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Monday’s move into brand new workshops for the service staff at Taupō Toyota is the culmination of a long process, says Taupō Toyota branch manager Shaine Pask.
“We started before Christmas. But it's good to be in, that's for sure.”
With new hoists, new benches and even heaters, the mechanics are all very happy, he says, though the heaters are not there to keep them warm.
“It's actually just to take a little bit of a nip off when they're sitting under a bonnet or something, but it definitely makes them feel better, that's for sure.”
The new facility is just part of a larger renovation project, Pask says.
“This is stage one. We’re doing full renovations. We've put eight hoists in there, and then we renovate the next part, and we shift our service and parts and then we put a couple of hoists in there, and then we refurbish the rest of it. So, we'll go from 10 hoists to 15 hoists.”
That means the business will be looking to employ more mechanics, he says, as well as related positions.
“We've just taken on another apprentice. We're looking for WOF Techs (Warrant of Fitness technicians). We're looking for qualified technicians. It's not going to get any slower.
“As far as the vehicles that are coming through. I think we've got 77 or 80 new vehicles pre-sold already, so they will have to come through the workshop at some stage as well. So, it's an opportunity, I guess, for young people or people that are humming and haa-ing about where they work to have a look at a brand-new workshop and consider the number one trusted brand in New Zealand.”
And a position in a workshop is a technical job nowadays, says Pask.
“There's ongoing training to keep up with technology. I mean, the latest RAV 4 has got so much technology, it's not funny. You can start the car from sitting inside your bedroom or your lounge while having breakfast, going, ‘Oh, it's frosty out there. I'll start the car, turn the seat heaters on and demist it’ And by the time you get out there, you finish your breakfast the car's all nice and warm ready to go… there's no excuse for lateness or having frosted windows.”
And with car sales generally on the up, the business is also increasing its used car team, to work alongside its established new car sales team.
Demand on Toyota vehicles, across the range, has proven to be huge, Pask says, which can sometimes make supply a little bit challenging “but the forward orders in front of us are enormous. Hence why we've got to renovate. We've got to expand. And we just keep moving forward, growing the team…
“And we employ local people to do the building. So that's all feeding back into town as well.”
In terms of sales, hybrid and fully electric options are proving popular, he says.
“The fully electric Hilux is just coming on stream, so we're waiting for a demonstrator to turn up for that… that whole side of electric, the fuel price, those people that were thinking about changing, have made the change now, and not looking back.”
He says the team are already looking ahead to further refurbishment.
“We're hoping to move on to stage two in the next four to six months which is bowling down half of what's there and rebuilding that. So, there are going to be big changes by the time we finished. We won't know the place. That's for sure.”
