Welcome to episode 20 of the Miracle CDJR Podcast! In this short podcast, John Haggard talks with Drew Fulcher who is the Service Manager at Miracle CDJR in Gallatin. Have you ever wondered how to keep your car running smoothly? You do not want to miss this podcast! They also talk about:

• Drew’s Interesting Job’s before Miracle
• The Importance of Fuel System Cleanup
• Is Synthetic Oil Better For Your Car?
• Why You Should Service with Miracle CDJR
• The Difference Between Factory Parts Or Aftermarket Parts
• Powertrain Warranty and The Miracle VIP Program

Transcript

John Haggard 0:02
Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where you will be able to learn about the best ways to purchase or lease, service, maintain and accessorize your vehicle and how to sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible when you’re ready to do it. You know the really cool features about the new Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram lineup, we’ve got them at Miracle and you’ll be hearing that also, on podcasts upcoming. I’m your host, John Haggard, and throughout each month right here, we’ll have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips you can use. By the way, we also post a transcript of each podcast so you can easily refer to it for information that you would like to have at your fingertips. On today’s podcast, we’re talking to Drew Fulcher. He’s the Service Manager at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Gallatin. Hey, Drew, welcome to the podcast!

Drew Fulcher 0:52
Hey, how you doing?

John Haggard 0:53
I am doing good. The question is, how are you doing? I know guys and ladies who are in the service department business. Doesn’t matter what it is, sometimes you’re just so slammed, you don’t see any daylight until it’s time to get off. Does that ever happen to you?

Drew Fulcher 1:06
Basically all the time.

John Haggard 1:09
Hey, before we get to know a little bit about you and what you do at Miracle there Drew, tell us the line of work that you’ve been in your past? Have you always been in automotive?

Drew Fulcher 1:18
I’ve worked just about everywhere. I got in the car business about six years ago, I started changing oil. Before then, I’ve done anything from working with the Titans on the Grounds Crew to factory work. So I’ve basically done anything where the money’s at, and now I’m in the car business, and I probably won’t ever get out of it.

John Haggard 1:36
Wow. So tell us about what it was like with the Titans. When was that?

Drew Fulcher 1:40
The Titans were in 2013. I basically, cut the grass back for the practice fields and for the main field at Nissan Stadium. We painted it and took care of the field and I was around the players during practice. I mean, it was really cool experience.

John Haggard 1:56
Yeah, was there something special about that grass? Because the NFL is always concerned about having the least amount of injuries. So I guess it’s special grass or special padding maybe or something? How does that work?

Drew Fulcher 2:11
Well, it’s like normal grass and normal dirt. The thing is, actually before each game, you have to test the soil to make sure it is not that hard. If you have to water it or do whatever you have to do to make sure it’s not too hard for the players, obviously, because that can cause injuries.

John Haggard 2:27
Gotcha. Okay. You also said you were in factory work at one point too. Tell us about that?

Drew Fulcher 2:32
I’ve worked at Macy’s and Amazon a little bit. I wasn’t a big fan of going in at night time and getting off at night time. So I needed some sunlight in me.

John Haggard 2:41
All right, and you got plenty of that now, right?

Drew Fulcher 2:44
That’s right!

John Haggard 2:45
What do you like to do on your time off, Drew, just hobbies, recreation, things you’d like to do away from work?

Drew Fulcher 2:50
Now that I’m older I play a little slow pitch softball. I’m into sports so I’ll play a little basketball, some golf, things like that. I’ve always played baseball my whole life so I do like it in that old man softball league. I’ll tell you that.

John Haggard 3:05
There you go. So how did you wind up at Miracle in Gallatin?

Drew Fulcher 3:10
Miss Kathleen, our controller was at one of my sister’s softball games, actually. I was changing oil at a different dealership. She needed an Express Lane Advisor over here at Miracle. I went in for an interview, they hired me, I took the job. That’ll be five years in April. Now you know where I’m at today/

John Haggard 3:30
You’re a Service Manager. So you have obviously worked your way up those ranks.

Drew Fulcher 3:35
Yeah, yes, sir. I have done everything I could to get better and Robert Fleet has really helped me out getting me to where I needed to be, customer service wise as well.

John Haggard 3:46
So, Drew, one thing before we go into what your typical day is like. What is one thing about you that people would be really surprised to know about you if they knew you?

Drew Fulcher 3:57
Oh, man. I like reality TV shows If that’s weird.

John Haggard 4:03
Okay! Got a favorite one?

