wheel
to wheel automotive
An
Honest Mechanic?
Nearly
a decade ago, one Tricity man decided he wanted
to do all he could to make a difference in the
world of
automotive repair. He says now his efforts
have made
a difference to him. In 1989, Frank Copley
saw an ad
in the paper that changed the direction of his
life forever.
'Someone was looking to start a business retailing
used
autoparts. I thought what a fine idea but
let's go one step
further and install those used autoparts,' Copley
told Know
News. 'It just grew from there.' Copley
says he wanted to
keep the costs down on car repairs by offering
a choice of
new or recycled car parts to customers.
But more importantly
he wanted to give them peace of mind. 'Let's face
it. In certain
circles the automotive industry does not have
a real good name.
In fact it has a terrible reputation.
I figured I would try to change
that at least in one area. I would offer
completely honest
service at a fair price. I only put a part
on a car if it's absolutely
necessary and if I buy (the part) for a cheaper
price I pass the
savings on to my customer.' Copley says
his ethical approach
nearly put him out of business. 'For the first
few years I didn't
know if I could survive. I decided to do
the right thing but it
was a long haul. With the repeat business
I have now I can
see that it's starting to work.' Copley says he's
built up a
reputation of trust which is key. He says people
just drop
off their cars - and keys - on Sunday night and
trust that
he'll handle things in the customer's best interest.
Recently a
car was dropped off with keys and a quick note
which only
said 'Frank - car broke - Fix - Tony.' 'That's
trust,' Copley
chuckled. 'For the first four or five years I
didn't think I was
going to make it but I persevered and now I have
a good
customer base and we still operate the same way.
Perhaps
Copley's success will inspire others in the automotive
repair
trade to follow suit.
Frank Copley
Wheel to Wheel Automotive
69 Williams Street, Port Moody, B.C.(604) 469-7029
www.honestcarguy.com
click here to e-mail Frank Copley
