Eric Svetberg from European Auto Works discusses a tiered testing system designed to enhance auto repair diagnostics and profitability. He introduces the Level Testing Sales Amplifier, which categorizes testing into three levels—basic, intermediate, and advanced—allowing shops to charge appropriately for their services. The conversation emphasizes the importance of clear communication with customers and how this structured approach can improve shop efficiency and technician utilization. Eric shares insights on how to implement this system effectively, making it easier for service advisors and technicians to work together.
Eric Svedberg breaks down a smarter, more profitable way to price diagnostic work—what he calls the Level Testing Sales Amplifier. At its core, the system tackles a problem most repair shops quietly accept: testing is often a loss leader. When technicians are tied up diagnosing complex issues, shops miss out on parts sales. A-level technicians can earn less than their B-level counterparts doing routine work, and the rising cost of software and tools goes unpaid.
Svedberg reframes the conversation by using the word “testing” instead of “diagnostics,” a term he believes is clearer and more intuitive for customers. Testing implies a process, not a guarantee—setting expectations from the start.
The Level Testing system uses a tiered structure tied to the shop’s base labor rate:
Level One – Basic Testing:Single, constant, duplicable issues (like a check engine light that’s always on).
Level Two – Intermediate Testing:Multiple concerns or intermittent problems.
Level Three – Pandora’s Box:Highly complex vehicles, often previously misdiagnosed or unsuccessfully repaired elsewhere.
Level Four – “Grandmother Rate”:Disaster cars involving severe electrical damage, corrosion, or major disassembly.
While the levels are designed as an internal framework, Svedberg finds transparency with customers increases trust and buy-in. Service advisors are coached to remove Level Three from most conversations upfront, steer customers toward Level Two testing as the norm, and clearly explain that testing fees are for time spent—not credited toward repairs. For true Level Three cases, advisors frame the value honestly: if it were simple, another shop would have already fixed it.
Svedberg emphasizes that the system is easy to train and implement—often within a week—by focusing on quick wins with top advisors. Its simplicity improves communication, closes the tech efficiency gap, and can be applied beyond diagnostics to services like module programming and ADAS calibration.
Every decision, he says, must pass the test: Is it good for the car? Good for the customer? Good for the shop?
Eric Svedberg, European Autowerks, Virginia Beach, VA, https://www.gofuelcoaching.com/ , https://www.europeanautowerks.com/Thanks to our Partners, NAPA Auto Care and NAPA TRACS
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"Whenever I talk to any shop owner, usually I ask them, if I walked into your shop, you know, just say I had a Honda Accord and a Czech Angelite."
The Accord is a popular family car from Honda. It’s known for being dependable and easy to maintain, making it a good choice if you want a reliable daily driver.
The Honda Accord is a mid‑size sedan produced by the Japanese automaker Honda since 1976. It has been known for its reliability, fuel efficiency, and strong resale value.
"Level one testing, level two testing, level three testing."
Level one testing is the first step a shop takes to find obvious problems that happen every time, like a warning light staying on or a door not working.
Level one testing refers to a basic diagnostic procedure that checks for repeatable, non-intermittent issues such as persistent warning lights or mechanical failures. It typically involves a quick scan and basic checks.
"Check engine light is on and all the time on all the time."
When the check engine light turns on, it means your car’s computer found something that might need fixing. It could be a small glitch or something bigger, so it’s good to get it checked out.
The check engine light is a dashboard indicator that signals the vehicle’s computer has detected an issue with the engine or emissions system. It can range from a minor sensor fault to a more serious problem that may affect performance or fuel economy.
"Or the driver's window does not work or the power lift gate does not work or the ABS light is on or the SRS light is on."
The ABS light means there’s a problem with the system that stops your wheels from locking when you brake hard. It’s important to get it checked because it affects safety.
The ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) light indicates a fault in the vehicle’s braking system that prevents wheel lock-up during hard braking. It signals potential issues with sensors, hydraulics, or the ABS control module.
"Or the driver's window does not work or the power lift gate does not work or the ABS light is on or the SRS light is on."
