Marty’s Corner–The Man Behind the Corner

Hi, everybody. I’m Marty Fay, and I’m extending a warm handshake and a big smile to the readers of AE Tools new column; Marty’s Corner. With the handshake and smile comes the greeting, “come on in and join us for a few minutes.”

Once a month I’ll be penning articles on subjects big and small, serious and humorous, important and even more important. I hope to intrigue you, share lessons with you from which I have learned, open new doors for both of us, and occasionally make you laugh.

Now, who is this Marty Fay fella?
Let me begin to answer that question with an apology.

With over 45 years in the auto repair field I have been lucky enough to experience some truly notable events. Talking about these events seems like boasting, and I dislike people who boast.

However, establishing my “street cred” is important, so you don’t think I’m some bozo fresh off the turnip truck. So, with apology firmly in hand, here we go:

• My career as a technician began with a whimper in 1970, pumping gas and changing tires. Not many years later I was overhauling carburetors for other shops in the evenings.

• In the early 1980’s I attended dozens of Advanced Factory Classes taught by some of the nation’s top trainers in Chicago. In additionI taught evening classes for the Kiswaukee Community College Automotive Program and I designed and taught their first fuel injection class.
  

  Marty in his office at Motorworks circa 1997

• I opened the doors to Motor Works in 1984. Our first week brought in a camshaft replacement in a Mercedes 220 Diesel, a partial overhaul on a Buick LeSabre 410 engine, full brakes on a Chevy C600 grain truck, a carb overhaul on a Honda 3 bbl Kehein, and more. This variety of work has actually expanded over the years. 

• Soon Motor Works would add a Classic Car Restoration Business. Please see the Classic Car Tab on our website.

• In 1985, 1986 and 1988, I won the NAPA/ASE Chicago Division Technician of the Year Award. In 2012, our Head Tech, Mark Huff, won the same award.

• 1996 saw Motor Works chosen by the new Daewoo Motor Company as the first factory authorized Service Center outside of Chicago, and the only one in Northern Illinois.

• Over the years, our physical facilities would first double (adding four more bays), then triple (adding 1600 square feet of offices and waiting room), and finally quadruple (adding 25,000 square feet of parking).

• 2012 also saw Motor Works’ website win AutoInc. Magazine’s National Top Ten Automotive Website competition.

• Motor Works currently has a staff of two service advisors and five technicians – three are ASE Master Certified.

Beginning about three years ago Motor Works saw the writing on the wall and embraced its boldest effort to date. We started on the road to full factory scanner coverage for all makes and models.

Our fabulous relationship with AE Tools has made possible 100% domestic, and 90% import factory scanner coverage. All this is loaded on an AE Tools custom laptop with two quick-change hard drives and 14 individual partitions.

Am I and Motor Works excited about the future? YOU BETCHA!

Please stop in next month when we explore “Why Factory Scanners and Why AE Tools? – Two hints:

(1) The phrase “we can’t do that” will disappear from your vocabulary.

(2) Using a factory scanner is a “riot”. It’s hard not to smile when that much diagnostic power is at your fingertips. Prepare to be WOWED!

Thanks for Stopping By.

See You Soon,

Marty Out-

P.S. Try to watch this and not laugh.

P.P.S. What kind of articles would you like to see from Marty? Any topics of interest? Click Here to submit your recommendations.

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