Drew Fulcher 4:05
Not really. I watch them with my wife a lot. We’ve been into “Shameless” and other shows like that. Yeah, I mean, we’re big Netflix people. I don’t think a lot of people would know I watch a lot of Netflix I’d say.

John Haggard 4:17
When people need service for their vehicles, Drew, sometimes that can be a very irritating thing for them. Sometimes like going to a restaurant right before you eat, you’re hungry, and people can be irritated. If you were just going to give people some tips, what’s the best way to avoid needing service whenever possible, and if you do need service, the best ways to approach it?

Drew Fulcher 4:42
Basically, what I would say about that is just stay on top of your normal maintenance. If you do your oil changes when you’re supposed to, every 5,000 miles, and rotate your tires every time with your oil change, your motor is not going to lock up at 30,000 miles or your tires aren’t going to be worn out at 20. It’s really just staying on top of the maintenance and so you don’t have to come in for a big service job. A big thing is with the fuel system and the gas that we’re putting in nowadays really on the owner’s manual, It will never tell you to do anything with your fuel system. But, all the carbon buildup with this gas and we’re using is basically like cars running around with stuffy noses. You’ve got to really clean out that system to where the car is breathing properly.

John Haggard 5:27
I remember back in the day you would hear about, “STP the Racer’s Edge,” and they would always talk about putting this stuff in your gas tank to clean out the fuel system. Is that sort of thing done today or recommended to do? How do you keep it clean?

Drew Fulcher 5:42
We do an additive but we also clean out the throttle body by hand. Then we actually run in a fuel injector cleaner as well with the car running so it’s trying to get all the gunk out of the fuel injectors. Basically, anything the fuel is touching, we try to clean. Usually, that service is done about every 15,000 miles just to keep it, breathing well.

John Haggard 6:05
All right. Some people wonder, about oil changes. They say, “Well, you don’t need to do it at 5,000” or whatever the manufacturer says. If you miss it by 1,000 if you go over or is there any tolerance there? Is it better to stay on the plan?

Drew Fulcher 6:22
Well, there’s usually about 1,000-mile leeway, obviously, if you go 6,000 miles that’s okay. Nowadays they’re made to have a little leeway with it. Now, if you’re going 2,500 miles and over that limit, we kind of like to talk to you and we will even come and pick your car up if you’re local. If you don’t have time, if you work around Gallatin or Hendersonville we’ll come to pick it up to change your oil. So there’s always a way to fix that.

John Haggard 6:50
Speaking of oil, I’ve heard about synthetic oil, which is more expensive and I guess you just call it “traditional everyday oil.” Do you use both? What’s the difference? Or what would you recommend there?

Drew Fulcher 7:02
Some cars call for synthetical oil now and a lot of the newer ones are going to just full synthetic. That can give you up to about 7,500 miles in between oil changes. From the traditional Hemi engine, that’s a great motor so they’re not changing the oil in that motor yet, so they’re sticking with conventional. But, the new Cherokees, Renegades, and things like that are definitely going to the full synthetic. Which again, gives you a little bit more mileage in between your oil changes if you can’t come through.

John Haggard 7:32
Is it really just the difference between synthetic and what I would call regular oil? It just lasts longer?

Drew Fulcher 7:41
The synthetic does last longer. I believe it’s a little thinner as well if I’m not mistaken. Yeah, It does go to 7,500 miles. The conventional is the one that goes every 5000 miles, usually on older vehicles and again the Hemi still sticks with the conventional.

John Haggard 7:57
What would you tell people, Drew, about Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in terms of why someone should service with you versus other dealers? There are lots of places they can go even if they did not buy their vehicle there. Why Miracle and not somewhere else?

Drew Fulcher 8:15
Well first off, the pricing is very competitive with our pricing here. There’s not a lot of people that are cheaper on old changes than us. All of my technicians are committed to being the best, they all go to school, they’re certified, we are still a family-owned business. So when you come in, you get that family feel, and not so much of the corporate feeling when you come in. We’re very nice to everybody, we’re committed to customer service as well. Again, If you come in on Chevrolet, I can go get that filter in 10 minutes so you’re not really waiting around for a long time to get other products to the dealership.

John Haggard 8:52
Now you said Chevrolet, so I’m assuming you can service other brands of vehicles other than Chrysler Dodge Jeep or RAM.