The driver’s window is the door pane that opens and closes for you. If it stops working, it could be a wiring problem or the motor that moves it might be broken.
The driver's window refers to the power or manual window on the driver’s side of a vehicle. It can malfunction due to electrical issues, broken switches, or mechanical failure.
"Or the driver's window does not work or the power lift gate does not work or the ABS light is on or the SRS light is on."
The power lift gate is the back door that opens up for you with a button or switch. If it won’t lift, there might be an electrical problem or something stuck inside.
A power lift gate is an electrically operated rear door or hatch that lifts up automatically, often used on SUVs and trucks. Failure can stem from electrical faults or mechanical jams.
"Or the driver's window does not work or the power lift gate does not work or the ABS light is on or the SRS light is on."
The SRS light tells you there’s a problem with your airbags or seatbelt system. It’s a safety warning that should be addressed promptly.
SRS (Supplemental Restraint System) light alerts the driver to issues with airbags, seatbelt pretensioners, or related safety components. A malfunction can compromise occupant protection.
"Level two testing. That is more than one issue or intermittent."
Level two testing is a deeper check that the shop does when there are several problems or things that only happen sometimes, like a strange noise that comes up occasionally.
Level two testing is a more in-depth diagnostic process used when multiple issues or intermittent problems are present. It often requires additional tools, longer time, and more detailed analysis.
"Say you have an evap issue, which and you also have a misfire..."
The evap system keeps gasoline fumes from escaping into the air. If it’s not working right, you might see a warning light on your dashboard.
An evap (evaporative emission) issue refers to a leak or malfunction in the system that captures fuel vapors from the gas tank and routes them back into the engine to reduce emissions.
"Say you have an evap issue, which and you also have a misfire..."
When an engine misfires, it means a part of the engine isn’t running smoothly. It can feel like a hiccup or a sudden loss of power.
A misfire occurs when one or more cylinders in the engine fail to ignite the fuel-air mixture at the correct time, causing a loss of power and increased emissions.
"If you have a evap, I mean, a misfire and then, you know, maybe an air fuel ratio card code..."
If your car’s computer finds that the mix of air and gasoline isn’t right, it will set a code so mechanics know what to check.
This refers to diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) that indicate an imbalance between the air and fuel entering the engine, often linked to sensor or injector problems.
"What would your average part cost at the end of one of those premium level fours to 300 bucks?"
A "level four" repair is a big, complicated fix that usually means the car needs a lot of work on its wiring or other systems. It takes more time and skill than simpler fixes.
In automotive repair, a "level four" job refers to a high‑complexity service that often involves extensive electrical or mechanical work, such as rewiring the entire vehicle. It typically requires specialized diagnostic tools and significant labor time.
"So there's a lot of bleeding and a lot of testing afterwards."
Bleeding means pumping out air from a car’s brake or steering system so it works smoothly. Air can make brakes feel soft, so it needs to be removed.
"Bleeding" refers to the process of removing air from a hydraulic system, such as brakes or power steering, to ensure proper fluid flow and performance.
"it reminds me of the definition of an A, B and a C specialist or technician, you see? No one can really, really tell you, A and B and C has never been defined."
When fixing cars, some mechanics specialize in certain parts: A for the engine, B for the body and wheels, and C for the wiring and electronics. This way they can quickly find problems in their area.
A/B/C specialists are technicians who focus on specific areas of vehicle repair: A for engine and powertrain, B for chassis and suspension, and C for electrical and electronics. The classification helps assign expertise to complex diagnostic tasks.
"But I don't think it works today because you've got Mercedes specialists and BMW specialists that work for you."
BMW is a well‑known German car company that makes sporty and luxury cars, often called "Bimmer."
BMW is a German automotive brand recognized for its sporty performance cars, luxury vehicles, and engineering excellence.
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Hey, let's get started with Eric Svetberg, European Auto Works, Virginia Beach. Hey, Carm, nice to be here. Hey, Eric, thank you. You've been on a couple of times before. We kind of lost touch. But then I found out that you're doing some really fun coaching things with a company called Fuel. What a cool name.
