Originally Posted by
Cobra4B
At the dealership level, if I remember correctly, the money is made in sales... selling cars keeps the doors open. The service department gets the majority of their customers via warranty work. That right there pays for the overhead etc. etc.
Now maybe the customer-pay segment is just too small for the dealer to give a shit and they do just fine off of warranty work. But it'd be interesting to actually analyze the numbers. My huntch is that if you moved to a direct bill system vs. flat rate and were competitve on parts prices then you could grow the business.
Actually, service keeps the doors open. Sales isn't shit. Service makes most of the income, and keeps the customers coming back to buy cars. Service sells most cars to begin with because if they're not happy with the service they arn't buying from you again. Who do you think is making money for the dealership while sales are in the toilet? Customer pay is a huge part of income, and customers routinely come back for routine service and preventative maintenance, not jsut warranty work. Not everyone is looking to do their own work, knows cars, and takes the cheap way out like you are describing.
Seriously, you are way off, not being rude, but look into it.