Rent a bay

H

Hammie

Octane Boostaholics
Lads

I know we are all in different parts of the country, But alot of us dont have access to a garage to do our own maintenance work!
If someone was to set up a garage in your area that you can use to do your own work with the aid of a lift would you use it? ie. ring up and book a space for whatever length of time you want...... the bay comes with a lift (tools accessible if you dont have everything you need) and oil/fluid disposal facilities. would you use it?
I know its been talked about and talked about, but I think if it was setup properly it would be a fantatic business venture and would definitely be something that we could all use!!!! Weather its for Track Cars, Own Cars or a Car that we have promised a member of our families that we would fix something on! Its all the same......

Whats your views Pro's & Con's of such a place?
Also there would have to be the obligitory Discount for repeat users & clubs etc.....
 
thats a great idea and would take off big time.........
only down side i can see is insurance for some thing like that ,
and the fact you could get lads that have no clue (i know a few) :icon_eyes:
but think they know it all and would end up hurting themselves and then your in to claim city :hammerhead:

just my thoughts on it buddy :thumbsup:
 
I thought of that end of it too......
There would have to be a fully qualified mechanic employed in the premisis that would be able to tell you whats what....
There are legal implications of having unqualified persons working on cars, however your only renting them a space to do what they would otherwise be doing at home on the footpath / road outside their own homes......

Plus after a while (pending the business takes off) you could invest in tyre changing machinery etc.....

I think the best thing about it, is the place would be properly kitted out in such a way that if the rentabay service didnt take off.... you could just hire more mechanics and run it as a normal garage!!!
 
I'd use it. Only thing i'd have against it would be if it was open to the public, how long would it be before tools started disappearing or getting destroyed by using them wrong.
 
its a close one to call, i could see a need for it and a few lads using it but i dont think there would be enough interest to make it into a business.

they already they do in england but they have a big car culture over there and a bigger population.

lots of jobs in garages take longer than there suppose to because something goes wrong, like a shired bolt or something, it could get messy
 
Insurance is a problem, I looked into it over a year ago.
It wouldnt be long until some clown would take you to the cleaners by his own wrong doing :new_2gunsfiring_v1:
 
As Pete said... public liability is a big issue. :wall:

Good idea... but probaly not cost effective in this country with insurance costs. Market may not have the same demand too compared to UK too! :dontknow:
 
one of the places i was working in Holland had a car lift on site, the guys had all chipped in, 5-6 of them and they bought it. Anyone that wanted to use it had to receive full training on it. Not sure how the insurance on it works though, must find out
 
DUFFMAN said:
lots of jobs in garages take longer than there suppose to because something goes wrong, like a shired bolt or something, it could get messy
Click to expand...

This would then have a knock on affect when it comes to renting the space. If people are in a hurry to finish for the next person that rented the space then mistakes can happen.
Also who would be responsible for vehicles leaving the premises in an unroadworthy condition?

Great idea, but cant see it working to to cost issues with public liability, tools getting knicked or broken.
 
These are the cons that I had thought of.....
Just wondered what else would have to be taken into account!!!!

Might be easier in the long run just to wait till im buyin a new gaff and make sure there is a Garage big enough that I can put a lift into it for myself!!!
Odviously Id not be usin it all the time and if anyone else had a job to do (within the club) and it was handy for them I would give them access.........
 
Other issue is with unskilled work your going to get mistakes, mistakes consume time, so what if a lad has his clutch out and can't get it back in for what ever reason, it's going to run over into the next booking...plus you'll have to charge him for the time his car is there, then he'll have to make his own way home and back the next day to try again?
It's alright fcuking it up when its in your own drive, the pressure of time constraints and paying an hourly penalty for your mistakes would be a big turn off for me anyway.
 
i have looked into this before and the main problem is insurance no one would give me a quote on it as its too high risk
 
i thought of this myself, but it would be the insurance that kills, , even looked at premises

equipment -u would charge a deposit before anyone got anything, like £50,and someone to actually put cars on ramps, etc

check out these guys, they even have franchises

http://www.pitstartgarage.com/

plus the ever expanding gene pool of peopel who would try to take off an exhaust when its still piping not and then sue u, for not having a disclaiming say exhausts are hot!
 
Hammie ,

How's tricks ?
I wouldn't be overly concerned about how long customers use the ramp.
ie. You charge per hour or part of :thumbsup: so hopefully lads will end up going over
their requested time and you earn more ??????'s


You just need to be aware of this and not book customers back to back , if it becomes a success and business grows
it will be much easier to mange with extra ramps ...................and lets be honest if you have a que waitting to use this service in the
first year or two , your bank manager will think your some business Guru :thumbsup:

Insurance is a c*nt but that's the Joy's of business in Ireland , if you can justify the cost and still make a profit, go for it , It's not like you
have any other choice .

To get insurance like this , you need to sit down with a commerical broker go through all the options and let them sort it
and they will. I recommend (Arachas) 021 4270505


My only concern would be: is there a market for it ? we have what i suppose 250 / 300 members here but how many could actually
go under a car and fix a prob ????? i know all i could do is make it worse .


Do your research , get all the cost's and if the figures look good and your happy to put in the hours GO-FOR-IT .

Another angle here would be to do a basic servicing class ................i.e you teach lads like me who love cars but
don't know how to service them , oils , plugs , etc...... and they'll also b e new customers.


If you have any questions send me a PM.




Niall. :thumbsup:
 
Niall

It looks like you are on the same wave length as myself!!! All the points you raised there are whats been going thru my head!
I have an appointment to see an insurance company at the end of july to get figures etc..... (cant remember their name off hand)

I was thinkin of starting off small with 4 bays and only 2 lifts (maybe put small drive on ramps into the other 2 bays)
I have spoken to a friend of mine who would gladly rent 1 bay off me for 3 months at a time so he could go out on his own as a mechanic!!!
Basically all I get from it is the advertising of people using him, and I get the rent for the bay, He gets all the profits from the business!
So it would work out mutually beneficial to us both!
I have to work out costs and what I actually want to put into it tool wise etc.....
Also there are ways and means of keeping myself safe from some numpty who puts his wheels on inside out and wrecks his car! I have to sit down with a solicitor or a lawyer to iron out all the clauses etc.....

I think there is a market for it and at the moment am starting to get everything put onto paper before I start the Market research properly!
Also have to look into business placement as Passing trade is always good! If people see the garage there then they will think of calling in some time to see what its all about!!!
 
Well Hammie i wish you all the best , if i can be of any assistance please don't hesitate to ask .
Infairness you seem to have all your T's crossed and I's dotted :thumbsup:


Hmmm maybe an ISDC : "who's got the cleanest underbody" :icon_grin: :icon_grin: Day out
might be an idea for the Grand Opening :thumbsup:



Niall.
 
Niallyboy said:
Another angle here would be to do a basic servicing class ................i.e you teach lads like me who love cars but
don't know how to service them , oils , plugs , etc...... and they'll also b e new customers.
Click to expand...

Something i would be VERY interested in...have been wanting to learn more but dont know where to look :wall:
 
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