Becoming an independent mechanic

Last Updated on July 22, 2024 by Mutiara

This is meant as a general guideline for America. Other countries may differ in culture and not all customers are the same. However this should be helpful for anyone who decides to become an independent mechanic. Some have said this is rather a guide on how to avoid getting screwed by customers, they may be right.

Table of Contents

Marketing

To start things off. It’s not hard to become an independent mechanic, the hardest part is advertising and finding clients. One of the best places to post is online classifieds such as craigslist.com. Before creating an advertisement, other ads should be checked as a good example. This provides a good outlook on various writing and advertising styles while also providing a good outlook of the competition. Put yourself in the customer’s perspective when you read the ads, who would you rather take your car to? Keep your advertisements simple, remember you’re not trying to find mechanics, but rather simple people who cannot do the work themselves.

When you list work on Craigslist, be sure to check the services wanted section as well. Another tactic is to go through cars being sold for very cheap amounts due to an issue, and offer to fix it for the seller for a reasonable price, thus increasing the selling price of the vehicle for the seller. If the work will cost less than the increase in the vehicle’s value, this should be explained to the seller as a good convincing point.

Print out business cards. This is important! If you ever network with people throughout your daily business you should always carry business cards. Making up an excuse for not having one when a potential customer asks is the easiest way to lose business to your competitors. Even if the customer does not get turned off by the idea, and you give them a phone number written on a piece of paper, they will likely lose it and never end up contacting you.

Print out fliers and distribute them or business cards at local bulletin boards. These can be found in many restaurants, gas stations, auto parts stores, and apartment complexes by the mailboxes or offices. This is free advertising and if you make yours stand out over your competition, there is a good chance you will acquire new business.

Network with everyone all the time. Be friendly and social. Start conversations, and try to steer people towards the subject of their car, to see if anything is wrong or if they’d like a tuneup. Don’t be afraid to ask complete strangers if there is anything wrong with their car. If they decline nothing is lost, and they may remember it so if anything does break there is a good chance they will contact you the next time you see them.

Flier drops in parking lots or door to door do not work well and should only be relied on as a last resort. Most people are used to advertisement junkmail and will disregard your message right away. Even if they do not, the impression created by using an advertising form shared by entities that are disliked by most people will leave a bad impression and most likely not result in any contacts. It can take hours, even a whole day to do an average neighborhood and this may not even result in any calls.

Setup

Chances are you don’t have your own shop, otherwise you would not be reading this guide. Either you will have to work out of your home garage or do on-site repairs. There is a major downside to this as most of the public is brainwashed to believe that quality car repair service can only be obtained from a real service shop with many bays and employees that wear clean shirts.

You will need a quality compressor and decent set of tools if you would like to be efficient in your work. Being a car enthusiast you should already have them. Otherwise the work will usually take too long to make it worthwhile, if you’re charging customers an hourly wage they will not see a price benefit of having a mechanic without power tools do the job slower and for the same price as a garage with a lift and air tools.

With time you will get good at talking your way past this deficiency and make customers overlook it during negotiations. The entire situation has to be weighed out from a customer’s perspective to see if it will be worth their risk, time, and money.

Setting the price

A person who is starting in this field should handle each new inquiry by checking the labor prices of local well established shops when deciding on a price for the customer. When a customer is interested in having work done on their vehicle, you should get all of the vehicle information and everything you can about what kind of work has to be done, then call service shops in your area and see how much they would charge for this task. Prepare to be a customer and say that you’re browsing around. Then get back with the customer and tell them what other shops would charge, and give them a much more reasonable price. Remember you can’t just make it 10% cheaper, because that extra 5% will be worth it in most people’s minds due to the false sense of quality work reassurance from having work done at a big shop, and lack of trust from an unknown individual. Don’t forget to ask the price of the part from the garage as well, this can often be a good point to the customer if you demonstrate how much more repair shops are charging for the same part than a regular auto parts store.

Dealing with customers

You changed my spark plugs 5 months ago and now my transmission is slipping, it’s ALL YOUR FAULT!!

As a good mechanic friend once said “Wrenching is only half the work, the other half is dealing with customers”. The statement could not be any more true. The following is a list of tips when dealing with customers. Following these and being professional and diplomatic can mean the difference between a frustrating dispute or a happy returning customer. While the following lists many extreme scenarios with customers, some may seem as over exaggeration, only by expecting the worst can one make the necessary preparations to handle each case as professionally and hassle free as possible.