Yeah, Fuel Coaching just 101 for now. No group. Just small scale, just me, me, myself and I. That's okay. That's how I started 10 years ago. It was me, myself and I as a podcaster. And now we've got, you know, all these shows on our network. And in fact, you're probably going to be the first one.
I think this is the first show that I'm really announcing that we are becoming the automotive repair podcast network. Automotive repair podcast network.com. And we have our own listening app coming out. Look for a video on how it works. Look for a bunch of QR codes coming out.
It's going to be great. We have been working on it for a year. And I know you're going to love it. Well, look at learning about your fuel coaching group. Then you said, hey, Carm, I got this level testing amplifier.
And I said, oh, my God, it sounds cool. Tell me about it. And so when you did, I said, I think the industry needs to know about that because a lot of testing that we do or we call it Eric isn't the cool word diagnostic or diag.
And maybe it's for the cool kids, but I don't think that works for the clients. I think we need to talk about testing.
Well, I prefer the word testing because diagnostic diagnosis assumes you're going to come to a conclusion or testing. You know, you do a test. You have a result. You might need another test.
I get it. And you are going to present this to us today and tell everybody how they can get this and download this piece. This is the coolest piece.
Well, they can find me in Facebook, Eric does feedback or Instagram, Eric does feedback. I'm sure you have a link on this.
If they just message me, I'll send them a link to it. It is a great link. It's a two-pager that's all it is. And it really goes through the basic testing, the intermediate testing and the advanced testing.
And why the system works? How to apply it in the shop? But, you know, why testing isn't profitable today in most shops? Let's talk about that.
We can talk about that for, like, two shows, probably. Number one, knowing the other pair of business, we all know that when you sell an hours with labor, you usually have a certain amount of parts that goes with it.
So therefore, you have the profile and the labor and you have the profile and the part side. So when you're selling a bunch of testing, you're missing the parts revenue.
So you're already losing the get go. So this system helps to make up some of that.
Next, one of the other issues in our industry is your ATEC, the one that's spent the most time learning, training, buying tools, can do the hardest jobs in the shop.
If you put that person in one bay and you're giving him canned communication issues, you're giving him electrical issues, you're giving him the car that had a sunroof leak that, you know, filled up a floorboard that had modules in it.
So on so forth, and you didn't even have a BTEC that's knocking out suspension and brakes beside them.
All things being equal, who's making more money? Many times the BTEC. So we have to make up that.
For ATEC efficiency gap, and think about what is costing today for the software that we have to use in that testing process.
Yeah, and I think we all know it's now one and done. It's a one and buy it again next year.
Listen, I'm on this big rant about this big language shift in the industry. My focus is really on the customer looking in.
Well, I think the system makes a lot of sense. If you go diagnosed, sometimes, you know, a customer might be confused.
Diagnosed, what? Where are we even talking about? Where I think a customer can say, okay, you're going to test something that makes sense to me.
Totally good. Well, okay, you have a three level system. Level one is basic testing. Kind of go over it with us.
Whenever I talk to any shop owner, usually I ask them, if I walked into your shop, you know, just say I had a Honda Accord and a Czech Angelite.
Now, I walked up to your service advisor and say, okay, here's what's going on. I have a Czech Angelite. You don't hear my keys.
Where are you going to charge for that? The answers I get are usually pretty similar, but sometimes they struggle to explain it.
But usually goes something like, well, you know, our testing fee is $189 or $199 or sometimes it's some way low number of $99.
We're going to give the card to the technician. He's going to spend up to an hour. They're usually always quoting time, which I say never quote time.
So they usually say the technician will spend up to an hour. Hopefully he's going to do some testing. He's going to hopefully get to the bottom of it.
But if he doesn't, then we'll give you a call and tell you where we're at. If we need something else, we'll discuss it then.
So then I always think, you know, if I was a customer and turn around, I'm leaving. If I agreed to that, which obviously those people would, I would think, gee, I sure hope this shop doesn't call me.
You know, I think at least a bad taste in their mouth. Like, you know, this open-ended transaction. That's the first part.
Level one, level two, level three. That's what we call it. Level one testing, level two testing, level three testing.
