Dishwasher Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 Owning a Legacy GT either makes you extremely poor, or turns you into a solid shady tree mechanic. I've owned this car for about 5 years, and my tool collection and knowledge has expanded greatly since my naive purchase. I have a pretty roomy 2 car garage, and I find myself fixing my car, and my friend's cars almost every weekend. My preliminary thoughts are sticking to simple repairs and maintenance items to reduce my liability exposure. Charging low flat rates for maintenance items, and for repairs charging half the going labor rate in my area. Customers will be responsible for providing their own non-ebay parts, or I can order if they prepay for parts at a mark up of 10%. It would be by referral only, with no marketing. I'm not looking to replace my full time job, just some supplemental income. Does anyone here wrench on cars as a side gig? How do you like it? How do you do it? Brought to you by Pfizer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttnio Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 Consider it a great hobby. Keep up with the good service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitetiger Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 ^i used to a long time ago. used to offer my services to members here over the weekend. the mods shut me down for not being a vendor because a certian un-named party ratted me out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FJuan Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 Sounds like you're off to a good start. I do it on the side, only 1 to 2 cars per month. Don't want to give up my nights and weekends all the time, because I enjoy spending more time with my family. Everything I do is word-of-mouth, all through my friends an family. Before working on a different car, make sure you do your research on the car and parts needed first, this will save you a lot of time trying to figure it out for the 1st time. If the job looks to difficult or time consuming, just say sorry and refer them to another mechanic. I've turned away a few jobs knowing there's special tools involved (which I hate buying special tools for a one time use) or being time consuming, such as head gaskets (depending on the car), engine rebuilds or pulling a motor just to get to a part. The only biggest job I did was replacing a clutch on a 1996 4Runner, took 2 days to complete. She offered me $1,000 which I couldn't pass up, because the dealer was going to charge her $1,800. As you mention, start off with the general maintenance and simple repairs until you feel more confident doing bigger jobs. I charge a flat rate of $50 per hour + parts. My wife's balls are delicious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitetiger Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 i found that i made good $$$ charging a set fee for specific parts installations. Like UP/DP installs were $150. could bang them out in under 2hrs. Stack a few different things together and you can do $500+ in an afternoon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhitter Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 UP for $150 is pretty reasonable. Stupid rusted on heat shield bolts. My OBXT build Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdmayne Posted February 9, 2017 Share Posted February 9, 2017 I still do what FJuan just described. My buddy and I team up on projects left and right. From troublesome Saabs that make us want to retire to basic maintenance items. I also do carpentry and furniture building on the side. Granted, this is all dependent on the mythical free time that I have with 2 kids under 2... John Hancock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTEASER Posted February 9, 2017 Share Posted February 9, 2017 I've installed a few sets of lowering springs and coilovers in my time for a nominal fee. I usually request that the owners hang out if I need an extra set of hands, which is usually the case with the lowering springs because of strut disassembly/reassembly. Hey, it pays for some mods. GTEASER's 2012 Legacy GT - Sold GTEASER's 2009 XTeaser - Sold GTEASER's 1992 Legacy SS - Sold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dishwasher Posted February 9, 2017 Author Share Posted February 9, 2017 Yeah I think I'm going to get started then. Seems like I should start turning a profit/recovering some costs on all these tools. Thanks for the tips. Brought to you by Pfizer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdmayne Posted February 9, 2017 Share Posted February 9, 2017 Just make sure to not step out of your comfort zone. The last thing you want is to be liable for somebody else's car. If you have the time, it's a fantastic way to fund projects. John Hancock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FJuan Posted February 9, 2017 Share Posted February 9, 2017 Exactly, that's why I stated do your research first before accepting the job. You don't want to get halfway into a project and figure out something went wrong and can't finish it. By research, I mean looking at the car and researching the part/problem by watching videos (YouTube) and search car forums to get a better understanding on how others have replaced a part or fixed the problem. Same thing you would do when fixing your own car. My wife's balls are delicious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdmayne Posted February 9, 2017 Share Posted February 9, 2017 Same thing you would do when fixing your own car. If we're talking about my childhood RC cars, it was a very simple process. Dismantle entirely, get frustrated, throw whole pile away. Repeat with next truck. That is how you guys learned how to fix your Subaru, right? John Hancock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatbastard Posted August 9, 2017 Share Posted August 9, 2017 I know this is an old thread...but for people that have done