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Marc O’Dell is the expert you want to talk with when there’s an issue with your car.
For the past two-plus years he’s worked as an auto expert for JustAnswer.com. The platform connects people with live doctors, lawyers, veterinarians, mechanics and other verified and vetted experts for real-time assistance, insight and answers to just about any question or problem.
The service, available with different payment tiers, is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
O’Dell, who has more than 25 years of automotive repair industry experience, is our guest this week on The Weekly Driver podcast.
Table of Contents
Car Repair Needs? Answers Online
Co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia discuss with Marc how JustAnswer.com works and how he’s used his expertise to help customers.
“It just kind of depends on who you are speaking with and what you are talking about,” says O’Dell about how he balances his answers between a lay person and an expert seeking his expertise.
“If it’s a dealer technician who has specific measurements and specifications ready to go. With that type of stuff you need to be really technical. But dealing with the general public, looking for answers to general questions, like how can I make this work better, you don’t need to be so technical.”
O’Dell, who works at the dealer and corporate levels with Ford and Chrysler, has helped consumers with mechanical and electrical repair as well as communications and engine performance issues for all domestic and most foreign vehicles.
Car Issues? Let JustAnswer.com Help
“I’ve been a getting quite a range of questions lately,” O’Dell says. “They’ve ranged from different maintenance tips to diagnostic questions or how do I test the wiring.
“A lot of people are asking how they can get better fuel mileage and what they can do to save gas and money. A lot of questions are also about maintenance and people trying to make sure their car is well-maintained.”
JustAnswer.com, founded in 2003, has more than12,000 experts across 150 categories. It has helped more than 16 million customers across 196 countries.
Join Bruce and me as we talk with O’Dell for 30 minutes about his virtual mechanic responsibilities.
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Article Last Updated: July 22, 2022.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.