17 Essentials for a Successful Home Mechanic Side Hustle

An at home mechanic side hustle can be a great opportunity to make extra cash and get the ball rolling if you are thinking about going all in on a full blown repair shop one day.

All you need is a space, tools, and customers to get the ball rolling. In this article, I will show you the 18 things to help you get started, and eventually grow your business to whatever level you want.

I started my home based mechanic side hustle in 2015. I was just a tech at the time and I knew nothing about owning a business. I still remember making the leap to start my LLC. I was originally going to start a vending business but quickly realized what I knew well was repairing cars.

Using my garage and some elbow grease I figured it all out slowly, and you can too. By following this advice and doing things right, you can definitely build yourself a profitable side hustle fixing cars. Let’s dive into the things you need to have and think about to get started right.

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What are The 18 Essentials to Starting Your Home Mechanic Side Hustle?

Working for someone else as a mechanic is one thing, running your own shop is another, especially as a home based mechanic. There are many things to set up and consider when deciding to take that leap towards business, either a side hustle or a full-blown shop.

The beauty of starting things as a side hustle is you can continue working while building up your reputation and business without taking on the full risks that come with dropping your job and going out on your own.

1. The Right Space

When considering a side hustle fixing cars at home, common sense is to ask yourself whether you have adequate space to do so. If you want to be a home mechanic master and you are jacking cars up on the side of the road in front of your house it won’t be long until you give up or get reported.

You’re gonna be working on cars during evenings and weekends, after your regular work hours. Don’t forget to consider the potential issues this may cause with your neighbors or the town. I recommend… Never mind, you MUST maintain a quiet and respectful operation for the people in your neighborhood.

Being forced to shut down because A-Hole Fred down the street called the cops is the last thing you want.

2. You Need Customers

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Big surprise here, a home mechanic is nothing without customers. The usual places to start are friends and family, after a while word gets around that you are good and you may end up busier than you want to be.

Your goal is to always do more than you are paid for in the beginning. I know many of you are shaking in your seats right now but trust me.

Do a little more than you need to, this is what builds a reputation and it will accelerate your growth drastically. I remember washing every customer’s car in the driveway after any service.

My wife was jealous because her car was dirty but taking 15 minutes to do a quick wash has made me mucho cashola, trust me.

3. Consider Starting an LLC

An LLC offers advantages for taxes and liability. You can set up vendor accounts and bank accounts with the LLC, if you are serious about doing business in the United States an LLC is a non-negotiable thing to have set up. It’s much less of a daunting task than people think.

Being a home mechanic does come with some grey areas legally, depending on where you live.

I always went along the lines of paying taxes and setting things up like the real deal from the start. Doing things this way makes taking the leap into full-on business down the road later on much easier.

You will gain the knowledge you need to run a business, without taking a huge risk in the beginning. Being a great mechanic is one thing, running a business is quite another, start the LLC and learn the business side of things right from the start.

4. A Business Phone Number

I have a separate phone line set up just for the business. This helps in many ways, trust me, when you get rolling the phone is going to ring while you are working at your regular job. A quick look at my phone tells me if it’s a customer on the line or someone in my immediate circle.

Setting up a separate line is cheap and easy using apps.

Having a separate phone line also eliminates that weird feeling of giving any schmuck your phone number. Remember you are going to be working out of your house, you need to screen the people you are doing work for.

My clients are all people that I know through other customers, as a home-based mechanic I make sure anyone I work for is referred to me by trusted people, if not I make sure I get a good feel of the person and they live in my area.

5. Business Cards

Get some professional business cards made up as soon as you set up the new line. This comes across as professional and reputable. Include some of the services you specialize in and make sure to design a logo to go on it as well.

If you have a website have the QR code put on the back so potential customers can quickly scan it and see your site. This eliminates the awkward conversation of you trying to explain what you do at the house.

Business cards are pretty cheap and well worth the cash. setting up cards is easy and fast, don’t skip this part.

6. Jacks and stands, or a Lift

Setting up the LLC and getting some customers is the easy part, now you need to be able to actually do the work. One of the first pieces of shop equipment to get is a lift or a jack with stands.

You need to be able to quickly and safely lift up cars, working at home can be limiting, don’t let this hold you back. If you are a good mechanic the work will come, invest in this thing properly at the beginning and reap the rewards later.

My garage at home has low ceilings, rather than let this stop me I found a midrise two-post lift that was designed specifically for my situation. I cut open my floor and poured 18 inches of 5,000 PSI concrete to mount it on. I was nervous and many people told me I was crazy. Looking back now that lift has paid for itself many times over.

Don’t go cheap here, mechanics need to lift cars safely…. Period.

7. Air Compressor

Car repair relies heavily on air tools, although there are many electric tools on the market these days you will always need a good air compressor for your home shop.