this, did you form an LLC? Carry insurance? I am confident in my abilities to do this work but since so many people are sue happy I am concerned about doing this without being protected. And if I get insurance and open an LLC I might not make enough to justify the costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FJuan Posted August 9, 2017 Share Posted August 9, 2017 I know this is an old thread...but for people that have done this, did you form an LLC? Carry insurance? I am confident in my abilities to do this work but since so many people are sue happy I am concerned about doing this without being protected. And if I get insurance and open an LLC I might not make enough to justify the costs. I don't do enough business to justify a LLC or insurance, I do maybe 2 - 3 jobs a month when time aloud. Matter of fact, I did a Camry wheel bearing replacement, and flushed a Ford F150 transmission this weekend. Made $150 for 3 - 4 hrs of work, not bad. My clients are referred through friends and previous clients, they have the understanding that I'm not in business, but work under the table. They are looking for someone cheap that can do the job. As mention before, if the job is too big, I'll refer them to a local shop, I'm not gonna take on a job that requires a lot of labor. Start off small and do simple jobs, and when you feel more comfortable doing more jobs then you may consider licenses. Check on your state, because here in CA you will need to be a Certified Mechanic to have your own mechanic business. My wife's balls are delicious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dishwasher Posted November 1, 2017 Author Share Posted November 1, 2017 I know this is an old thread...but for people that have done this, did you form an LLC? Carry insurance? I am confident in my abilities to do this work but since so many people are sue happy I am concerned about doing this without being protected. And if I get insurance and open an LLC I might not make enough to justify the costs. I do not. It is something that concerns me, however it should be noted that insurance follows the vehicle. If you have permission to work on the vehicle and drive the vehicle, then your "customer's" comprehensive and collision coverage will be primary on the vehicle. Where you run into liability exposure is if someone slips and falls on your premises or is injured on your premises. Maybe they are at your home as your guest to hang out, not in the course and scope of a business so your home owners liability/renters liability would provide coverage. This is all completely hypothetical of course. For the record I am not an attorney, and I am not qualified to provide legal advice. Brought to you by Pfizer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fullah Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 I know this is an old thread...but for people that have done this, did you form an LLC? Carry insurance? I am confident in my abilities to do this work but since so many people are sue happy I am concerned about doing this without being protected. And if I get insurance and open an LLC I might not make enough to justify the costs. Not sure if it's the same everywhere but here in New York you can't work out of your home doing auto repair. You need to be licenensed as a repair shop and get inspections from the state as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzAvi8r Posted November 2, 2017 Share Posted November 2, 2017 I think that's just a new York thing. I've never heard of that rule in any state that I've lived in (FL, VA, CO, SC, NC). I never really advertised my services as a mechanic, but word of mouth is pretty powerful. I was once in a real bind for cash and asked some friends and co-workers if they needed any work done to their vehicles. after doing some simple stuff for them (alternator, oil changes, tranny flush, exhaust gaskets, oil pan and valve cover gaskets) they referred their friends to me for bigger jobs. I've done everything from head gaskets, clutch swaps, full motor rebuilds, welding jobs, and even high performance tuning since then. When I was in school to get my ASE certification, they gave me access to both their all data pro and to shop key pro. that was always my go to for projects on vehicles that I've never touched before. When the customer would ask for an estimate, I would tell them what the book calls for and charge them a flat rate $45/Mitchell hour for labor. sometimes it works out in my favor; other times not so much. I remember doing a clutch job on an old school Toyota corolla that called for 5.1hrs and I did in under 2. that was nice. but on another occasion I had to just replace the battery on a 2003 Cadillac that called for .3 hours and it took me 45 minutes just to find the damn thing (it was under the back seat btw). a lot of jobs I've had over the years required dealer specialty tools. some I would buy knowing I would eventually need them again (like the infamous T70 for our cars' front diff) and other tools I would either rent, or just MacGyver the hell out of it. that said, I have three big ass tool boxes in my garage now that are completely full. I could probably sell them and put my kid through college Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTEASER Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 Back in 1993 I did a clutch in a 1974 Honda Civic for a guy I knew, charged him $500 including parts which was about $400 cheaper than the shop wanted. It took me 8 hours and I ended up having to call my friend over for some help. Did it in the driveway with basic tools. What a PITA! I was a little over my head but got it done. That was the last time I worked on a car for someone without knowing the platform well. GTEASER's 2012 Legacy GT - Sold GTEASER's 2009 XTeaser - Sold GTEASER's 1992 Legacy SS - Sold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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