Opinion: Mobile Mechanics and New Expectations Are Transforming Dealership Service

For decades, the service department operated much the same way. Customers brought their vehicles to the dealership, advisors wrote up the repair orders, and technicians performed the work. The service drive served as the center of the customer experience.

That model is changing. Mobile service is taking routine maintenance beyond the dealership, while AI-powered tools are helping service departments keep customers informed and service operations connected from scheduling through follow-up.

Capacity remains a challenge for many service departments. Traditionally, when appointment schedules filled up and service bays were at capacity, the solution was to add capacity through more bays, a larger facility or another location. However, real estate is expensive, and additional space isn’t always available, particularly in dense markets. Mobile service emerged as another way to increase capacity.

In a recent Ted Ings roundtable, Brian Benstock, general manager of New York City’s Paragon Honda, estimated that approximately 30% to 37% of the work currently performed in a service bay could be completed outside a dealership. That realization is prompting many operators to rethink where and how service needs to occur.

Rather than requiring every customer to come to the dealership, mobile service allows routine maintenance, recalls and certain repairs to be completed at a customer’s home or workplace.

Dealers who go mobile free up service bays for higher-complexity repairs. And customers gain flexibility. When service comes to the customer, a lot of the friction associated with a traditional service visit goes away. There’s no drive to the dealership, no shuttle to arrange and no waiting room, making it easier for customers to fit service into their day.

Mobile service offers marketing benefits as well. Every branded van on the road puts the dealership in front of more people. When a technician pulls into a customer’s driveway, neighbors see it. At a workplace, coworkers see it. And a good experience can lead customers to talk or post about the service, telling others that the dealership will come to them.

There’s a lot of coordination behind every mobile service visit, though. Appointments have to be routed correctly. Technicians need the right information in the field. And recommendations identified during a visit need to make their way back to the dealership. Mobile technicians also spend more time interacting directly with customers in their homes and workplaces, which calls for a different mix of skills than a traditional shop environment.

As mobile service expands, communication becomes even more important. When the customer and the vehicle are no longer sitting at the store, updates, recommendations and follow-up become the primary connection between the customer and the dealership. Scheduling, updates, approvals and follow-up all have to stay connected as service becomes a three-location conversation: the dealership, the mobile shop and the customer’s driveway.

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