So level one testing, one problem that is duplicable happens all the time. Check engine light is on and all the time on all the time.
Or the driver's window does not work or the power lift gate does not work or the ABS light is on or the SRS light is on. It's not intermittent.
So that's our baseline level one testing. So we take our base laborate, multiply it by 1.5. That's the testing fee. And we pay the tech one hour.
We expect the tech will probably take a half an hour to figure out that type of issue should be pretty straightforward.
The reason we charge 1.5, the extra half hour is to pay the shop for the number one missing parts income.
And number two, to put money towards those crazy expensive tools you were talking about earlier, the software that you have to purchase again at the end of year.
Level two testing. That is more than one issue or intermittent. You know, that noise on the right front only makes a noise here and there.
And you have to drive over a certain speed bump, a certain, you know, 20 degree angle on the steering wheel.
The concept of these different levels is if an intermittent issue comes in, we don't even talk about level one.
Level one, level two, level three, these are internal concepts. We really don't talk about them to the customer.
We basically stayed at the customer. Listen, we got to do some intermediate testing or whatever because it's intermittent.
And I'm sure there's a different rate for that and a different language to speak of because you're going in there.
Maybe more blind than if you had a constant light.
Actually, everything I've said so far, I tell a customer.
You do? Okay. All right. Yeah, it's not an issue.
And when I finish with the three levels and we have four, we'll start with three and then at the very end I can take you the fourth.
But I'll lay out the three and then I can give you some techniques on how to sell it.
Level two, more than one issue. Say you have, you know, a check in July and it's sending you in two different directions.
Say you have an evap issue, which and you also have a misfire, which usually those are not connected.
If you have a evap, I mean, a misfire and then, you know, maybe an air fuel ratio card code, maybe those would be connected to notes or cat efficiency or something like that.
So intermittent or more than one issue or, you know, say someone has an SRS light on and they have a lift gate that doesn't work.
The reason we usually go level one with SRS and level one with ABS 90% time, they're pretty simple.
We don't go down any crazy rabbit holes with those.
Level three Pandora's box. So you have that customer took it to two of the shops. They couldn't fix it.
Now they're at your shop or they've put four different parts on the car. It's still not fixed. Now it's at your shop.
Pretty much most shop owners know which cars I'm talking about. That's level three. How to sell it.
Let's just start with maybe some of that walks through the door. If someone walks through the door and, hey, I have a check in July.
Okay, cool. How long is that light been on? Oh, it just came on two days ago. Oh, is it on an offer or met? Nope. On all time. Okay, cool.
Well, we tell them we have three levels of testing. You obviously don't need level three because that only is like 5% of the time.
Number one, we always throw level three out the window and tell them we're doing that.
When we know 99.9% time, we don't need it for wherever they're describing.
So all of a sudden the customer has this feeling, oh, well, they're already getting rid of the most expensive thing.
Now that, you know, this person's almost my best friend. We now only have two left.
We then explain, hey, it does not sound like you have an intermittent problem. It sounds like, you know, it's just one issue.
So we can start with level one and it costs this malmoney if you want to go ahead.
So, you know, if it's something very similar, we're just starting with level one.
If it's any inkling that might be something more difficult than a level one, we're selling level twos at the counter all day long.
And then we can drop it to a level one and we'll tell them we'll drop it to a level one.
We'll explain everything, we'll show them pictures, we'll give them a call.
We'll tell them that they're going to buy us a Christmas present.
You know, when we drop it to a level one, if that's the case, and usually they're very receptive to that.
The reason we're trying to sell the majority of level twos is for shop efficiency.
We don't want technician to bring in a car, hook everything up, need deep into the thing.
And then stop and say, hey, guess what?
I need something else, which is the reason I came up with this system and adapted it, you know, over and over and over again to make it as perfect as possible because we've been doing this for over eight years.
So that technician can keep working because there's nothing worse than they stop.
Let me call the customer.
Customer does answer the phone.
Go back, service Pfizer, test the tech, can't get hold of them.
Now yes, go park the car, bring another car in and as soon as he brings the other car and you know the customer then calls.
