These Two Vehicles Are Hidden In Our Shop & They Aren’t Leaving!!

Welcome to the fun part of owning an auto repair shop. These two vehicles have added some years to our lives. This is not extremely common, but it’s certainly not foreign to us either. Come along and hear the stories of this Mercedes and Ford with us, and why we are hiding them. Enjoy!

[@doctorwu1303]

Speaks volumes about the integrity the Mercedes owner has..

[@bobdobalini]

we make sure we get deposits on large tickets, has to be enough to cover all parts minimum.

[@darinjohnson7280]

I run into similar problems when a customer declines major repairs, then just abandons the vehicle! About once a year, I have to take steps to get the cars gone, usually have several a year and it is frustrating! I also heard you say that they are in your ADAS area, I think it would be a great topic for a video to educate the public and other shops about the importance of proper calibrations! Love the content, as always!!

[@zarikparsanian3940]

Sorry about your loss, One thing I learned over the years is to get a deposit up front, at least 85 percent of the repair cost, and sometimes the whole amount, I don't know if in your area you could do that or not. I feel your pain. I am a one man shop in California.

[@autumn1231]

After finding this channel I’m considering driving from Charlotte NC for my auto maintenance.

[@dannybennett5950]

I had a similar situation as the F150. The finance company wouldn't pay for the repairs but they would pay for storage. I didn't release the vehicle until the storage fees matched the repair cost. I know I ended up storing it inside for free but at least I didn't have to go through the lien process.

[@swampyfox8688]

I liked it…. even though it made me sick to my stomach. Man I feel for you guys. 😢

[@1957cajun]

This is what most people don’t understand about the risks of running your own small business!

[@TStheDeplorable]

When I need to send my car to a mechanic to fix I feel like it's an absolute obligation to pay for it and pick it up ASAP. I see how cars are practically stacked on top of each other at his shop, so he needs the space my car's taking up. Being a good shop and being a good customer go hand in hand. I see having a go-to mechanic as a relationship to be maintained.

[@Davidnichols-p7w]

I never will understand people! Love your videos.

[@staceylaw7541]

Sherwood, we’ve been doing this for over 30 years & have lived /learned & implemented changes as a result along the way. Any major job over $3000 has to have 70% down before disassembly begins. Storage starts 48 hours after estimate given. As for warranty work, $95 admin fee and $150 pre approval has to be authorized by customer with understanding that is their portion to pay before we even pull into bay. We are in Illinois where there are irresponsible people it’s impossible to hold people accountable. Even family has to prepay! Yes this is the downside but if you’re not working for “Charity (insert business name) automotive” then you have to protect yourself, your team and your family.

[@tedk4605]

Absoluety agree with you. Definetly have the customer put some money down with bigger jobs. It prevents the shop from losing a ton of money if things go sideways and keeps the customer emotially involved with it - because if they decide to not pay then THEY are out money. Oh, and irresponsible people aren't just in Illinois, they're everywhere 😂

[@JOMaMa..]

@@staceylaw7541 You may charge upfront on parts only.

[@gregcomeau4632]

I had an informal mobile mechanic service and two different customers who didn't know each other said they would pay me but they had bills.😊

[@markmohr210]

Its part of doing business unfortunately.i been in business 25 years now and been burned multiple times, now I make sure i get all the materials and parts up front I can eat the labour but you can only go backwards so many times before its all over .I remember years ago I did a job for long time customer,he was always good never complain about price or time we loved him but one time we had huge in to engine and trans rebuild and all new exhaust rear diff basically the entire drivetrain. he then past away from heart attack and the family came wanted to take it back and he owed like 15 grand, they had no money and I felt bad and he was a good client so I ended up just giving it to them for sentimental reasons. how does one be and aggressive ass in that situation so my heart gave in and since then deposit always on material and parts .love your channel keep up the great work .

[@EZJ17MRJ15]

These situstions really grind my gears. Why approve the work if you don't intend to pay or have the funds for the ticket.

