


(Most engine and transmission remanufacturers are willing to deal direct with repair shops and are offering great value for their goods.) Parts estimates come from Mitchell's, local jobbers, car dealers (when original equipment parts are required or considered best) or specialty shops that repair components like radiators. Interestingly, not one deviates from the hourly estimate of the flat rate book. The shops we contacted ranged from those servicing high-end and German brands to "best price guaranteed" shops. All but one made it a point to tell us the results from their inspections were written on the repair estimates regardless of whether the customer had them do the repair work or not.
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All responded with good information, but some were not interested in having their names used.Įach job starts with the visual inspection, the shops all said, and because of labor costs, free inspections are fine as long as they do not take more than 15 minutes. To get the "How to sell it" questions answered, we sent a questionnaire to 10 service shops. It requires a whole lot more, including sales skills. Selling these jobs requires more than just telling the customer they need it. And, for that twin-turbo Porsche plug, try $56 each! It is easy to see how job tickets get big, fast. Spark plugs for a Chevy Malibu cost $36 each. Repair on a twin-turbo Porsche engine can run between $6,000 and $12,000, without exchanging the short block. A simple heater core replacement on some vehicles requires removing the entire dash to get to the part a 10-hour job. They told us there will be cooling system jobs, tune-ups, OEM-scheduled maintenance and electrical repairs all in the $1,000 job range, depending upon the brand of parts used. We found that some service shops don't feel a $1,000 ticket is "big" anymore. We talked with service shops that generate at least 60% of their business volume from service to find out how they sell the services.

We elected to use the $1,000 mark as a baseline for defining big ticket jobs. Vehicle repairs can include anything from suspensions to engine or transmission exchanges. What constitutes a big ticket sale today and how do successful shops sell it? Considering that costs and wages, with benefits, have gone up significantly across the United States, the answers fascinate us.
