Mobile Mechanics?

[David]

Any techs out there working out of a truck or trailer? If you have a minute, please share your setup, tool list, pics, whatever. I’m in the beginning stages of a feasibility study and any information you can share would be great.

Thanks!

Topic

[Nick Warner]

If you are seriously looking into this, you need to look into all aspects of the business. Look at what insurance is required. In this lawyer-happy world we are in do not be under-insured. Look at your client base you expect. Do market research. What do they drive? What do you need to have in inventory? What services are you offering?

I have found in my experience that most of the people wanting you to come to them are not able to afford the repair or even the diagnostic. If they could, they could afford the tow truck to get their car to you. You also run into limitations such as this; you have a client who is a nurse at a hospital. She asks you to do an oil change and tire rotation. Do you have the EXACT type of oil her late-model car calls for on your truck? If not, and 60,000 miles later she fails emissions or has an engine issue they might put the blame on you. It has happened before and will again. What if the hospital security drives through the parking lot and has an issue because you had 2 drops of oil spilled on the pavement?

You need to realize that your time IS a valuable commodity. You haven’t gotten your training for free. Your tools are not free. If you bill $60 per hour, and get a job that takes 20 minutes each way due to traffic being heavier in that downtown area. You don’t have your hoist, shop supplies and toolbox in your bay like it should be to make optimum performance. You see a CV boot ripped, front brakes are thin and a lower radiator hose is getting in rough shape. On top of that, the car is just coming due for a timing belt and transmission fluid change, which calls for OEM specific fluid. She is in the CCU and cannot have her phone on her during work. You cannot try to sell the job and do not have the proper fluids or parts with you nor can you get to the parts store without at least a 15 minute trip each way plus at least say 15 minutes in the store.

SOOOO, lets add that up. Your LOF and rotate took you longer than it should by at least 15 minutes because you are not in that bay. You drove 20 minutes each way, so 40 minutes. If you are missing one thing, its the above said 15 minutes each way and 15 minutes in the store. You cannot bill your time to that customer, you have to eat it. You have wasted 85 minutes, which is $85 that should be in your pocket and isn’t. But you had to gas up the truck, pay for the truck and all maintenance, insurance, taxes and such.

Now, think that you are in a shop with your tools in one spot and a stock of parts and fluids. Yes, you cannot stock everything but the parts house delivers and while you are waiting for them to get there you can be getting onto the next job and making a bid and calling the customer. For the most part they drop the car off with keys and pick it up when you call, for the others you have some little beater you scored for $2000 that rides decent and has a clean body for a loaner. That is what the people who can afford your services get to use if they ask and they pay the full price.

The point is, you have utilized every single minute of your time to the highest efficiency it can be used. You are making money steadily and while there never seems to be enough of it when all bills come due, you are making it work. Its a hard road, and it should be because otherwise every lazy puke would do it. But if you want to try to start it up, go for it. Just be sure you look outside the box for what is involved. Get a membership on iatn.net and look in the shop management forum archives. Know what the WHOLE story is before you dive in.

Best of luck to you

[Bill]

I fully agree. Then there is the matter of getting paid. Mobile fleet repair is a better option.

[Noel]

I remember riding the bus to school when I was younger and seeing this old beat up silver truck, probably used to be one of those lunch trucks. It had rough painted lettering on it that read “Mobile Mechanic” and “We come to you.” It’s 20 years later and I still see that same guy parked out by what was back then a Block Buster video store. Now he has a “newer” truck and a hair cut, and it seems to be working for him. Now I have no idea how he’s making it work, but he’s still around so maybe there’s something to it that makes it worth all the headaches the previous comments noted.

I agree with the previous comments, if someone can’t afford to even tow it somewhere, chances are they can’t afford the repair itself. And how often is a repair less than or equal to what the tow costs? But maybe things are different where you are and this business model will work, and even if it doesn’t work you may discover something along the way that does, these days you gotta find a niche to get ahead.

[Jake]

I have a mobile mechanic business. Have two trucks on the road and focus mainly.on fleet vehicles. What I do is basically diagnose as much as I can over the phone with the customer and order all the parts I may need for the job, then head over there.
I will generally.focus on quicker jobs. Brakes rotors, shocks anything that doesn’t require I full.lift.
If you ask me if its worth it? Likenick Warner said, there is pros and cons. I will actually “fire” and profile my customers based on what they drive and where they live. I know that sounds wrong but if a customer calls me about a 2000 Honda then I’ll ask the customer how much money he’s ready to put in to it? Knowing that I give them my fee to come down and do a basic diagnostic.
You’ll have alot of downdays, weather being the worse. I live up north where it snows. The winter is really hard especially with the overhead increasing as u grow.
Most states require you to be registered which means u have to have business insurance, liability property damage and vehicle insurance as well. There aren’t many companies willing to underwrite insurance for mobile.mechanic.
I know a few mobile.mechanics and they seem to be doing pretty well. One guy I know will tell u that u have to being ur own parts. Now that’s a cash business…
I prefer to pay the taxes and resell the parts to make more money.
If you spill oil on the street u have to make sure its cleaned up rite because if epa sees that you can expect a few thousand dollar fine. Depending on ur state ur limited to how much of certain fluid u can carry. If you get stopped by DOT and fluids are leaking or ur carrying what’s considered bulk and needs a plaque well there goes some more fines.
In my experience its all about the market. In my area most cars are leased so I basically do oil chanhes and brakes all day.
You might get busy and schedule a full days of work butnget stuck on a job all day and now you have to cancel all your other customers.
Any working person is ready to pay a premium so they don’t have to go to a mechanic.
Hope this helps.

[Larry Bible]

I much prefer working in the shop, but I am 20 miles out of town without a clientele built yet. I am wondering if maybe doing some mobile work could build a clientele willing to come to me.

[Author]

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