[@davedammitt7691]

Sometimes it's a shop that gets dicked over, but sometimes it's also the customer. I had a '93 Lexus SC300 that would die, then sit for 3 or 4 minutes and start right back up. I bought another car, so I didn't really need the Lexus anymore, so I took it to an indy shop in Orange Park, FL (just south of you) who claimed to be a Toyota expert. That 2JZ engine was almost bulletproof, kind of like the BMW inline 6 that I had in my 330xi. The owner of the shop insisted that it was a bad distributor seal, slinging oil up into the distributor and causing the car to die. Made absolutely zero sense to me, but hey, this guy is the expert and he's supposedly had seen it many times before. So I left the car at the shop, and told him that there was absolutely no rush. Take his time. Call me when it's ready. I realize that it's a horrible decision to tell the shop to take their time, because anything that comes in after with the owner claiming that they "need the car tomorrow" will always get put ahead of yours. Anyway, after about six months, I went by the shop to see what was going on. I had actually looked through some online forums, and a lot of people that said that it was probably a fuel pump relay, so I told the dude that I would just take the car home and fix it myself, and asked what I owed him. "Oh, I have a lien on that car. It's been here 6 months". "Ummmm, yeah. I told you to call me when it was ready, and if there was no rush, and every time I drove by the shop the car hadn't moved." Well, it turns out he changed the distributor, and the problem still existed. Told him that I would pay him 500 bucks for the distributor swap, which I thought was too much anyway, or I would fight the mechanics lien in court. He agreed to give me the car back, and acted like he was doing me a favor by not charging me storage fees. Turns out I got it home, changed the fuel pump relay, and it ran fine for another 2 years after that.

[@patm95]

Very interesting. That’s a tough situation!

[@KendrasEdge757]

“I’ve got an airplane but can’t pay the mechanic bill on my Benz” Someone’s living above their means.

[@Jeffthestreettech]

What yall did was necessary on the truck it just needs a catalytic converter now in my opinion

[@mhardy216]

Great content for customers. Husband and wife shop here. Other small guys, watch out for people paying with cash advance checks. I never knew that was even a thing until a customer paid 6800 and credit card company didn't clear it for 30 days

[@FORDTECH313]

So they can’t pay for the Mercedes-Benz, but they have an airplane🤦🏽‍♂️

[@jonyoung6405]

Isn’t that normal?

[@paulmuff9883]

Assist rich - cash poor! There’s a lot of people out there like that 😢

[@dB_944]

Sounds like somebody needs a dose of Dave Ramsey.

[@micahpowers2614]

We had a yukon come in for various repairs. $3000 roughly. That was october of 20 or 21 Its still parked in the back. The bill with storage fees is over 18k or something at this point i think.

[@tedk4605]

I'd tell him to bring the title and sign it over. That's what I would do at my shop. He's had plenty of time to deal with this. If he doesn't want to hand the title over then the next step would be litigation. Hopefully he can get things cleared up before any of that happens. Best of luck with that situation. Always a frustrating situation for both parties.

[@sheerwillsurvival2064]

For the algorithm. Love repair videos 😉. Someone didn’t pay 💰

[@TheBeast-tj9qo]

Can you cover diagnosing suspension issues such as struts mounts,stabilizer bars,bushings lower control arms,links etc..

[@jerrydavidnichols6735]

In Georgia can you put a mechanics lean on the car?

[@usamaarshad9041]

YOU ARE A BRAVE MAN❤

[@billsimpson604]

In some states, if you put money in a bank account and have no transactions at all, the State can seize the money after a few years. That is in the fine print which hardly anybody reads.

[@Doc_435]

On the Mercedes, I would have filed a mechanics lien after 60 days (or as soon as you were legal able). The Ford same as well.

[@morelandhouse1]

this was a great informative video.

[@d.b.4321]

Our shop had to do that aswell a few times. As long as the terms are on the work order and agreed to all t"s are crossed and I's are dotted. You do what you have to do to get money recovery

[@ConesuelaLadyTailor]

I would have thought the owner of the Mercedes would say "You can have the car. It's yours."

[@mrblonde2013]

We point the customer towards a financing company in the automotive sector. The customer arranges finance, the workshop gets paid and after that its between the customer and the finance company. I have been stuck in the past with vehicles like that, and the amount of hassle and grief it causes is just not worth it.

[@tonywestvirginia]

I have learned that you always get your parts money up front first.The labor cost can be worked out with the techs if something like this happens. Don't get me wrong, The techs will get paid by lowering the labor money that you make in the future and then go after the vehicle. I was in the biz for over 40 years.

[@billyc3629]

Saw the tik tok about these vehicles battle of nutrition was waiting for this video

[@SuperBojah]

Hey. Could you you do a video on the leather sheath you dad carries?

[@GlennHarris-xc2oc]

I bet that for every shop that gets screwed over on a job, there are 100 or more customers screwed by shoddy repair work.

[@jimmyaber5920]

The problem is the two situations aren't the same shop.

[@Sir-ji2ne]

Idk about the laws on US but here where I live if you can’t pay within a year, the shop can keep your car as their own my boss earned 2 cars because clients didn’t pay or they just gave it to him because it wasn’t worth paying

[@trekOCLVone]

This video points out the painful side of when "it's all good until it goes bad".

