Moving up

Congratulations to our Nissan SCOPE & Infiniti KEI Masters

Brian Navrkal

Hoak Nissan

Sioux City, IA

Brian enjoys the hands-on work of being a Master Tech. As a child, Brian loved tinkering on everything, much to his father’s dismay, because the re-assembly didn’t go quite as smoothly as the tear down. This tinkering has paid off in the long run, as his eye for detail has enabled him to become a Master Tech.

He has been a tech with Nissan for six years, and prior to that, he was with GM for 20 years. Having a dual tech background, he values the Nissan training because it is more hands-on and useful rather than simply a web based program.

Navrkal would recommend a Nissan product to all his friends, as the quality of the vehicles is great and whatever problems may arise are diagnosed and corrected promptly.

Brian is married, and he and his wife have three children. In his downtime the surrounding area affords ample opportunity for camping, fishing, and a variety of hunting.

Michael Moon

Roswell Infiniti of North Atlanta

Roswell, GA

Over his career, Moon has worked in parts, as a service advisor, engine rebuilder, and a machinist. This unique perspective allows him to “not beat up on the service advisors too much.”

In addition to spending two years in technical school studying automotive repair, he also spent a year working in a machine shop. Michael built many Ford and Chevy engines for local circle track drivers before he started working in service at a GMC/Subaru dealership. Michael enjoyed repairing the Subaru cars. After leaving there he started wrenching on Infiniti vehicles. Impressed by the quality of the cars, he has remained with Infiniti.

Moon became interested in repairing cars while in high school. Moon said, “Where I grew up, you learned to fix your own car or you didn’t go out on Friday nights. Cars just get in your blood.” Michael went out on Friday nights with a well-running car and is now a Master Technician with cars still in his blood.

Most nights after work, Michael Moon relieves stress by going to kickboxing classes.

Shawn Meyers

Bob Moore Nissan/Norman

Norman, OK

After Shawn got his driver’s license, he restored a 1966 Mustang which piqued his interest in working on cars – so much so, he restored a second Mustang! Shawn was looking for a change from being a security guard when he landed a job with Bob Moore Nissan. He has worked full time as a tech for Nissan since 2000, while attending Oklahoma City Community College.

Since becoming a Master Technician, the training he has received has been invaluable. He especially enjoys the ability he’s gained to troubleshoot and diagnose with ease. Since the diagnostics are no longer so time-consuming or burdensome, he now enjoys doing those types of repairs. The most difficult class was electrical systems, and he wouldn’t mind taking the class again.

Meyers takes classes through the Virtual Academy almost every other week just to stay on top of the latest technology. It truly has evolved since he first started working for Nissan. His forte is diagnosing and fixing “the really hard ones” and since achieving Master Tech status, he now understands how the systems work.

Shawn’s hobby is motorcycles, dirt bikes and street bikes. Married with two children, the entire family gets involved in the biking activities.

Derek Gustafson

Infiniti/Tacoma at Fife

Fife, WA

Derek has three stepdaughters, a 2-year old son, and he and his wife are expecting another addition to their family in the near future.

Master Technician Derek Gustafson enjoys family, friends, and off-roading in his 1995 Pathfinder. Derek’s off-roading Pathfinder has 33-inch tires, locked rear differential, six-inch lift, and a CB radio which makes it perfect for running through the mountains of Washington state.

The journey from student to Master started when Gustafson attended a body shop class in high school. The instructor asked him what he knew about mechanics. He replied, “Nothing.” That certainly changed when Derek attended classes at the New Market Skill Center School. In 1995, as his Pathfinder rolled down the assembly line, he began his career wrenching.

Derek is as comfortable in the waiting room and on the sales floor speaking with customers as he is in the service bay maintaining vehicles. His personal touch extends to the Off Road Vehicle (ORV) group that he advises on-line and rolls through the mountains with a few times per year.

Derek was shocked to realize he was the oldest technician in his last class for Master, but was thrilled to learn his one-time apprentice was just one class shy of becoming a Master.

Dustin Scheuch

Hamilton Nissan

Hagerstown, MD

Scheuch is a bachelor who spends his spare time going to car shows, or working on his project car, a 1984 Rabbit. Scheuch has enjoyed working on cars since he was a 15-year old. He has always worked in an automotive environment, starting at an oil change establishment.

He has worked for Nissan for three years and in the past year, through dedication and diligence, he became a Master Tech. He suggests that techs should concentrate on their ASEs, and the rest will just come afterward. He especially likes the on-line classes through Nissan and feels the training helps him to understand all aspects of the vehicle systems.

TechLine is great for problematic vehicle issues, and the input that he receives usually addresses them correctly. His favorite activity is the mechanical aspect of working on the vehicles, getting the hands-on factor, and he says that the electronics are “real head-scratchers.” His favorite Nissan vehicle is the 370Z, as he feels that it is an affordable sports car which has all the amenities.

