Centennial, Colo.—The mantra of Toy Car Care’s group of owners is to do one thing and do it well. That means properly servicing and repairing their customers’ Toyota, Lexus, and Scion vehicles. Although that task has become increasingly complex due to proliferation of vehicle technology, flex fuel, and hybrids, its owners say support from Toyota has gone a long way.
As the technician learning curve goes vertical, the Toy Car Care’s quartet of shareholders, Steve Wilbur, Mitch Hoffman, Rod Upham, and Jim McGinley said constant schooling, self-education, and access to the latest factory scan tools are a requirement, not an option.
“The key thing people want is quality work, and fix the car right the first time,” said Wilbur, who serves as the shop’s general manager. Although the basic tenet of taking care of customers and their vehicles hasn’t changed since Toy Car Care opened in 2001, the means to satisfy that end has, he pointed out.
“We keep thinking there’s so much more to learn,” Wilbur said. “We try to self-educate as much as we can. Education is key to the future.”
To keep pace with Toyota’s contemporary vehicles, Lead Technician Hoffman said the shop purchased two Toyota Technical Information Systems (TIS) Techstream factory scan tools, which are loaded on Panasonic Toughbooks, for nearly $10,000 apiece, with a $1,200-a-year subscription.
Only a handful of independent repair shops across the country have the Techstream, said Hoffman, who was once a Toyota Master Diagnostic tech at a dealership.
The TIS Techstream gives technicians the ability to simultaneously view OBD II data, look up technical service bulletins (TSBs), and reprogram vehicles via a wireless connection to TIS, he said.
The Techstream can communicate with Toyota, and technicians can even report errors back to Toyota so they can be corrected, said Hoffman, who also serves as a mentor to the shop’s technicians. Reading the TSBs everyday greatly reduces diagnostic time, he added.
“The most important part of any job is the diagnosis of the vehicle, especially for check-engine lights and emissions,” Wilbur said, also a certified Toyota Master Diagnostic tech. If a diagnosis is needed, a modest $47 diagnostic fee line item appears on the repair order (RO), he said.
Hoffman said it’s great that Toyota is able to release a Techstream to the aftermarket, adding that when looking into purchasing the tool, he spoke with Mark Saxonberg, manager of service technology for Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc., who he described as very helpful.
“In this industry, if you don’t ask for what you need, you won’t get it,” Wilbur said, adding that Toyota was more than willing to assist him with technical questions. Jerry Raskind, wholesale development manager of Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc., even took the time to tour the shop, he said.
Toyota officials realize that the ownership experience doesn’t end at the dealership, Wilbur said. “That forward thinking will take a company far.”
Just as the nine-technician crew at Toy Car Care relies on factory tools and service information, they also rely on factory parts and fluids to use in their customers’ vehicles, he said.
They choose to install only original equipment (OE) brands, such as Denso and Aisin, obtained through the aftermarket, or original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts from wholesaling Toyota dealers, Wilbur said.
WorldPac is the aftermarket supplier of choice, while Kuni Lexus, Burt Toyota, Go Toyota and Stevinson Toyota East, supply the shop with OEM parts, Wilbur said.
“We’ll use whoever gives us the best service,” he said, adding that Stevinson Toyota East may provide up to four deliveries to the shop a day and sells the parts at a decent price.
Unlike some independent repair shops, Toy Car Care has a parts department with approximately $85,000 worth of fast-moving parts, such as brakes, filters, belts, hoses, and spark plugs, Wilbur said, adding that the inventory allows a quick turnaround on routine maintenance and repairs.
It seems that everybody is in a hurry-up mode today, Wilbur said, which is why he tries to make the most out of every scheduled customer visit. A 27-point inspection occurs even for an oil change, with notes and estimates for repairs written down on the back of the RO, he said, adding that they’re communicated to the customer in severity, from a scale of one to 10, with 10 requiring immediate action.
That communication serves as a presell for future maintenance and repairs, giving customers time to plan for it financially, he said.
Lead Service Writer Greg Nixon is great on the phone explaining things to customers, Wilbur said, which greatly helps sales. However, there are still a handful of customers who are deferring routine maintenance, which usually leads to larger, more expensive repairs, he noted.
Performing regular oil changes and routine transmission flushes can save customers lots of money over the life of the vehicle, he added.
For customers who end up in need of a new engine or transmission, Wilbur said he purchases used engines and transmissions from Japan Engine Inc. in California, whose units typically have only 40,000 miles on them. Those vehicles are scrapped in Japan with low mileage, and nearly every part is recycled, he pointed out. On average, he added that his technicians install 25 powertrain units a year.
