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 and the ‘backyarders’ creating shrinking margins and putting many auto repair independents out of economic.
The global problem is 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 some sort of 100,000 mile warranty so that you can the independent will get little chance to handle that car for the most important 5-10 years it is owned.
As new car sales margins have gone down, VW, Chevrolet, Toyota and other manufacturers are in order to their service departments to make the difference.
Additionally many dealers such as Porsche and Saab happen to adding other useful benefits such as a loaner car while repairs are being made. Independents are forced to give courtesy rides to customers in trying to keep lets start work on 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 not just competitive pricing that’s the worrying the independents.
The battle for skilled labor may also be won through dealers: the dealers often competed for skilled labor and may have become even more aggressive. With fewer individuals entering effect on repair profession and opting instead for careers such as health and technology, essential talent pool of the most skilled auto technicians is shrinking.
Increasingly is certainly becoming harder for independents to work with and retain these highly skilled employees. A great automotive technician, would you rather are employed by Audi or Joe’s Garage?
The dealers are collecting the best ‘mechanics’ or as might known today, ‘technicians.’ An excellent end dealer technician earns $100,000 twelve months with benefits while an unbiased shop owner would have to gross within the $1,000,000 1 yr to make that and have absolutely to afford their own benefits and social safe practices.
Because in the economic realities many independent owners have started 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 problems.
Additionally, is not diagnosis created from and a part needs replacing the dealer will are in stock, not only verifying the verification but greatly speeding in the repair time and increasing customer care. Big advantage Cadillac and Rolls royce.
But it is not just a skilled employee world war. 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 applications.
The manufacturers claim that the technical facts are proprietary in terms of independents claim the information should accumulate to anybody that owns or fixes that make of automobile.
Excel Auto Repair & Sales
94 E Falmouth Hwy, East Falmouth, MA 02536
(508) 444-2777
https://g.page/excel-auto-repair-sales
Posted on:
August 23, 2019