Best auto related business?

[Mysticcobrakilla]

Building engines is something I've been toying with for side cash.

[Denny]

There appears to be big money in donkifying cars, as long as you are a cash only business.

There's a brutha in FTW that is donkifying and LSXing G bodies. He's making a mint.

[BP]

If you have the funds and a location car washes do really well and it's mostly all cash. Walter White did it.

Or mobile car washes are great if you can drum up the business. Also on that same line is mobile oil changes.

Mobile mechanics are huge in California now but most aren't really legal businesses. Still though there are a lot of morons out there getting paid to butcher cars.

[barronj]

On-the-spot auto body repair, usually done in a parking lot while the car owners shop or work. You don't have to know how to do anything but wipe bondo on a panel, then spray it with grey primer & black speckle.

Lots of people are getting this done, it puts them one step closer to paint, then voila, fixed car, good as new.

smh

[Labora]

A good Hot rod/exotic shop will always be in demand but considering the amount of hours it takes to turn out those sort of cars I'm not sure it is as lucrative as people might think.

IMO the most money to be made is in a fab or CNC shop. Of course it has the highest buy in to start and pretty high chance of failure. And you better have some sort of customer base or something to sell before you start.

explain

Insurance companies are getting there hands into the business in every way possible. Also the big chains are making it harder on the smaller guys.

Large shops like caliber and service king are doing Zero and 1 day repairs. They also have huge buying power inside the industry, and are aggressively buying smaller chains. That sort of thing is hard for a smaller shop to compete with.

There is more of course but that is the start of it...

[CJ-95GT]

I always thought a 4 wheel drive shop might be a good idea. Seems like something always breaks when mudding.

[BP]

Insurance companies are getting there hands into the business in every way possible. Also the big chains are making it harder on the smaller guys.

Large shops like caliber and service king are doing Zero and 1 day repairs. They also have huge buying power inside the industry, and are aggressively buying smaller chains. That sort of thing is hard for a smaller shop to compete with.

There will always be independent body shops though. SK and Caliber piss off enough people regularly to keep in business just by not being one of them. That and there are other insurance companies out there. They don't all have direct repair contracts.

Not to mention people wanting custom work done. I know there are some guys at those stores that do awesome custom work but if I wanted a show quality paint job on something it sure as hell wouldn't be going to an SK store.

[BP]

I always thought a 4 wheel drive shop might be a good idea. Seems like something always breaks when mudding.

Anyone serious about off roading probably knows how to repair their own vehicle. Summit and Jegs sell parts for cheaper than you can buy them. Unless you hook up with a car lot and get a contract to convert some of their stuff it'll be a tough business to get into.

[Baron Von Crowder]

Anyone serious about off roading probably knows how to repair their own vehicle. Summit and Jegs sell parts for cheaper than you can buy them. Unless you hook up with a car lot and get a contract to convert some of their stuff it'll be a tough business to get into.

I had a good friend that made a living doing off-road fab work, but it was tough for him. He knew that if he really wanted to make money, he needed the ability to hire someone that was as good as him, and to be busy enough to keep them both busy. He ended up selling it to a customer who expanded it. I still like the facebook page, looks like they are rocking, but who knows.

[cool cat]

Anyone serious about off roading probably knows how to repair their own vehicle. Summit and Jegs sell parts for cheaper than you can buy them. Unless you hook up with a car lot and get a contract to convert some of their stuff it'll be a tough business to get into.

They good money is in mall crawlers and bro dozers. They want the look, but rarely leave pavement.

[Labora]

There will always be independent body shops though. SK and Caliber piss off enough people regularly to keep in business just by not being one of them. That and there are other insurance companies out there. They don't all have direct repair contracts.

Not to mention people wanting custom work done. I know there are some guys at those stores that do awesome custom work but if I wanted a show quality paint job on something it sure as hell wouldn't be going to an SK store.

Custom work is something else all together, but the collision industry is changing. I am the same way I would not take my car to a large chain, but your average non-car person doesn't see it that way. They just want cheap, fast and easy. The bigger shops have steamlined things considerably. It is something a smaller shop will always struggle to compete with.

[46Tbird]

I had a good friend that made a living doing off-road fab work, but it was tough for him.

[Baron Von Crowder]

[War Machine]

A good Hot rod/exotic shop will always be in demand but considering the amount of hours it takes to turn out those sort of cars I'm not sure it is as lucrative as people might think.

IMO the most money to be made is in a fab or CNC shop. Of course it has the highest buy in to start and pretty high chance of failure. And you better have some sort of customer base or something to sell before you start.



Insurance companies are getting there hands into the business in every way possible. Also the big chains are making it harder on the smaller guys.

Large shops like caliber and service king are doing Zero and 1 day repairs. They also have huge buying power inside the industry, and are aggressively buying smaller chains. That sort of thing is hard for a smaller shop to compete with.

There is more of course but that is the start of it...

thanks!

[034V]

Commercial diesel small parts repair and fuel mods.