[@LatersOnTheMenjay.]

What a headache for you guys. Sorry this happens - I wish people were more accountable.

[@jeremyalbert2069]

have the customer make payments , !!??? work with them , or tell them to surrender the title , for the what is owed !! for the benz , for the truck , add storage fees and tell finance co. they pay the storage fees and its theirs , we have gone through this , a few times , it sucks , on big jobs we try to get some type of deposit and hold it until bill is fully paid . but its part of the business . oh and add some storage to the benz you are intitled to it for the trouble . in md we send emails , calls , and certified letters , to vehicle owners until we get a response then worst case we do a mechanics lien, it costs about 3-400 per car . we try to work with people as much as possible . until you cant .

[@davidfunk5859]

Ohhhh, ADAS. I thought you said 8 a$$........... Totally different meaning.

[@edsequip]

I’m stuck with a very nice Cat grader I did some repairs on. I’m just a one man operation and the bill is over 7000 dollars. I have been waiting for two years for this deadbeat owner to pay to no avail. I know he has the money because he has a large fleet of trucks and equipment on the road, not to mention millions of dollars worth of real estate. I really can’t figure out what the problem is. I had done a lot of work for this guy previously and never had a problem so I made the mistake of not getting him to sign the work order before I started working on it. If I had that grader would be on the way to the auction today. Live and learn. I live in Alberta, Canada by the way. At least I still have the machine in my possession.

[@Seanenanigans]

This is why shops in my area refuse to do big jobs and send you to dealers, unfortunately

[@ajchiappetta8795]

As a shop owner myself, everyone thinks that my life is amazing but the downsides is that a lot of people can’t pay in the end and I have to hide there car until they pay, it would blow your mind

[@douglasphillips1203]

Extended warranty insurance companies that then refuse to actually pay for any work deserve a special place in hell.

[@garyi8608]

Hope can work something out with the owner of the Mercedes and Ford F150? If a person can work out either giving all of the money or some sort of payment thing and they get their vehicle back at the same time? A person having very expensive work done should give you the "assurance" that your going to get paid for the work. On the vehicle that has a loan on it is the bank or finance companies vehicle. Can write off the $7k tax time as a business expense.

[@DependableAutoTruck]

i have a cummins 1 ton been here 2 1/2 years could take the truck easily im in alabama he doesn't have the money and the bill isn't large just hate to take the truck. have oldsmobile doesn't owe anything been here 3 years owner has fell on hard times even told him no storage but still hasnt gotten it.

[@JohnStray569]

It only costs $200 to have a company do the title work for you here in Georgia.

[@djosbun]

Hello Sherwood…..a question regarding the Mercedes: did the mechanic that did the work ever get paid? I know some shops pay the mechanic once the car gets picked up/client pays. Just curious how you handled this with your employee. Thanks!

[@JOMaMa..]

@@djosbun My guess is Sherwood paid his guy for the labor

[@myk55501]

Have you put a mechanic’s lien on the car and truck ??? That protect you from them retitling or removing vehicles from your property without payment. I would go to court before your cost exceed the value of the vehicles.

[@ablackformula]

Do you pay the tech for the labor hours? That's one of the worst parts about being a tech on flat rate. Fix a car with 6 labor hours on the ticket, customer never pays, and the tech never gets paid.

[@ericknutson602]

Time people and Money gets the job done... good luck

[@rejectblock9813]

I say they’ve been there for four years

[@philh9238]

You can tell this guy invests in his business. Some shop owners won’t buy nothing

[@matthewbegin3462]

I feel like finance companies have paid billls for repairs in the past. Cant the guy with the Benz just sign the title over to you?? Or offer him a few bucks for the title ?

[@kevinbarry71]

Bad situations. Only thing I can suggest is small claims court against the truck owner. That should be fairly straightforward. I don't run a shop, but maybe getting 50% deposits in advance for big jobs like that. Definitely for the parts

[@markmichlewicz5141]

On big repairs my work gets half up front.

[@mikehometownauto2313]

IN CANADA IF THEY DONT PAY YOU CAN SELL THERE CAR LEGALLY AFTER JUST 21 DAYS ITS VERY EASY TO DO TO RECOOP THE COST

[@onenikkione]

Yikes on both situations but the Mercedes

[@052RC]

For the MEBE, they don't hold their value. For 7k plus storage, see if the customer is willing to give you the car as payment for the money he owes you. If he doesn't agree, tell him you'll have no choice but to take him to small claims court to recover at least some of your money. The customer is never coming back for it, and if he thinks he can get rid of a headache by just handing you the tittle, he may go for it. The F150 is something else entirely. That's a very desirable vehicle, and someone is going to want it. I would start by telling them you're going through the process of getting the tittle. That alone could provoke someone into doing something. If that doesn't work, file the paperwork and get the tittle. Fix the head and sell it. That one will be worth the trouble of getting the tittle. I'm a Ford tech. The prices people are willing to pay for those things, new or used, is ridiculous. Not only that, you have an extremely good reputation. Buying a used vehicle is a risky venture. Anyone that knows you will buy it just because you're selling it. They know you're not going to screw them over. You'll have it sold 10x over before you even get the tittle.

