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I took a call yesterday morning from a potential customer who wanted to know our price for installing a radio that he'd pulled from another vehicle. I told him the price, he was happy with it, and he set up an appointment for 3pm the same day. He had a full-size Chevy pickup, which I know from experience is about a half-hour job for a replacement radio, so I just booked off a 1-hour block for it.
When he arrived I went out to pull in the truck, and on the seat I saw an older Kenwood in-dash mobile video unit/DVD player which includes a separate "brain" module, together with an add-on satellite radio unit and antenna; all well-used and with the wiring in a big tangle.
I went back to him and explained that what he had there wasn't a "radio", nor a half hour job. The installation was going to be quite a bit more difficult than planned, and consequently more time-consuming and expensive.
I explained that what had been quoted on the phone as a $50 job had turned into a $200+ job.
He didn't complain; he obviously understood that it had been his fault for not being more clear on the phone about what he wanted installed.
I went on to explain that we wouldn't be able to finish in the time I'd blocked off; if he wanted it done that day, he would have to leave the truck until we closed at 9pm so we could work on it between other appointments.
That wasn't going to work out, but he decided to set up an appointment the next day for us to do the installation. So far, so good. The money wasn't a problem; the extra time wasn't a problem.
Because I'm an old hand at this, I have a pretty good idea what people are looking for when they're putting in-dash movie players into their vehicles. So I finished by explaining that when I install that type of player, it's going to be set up so that the picture is disabled while the vehicle is in motion. In other words, you can't watch a movie while you're driving. Now we had a problem.
He decided that he'd rather not have us do the installation after all. So off he went, presumably to find a shop with lower safety standards.
When he arrived I went out to pull in the truck, and on the seat I saw an older Kenwood in-dash mobile video unit/DVD player which includes a separate "brain" module, together with an add-on satellite radio unit and antenna; all well-used and with the wiring in a big tangle.
I went back to him and explained that what he had there wasn't a "radio", nor a half hour job. The installation was going to be quite a bit more difficult than planned, and consequently more time-consuming and expensive.
I explained that what had been quoted on the phone as a $50 job had turned into a $200+ job.
He didn't complain; he obviously understood that it had been his fault for not being more clear on the phone about what he wanted installed.
I went on to explain that we wouldn't be able to finish in the time I'd blocked off; if he wanted it done that day, he would have to leave the truck until we closed at 9pm so we could work on it between other appointments.
That wasn't going to work out, but he decided to set up an appointment the next day for us to do the installation. So far, so good. The money wasn't a problem; the extra time wasn't a problem.
Because I'm an old hand at this, I have a pretty good idea what people are looking for when they're putting in-dash movie players into their vehicles. So I finished by explaining that when I install that type of player, it's going to be set up so that the picture is disabled while the vehicle is in motion. In other words, you can't watch a movie while you're driving. Now we had a problem.
He decided that he'd rather not have us do the installation after all. So off he went, presumably to find a shop with lower safety standards.
at the safety feature and make the sale.
) and looked over at the car next to me. The woman had her cellphone in one hand and was PETTING HER DOG with the other. Count with me, children. How many hands were on the wheel? NONE!!!! And then she RIPS through the intersection when the light turns green. I gave her a wide berth and switched to a side-street a block later.
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