Joshua Wert

Brenner Nissan

Mechanicsburg, PA

After only six months as a heavy truck technician, Joshua thought, “There’s got to be an easier way to make a living.” That’s when Joshua made the transition to Brenner Nissan.

He knew he wanted to become a technician shortly after high school when he had to rebuild the engine in his truck. After he got his truck running again, he thought, “I can see myself doing this for the rest of my life.” He enjoys working on drivability concerns since they are the most interesting and challenging. Wert goes on to say, “Working on drivability issues is not your run-of-the-mill brake job; you have to use your brain, when diagnosing the possible root causes.”

Joshua said his favorite Nissan vehicle is the GTR. Currently, Joshua has gone retro and owns a 1974 Datsun 620 pickup. Wert also has a 50cc scooter he enjoys driving to work every day. When not at work, Joshua enjoys woodworking and spending time with his wife, son, and daughter.

In closing, Joshua wants to thank Nissan for creating a life for him and his family. He does not know what he would have done if he hadn’t worked for Nissan.

Eddie Blasinggame

Nissan South Union City

Union City, GA

Even though this 35-year auto technician veteran has only worked with Nissan for four years, he has been able to become a Nissan Master Technician, as well as securing a team leader position at the dealership.

After operating his own auto repair shop in Florida for 20 years, Eddie was looking for a change, but not just any change. Eddie says he was looking for a company that was on the cutting edge of technology, had the latest and greatest tools, and had a great training program for its technicians. Nissan was that company. Blasinggame enjoys working for Nissan and takes advantage of every training opportunity that is available. He not only attends training for himself but shares the information learned with all the technicians at the dealership.

Eddie is very passionate about his work and makes a point of explaining his philosophy: “I treat everyone’s vehicle as if someone in my family owns the vehicle.” He went on to say “You must treat customers like family and spend their money as if it were your own.”

Eddie says that after attending LEAF™ training and learning what the vehicle was all about, he ordered one for himself. Outside of work, Blasinggame enjoys spending time with his wife, his son who is in the U.S. Air Force, his daughter who lives in Florida, and his three grandchildren. He also enjoys playing golf and going fishing.

Keith Vaeth

Bommarito Nissan Inc.

Hazelwood, MO

After spending half of his 10-year technician career with Nissan, Journeyman/Master Technician Keith Vaeth says he is very happy working for Nissan. He feels working for Nissan is very different than working for GM. The training instructors are more personable and actually remember your name. Keith went on to say that when calling Nissan TechLine, he receives the same personalized service.

He says his favorite vehicle system to work on is drivability. He enjoys the challenge and the job satisfaction he gets in knowing the vehicle is fixed right the first time. He also enjoys using the Consult III plus tool, as it helps make his job easier. Vaeth says that he uses the Consult III plus on an increasing basis daily, “From programming key fobs to diagnosis of CAN lines, the Consult III plus does it all.”

Keith’s interest in becoming a technician started when he and his father restored two vehicles. Shortly after they completed restoring the two vehicles, he signed up for trade school.

Vaeth is an avid bow hunter and cannot get out into the woods often enough in his time away from the dealership.

Aaron Tolbolt

Wallace Nissan

Stuart, FL

During his elementary school years, Aaron knew he wanted to be an automotive technician. He said, “I liked to fix things and take things apart to see how they worked.” He enjoys working at Wallace Nissan because he can work on all parts of a vehicle. He admits that he enjoys working on the tougher front end issues. Aaron also says he enjoys helping the other technicians in the shop resolve complex front end and alignment issues.

Tolbolt says he enjoys using Consult. “I have no complaints,” he says of the operation of Consult III plus. Aaron went on to say that he uses Consult the most and is responsible for keeping it updated for the shop. Aaron said that he and the service manager often challenge each other about Consult updates and who has the latest information.

Aaron is married with one daughter and enjoys RC racing, watching football, NASCAR, and going fishing.

Out of all the vehicles Nissan sells, Talbolt would like to own a new Maxima. He likes the style and how they look. He also says that if asked for his recommendation, he would recommend the Maxima. He believes that all of Nissan’s vehicles are a good value and are the most reliable.

Phillip Morris

Rosenthal Nissan Mazda

Vienna, VA

Phillip Morris has been a technician at Rosenthal Nissan Mazda for over 21 years. He became interested in becoming a technician when he was about 16 years old. He said he wanted to have the knowledge to fix his own car.

When not at work, Phillip enjoys camping with his family, and going hunting, and fishing. Phillip is married and has a son and a daughter.

Phillip says he enjoys working on electrical issues the most; he enjoys the challenge and the fact that you really have to think to fix an electrical issue with a vehicle. Morris has already attended training on the new LEAF™ and claims this is the future of Nissan. He believes the LEAF™ will help Nissan stay in the market and stay competitive.

