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 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 ten or fifteen years. Technology has made cars much more reliable with fewer breakdowns, repairs and scheduled maintenances.
Many manufacturers offer kind 100,000 mile warranty meaning that the independent will get little chance to work on that car for one 5-10 years it is owned.
As new car sales margins have gone down, VW, Chevrolet, Toyota and other manufacturers are seeking to their service departments to make up the difference.
Additionally many dealers such as Porsche and Saab are 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 a shot to keep plan the dealers since customers now expect this service.
Furthermore dealers such as 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 is actually worrying the independents.
The battle for skilled labor is also being won together with dealers: the dealers often competed for skilled labor and will have become significantly more aggressive. With fewer folks entering the auto repair profession and opting instead for careers with regard to health and technology, the total talent pool of the superior skilled auto technicians is shrinking.
Increasingly appeared becoming more difficult for independents to work with and retain these highly skilled employees. As an automotive technician, would you rather improve Audi or Joe’s Drive way?
The dealers are selecting the best ‘mechanics’ or as yet known today, ‘technicians.’ An excellent end dealer technician actually make $100,000 a whole year with benefits while a private shop owner would have to gross during a $1,000,000 twelve months to make that and get to afford their own benefits and social security.
Because of these economic realities many independent owners are usually closing their shops all night to be employed by GM, Nissan and other dealers.
This puts the independent auto mechanic at a distinct disadvantage when diagnosing and repairing difficult drivability, fuel injection, electronic and computer related injuries.
Additionally, is not diagnosis is comprised and an area needs replacing the dealer will achieve it in stock, not only verifying diagnosing but greatly speeding in the repair period and increasing customer satisfaction. Big advantage Cadillac and Mercedes.
But the goal wasn’t a skilled employee war. Techs cannot fix cars without information and there has been a long and ongoing dispute with the dealers/manufacturers and independents over technical information access and diagnostic applications.
The manufacturers claim their technical data is proprietary in terms of independents claim the information should be available to anybody that owns or fixes help to make of automobile.
Excel Auto Repair & Sales
94 E Falmouth Hwy, East Falmouth, MA 02536
(508) 444-2777