What is the policy at your service center in regards to people calling and wanting to talk to a Mechanic about how to fix there motor? At my store we have a big problem with people wanting to speak with a mechanic, I don't mind helping people out, when 10 people call and you spend 20 min on each call that adds up to not getting the paying jobs done.

Well I'm an ex Dealer Service manager and my feelings were pretty much close to yours.
If someone's vehicle was in the shop being repaired and the customer wanted to talk to the tech I had NO PROBLEM with that..But if it was just a phone call looking for repair type information we had 1 standard line. Sorry we cannot diagnosis problems over the phone..

No different than having a TV repair man,heating and Ac,plumber,electrician,,,,etc.etc..etc..tell you whats wrong with something without seeing it.
Would you call your doctor and expect a competent diagnosis without him/her examining you? Well I guess some would

On the flip side of that. If I had a problem that i thought i could fix myself but ran into a little difficulty and needed advice, i would hope i could call my local dealer for that advice. Service like that is what creates LOYAL customers who don't hesitate to bring you their boat for when those big jobs need to get done.

Just my $.02, i have never worked in a dealership or service center.

We had one call yesterday and asked to speak to a mechanic, the parts guy told him the mechanic was busy and if he would like to leave his number that someone would call him back when they got free. He blew a gasket and said he would never do business with us again. He's not the first one to get pissed.

True, but what about the customer who was told that his boat would be done at 2:00 and it's not due to the mechanic talking on the phone for 2 hours? Now the paying customer is

On the flip side to that I will relate a story from many a years ago at the dealership. A customer called and spoke with a technician about their concern. The tech gave them some advice and different options, and stated he could not really be sure without proper diagnosis. The customer then went and bought some very expensive parts(not even from our shop) and put them on the vehicle.They did not fix his concern. I then get a call from this irate customer who claimed it was our fault because the technician had given them some advice.He wanted us to pay for the parts !!
I think you know my answer !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hence our policy of no more information without proper diagnosis

I'm not saying that. Paying customers should always come first. If the guy on the phone says he's never coming back because a mechanic has to call him back when he gets the time, then in my opinion you don't want that customer anyways. Someone like that is only going to cause more trouble than they are worth. I've always been very grateful of any advice or instruction i've recieved from a mechanic, but i never expect it unless he has the spare time.

Too much liability to diagnose and give repair inst. over the phone. If it is a repair shop calling for a procedure, or someone looking for specs. no problem, any more in depth than that and we get hesitant. I'm not the service manager, but been on both sides of it as a service adviser and as the technician.I think it is a judgement call. If one of our good wholesale accounts calls with a question for a tech, and they are a reputable shop just looking for some info I will help them.

I have seen that before also. One time we had a customer call and talk to a mechanic about a charging problem, the guy came in and bought a stator. The next day he brings the boat in with the same problem, the mechanic looks at it and finds a bad rectifier, then he looks at the new stator and it is hooked up wrong and burned up. so we call the guy and he wants us to give him another one.

I understand the liability thing. I guess a few bad apples ruin it for everyone. Its my opinion that if you are doing the work yourself, you are taking responsibility for the outcomes, and if you pay a mechanic to do the repairs, he is taking the responsibility.