Information Is Not Knowledge: The Decline of Troubleshooting Skills in the Motorcoach Industry

JAMES MORRA
Aug 29
5 min read

In my years working in the motorcoach industry, I’ve seen remarkable changes in technology. Today’s coaches are more advanced than ever—integrated electronics, emissions controls, safety systems, and diagnostic capabilities that earlier generations of technicians could only dream about. Yet, at the same time, I’ve also seen a troubling trend: the steady erosion of deep, practical knowledge among those tasked with maintaining them.

This isn’t unique to motorcoaches—it’s happening in trucking, heavy equipment, and likely the airline industries too—but I can only offer my honest thoughts in the motorcoach world, where reliability and uptime are everything, and many companies are forced to operate with slim margins to be competitive.

As W. Edwards Deming wisely said: “Information is not knowledge.”

And here’s the uncomfortable truth: too often, both fleets and OEMs assume that credentials or certifications equal real understanding. A card in your wallet or a certificate on the wall creates a sense of confidence, but credentials don’t always reflect true troubleshooting skill. In fact, in some cases they reflect nothing more than a technician’s ability to pass a test—when a test is even required. The result is a dangerous gap between assumed competence and actual ability, and it’s a gap our industry cannot afford to ignore.

The Illusion of Information

Technicians today have access to more information than ever before—OEM troubleshooting trees, training videos, online forums, ChatGPT and service apps. But information without understanding doesn’t create problem solvers. Instead, it often creates parts-changers.

I regularly encounter situations where a technician has only a small piece of knowledge about a system. They jump right in—disconnecting things and swapping out parts—hoping the problem will go away. Even worse requesting parts that are on back order for 10 weeks, only to find out that the replacement part doesn't actually fix the issue!

On the rare occasion I encounter situations where a technician has followed every step of a troubleshooting flowchart, only to arrive at a false conclusion. Why? Because those tools are rigid and often miss the bigger picture of how systems really work.

There have been countless alternators, computers, starters, etc... disposed of in the name of troubleshooting. The result? Wasted parts, wasted labor, and most importantly, wasted time—with a coach sitting idle instead of serving customers.

The Myth of Competence

The pressure to “just get it rolling again” is certainly real in some operations, but that isn’t the full story. Many fleet owners and managers genuinely expect repairs to be done right, but they often assume skill where only surface-level ability exists.

Credentials and certifications can create a false sense of security. Passing a test—or in some cases, simply sitting for one—does not guarantee that a technician truly understands how a system works. I’ve seen too many cases where someone with a certificate on the wall still relies on guesswork in the shop.

The result is the same: repeat failures, excessive downtime, and unnecessary costs. Whether it’s a quick-fix culture or misplaced trust in credentials, the core issue remains—knowledge is not being developed, tested, or applied at the level our industry requires.

The Manufacturer’s Shortfall

To be fair, technicians don’t always get the support they need. Manufacturers provide troubleshooting trees and basic service guides, but rarely the theory behind their systems. In some cases, critical information is locked behind proprietary portals or diagnostic tools. Just look at the multitude of stories in the equipment industry, like John Deere, where owners are locked out of repairs behind proprietary software.

Instead of empowering technicians to understand how a system functions, OEMs often reduce training to “if this, then that.” That’s not learning—it’s dependency. And it leaves even talented technicians guessing when the script doesn’t match reality. I pride myself in getting to the root cause of the problem and understanding "why." To be honest I take a little pride in being a vendor's thorn in the side at times because I have found that is necessary when you want to get something fixed right and for the lowest cost possible. Unfortunately, technicians don't have that kind of time and they should not be locked out of valuable information on how things work when they are tasked with fixing it right.

Why This Matters

The consequences of this knowledge gap are clear:

Longer downtime while problems are chased in circles.
Higher costs as parts are replaced unnecessarily.
Frustrated technicians who feel stuck when the “official” process doesn’t solve the issue.
Lost opportunities for operators to deliver reliable service.

And importantly: no client is immune. I’ve seen these same challenges in operations ranging from small regional carriers to large national fleets. I hear it from professionals working on fleets with small trucks, large trucks, Van Hool's, MCI, Prevost, and the list goes on.

Rebuilding a Culture of Knowledge

The solution isn’t another app or another flowchart. It’s a cultural reset—one that values real understanding and invests in people as much as in equipment. Manufacturers need to stop hiding how things work and be part of the solution, not the problem.

That means:

Training that teaches theory as well as procedure.
Mentorship that passes down reasoning, not just steps.
A willingness to question the flowchart when it doesn’t make sense.
Pushing OEMs for transparency and access to true technical information.

Too often I hear: ‘We need to send this to engineering for an answer.’ But here’s the truth: I’m an engineer too—though I started as a technician—and that mindset is flawed. If you build and sell it, a qualified technician with the right resources should be able to fix it. Once you build it, then sell it, a qualified and capable technician with the appropriate resources should be able to fix it right, otherwise you engineered it wrong! If technicians need an engineering degree to fix it, then it wasn't designed right in the first place.

Final Thoughts

As a consultant, I work directly with fleets, supervisors, and technicians on these issues every day. The challenges are real, and they are widespread. But the good news is that with the right approach—emphasizing knowledge over shortcuts—fleets can drastically reduce downtime, lower costs, and empower their technicians to succeed. This issue will continue into the foreseeable future and that is why it is so important to shed light on it. Being a motorcoach technician is a challenging career as I discussed on a past video, but with real investment from the OEM and a better understanding from owners and managers it can lead to a rewarding career for aspiring technicians.

I always tell people I work with: ask the technician why. If they can’t clearly explain why something failed—or how it’s supposed to work in plain terms—they likely don’t truly know themselves. This doesn't mean they are at fault, but more questions need to then be asked about "why" they don't know and what needs to be done to change that. I spend a lot of my time going over theory and maybe I talk too much sometimes, but even before I read about Demming I always felt that explaining the "why" was the most important thing someone can learn.

Information is everywhere. Knowledge is rare. The future of our industry depends on making sure we don’t confuse the two.