[@davedammitt7691]

I agree. It's not as good as it was 3 or 4 years ago, but yeah, pickup trucks are a hot commodity. I got lucky during the Great Flu Panic and sold a 2017 Silverado, with 41,000 miles, to a dealer for more than I had paid for it originally.

[@bobdobalini]

@@davedammitt7691cash for clunkers really helped out those prices.

[@jameshirshfeld2070]

I have a question. My mom drives a Subaru outback. I forget what model year it is. But it is roughly 2 or 3 years old she lives in Florida. When she was driving her car today. Her car died in the middle of the road. No error codes. No check engine light. It was diagnosed as a dead battery. Is that normal. She got the battery replaced.

[@jcwhoffman1]

6 months on the Mercedes

[@ADScar]

Those are tough situations. Perhaps the Mercedes owner can make small payments?

[@ronhamm]

120 days on the Mercedes.

[@brucejones7177]

Maybe on large estimates for repair the owner needs to pu 50 percent up front, before work is done. Atleast that way you get something, or tell the owner take the vehicle to someone else.

[@jorgerea939]

I would drive the car around, each mile .50 cents until you reach $7,000 😊

[@davedammitt7691]

I'll give you $7k for that Mercedes if you fixed it up and it's good to go. BTW, it's😮 not an E350, it's most likely a CLK 350. As far as I know, there were no coupe e-classes in 2007, and there were certainly no convertible e classes then.

[@marriagepartnersministry5942]

I would part out that truck on the down low and file a court claim against the car owner and when you win then you ask the court to order an asset list from the client and begin foreclosing on assets including the title for the car itself.

[@snappers_antique_firearms]

I used to own a performance shop in las vegas. The biggest loss of my life was building this single cab silverado ment for auto cross. Custom tube frame, twin turbo Fully built lsx show truck. This was a Customer I had had a few times. He had put down a 10k Deposit. We were over 90% done when he was arrested for drug smuggling And illegal immigration. The government Seized all his assets including the truck. I Was Denied a lean do to it being part of a Federal investigation. After many years of fighting the government and the guy. never got a bime. This was a truck we had been building for months. The customer owed us over $50,000. The deposit Wasn't even close to the amount of money that i had in parts.

[@AlanChan-i4d]

I close my shop in 2020 covid.and having same problem big ticket jobs .engine, transmission replacement,no pay .

[@pl7868]

I have done jobs that I under estimated for whatever reason , not automotive , and at the end of the job finding out you lost more money than you were being paid in the first place really sucks , after the job your working for nothing to make back the money spent to make nothing , and going over the books with the wife there are sentences like , ok this is not good ! it doesn't always rain though , for me the good jobs make up for the bad if your doing what you enjoy , Murfy's law can be a bitch though 🤣

[@fascistpedant758]

At some point you're better off taking your lumps and letting it go than losing sleep over it. Easy come, easy go.

[@robertristinge4385]

Avoid insurance company's at all costs. It's almost always the same story,- ooh in your case we don't cover.

[@thekeeneygarage]

Do you have converge for these scenarios in your electronic authorization terms of service? That is how I handle it. My attorney sells the car to auction if client doesn't pay because each customer agrees to it as part of the electronic authorization process.

[@musicconnoisseur4019]

I thought this shop was in Houston, or is the title just in Georgia.

[@chuckbeam7898]

Lots of work on vehicles and no pay

[@garyalford9394]

People don't seem to realize all the money shops have tied up in tools and training people and what it costs to keep a skilled mechanic and just to keep the lights on !

[@HYBRIDEVMASTERSGARAGE]

Ownership Ain't Easy !! Same 1.year hold Horror-Story here, 2015 Corvette Z'' 1. did 15k (Insurance Co.) Lein Sale in Calif. 2, Filed a Civil Case, Judge Suggested 7K, or go to Trial and Possibly get NOTHING. Lost 1yr & 8K.

[@cheapers1952]

Time to do what's called the lien sale on I would think

[@grantbob]

Will a mechanics lien keep the finance company from repo-ing it?

