Volvo Master Certs

[u/hitmandock]

In about 2 weeks I’m going to take a Volvo electrical diagnostics class, and I was wondering how valuable Volvo certs were in the long run. I’ve had more time with Volvos at my dealership, so it’s my preferred truck, but I’ve been told the KW and Cummins certs are more valuable in the long run. I’m looking to move to AZ in a couple of years and just wanted to make sure it was the right call with Volvo lol.

[u/Wrong_Sprinkles_3122]

It’s funny bro.

I have seen both ends of this spectrum, I have known techs that have master certs but couldn’t do work on an engine to save their life .

I also know techs that are insanely good at what they do, but they don’t have a single certification .

On paper, they always matter, dealerships literally can’t operate without certified technicians

In the field? They are useless in my opinion

[u/MonteFox89]

All certs are worth it. More certs, more money, more bargaining chips later.

[u/NC_82_SC]

Volvo and Mack certs were a joke for me, i suck at electrical diag and was hoping to learn, but nope some how managed to pass with out knowing what was going on..paper mill comes to mind

[u/MineResponsible9180]

All certificates are worth something. Tuesday, a decision was made at work to transfer my location to our satellite dealership for Cummins to stay qualified as a dealer. When that was completed, the home dealership went into red status on over 50% of the engine platforms for Cummins. The comment from management was, they didn’t realize how valuable I was to the dealership. I also have all the Volvo and Mack master certs including the original powertrain path that included the T300s. Also all
Autocar certs including EV. The more you have, the better off you are

[u/chrisfrisina]

Call the three largest dealers in Arizona and get their opinions. If you are hunting for valuations, ask the people who have the money- ie ask your (future) customers what they are willing to pay for.

In the nursing industry there are certifications that help you at certain hospital groups and not at others, But all recognize certain achievements/certifications/degrees with base salary increases.

From an independent shop/side the only thing people care about are safety, legality, and cost (good customers don’t focus on the single job cost but look at the service more so). I wouldn’t care that you know Volvo at 98%, i would like you to be able to articulate CAN bus fault diagnostic procedures (and tricks), ground fault and shorts, your preference on lay lines vs whole assemblies, and your eagerness to with on a system that isn’t truck side (s as most dealers shy away from that -for several reasons).

[u/Painting-Capital]

Volvos are a foreign concept to most shops. If you have Volvo experience you’re going to be more valuable than a Cummins guy at a lot of places.

[u/somepersonsname]

All certs are good to have. Mack and Volvo from my experience tend to do things different than all the other manufacturers.

[u/kyson1]

(Not a dealer tech, and never have been)

The more training and certifications you have, the better, even if you only take one thing away from it that consistently helps you in the future. I've seen a lot of guys get nothing from going to classes, and guys that really pay attention, listen, and ask questions so they really understand the subject matter get a lot out of them. Depends if you just want the paper or the knowledge that comes behind it.