The Bud Clary TORQ Program · Service
Start on the lot.
Become a master mechanic.
You do not need experience to become an automotive technician here. You need to show up. Every rung below is a real job at a real Bud Clary store, and every person above you on this ladder started somewhere below it.
No two journeys look the same
The rungs are real, but nobody hands you a fixed route. People cross between the tracks all the time — these are the kinds of paths our own folks have taken.
The bench, all the way up
- Lot Attendant
- Express Technician
- Automotive Technician
- Brand-Certified
- Master Technician
Wrenches first, people second
- Express Technician
- Service Advisor
- Assistant Service Manager
- Service Manager
The drive to the director’s seat
- Service Advisor
- Assistant Service Manager
- Service Manager
- Service Director
The whole building
- Automotive Technician
- Service Manager
- General Manager
Service TORQ, rung by rung
Technicians climb the numbered rungs. Service advisor branches off the lot and rejoins at management — the two tracks meet, they do not stack. Rungs with a count are hiring right now, and those links go straight to the live posting. Management roles are usually filled from inside the shop, but when one is posted it shows up here too.
- 9 open now
01 · Start here
Lot Attendant, Porter & Detailer
Lot Attendant · Lot Porter · Service Lot Attendant · Automotive Detailer
Where most people start, and you do not need experience to get here. You move and stage vehicles, keep the drive running, and learn how a dealership actually works. From this rung you can go two ways.
Next rung · Tell your manager which way you want to go. Express technician on the shop floor, service advisor on the drive, or sales consultant on the showroom floor — all three open from the inside.
- 8 open now
Branch · the other way up
Service Advisor
Automotive Service Advisor · Commercial Fleet Service Advisor
The service drive rather than the shop floor. You own the customer relationship: write the repair order, translate what the technician found, and keep the promise the shop made. A different skill set, and a full career in its own right.
Where it leads · The same management ladder the technicians climb. Advisors and technicians both step up to assistant service manager, and plenty of service managers wrote repair orders first.
- 8 open now
02 · Core role
Express Technician & Lube Technician
Automotive Express Technician · Lube Technician
Your first real technician job. Oil, tires, brakes, inspections, recalls — the high-volume work that teaches you speed, accuracy and the factory process.
Next rung · Start your factory certifications. We pay for the training and the pay follows the certifications, not the calendar.
- 4 open now
03 · Core role
Automotive Technician
Automotive Technician · Technician · Used Car Technician
Full diagnostic and repair work on the shop floor. This is where flat rate starts to pay: the faster and cleaner you work, the more hours you turn.
Next rung · Stack brand certifications. Every one you earn moves your flat-rate hour and opens more of the shop to you.
- 14 open now
04 · Core role
Brand-Certified Technician
Chevrolet · Ford · Subaru · Volkswagen · Hyundai · CDJR · Toyota · Honda
Certified by the manufacturer on the brand you work on, with the factory tooling and the factory training behind you. Our postings set pay by certification level and experience, which is why this rung matters.
Next rung · Push toward Master Technician — A-level, plus a specialty: high voltage, transmissions, diesel, or fleet.
- 5 open now
05 · Core role
Master Technician
A-level · EV / High Voltage · Transmission · Commercial Vehicle · Fleet
The top of the bench, and the highest form of technician there is. A-level diagnostic work, high-voltage and EV systems, transmissions, diesel and commercial vehicles. These are the technicians the rest of the shop asks for help.
Next rung · Master technician is a destination, not a waiting room. Many of the best people in this company have spent their whole career here, and the pay says so. If running the shop appeals to you, assistant service manager is the door.
- Usually promoted from within
06 · Management
Assistant Service Manager
Where the technician and advisor tracks meet. You run the drive day to day, dispatch work, and coach the people who were doing your old job last year.
Next rung · Service manager — the whole department. The techs, the advisors, the bay count, the customer satisfaction scores and the P&L.
- 1 open now
07 · Management
Service Manager
You run a store’s entire service department — the techs, the advisors, the bay count, the customer satisfaction, the P&L.
Next rung · Two directions from here. Assistant service director and service director run service across all 14 stores. General manager runs one store end to end — sales, service, parts and F&I.
- Usually promoted from within
08 · Auto group
Assistant Service Director
Above the stores. You support the service managers across the auto group, carrying process, training and standards from one rooftop to the next.
Next rung · Service director — service for every store in the group, with each location’s service manager reporting up to you.
- Usually promoted from within
09 · Auto group
Service Director
Service for the entire Bud Clary Auto Group. Every store’s service manager reports up to this seat.
Next rung · Or take a single store instead of the group. General manager runs one rooftop end to end — sales, service, parts and F&I.
- Usually promoted from within
10 · Top of the ladder
General Manager
The whole store: sales, service, parts, F&I and everyone in it. Reachable from either ladder — plenty of general managers came up through the shop, plenty came up through the showroom.
New in Auburn
Our standalone Commercial Service Center is open
Our new standalone Commercial Service Center in Auburn services commercial vehicles and fleets for businesses across the Puget Sound — a whole new lane of technician and advisor careers.
See technician openings →Questions people actually ask
- Do I need experience to become a mechanic at Bud Clary?
- No. Most of our technicians start as a lot attendant, porter, or detailer with no automotive experience, move into an express technician role, and earn their certifications from there. We would rather train you than hire around you.
- What is the Bud Clary TORQ program?
- TORQ stands for Training, Opportunity, Readiness & Qualifications. It is how we move people up: training we pay for, openings posted inside first, and pay that moves the day you earn a qualification. There are two TORQ ladders — Service and Sales — and they share the same first rung on the lot.
- Do you pay for technician training and certifications?
- Yes. Factory training is paid and happens on our clock, not yours. Our job postings set technician pay by certification level and experience, so every certification you earn is worth money to you.
- What is flat-rate pay for an automotive technician?
- Flat rate means each repair is assigned a set number of hours, and you are paid for those hours whether the job takes you more or less time. A faster, cleaner technician turns more hours. Most of our technician roles are flat rate; entry roles like lot attendant and express technician are hourly.
- Can a service advisor become a service manager?
- Yes. Service advisor is its own track — it branches off the lot rather than sitting above the technician rungs, so you do not have to turn wrenches first. The advisor and technician tracks meet at assistant service manager, and both lead to running a service department, then to service director for the whole group or general manager of a store.
- Where are Bud Clary service departments located?
- We run service departments across 5 Washington communities: Longview, Auburn, Moses Lake, Union Gap, Washougal. Technicians can and do move between stores and brands as they certify.
- What brands can I get certified on?
- Chevrolet, Ford, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Subaru, Volkswagen and Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, plus high-voltage and EV, transmission, diesel and commercial vehicle specialties.
The lot is where it starts.
Not where it ends.
49 service and technician roles are open across the Pacific Northwest right now — from first-day lot attendant to master technician.
Browse service & technician roles