[@JOMaMa..]

No

[@davedammitt7691]

​@@JOMaMa.. yes. Once a mechanic's lien is filed, the vehicle cannot be sold. I guess technically the finance company could come and take it, but they could not sell it.

[@JOMaMa..]

@@davedammitt7691 why post such a ridiculous comment to only agree

[@davedammitt7691]

@@JOMaMa.. it's not ridiculous comment. It's a factual comment. Why would a bank want to repossess a vehicle that they can't sell? They can send a tow truck to tow the thing away, but the shop owner still owns it once the mechanics lien is approved in court. Is shop owner who filed a mechanic's lien then has the title.. Then he can go to the finance company's storage lot and take the car back.

[@JOMaMa..]

@@davedammitt7691 Wrong answer

[@chrisrainville6324]

Balance shaft on the Mercedes ???

[@davidmcclain5180]

When you are an honest person (Sherwood) who holds your own integrity as a very high standard, you tend to trust the people coming to your shop because you would never do to them what the Mercedes and Ford customers are doing. That guy with the Mercedes can get the $7k. He probably just doesn't want the car any longer and I bet he is driving something newer every day. The other guy on the F-series is a terrible person. He has no values and doesn't give a crap about anyone but himself. I suppose in business, you sometimes have to cut your losses and move on.

[@mph5896]

I just fixed a Ford 3.5 last week, same issue. Somebody else was in it, timing chain crank sprocket was wallowed out around the pin and the pin hole on the crank was fubared. They must have not torqued down the balancer properly. Had a welder Tig the crank, new pin and new gear. Runs perfectly now.

[@alb12345672]

so glad I got a 6.2L F150. No problems at all as a daily driver. Everyone I know with older 3.5s has some major repair.

[@wilmarbarrick3194]

He wants to sell his plane but he owes his A & P /IA $20K for the last annual.

[@margyjr]

👍👍

[@therealhotdog]

you get a extended warranty and they won't pay what good are they?

[@dstrickner123]

Getting close to time for a lawsuit on that ford. I couldn't do it I'd go after the finance company or the owner. Someone has to pay.

[@BjørnFinstad]

1.5 years

[@MrTuberguber]

I sympathize with your situation but is it legal to hold the car?

[@gwizz911]

YES 52-201. Creation of lien; retention of property authorized. (1) Any person who makes, alters, repairs, or in any way enhances the value of any vehicle, automobile, machinery, farm implement, or tool or shoes a horse or mule at the request of or with the consent of the owner or owners thereof shall have a lien on such vehicle, automobile, machinery, farm implement, tool, horse, or mule while in such person's possession for the reasonable or agreed charges for the work done or material furnished and shall have the right to retain such property until such charges are paid.

[@davedammitt7691]

Absolutely. Google 'mechanics lien'

[@SuperGmann10]

Yep! Theft of service is illegal. If the customer is allowed to take the vehicle without paying, that's what it is.

[@rodvan-zeller6360]

"Dead beat customer insurance"? Insurance pays you, repos the vehicle, does an asset search on the owner, goes to court.

[@InsideOfMyOwnMind]

Anything over a certain amount prepaid in full. Anyone who thinks it's unfair or dishonest (I don't know, maybe it is but I don't care) We live in an unfair, uncaring world right now and you have to protect yourself even at the expense of lost commerce.

[@billyyoder8171]

For sale signs. Get them out and paid.

[@SEOKLADUCKIN]

Non payment of services

[@joeydeemendoza]

2:59 Did you seriously say this customer is trying to sell his airplane to pay for this mercedes repair?

[@williyizquierdo4916]

Reach out to me, I run a repo company and I’ll either tell you how to get them to pay of how to get the title.

[@johnleinen7167]

He can't sell his airplane because it probably failed its annual inspection!, needs a 59k engine replacement.

[@chuckbeam7898]

At what point is it legally yours?

[@WanderingRobotStudio]

When they get the title.

[@davedammitt7691]

They have to file a mechanic's lien in the county courthouse first and if the person doesn't contest, it's his. If the person does contest, then there's a court situation to go through.

[@GeneG-wk2mz]

1 year

[@CharlieTurner-x9v]

Hey royalty auto service, see if the owners want to sell the car and the truck. The cost of the repairs. That way yall get y'all money.

[@TRAVIS-L]

Offer him two grand for the title of the car and keep it

[@shepherdsfleetservicesllc8147]

Because they haven't paid for have to put lien on them

[@rollenschultz2707]

People won't pay the bill

[@6.2turbosilverado]

Don’t let repoman Sam see them lol