDirector #FixedOperations #BusinessStrategy #SDRAcademy #HeavyDutyTrucks #PartsDepartment #Obsolescence SDR Live Academy Online Training For Huge Results: https://chriscollinsinc.com/op/sdr-live-weekly/ Book your Profit Gap Analysis Now: https://calendly.com/byron-webster/30min Best-selling books on making Fixed Ops a money printer: https://chriscollinsinc.com/shop/ Got a question? Call us at 1-833-3-ASK-SDR Want to work with the best? https://chriscollinsinc.com/careers/ Grab Chris' New Leadership Book I AM LEADER: https://iamleader.com Service Drive Revolution - Episode #370 Transcript Truck Parts vs. Auto Parts — and Answering a Fake Forum Attack Service Drive Revolution Hosts: Chris Collins, Hogi, Adam Krey In This Episode Why a heavy-truck parts department is a completely different business than an automotive one How wholesale drives truck parts volume — and why inventories run so much higher The right order of operations for killing obsolescence (stop the bleeding first) Special-order parts processes, prepay contingencies, and "just in case" tech orders Chris responds to an anonymous forum post attacking CCI's program Opening Chris Collins: Good morning everybody. Welcome to the big show, Service Drive Revolution. Happy Wednesday. I hope everybody's having as much fun as we are. We have a great show for you today. We're going to talk about a forum post from an advisor — it's a very negative post in a Jeff Cowan forum. I'm going to read it, and then we're going to talk about it. That'll be a lot of fun. We also have a question from the Service Drive Academy that we thought we'd answer here on this show. If you're not familiar with the Academy, every other week we get on and we teach how to maximize your potential in fixed ops. We've been going over financials recently. Last week Hogi went over mindset. What are you doing next week, Hogi? Hogi: We're doing systems — the importance of a system, and kind of outlining it. Letting everybody do an exercise where they outline what the overview of their system should be. Chris: Normally we'd answer questions live in there, but this one was called into the hotline, so we're going to play it and answer it here. The question is basically: what's the difference between parts in a truck dealership versus an automotive dealership? There are some big differences. Great question. Adam Krey: Yeah, really good question. Chris: We thought it would be better for the whole world — even though I think the intention was that we'd answer it in the Academy. So, I'm Chris Collins. You just heard from the Oklahoma Smoke Show, Hogi. And Adam Krey is here in beautiful Florida on vacation. We wanted him on the beach when he did this, but it was too noisy, so he's inside. Are you in an Airbnb? Adam: Yes. We rented a house. I'm actually in one of the bungalows for the kids — I commandeered it for now. It's almost naptime. Chris: Last week we were all together in Indiana having a blast working — we were doing a pilot in a heavy-duty truck group. There was a lot of drama leading up to this vacation for Adam, and it feels like there's no drama now that you're there. Adam: It's very anticlimactic, I think. You hit that climax and now you're just here and whatever happens happens. Roommates, Fish Boils, and Planet Fitness Chris: How many adults in the house? Adam: Like seven. Chris: How many kids? Adam: Eight. Chris: One thing that's funny — I won't stay in an Airbnb with our team. I want to stay in a hotel. I want my own room, my own bathroom. I don't want to wait for Adam to get done with his hour-long shower where he uses all the hot water. I figured this out very early. When I was 18 I moved into a house with my band. We all lived together, and I figured out very quickly that I don't like roommates. I was the only one in the band with a full-time job — I was a porter at a car dealership. So I had money, they didn't, clearly, because they didn't work. They'd eat all my food. It was a disaster. So it comes up all the time: "Hey, could we stay at an Airbnb in this city when I'm tagging along?" And I'm always like, you guys can, but I'm staying at the hotel. Seven adults in an Airbnb would be a nightmare for me. The kids are probably more fun. The adults would be the problem. What sort of events have happened so far? Adam: We had a fish boil last night. Crab, a bunch of seafood — and you know me and seafood, I'm a take-it-or-leave-it kind of guy. We had that with corn and potatoes. It was really good, though. The corn is the best. The corn takes that Creole spice and just locks it in. We went golfing yesterday. We did best ball — I always team up with my father-in-law, and we beat my two brothers-in-law. First win in many times of golfing. We shot about nine over par overall, so not too bad. Had a few decent shots, just enough to keep you going. We also started this last year — a drink competition. Whoever can make the best drink, and there's a rating scale to it. We haven't gone yet, but I think ours is going to be some sort of mojito. That Cosmopolitan we tried last year went horrible, so that's definitely not the choice this year. Chris: Does Bob participate in the drink competition? Adam: He did last year. Chris: Bob is Adam's father-in-law, who makes the incredible jerky. If he can put the jerky together and he understands mixology, I think he'd have a head start on the drinks. Tell him thank you again — when we were in Indiana, Adam brought a bunch and it doesn't last long. It goes quick. Adam: I definitely found the remnants of wrappers in the wagon. Chris: I offered to take it with me when I got out at the airport and you were like, "No, just leave it." Last week we went to Planet Fitness and worked out most days. Planet Fitness is funny — the whole business model is interesting. They charge $10 a month and they're counting on nobody coming. Their business strategy is to sell a lot of memberships on the understanding that people who buy a gym membership usually don't go. But unfortunately a lot of people do go, so it's always really crowded. It was fun, though. I felt better at the end of the week. Listener Question: Truck Parts vs. Auto Parts Caller: I'm calling because I have a question about the similarities and differences between the parts department and the parts operation in a car dealership versus the trucking business. I have in-laws — kind of family friends — who own a trucking company, and they're having some issues with their parts department that they told me about. I'm the parts director for my auto group, so I'm wanting to help them. I suggested they look into you guys, because I think you're really good at what you do. But in the meantime, I don't know how actively they're going to do that, so I was also going to look at it myself. For example, with obsolescence, I'm confident about all the exit strategies and preventative strategies and systems to put in place to prevent and remove obsolescence in a dealership. But I was hoping to get some insight from you all about how similar that is — not just obsolescence but the whole thing, even going into technicians, because I know they pay their technicians hourly. I'd like to get some more insight on what the trucking business looks like so I can help my friends. And hopefully they'll check you guys out too. Chris: Nice that he's saying that. Also, we've had so many referrals from factory guys lately, wh