When asked what he likes most about coming to work every day, Phillip says he enjoys the people he works with. He says, “I have fun at work and enjoy the interaction with my fellow technicians as well as everyone else that works at the dealership.”

Rafael Perez

Sandy Sansing Nissan, Inc.

Pensacola, FL

This Master Technician had a rocky start to becoming an automotive technician. Rafael says that right after high school, he attended trade school in North Carolina to become a technician. After a year-and-a-half, he left trade school and took several non-automotive jobs. After about five years, Rafael decided, “Maybe I should get a meaningful job.” That’s when he went to work for Nissan eight years ago.

Perez enjoys going to work every day. “I like the dealership I work for and how they treat their employees.” “There are many opportunities here”. Rafael enjoys working on electrical problems because he enjoys the challenge.

Outside of work, Perez enjoys camping, church activities, and playing his classic guitar. He is married and has six children, three boys and three girls, ranging in age from one to eight years old.

Rafael makes a point of mentioning some advice for newer technicians. “Nissan makes it very easy for newer technicians to learn and become good technicians through Nissan training and support and a good dealership.”

Greg Rodriguez

Charlie Clark Nissan

Harlingen, TX

After six short years as a technician, this newly promoted Master Technician is always up for a challenge. Working on electrical systems and electrical problems is Greg’s passion. He says it’s not boring; there is always something new and always something different. He does not enjoy working on anything easy; he is always looking for the more difficult jobs and a challenge. He also enjoys the fact that while working at Nissan, he is always learning something new, fixing something new, and hopefully fixing something that no one else has fixed before.

Rodriguez has always enjoyed working on cars. At an early age he and his father would fix the family cars. His family always had a car that needed to be fixed. Greg requested that this comment be mentioned “To all technicians that are afraid of becoming Master Technicians, don’t be afraid of the challenge or the hard work that may be involved; take on the challenge.”

When not taking on challenges at work, Greg enjoys fishing and spending time with his wife.

Richard Buckheister

Hudson Nissan

North Charleston, SC

Richard Buckheister says he was raised working on small engine repairs, starting with dirt bikes and lawn mower engines and progressing to boat and car motors. Adding to his working knowledge of engines, Buckheister feels the best way to become a Master Technician is by showing up on time and putting forth your best effort. The electrical training was the most important training to him, as it gave him the ability to analyze the issue and develop a plan to perform a quicker diagnosis.

Buckheister is a hands-on kind of guy and especially enjoys the challenge of a complex engine tear down so that he can determine what went wrong, why it went wrong, and then do the actual repair and rebuild. He looks forward to the day when more HEV and EV vehicles are on the road, as there will be an entire new world of repairs to work on. Replacing a battery module rather than a head gasket may be his next challenge.

Motorcycles and boats occupy this single man in his spare time, as he lives just ten steps from the water.

Drew Galvin

Goodman Chevy-Cadillac-Nissan

Glasgow, KY

When asked what type of car he likes best, Nissan SCOPE Master Technician Drew Galvin stated, “I love the comfort and safety of my second Murano.” Drew credits his first Murano with saving his life. He walked away with only minor injuries from a head-on collision that totaled his first Murano.

The other driver came around a corner too fast, missed the corner, slammed head-on into Drew, and totaled both cars.

Drew lives with his wife, two beagles and three house dogs. He and his wife often go on day hikes to enjoy the beauty of the great outdoors in their local area. In addition to rabbit hunting, Drew also regularly enters his two beagles in rabbit hunting competitions.

Galvin’s father started turning a wrench 35 years ago and now owns his own repair shop. Drew continued the family tradition of repairing vehicles by learning the trade at Lincoln College of Tech in Indianapolis. After working for his father for about five years, Drew moved to Kentucky to work for Goodman Chevy-Cadillac-Nissan where he’s spent the last seven years. He knew he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps because “We’re the kind of people that like working with our hands. There’s always something new and challenging to fix.”

Chad Abrams

Maguire’s Nissan/Lebanon

Lebanon, PA

Chad Abrams, Nissan SCOPE Master Technician, became a technician working side-by-side with his father in the family-oriented Maguire’s Nissan/Lebanon dealership. In addition to the lessons his father taught him, Chad learned a great deal from the other guys in the shop who were always eager to help.

When asked why he became a technician, Chad responded, “I guess it just gets in the blood; don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, depends on the day…mostly it’s a good thing.”

One of Chad’s hobbies is off-road four-wheeling. It’s not surprising that one of his favorite vehicles is the Titan. He says, “I’m a truck kind of person.”

Abrams and his wife of two years are raising their four-month old baby boy in their newly remodeled house. Chad did most of the renovations himself but called on his mother, a professional drywaller, to help with the tape and mud.