There's all efficiency out the window.
So level three, that one's pretty easy to sell to you truth because the customer usually knows they have a messed up car.
So the customer is coming in saying, hey, I've had it two other shops or hey, I've put these parts on this car or hey, I've had this issue for six months or hey, I did try and fix it six months ago or whatever the story is.
So our response is the same.
We always say we have three levels of testing.
It's not level one, obviously.
And it does sound like it's level two.
And if we usually say something like, and if it was easy, it will have already been fixed by the other two shops.
So therefore psychologically, the customer is thinking, well, that makes sense because if it was easy, the other shop probably would have fixed it or these parts I've put on that car would have fixed it.
So we say, hey, this is going to be our level three testing.
This is how much.
And then they always say, well, does that go towards the repair?
That's on all the levels.
Does that go towards the repair? No, that's for time spent.
So that's obviously our go to answer for that.
Level one, base rate times 1.5.
Level two, base rate times 2.5.
Level three at my shop is going to be base rate times four, but you can be anywhere between base rate 3.5 to 4.5.
As far as paying the tech, level one, pay the tech one hour, level two, pay the tech two hours, level three, pay the tech either three up to four hours to pay on which rate you pick.
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So if your labor rate, let's just say it was 200 every day walk-in door rate and you were doing a level three,
you'd price that at like six, seven hundred bucks?
Oh, yeah, all day long.
Well, I mean, I'm a Euro shop, but you know, we do it all day long with no issue.
Level three, they've gotten this car fixed anywhere.
Yeah, they know, listen, we've been struggling and yeah, and rumor has it that you're the shop that's going to fix this. What if you can't?
Well, I mean, we hadn't had a car leave. We couldn't fix and the entire time I've owned the shop.
Had a boy.
Yeah, so, I mean, no cars leave that can't be fixed.
You got the confidence in your people and your tooling and your education that you know you're going to fix it.
Correct. Well, usually the person doesn't have the right to fix it.
Doesn't mean the car can't be fixed.
They give up or say, I want to trade the car in or get rid of the car or something like that.
Especially if you say seven hundred bucks.
I think our level three is, I mean, it's definitely right there at eight hundred somewhere around that.
But yeah, we sell those all the time.
If I hadn't told you about level four.
You've got me on the edge of my seat Eric.
I'm sure.
Okay, level four.
Wait a minute. That's the grandmother rate.
Level four. Okay, every shop owner's going to love this one.
Level four is for that car that you don't even know if you want to work on it.
And we've all had them.
It's sitting there in the parking lot.
It might look like hell.
It might have a story about long to go with it.
And you're sitting there either as an owner or service advisor trying to contemplate.
Should I even work on this car?
If you decide not to work on it, which is totally fine.
We send cars down the road that we don't even want to get involved in.
Okay, then that's easy.
You don't do anything.
It just leaves.
But if you decide that you'll work on this car, that's why we have a level four.
And that's ten hours times your highest labor rate.
We sell about one of those every month or two.
Maybe once every two months, I would think it'd be more than six times a year for sure.
We get some cars towed to us that obviously fallen that category.
So ten times, if you will, a $200 labor rate is two thousand bucks just to pull it in the door.
Yeah.
And it's worth every penny.
Because you're going to spend a ton of time on it, probably.
Yeah. It's such a disaster.
And you would prefer really not to work on it.
But if the customer said yes, your doctor of last resort.
If I prefer not to work on it, I'm usually shipping it.
If it is like no, I shouldn't work on this car.
Then I'm going to ship it.
But if I decide no, we can fix this car.
It's just going to take us some time.
We're getting paid for our time.
And so if we're doing ten hours, I expect my text going to spend somewhere between five to seven, hopefully.
At the most.
But we're still getting our ten.
Because we have a lot of lost parts revenue.
Sure you do.
What would your average part cost at the end of one of those premium level fours to 300 bucks?
Well, usually if we have a level four, it's either a gigantic wiring electrical issue where, you know, it's green wires everywhere or, you know, from moisture.
So, you know, a sunroof that's leaked for a year.
