Services at nonselling dealer

dougrainer wrote:

usersmanual wrote:
I have been involved in the RV sales and repair business since 1985
we for the most part always make money on warrenty repair but not quit at the same rate as our door rate.Sometimes we are shorted on time by a manufacturer and the next time we short the manufacturer so it all works out in the end
I have dealt with many manufacturers over the years you have to know them all to play the game

Well, I have been involved in just the DEALER SERVICE end for 37 years and I can guarantee you do not make money on warranty. Not when you add in the cost of warranty clerks and all the parts order and returns and the lower Flat Rate times involved. There is NO game. Doug

I agree totally. Anyone who has had to deal with manufacturers knows it's their game in their ball park. They set the rules to their advantage and change them at will to make sure they protect the company's bottom line.

As an example GM came out with the 350 "diesel" in the early 1980's. Originally they paid about 27 hours labor time to remove, rebuild, and reinstall an engine.

When they started dropping like flies the company steadily reduced the time paid. Within a year the rate went from 27+ hours down to 9 hours. The job couldn't possibly be done in that amount of time. Each vehicle they took in for repairs cost the dealership 18 hours in labor time. The dealership I worked for did in excess of 200 units per year. That's 3,600 hours of lost labor time. At todays labor rates it would cost a dealer $450,000.00 in labor alone. That doesn't include the time the warranty clerks spent submitting the claims, or the shop supplies used.

How many years can a dealership sustain those kind of losses and survive?