Hi folks - just a quick note to introduce ourselves. We're setting up a DIY garage facility in Balloo Avenue, Bangor and will be open at the end of August. We're equipped with car lifts, motorcycle lifts, headlight alignment equipment, air tools and hand tools, all of which is available to the public to rent on a time basis. Basically, we're set up so that anyone can carry out repairs and/or service their own vehicles in a purpose built unit, in a warm, dry and friendly atmosphere. We're fully insured and have a mechanic on site in case you need assistance or advice. All 3 business partners are from a motorsport background (sprints / hills, rallying & karting) and we will also have corner-weight scales and basic alignment tools to facilitate car set-up. Prices have not yet been firmed up but, as a guide, a lift bay will be approx £20 per hour and a non-lift bay approx £10 per hour (all plus VAT). We will also be running a tiered membership scheme (ranging from £5 to £30 per month) which will make members eligible for discount on bay and tool hire, as well as discounts from some affiliated companies. Discounts will also be available to members of certain recognised NI car clubs. For further info please visit our website here , email us here or visit our Facebook page here Regards The Motor Gym
I can't see why not, lol. We'll be working through the pricing plan in the next week or so and will have something firmed up ASAP. We're currently fitting-out the premises and aim to be open for Monday 30th August, sooner if possible. Peter
Meant to say, anyone registering for our mailing list on the website will be entered in a draw to win a tool chest worth £300. Peter
sounds like a good idea and good luck with it. how do you stop tools going missing though?? do people have to sign them out when they come to use it and then sign them back in to someone behind a counter?
Tools will be signed in and out via a token system (everything is barcoded and scanned as well for invoicing purposes) so that we can keep a track of things.
It's certainly not cheap, but we've got £3m of Public Liabilty cover as well as traditional 'garage' insurance - as you can well imagine, insurance was one of the key issues we investigated before we gave the project the full go-ahead.
Nice to see an original idea. If you need any help with finance, accounts, tax or business systems give me a shout
Sounds like a great idea to me although to be honest at £24 p/h inc vat for the lift, it ain't a whole lot cheaper than a mechanic in many cases?
personally I think its a brilliant idea, for those handy with a spanner and without access to ramps it`ll be a massive money saver. You just have to cut down the timewasting and get stuck in i know personally i`m funny about who i let work on my car, and if i can i`d rather do it myself
ive been wondering when a place like this would appear. sounds good to me! access to a lift is something that will be handy for all, was a royal pain in the ass fitting an exhaust system to the mera with only ramps available
That's the full 'walk-in' price we charge for 1 hour - after that we will charge in 15 minute increments, eg, if your work takes you 1hr 10mins, we only charge for 1 1/4 hours, not the full 2hrs. And we don't charge by the person, ie, if you bring a few mates along to help you the price is still the same. Also, If you join our membership scheme you will get further discounts on these rates, as well as pre-booking privileges, on top of any discounts we will offer to members of certain clubs. Peter
That's fairly much the idea behind it all - we've all said something along the lines of "...if only we had a ramp this job would have taken a fraction of the time." For example, an oil change can be done in about 15 mins...... Peter
what if you are working on your car and something happens it that it cant be driven. ie if you break something while working is there somewhere to keep the car ie your carpark, whats are the costs of this and who is responsible for it? im only asking for other members as i dont think i would even try to change the oil in my car lol
That's a fair point and, again, something we've considered. Obviously the bays are rented on a continual time basis however we do understand that this scenario will occasionally occur. We want to try to maintain a 'dormant' bay within the unit that could be used for parking a defunct car for a short time, ie, overnight, and we would understandably have to make a nominal charge for this as it would possibly affect our insurance. That said, if we are fully booked up and a defunct car is using up valuable space we will have to look at how much this affects our revenue and possibly charge accordingly. In any event, we have parking spaces outside for up to 4 customers cars within the compound and, worst-case, a defunct vehicle could be parked out there for a short time. We also have a mechanic on site who can advise on issues if necessary or, for a fee, carry out any works for you. Peter
I like your idea, but say for instnace someone wants to fit a clutch, at say £20 per hour appx 5 hrs for a standard clutch would it not be just as cheap and far easier to get a garage to do it?
This is a great idea, but your prices certainly dont add up to good value. I have had work done in places that only charge £15 per hour. Would this money include the use of a tool-box?? Or would the customer bring their own? Yes and then when you realise that Autospares have given you the wrong clutch, and you have to spend two hours running about looking a replacement the price really goes up.
Unfortunately we can't legislate for the differing abilities of all our clientele - everyone should, of course, weigh this up and determine which is the best value for their own particular need. For example, we wouldn't expect someone to use our premises for something like an engine swap or a restoration project as this would definitely be cost prohibitive - but someone who's relatively competent with tools can certainly get work done for much less than it would cost them to go to a garage and/or much faster and easier than it would be to do the work lying on the driveway. And even someone with basic mechanical ability will more than likely be able to carry out a service for less than most garages charge. Peter