Drew Fulcher 9:01
Yes, sir. We can service anything. Obviously, we’re not going to take in a Lamborghini or anything like that. But we have BMWs coming here everyday customers, Cadillacs, brake jobs, any maintenance stuff on the vehicle, we definitely can do that here. Our shop foreman can work on any model car, I don’t care what it is. He’s probably one of the smartest technicians I’ve ever met.

John Haggard 9:24
Drew, what would you say are some of the questions that customers will ask you when it comes time to get their vehicle serviced? What are they concerned about? What do they want to know?

Drew Fulcher 9:36
A lot of them are just worried about how long and when they can get it back. Because as everybody knows, time is money. So the biggest question is probably how long? How much? Why do I need to get it serviced? A lot of times we hear, “Do I have a warranty on the car?” and things like that. I’d say those are probably the biggest questions that we get asked here.

John Haggard 10:04
Drew, everybody, of course, wants to save money on vehicle service, any tips there?

Drew Fulcher 10:10
Man, we always have coupons online at MiracleCDJ.com. They’re always sending coupons in the mail. So I just bought a Chrysler 300 from this dealership, brand new, and I think I’ve already gotten two coupons for oil changes. We’re always sending all kinds of coupons online and through the mail every month. There there are always ways to save money when you come here.

John Haggard 10:32
Just look online or go there MiracleCDJ.com. We hear a lot about factory parts for service and repair. We also hear a lot about aftermarket parts. What’s the real difference? There’s obviously a price difference, what are the options there or does it make any difference what part you put on?

Drew Fulcher 10:52
The biggest thing with factory parts I would say is it comes with a pretty great warranty. Chrysler offers on all factory Mopar parts two years unlimited mile warranty, you cannot get that on an aftermarket part. They do have warranty don’t get me wrong, again, factory parts are always, in my opinion, better than the aftermarket part. If you buy a Mopar ball joint, that ball joint is probably going to last longer than you know an O’Reilly’s ball joint. Again, it doesn’t matter if you drive 100,000 miles in a year if that ball joint goes bad I’ll replace it within two years for free no charge for you. I believe with the aftermarket parts, they’ll warranty the part but you are still responsible for the labor so that’s probably the biggest thing on the warranty side.

John Haggard 11:36
So you’re saying again just to understand that parts and labor on factory warranty?

Drew Fulcher 11:42
Yes, sir. All factory parts cover parts and labor. You owe me nothing.

John Haggard 11:46
All right. So yes, zero out of pocket in other words there.

Drew Fulcher 11:49
Exactly. Yes, sir.

John Haggard 11:50
Yeah, well also understand from the notes through that you have a VIP Program. Can you tell us a little bit about what that is?

Drew Fulcher 11:57
The VIP program is basically a rewards program. Every time you come in and every dollar that you spend, you get points. Those points do add up, and you can end up coming in for a free oil change because you have points. That program is actually pretty awesome. The best thing about that is if you buy a car here, you do get that and it gets the Powertrain Warranty for as long as you own the vehicle. On my Chrysler 300, again, I have a Powertrain Warranty for as long as I own it and as long as I do my maintenance by the owner’s manual. I’ll do model change every 5000 and tire rotation. I’ll have basically a lifetime Powertrain Warranty for as long as I own the car.

John Haggard 12:38
So if you had that car 10 years, as an example, and you had 300,000 miles on it, it would be covered?

Drew Fulcher 12:47
Absolutely. As long as it’s a Powertrain Repair.

John Haggard 12:50
Is there anything I didn’t ask you today, Drew, that you’d like folks to know about the Service Department. at Miracle?

Drew Fulcher 12:57
We go above and beyond for the customer. We do nothing but want to satisfy everybody that comes in. Everybody out in the service department is focusing on Customer Service. The customer comes first. That’s the biggest thing that I want to push there that you know, our Service Department wants to make you happy whenever you’re leaving.

John Haggard 13:16
Drew Fulcher, everybody. He’s the Service Manager on the Miracle Podcast today. Drew, thanks for visiting with us.

Drew Fulcher 13:23
Yes, sir. Thank you.

John Haggard 13:24
So join us again right here, folks for another special edition of the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcasts. Learn more on automotive topics for the best ways to purchase or lease, service, maintain and accessorize your vehicle and how to sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible when you’re ready to do it. Don’t forget the transcript, we’ve got it posted right here on the website so you can easily refer to it for information at your fingertips. Be sure to like, share and or subscribe to iTunes, Google Play or Spotify. While you’re at it, please leave us a review, It really helps us get the word out. I’m your host, John Haggard and we will see you next time!