SNOHOMISH, Wash. — David Gingrass worked in several auto repair shops, both dealership and independent, before he joined Mobile Car Dr, a mobile mechanic business in Phoenix. After the mobile provider Wrench acquired the company in 2017, Gingrass became a full-time service technician for Wrench in the Seattle area.
Gingrass likes his job. It pays him an hourly wage he declined to disclose, rather than compensate him under the flat-rate system that most franchised dealerships use, despite its unpopularity with many techs. He gets health insurance, a 401(k) retirement plan and profit sharing.
He gets to work on a variety of vehicles and appreciates that his hours are flexible: "Some days you'll be doing 10 hours, but other days you're home by 3 p.m.," he says. He adds that he prefers to deal directly with customers, rather than through a service adviser.