Avoid doing work for friends

Unless you like to work for free and waste your free time, or your friends are car tuners just like you and you’re just in it for the sport, or it’s an emergency breakdown on the side of the road. Friends will try to use you for free car work because even if they’re unaware, subconsciously their mind knows that you will be uncomfortable with charging them money due to your friendship and try to exploit that by getting you to do their work for them. Avoid mentioning to them that you work on cars and just point them to this website and have them learn how to do their own work. Professionals always keep business and personal separate.

On some rare occasions it is possible to make exceptions. When both you and your friend are aware of the money involved and can comfortably negotiate like a regular customer. If you do eventually end up doing the work, treat them as a customer as well, professionally. Do not apply any different payment policies that you normally wouldn’t grant to a stranger. Just consider every opportunity given an automatic way to get yourself ripped off. This is not a rude practice, after all you don’t ask your friends to come over and vacuum your house and do your dishes for you for free.

NEVER buy anything with your own money!

Once again, give someone even the slightest opportunity to ripp you off and they will. Chances are they won’t, but the risk isn’t worth it. And you can’t make exceptions because people are unpredictable. For example, something may go wrong during the job and even if it’s not your fault the customer may feel justified in not paying you not only for your labor, but also for the parts you put in the car. Unless you have the car boxed in your driveway or sitting on jack stands, they may get creative and retrieve it without your permission as well. If the customer cannot agree to that simply don’t do the work, having that kind of an attitude means nothing but potential problems.

Don’t give unnecessary discounts

When you purchase parts for the customer, sometimes you can get commercial accounts set up pretty easy at auto parts stores which will give you a slight (or sometimes significant) discount on many parts. Charge the customer the normal price for the part and keep the difference to make your work more worth while. You’re not ripping the customer off, but simply charging them a normal price. Large automotive repair shops often charge even more on top of that in comparison.

Do not undersell yourself

Customers are good at negotiating, they will try to make you do the work for next to nothing. You should be fair in your prices and don’t overcharge either. But if the price is too low don’t get greedy and take on the job thinking you’ll get it done quick and make a few bucks. What usually ends up happening is the job becomes harder than originally thought, and the smaller reward diminishes motivation. This in tern makes you finish the job much slower and creates more tension between you and the customer. Remind them how much a regular service garage would charge. The best line for these situations is simple, tell the customer you’re not forcing them to do business with you and they do have a choice. This makes you sound professional and earns more respect from the customer rather than letting their ego take control.

Avoid working in front of the customer

Working while being watched creates unnecessary stress, of which there is already enough of in the auto repair industry. Have the customers drop off a car and pick it back up, or somehow figure out a way to work on it alone. If a customer is constantly around you they will be watching for every slight mistake. Because of their lack of understanding they will be very nervous about all the strange things to them that are only normal procedures to you, and this creates remorse inside the customer which in term makes them want to debate the total amount in the end. A customer’s ego can also take over and make the customer perceive your work as easy, they will be thinking “why didn’t I just do this myself?” to themselves. You’re not there to be a teacher or a supervised worker under stress. You’re there to do the job professionally, get compensated for it, and satisfy the customer.

Estimating work time

The ETA should never be provided in hours. If a customer inquires about the completion time of the vehicle, they should be told which part of the day at most. Otherwise this will create strict deadlines, place you under more stress, and really frustrate the customer if any time delays appear. Whatever you think it will take you, double it. Unexpected delays are frequent in the automotive business, whether from part problems, supplier mistakes, or something else. If you happen to run into one, you’ll still be finished on time. If not, you’ll have the car finished early which will make the customer even happier. The only person you’re obligated to hourly information to is a manager if you’re working in a grocery store. If you are your own manager then act like one.

Avoiding shady customers

Low-lives such as drug dependent or greedy people and many others should not be counted on for payment at all. Your work may as well be considered free and non-profit. Your policies should be kept clear and guide lines in check, without exceptions. If the customer stumbles on any areas of payment then they obviously can’t pay and time is being wasted on them. Unpredictable and people with mental issues should be avoided as well, for knowing what to expect from them is not possible. A friend one second and a foe the next, much trouble will be spared by eliminating such risks. If you ever see a look on a customer’s face as if they despise you, they’re probably thinking that they’re getting ripped off inside their minds, they are usually not possible to reason with. The best way to deal with them is to have them pay off the rest of the balance (if any work has bee done) and get them to remove their vehicle from your premises.

