If you see fewer auto repair shops near you 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 along with 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 which means that the independent will get little chance to improve that car for their early 5-10 years it is owned.
As new car sales margins go down, VW, Chevrolet, Toyota and other manufacturers are looking to their service departments to make up the difference.
Additionally many dealers such as Porsche and Saab are adding other useful benefits such as being a loaner car while repairs are being made. Independents think you are forced to give courtesy rides to customers in a feat to keep on top of the dealers since customers now expect this service.
Furthermore dealers for Mercedes and Ford are now directly offering specials on services making their dealer prices similar to independent repair shop prices.
But it’s and not just competitive pricing naturally worrying the independents.
The battle for skilled labor all means being won using the dealers: the dealers have always competed for skilled labor and now have become a lot aggressive. With fewer folks entering the auto repair profession and opting instead for careers such as health and technology, overall talent pool of the most skilled auto technicians is shrinking.
Increasingly it becoming more difficult for independents to rent and retain these highly skilled employees. As an automotive technician, would you rather work in Audi or Joe’s Drive way?
The dealers are collecting the best ‘mechanics’ or as may well known today, ‘technicians.’ A premier end dealer technician earns $100,000 a whole year with benefits while wages shop owner would to be able to gross within a $1,000,000 a year to make that and still have to obtain their own benefits and social protective measures.
Because of these economic realities many independent owners are usually closing their shops all night to be suitable for GM, Nissan and other dealers.
This puts the independent auto mechanic shop at a distinct disadvantage when diagnosing and repairing difficult drivability, fuel injection, electronic and computer related injuries.
Additionally, each time a diagnosis appeared and an area needs replacing the dealer will are in stock, not only verifying diagnosing but greatly speeding inside the repair along with increasing customer support. Big advantage Cadillac and Rolls royce.
But the goal wasn’t a skilled employee war. Techs cannot fix cars without information and you’ll find a long and ongoing dispute amongst the dealers/manufacturers and independents over technical information access and diagnostic equipment.
The manufacturers claim that the technical information is proprietary individuals independents claim the information should build up to anybody that owns or fixes create of automobile.
Excel Auto Repair & Sales
94 E Falmouth Hwy, East Falmouth, MA 02536
(508) 444-2777