My boss comes down from the office to speak to one of our mechanics. The mechanic is very good at his job, but his English is a bit work in progress.
Boss: “Hey, [Coworker], did you work on [Customer]’s rims yesterday?”
Coworker: “Yes, boss.”
Boss: “Okay, I know we refer to everything around here as ‘a job’, but let me explain to you why we do not offer customers ‘rim jobs’.”
Today I had a man call the store.
Me: “Thank you for calling [Store Name], how may I help you?”
Customer: “Yes, hello. How you doing, babydoll?”
He didn’t even let me answer him. I said, “I’m fine, how are you?” But he spoke over me.
Customer: “Yeah, I’m looking for a floor jack.”
Again, I went to answer, but he didn’t let me speak.
Customer: “Do you know what I’m talking about? You know what a floor jack is, it’s something you use to…”
This time, I did interrupt him to make the call quick.
Me: “…yes, I know what a floor jack is. What size are you looking for?”
Customer: “I didn’t mean to make you mad. I just wanted to make sure you knew what a floor jack was. It goes underneath cars.”
Me: “I’m not, I was telling you that I knew what one was.”
Customer: “Well, sure. Anyway…”
Me: “What size are you needing?”
Customer: “You know that there are different sizes, right? Like 1.5 ton, 2 ton, 3 ton. They go underneath cars.”
Me: “Yes, I know there are different sizes. I know what they’re used for. Ours start out at a 1.5 ton, and they go up to 4 tons. I asked what size you needed.”
Customer: “Well, excuse me. You have a 3-ton that’s a bit longer, around 4ft.”
Me: “A 3-ton long reach? Yes, we do carry the long reach ones. They’re [price], and we have all but blue and green in stock.”
Customer: “Haha, I don’t care about color. That doesn’t matter.”
Me: “Okay, I’m just letting you know what’s in stock.”
Customer: “Yeah, okay.”
Then he hung up on me.
I spoke to him normally, but it really p***ed him off that I knew what a floor jack was.
I was working the front counter at an automotive shop on a Sunday, the last day of the month. A customer comes in and requests a state vehicle inspection. We did the paperwork; he gave me the keys, and as he was walking out, he said:
Customer: “Oh, the check engine light is on.”
Me: “If the check engine light is on, it won’t pass the inspection.”
He spun around and said:
Customer: “Wait; they passed it last year.”
Me: “I’m not sure how, but we have no way to bypass the inspection machine.”
Customer: “Oh, I have a waiver.”
In New York, if you spend more than $500 trying to fix the problem, the DMV MIGHT issue a waiver for a year. It only lasts one year, and they will only ever issue one waiver over the life of the car.
Me: “Oh, may I see it?”
Customer: “They kept it last year.”
Me: “You had a waiver for last year; you’d need a new one for this year.”
Customer: “Isn’t there anything you can do?”
Me: “You waited until the last day of the last month you had… on a Sunday… and then ask if there’s anything I can do? No, I’m sorry, there isn’t. The waiver was to give you a year to fix the problem. I’m sure they explained that to you. Why didn’t you fix it?”
Customer: “Well, I didn’t have the money.”
I am thinking: “Well then, you don’t have enough money to drive a vehicle in the State of New York.” But out loud I say:
Me: “I’m sorry, there’s nothing I can do.”
He scooped up his keys, gave an annoyed grunt, and strode out of the shop. Two customers in the waiting area burst into laughter.
We once had a man in his sixties throw a full-blown tantrum when he saw a female mechanic test-driving his car. I’m talking full toddler meltdown; yelling in the middle of the shop.
Customer: “What the h*** is this?! Women shouldn’t be driving cars! How dare you let a woman drive my car! What were you thinking?!”
His wife is standing right next to him. She sighs and steps in with the calmest voice imaginable.
Customer’s Wife: “Look at it this way, honey… if they fixed the car so well that a woman can drive it, then it must be really fixed up good.”
He actually pauses… thinks about it… and nods. He mutters and grumbles, but drops it.
I’m impressed she’s developed the skill to handle him over the years, but wow, she’s definitely enabling his sexism.
A customer brings some transmission fluid up to the checkout.
Customer: “Your transmission fluid is cheaper than your brake fluid.”
Me: “I suppose.”
Customer: “Would my car notice if I used transmission fluid?”
Me: “Would your car notice if you used transmission fluid instead of brake fluid?”
Customer: “Yeah.”
Me: “I don’t know about the car, but you certainly would!”
I then explained why that would be a very very very bad idea.