Self insurance

Not the official kind, but rather the kind created yourself. If even the slightest doubt is suspected about the variability of payment after completion of the work, methods should be put in place to ensure the customer has no chance to rip you off. The keys should NEVER be given until the balance is fully paid for. If the customer wants to go on a test ride before providing the rest of payment, ALWAYS GO WITH THEM! While this may sound like a mistake you will never make. be aware that even the friendliest of people can be full of deceit and surprises. If a serious dispute is expected over payment, the vehicle should be boxed in. This is done by taking any other cars available and placing them in a way as to prevent any possibility of removing the car with a tow truck or anything else. Or the wheels can be removed, and the vehicle placed on jack stands. If police become involved they can force one to reinstall the wheels, if there is no formal agreement (which there usually isn’t for side work). This is why it also helps to remove a spare part or two that are worth the balance due. A good source can sometimes be intake manifolds, ignition coils, alternators, batteries, & etc. Nobody should be aware of this part, neither the customer nor the police, it will come in handy after the vehicle is re-possessed.

Do not take check

Very self explanatory and a widely used practice among many businesses. Even customers that seem like they are well off and have their financial problem will surprise you when their check bounces. Then when attempting to get your money the customer becomes frustrated at you as if it wasn’t their problem to begin.

Never deviate

Try to keep everything as close to factory spec as possible and don’t go out of your way for anything extra. The customer thinks that the plastic engine cover IS the engine, and that engineers are gods who’s designs can’t be questioned. If one deviates from the standard procedures because you know it’s right and it’s a better solution, chances are the customer will do the opposite and complain about it instead. If their engine light comes on, it’s because you took a little plastic shield off. If their engine breaks down it’s because you put synthetic in it instead of conventional oil. Don’t waste your time cleaning anything more than necessary either. You can chrome plate and detail their entire engine bay if you wish and they’ll find some way to complain about it.

Do not take on jobs that are too complex

Some really big jobs may seem attractive because of the cost, but usually they take way too much effort to do without a lift and other equipment, and thus it’s too easy to lose steam and stretch the projects out. This results in nothing but conflict and tension. Try to stick to jobs you absolutely know are easy to do. If a customer tells you their door locks work funny on a full moon if the car is facing the north pole, take a pass and go find some other simpler jobs.

Use new parts whenever possible.

For a mechanic that’s comfortable going to the junkyard, acquiring cheap parts for personal use is always nice. However when it comes to business, even though the idea may seem attractive, new parts should be used instead whenever possible. If you total up how much time will be wasted removing the parts from the junkyard, fuel costs, entrance costs, and the part costs, it ends up being more than it’s worth. You’re not pulling the parts for free either, so adding an extra cost on top of that usually brings the price close to it’s new/re-manufactured counterpart. But that is only half of the issue, the other half is the fact that it’s used. If the part is in poor condition and does not work to begin with, or breaks later on, you will have to replace it and lose even more time and money. With a new or re-manufactured part, the customer has no remorse and as long as the receipt is kept a warranty included will help insure against future breakdowns.

Legal technicalities

Running a business off the books

If transactions are done cash and unofficially without any tax information or registration, a few things should be known. Leaving messages about the work done should be avoided on answering machines, and receipts should not be made. Do not accept payment within visible range of anyone else but the customer, especially if there is a suspicious vehicle or person on the street. While it may not seem like any crimes are being committed, a fine is a serous possibility if the local government can prove it. This usually requires two things, a sign on the premises related to the business, and a government worker to have witnessed money exchange for the services. The violations are typically running an unregistered business and/or having an automotive service in a residential area. If a government worker has not seen you getting cash from the customer or a sign up front, do not let them falsely accuse you of a violation or crime that you did not commit. The only time what your neighbors have seen or heard matter is if they’re complaining about your discontent with party officials in China. If one has to determine which neighbor complains to the city, it’s usually the least expected.

Code violations

Living in a deed restricted community completely eliminates any possibilities of doing automotive side work. However living on a regular street allows one to work on quite a few vehicles as long as certain city and county codes are kept in mind. While they do vary by region, there are some general tips. If having an inoperable vehicle is prohibited in the area, the vehicle should simply be kept on the driveway with the hood shut, lowered back to the ground, and wheels on the car. There is no way for code officers to check if the actual vehicle is operable or not. Some cities will also prohibit storing vehicles without a license plate. An easy way around this measure is to park the vehicle with the rear towards the house or in any way to prevent it from being seen from the outside road. Code officers will not venture on a property to check the backs of all vehicles on a street, as this would be counter productive and most likely illegal in the form of trespassing. If confronted by the code officer, be friendly and as professional as possible. Occasionally a code officer will be sympathetic to your work and explain the minimum things you have to do to avoid getting any violations. Some will be brown nosers and extremely strict however, so word everything carefully and never admit to anything. As far as anyone knows, you are working on vehicles that of your own and your friends.

Written by Alex.

Becoming an independent mechanic

Marketing

Setup

Setting the price