Changing Oil and Changing Times – The Independent Auto Repair Service Dilemma
If you see fewer auto repair shops in your town then you are witnessing a trend that is spreading throughout the auto repair industry. The small independent auto repair shop is getting squeezed by both the dealers as well as the ‘backyarders’ creating shrinking margins and putting many auto repair independents out of economic.
The global problem will be the auto repair and service market has been shrinking in the last 10 or 15 years. Technology has made cars much more reliable with fewer breakdowns, repairs and scheduled maintenances.
Many manufacturers offer some sort of 100,000 mile warranty relating to this the independent will get little chance to work with that car for site to website 5-10 years it is owned.
As new car sales margins have gone down, VW, Chevrolet, Toyota and other manufacturers are looking to their service departments to make inside the difference.
Additionally many dealers such as Porsche and Saab already been adding other value added benefits such as being a loaner car while repairs are being made. Independents are now being forced to give courtesy rides to customers in hard work to keep with the dealers since customers now expect this service.
Furthermore dealers regarding example Mercedes and Ford are now directly offering specials on services making their dealer prices similar to independent repair shop prices.
But it’s not just competitive pricing is actually worrying the independents.
The battle for skilled labor may also be won using the dealers: the dealers constantly competed for skilled labor and will have become a great deal more aggressive. With fewer conserve entering effect on repair profession and opting instead for careers such as health and technology, overall talent pool of the superior skilled auto technicians is shrinking.
Increasingly it is becoming harder for independents to hire and retain these highly skilled employees. The automotive technician, would you rather work in Audi or Joe’s House?
The dealers are collecting the best ‘mechanics’ or as they may be known today, ‘technicians.’ An excellent end dealer technician can make $100,000 a year with benefits while an independent shop owner would have to gross within a $1,000,000 twelve months to make that and get to purchase their own benefits and social equity.
Because of these economic realities many independent owners are usually closing their shops all night to work for GM, Nissan and other dealers.
This puts the independent auto repair center at a distinct disadvantage when diagnosing and repairing difficult drivability, fuel injection, electronic and computer related injuries.
Additionally, each time a diagnosis is intended and a part of needs replacing the dealer will purchase it in stock, not only verifying diagnosing but greatly speeding increase the repair time and increasing service delivery. Big advantage Cadillac and Mercedes.
But it’s not only a skilled employee struggle. Techs cannot fix cars without information and you will find a long and ongoing dispute among the dealers/manufacturers and independents over technical information access and diagnostic tools.
The manufacturers claim that their technical results are proprietary while the independents claim the information should be for sale to anyone that owns or fixes build of automobile.
Excel Auto Repair & Sales
94 E Falmouth Hwy, East Falmouth, MA 02536
(508) 444-2777
