Small Repairs

[nge]

Just wanting to know how you all are handling labor billing for the smaller things ie Bulbs, Air Filters, Wiper Blades, Cabin Air etc. We tend to charge only a few bucks ($10) for cabin air labor (we make about 70% profit on the part) and no labor for air filters because these are typically done with some other services and sold as an upsale. Wiper Blades are labor free and bulbs are typically $10 installed (not headlights). The thing here is that when you look these things up in the labor guide it seems that they are way overstated. We have seen several cabin airs which took 5 minutes to install but called for .5-.8 hrs which is great profit but seems like highway robbery and hard to justify to the customer. Brake bulbs typically call for .4hrs etc. So just wanted to see how you all are charging for this. I think we are leaving a lot on the table here personally but not sure what the market will pay.

[mspecperformance]

Bulbs and wipers are good to comp on labor but make sure it's stated in the invoice and mention to the customer. Get some value out of it if nothing else, tell the customer you comp these items for great customers like themselves.

[xrac]

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[alfredauto]

We got into the habit of selling a mileage service when doing cabin air filters. If the tech notices low flow or foul air from the vent I'll suggest a 30k mile service. That way we get paid 2 or 3 hours to change the filters and wipers and the customer gets on a maintenance schedule. Most of the mileage maintenance is easy but important. Normally if the cabin filter is clogged the whole car is overdue for the scheduled maintenance service.

 

As for small repairs that take less than 10 minutes I normally dont charge labor, the word of mouth advertising is worth it. It's a fine line I guess between giving away time and providing outstanding customer service.

[mmotley]

I charge labor on just about everything except wiper blades. $10 for air and cabin filters, $15 for bulbs, etc. Some are super easy to do, others suck. It evens out. Also, my employees incentives are based on hours sold, so I would be cheating them if there wasn't any billed hours.

 

... I pay 0.2 for filters, 0.3 for bulbs, 0.5 for tire rotations. Obviously I adjust the labor rate for these specific jobs. This is where you want to start watching effective labor rate and such.

[5 Star Auto Spa]

We do not typically charge any labor for air filter or cabin filter. We do make exceptions for some cabin filters that are more difficult to install. For marker/parking/tag light bulbs we have been charging $5 for labor but after reading this post I think I might increase it. What do you all charge for labor for headlights? Do you go by estimated labor or do you have a general price for most vehicles?

Edited January 11, 2015 by 5 Star Auto Spa

[xrac]

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[FROGFINDER]

We try to do a show and tell. Many vehicles come in with damaged air filter boxes/retainers, tree debris in the cowl and a clogged cabin filter. We vacuum out the debris from the air filter box before we install the new filter and ditto with the cowl.

most air filters .15 labor

most cabin filters .5 labor

most easy bulbs .15 labor

wiper blades n/c labor but we only sell blade assemblies that are of good quality.

 

If the car is due for mileage based service we try to bump it to a proper service.

 

we work off a $139.50 shop rate.

[ABurns]

We charge $10 for bulbs that are easily accessible, wipers and air filters are free. We have been charging book time for cabin filters. Its hard to keep Techs motivated to sell parts they are not getting paid to install but we have been doing it for free for so long now its expected by our customers. Techs are being pulled away from working on paid customer vehicles too install wiper blades outside for free.