And we have to pull the whole interior something like that, because just everything is corroded.
So there's a lot of bleeding and a lot of testing afterwards.
There's a high probability of comebacks for those type jobs.
So we want to make sure we're covered.
What if you get close to going over the ten hours?
I don't think we have ever called for more testing time ever.
So what we do is we have some conclusions in that time.
So therefore once we have some conclusions, we then need, okay, we need this and we need this and we need this and we need this.
All right, we need this module or we need this part or we need this harness or whatever happens to be.
And then we're calling, okay, well, you know, we got to the end of our level four and this is what we found.
And this is how much it'll cost and so on.
And then you go through the whole sales process.
See if you want to go further.
They either say yes or no.
And that's where it's usually, you know, a 50-50.
Yeah, I understand.
I mean, I had mentioned a couple hundred bucks in parts.
But, you know, that made a little wired dongle or something.
But if you come up with a harness or any major, you could have a couple thousand dollars in parts.
Oh, easily.
Yeah.
Especially on the euros.
Yeah.
You know, you're there for that.
And you know, usually they're in for the repair.
Are you finding that these people are just in love with their car?
It's already paid for.
They want to keep it that they'll invest in it.
I believe so.
And keep in mind when I talk about these prices and these levels and telling selling these four things,
we always have to have three yeses, okay?
Before we ever even pick up the phone or sell any of this.
So number one, is it good for the car?
That has to be a yes.
Number two, is it good for the customer?
That has to be a yes.
And number three, is it good for the shop?
That has to be a yes.
If my people know, if you answer no on any of those three,
you better not pick up the phone and you better figure out what's going on.
And should you even move forward with this?
So this idea of yours from a long time ago, let's say eight years ago,
you started to work it with your people and refine it.
This is a process that I'm sure you made tweak occasionally.
But it sounds to me, this isn't something you could just go out and have a little quick, you know,
huddle meeting and say we're going to do this without really nailing this thing down,
having a great SOP behind it and practice, practice, practice and get the lingo in the language down.
It's not as hard as you think.
That's for sure.
I've trained a lot of people, especially in my coaching.
With my coaching clients, you know, if they're in,
I mean, they have this implemented within a week.
So I usually, I like quick wins.
I always have, you know, quick wins builds great momentum.
So most of my clients have multiple service advisors as I do.
So I tell them, who's your best service advisor?
Oh, it's such and such.
Okay, pick that guy, okay?
Explain the system to him and have him throughout this week, pick the one, two, or three easiest customers to deal with
and have him, you know, test this on them first.
So he kind of gets the lingo down, gets the quick yeses, easy ones and then build from there.
Once he does that, then it goes so much easier.
Also, you have to remember this works for the technicians.
So there's a few more sales skills involved with this.
It's not too complicated, you know, for phone call ones and for people that are hesitant
and, you know, don't want to say yes to any testing, but still will give you the key.
There, you know, there's some sales skills for that too.
But when it comes to the technicians and the technicians know this system backwards and forwards,
the technicians are then able to easily tell the service advisors,
I need a level two on this car because of X.
And then the service advisors like, okay, no problem, they just walk up and sell it.
It's not this debate, it's not this, hey, you gotta really explain it to me a lot more than that.
It's pretty smooth and also creates the efficiency model.
So your specialists in the back and the service advisors on your counter
that they are in tandem step on this entire process?
Correct.
And for all the shops out there that are programming modules,
you can apply the same system because there are certain programming schemes that take you 10 minutes.
And then there's certain BMWs, Euro cars, wherever you might be an hour or two hours,
wherever, you know, going through programming and then test driving the car and then doing this,
doing that, you know, relearn this and that.
So we have level one, level two and level three programming.
I love this. It is so simple. You know what this reminds me of, oh my God, Eric,
it reminds me of the definition of an A, B and a C specialist or technician, you see?
No one can really, really tell you, A and B and C has never been defined.
I ask every owner or tech and you know, I don't like that word in the industry
and I'll get, you know, 100,000 different answers.
This, not like it would be universal and maybe this should be universal but inside the shop,
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