The Mechanics.news brief
For repair shop owners and techs — every edition, archived.
- Jul 16, 2026 The refrigerant in your A/C bay just landed on the watch list — don't panic-buy tooling R-1234yf faces scrutiny (no deadline yet), the EV pullback pushes hybrid/ICE work back onto your lifts, and plateauing rates open your insurance rebid window.
- Jul 15, 2026 Complex cars are walking your tickets to the dealer Where the high-tech work is going — plus new A/C refrigerants you can actually bill on.
- Jul 14, 2026 FTC cracks open repair software — your scan tool's next Plus: AutoVitals buys an AI platform, tire revenue keeps contracting, and the SBA tool most owners skip.
- Jul 13, 2026 FTC cracks open John Deere's repair software — what it means for your scan-tool bill A right-to-repair precedent lands near your bays, buyers are hunting clean independents, and spending is up $5.4B.
- Jul 10, 2026 EPA moves to loosen diesel truck rules — more work headed to your bays Plus: audit your parts for the 25% tariff, what used oil you must take for free, and whether the EVs on your lot are underinsured.
- Jul 9, 2026 Base oil jumped 84% — your oil-change menu probably didn't Reprice the lube ticket, audit your ASE certs, and bridge the cost-spike cash gap — 5 minutes.
- Jul 8, 2026 DoorDash delivers parts now — worth it? 200,000+ SKUs, same-day. Dead-bay fallback when your supplier's out. Plus ASE + EPA.
- Jun 23, 2026 Parts up. Techs scarce. R-134a closing. Here's what hits your margin. The parts PPI climbed 5.3 points since February — your markup math is drifting while the car sits on the lift.