I wanted to know if the Mercedes Benz branch (Autozama S.A.) in Santo Domingo has competitive pay for their automotive technicians, because I've heard that mechanics dont get paid well over there. I want to be part of that prestigious experience and I also want to reside in DR. Thank you guys!
- Thread starter Radiomaster101
- Start date
Mercedes Benz Mechanics
start your own shop. its the better way to go. they have a few models here like ones sold in the Western Europe/North American market. MBs you ll see are older. I know Diamler concentrates on fiber optic electronics now so you ll be handy for the wealthy and elite who have those or the business owner who may have a turbodiesel Sprinter. If you have your own place you ll do better, as long as your current on tech notes and equipment(which you ll have to import from US).
Lot of shops here dont even use pneumatic tools, some do, some dont, depends on size.
If you are MB certified over there and know at least 10 model years worth of MBs, all models, E,C,S,M,G,K, Amg, you can do better than working piecemeal for some comerciante. Guaranteed most of the guys here are not MB certified and may not know how to fix some issues...especially the electronics. If you can fund it, get a place with 3 lifts and a compressor and a sign. Start from there. YOU do the complex work and hire 1B and 2Cs to do the lower level stuff.
Lot of shops here dont even use pneumatic tools, some do, some dont, depends on size.
If you are MB certified over there and know at least 10 model years worth of MBs, all models, E,C,S,M,G,K, Amg, you can do better than working piecemeal for some comerciante. Guaranteed most of the guys here are not MB certified and may not know how to fix some issues...especially the electronics. If you can fund it, get a place with 3 lifts and a compressor and a sign. Start from there. YOU do the complex work and hire 1B and 2Cs to do the lower level stuff.
At least the dealer carry with all the tools and the technicians get pay a salary that compared with the cost of living in DR is not bad. I have a friend who works for "La tecnica" in Santiago he lives pretty decent life stile.
In US another friend of mine who works for "Pep boys" makes 18 dollars an hour even when they charge over 100. / hour but the good about this is that he has to buy all the tools and he get pay worked time only.
Explanation; They have calculated time for each one of the mechanic works so no matter he stay in the shop from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm he only get pay the time he works.
He is opening his own business in two weeks here in Raleigh on highway 64.
JJ
Your definition was unclear here. The guy at Pep Boys is paid $18/hour but he is only paid for the work he completes. Not for the time he spends there. Now if he is good and he is also doing simple jobs he might make a good living. For example, a 2004 Chevrolet Suburban comes in for a brake job, front and rear. Manual says 1.0 hour for the front and 1.0 hour for the rear just to replace the pads. Now if turning the rotors is added, you add 1.4 hours to each axle, replacing rotors you add .5 hour. This is from a 3.0 to a 4.8 hour job. Now a good guy can do this entire job in 45 minutes but the 3-4.8 hours is billed and added to his timecard. In an 8 hour day this example doing 3 of these this guy billed 12 hours. This everyday makes a nice week. As long as your work is cake.
But with MB, I guarantee most of the most difficult problems will be electrical and so electrical diagnosis only pays 1.0 hour(less if the car in new and under warranty).
Now I dont know where you want to do this but I think Santiago could use a MB specialist since most people dont want to drive to SD to leave their car there for 1-2 weeks. Like I said, 3 lifts, a HD compressor and generator because of inconsistent luz and a sign should get you more clientes than you need. Most everyone here knows Toyotas, Nissan and Hondas. My thing is American cars. A guy like you with European high end knowledge, German and MB exclusive can really do well.
"But with MB, I guarantee most of the most difficult problems will be electrical and so electrical diagnosis only pays 1.0 hour(less if the car in new and under warranty). "
RacerX,
I pretty much agree with your statement, but this is not entirely true. 95% of the shops - in the US, EU, DR or wherever they are - will charge CT (clock time) for electrical repair. Sometimes it takes an hour or more just to get to the component or wiring harness that needs to be tested. Electrical repair can not be estimated, sometimes it's a fuse, sometimes many hours - especially if it's an intermittent problem.
To answer to the OP:
I know 1-2 very good MB-BMW tech who works for 20,000 pesos/month in Santiago. The pay for their job in SD is higher, so are the living expenses.
Also they don't own their tools, meanwhile in the US most tech has a huge inventory in it - tens of thousand dollars.
Yes, a good European car specialist makes double or triple of a regular mechanic, but it's still very low comparing to what you can earn in the US.
Most DR people are show-offs, you can see many expensive luxury cars, but most of their owners can't even afford a proper maintenance - I can't even talk about a major repair. I wish you could see with your eyes what they call "repair" here. It's all about the look - just like everything else here.
Those who has real money never goes to your shop because they buy new ones every year or two - and the rest just.......
Well, open a junkyard here if you want to make some serious $$$, because that's what most wants to buy here - used crap.
The Hun
RacerX,
I pretty much agree with your statement, but this is not entirely true. 95% of the shops - in the US, EU, DR or wherever they are - will charge CT (clock time) for electrical repair. Sometimes it takes an hour or more just to get to the component or wiring harness that needs to be tested. Electrical repair can not be estimated, sometimes it's a fuse, sometimes many hours - especially if it's an intermittent problem.
To answer to the OP:
I know 1-2 very good MB-BMW tech who works for 20,000 pesos/month in Santiago. The pay for their job in SD is higher, so are the living expenses.
Also they don't own their tools, meanwhile in the US most tech has a huge inventory in it - tens of thousand dollars.
Yes, a good European car specialist makes double or triple of a regular mechanic, but it's still very low comparing to what you can earn in the US.
Most DR people are show-offs, you can see many expensive luxury cars, but most of their owners can't even afford a proper maintenance - I can't even talk about a major repair. I wish you could see with your eyes what they call "repair" here. It's all about the look - just like everything else here.
Those who has real money never goes to your shop because they buy new ones every year or two - and the rest just.......
Well, open a junkyard here if you want to make some serious $$$, because that's what most wants to buy here - used crap.
The Hun