Investing in a good quality air compressor with a decent tank size will ensure that you have sufficient air supply to power your tools without interruptions. Additionally, look for models that offer quieter operation so that you can work comfortably at any time of the day or night.

Having an efficient and reliable air compressor is crucial for your home mechanic side business. It enables you to use pneumatic tools such as impact wrenches, air ratchets, and air drills. These tools can significantly speed things upnand make it easier to tackle various tasks.

8. Good Lighting

You gotta see to succeed, good lights are a must in any shop. Layout the lights strategically and make sure the overall flow and lighting work for what you need to do.

When I started out I was using two pull chain lights on the ceiling to see and it was absolutely miserable to get anything done. I recommend LED light bars and good rechargeable droplights to make things easier.

9. Safety Equipment

We can all shrug off safety until your ass needs it. If you are working at your house you need to keep shop safety in mind. Invest in a good fire extinguisher and smoke alarms. Keep a first aid kit around and safety glasses.

I said it before and I’ll say it again… TREAT YOUR SIDE HUSTLE LIKE A REAL BUSINESS FROM THE START! This includes safety and other aspects. Treat it as if you had a big building and people working for you.

10. Invoice Software Is a Must

My accountant wants to kill me every year, or at least he used to. I started keeping track of the side business with software just like a full-time business and never looked back. People like the professional look of invoices, there are multiple benifits of the right invoicing software.

Keeps track of customer base
You have a history of what you have done on specific vehicles
Taxes are much easier
You can track your side hustle progress
You can start keeping a light inventory list

There are a few good invoicing tools to use and some bad as well. The key here is finding an affordable option that does what you need without the huge price tag. I use software that I have modified to work for auto repair.

11. Think About Insurance

Whether you opt for insurance or not is up to you. An active part of your side hustle will be making decisions on how to deal with customers and situations. The area is grey when you are doing this on the side legally, however, you are ultimately responsible for everything you fix in your garage.

Things happen and being prepared is key, you can’t just turn your back if something happens.

There are options available for side hustle shops and I encourage you to look into them. The line is fine between making enough money on the side and paying for insurance, you may need to grow a bit before going down this road.

12. An Oil and Parts Disposal Plan

Fixing cars creates a lot of things you need to get rid of. Unless you are from the 1930’s you probably are not going to dump used motor oil down your well. You need to think about what you are going to do with old oil, coolant, and parts.

Some garages will take waste oil because they use it for heat, coolant on the other hand may be harder to get rid of.

Getting a few big jugs for oil and coolant is a great start, if possible build a relationship with a parts store or a shop that will help you get rid of waste.

13. You Need Heat or AC

Depending on where you live it can be cold or hot as hell. Heat can be dealt with, maybe it’s not the best way to work but cold is a different story. Working in freezing temps with no heat with your hands is not a good look.

Make sure that you have some way to heat your garage, there are many options available that won’t break the bank.

14. A Decent Toolbox

If you are in the auto repair business you know the cringe-worthy prices of toolboxes on the Snap-on or Matco truck. The fact is you will need a toolbox for your home garage but you don’t need to spend a fortune to get one.

There are many options that are good quality and won’t break the bank. Get a decent box, organize it well, and move forward. Too many guys get hung up on how big or expensive their toolbox was. Let them talk and get what you need to make money at home.

Once you have a toolbox at home you can slowly start building up the tools that stay home, trust me after a while trying to think of what tools you need to bring home for a job gets old.

15. Basic Mechanic Tools

It doesn’t take a brain surgeon to know a great way to fix cars is by using tools. You are going to need the basic tools that should be in every mechanic’s toolbox.

Screwdrivers
Wrenches
Pliers
Sockets and Ratchets

You get the idea, when I first started doing side work in my garage I would get beyond pissed when I didn’t have a simple socket or screwdriver I needed. Use the tools at work as a reference and slowly buy the same things for home, the only difference is I would buy cheaper options when they are available.

16. Specialty Tools

Starting out you won’t really know everything you need, after a while however you will start to see patterns in the cars you fix and what your customers need. Always keep a look out for things that can improve your side hustle and drive it closer to an actual shop.

Don’t be afraid to invest in things that can bring in revenue. One example I have is when I started seeing some jobs that I had to turn away because I didn’t have an AC machine to recover and charge systems.

I started looking around and found a used R134a machine for sale. I hesitated but then took the leap, shortly after I sold a huge job on a Jaguar that brought me over $3000, a job that I would have turned down because I didn’t have that machine before.

Invest, Invest, Invest!

17. A Good Scanner

Let’s get this out of the way now, you need a good scanner. There is no way you can start making real money on the side and look professional without a scan tool these days. I went through that period way back in the day, before scanners were cheap enough for the average tech to buy.

I would have to ask my boss if I could borrow the cheapest scanner he had, just so I could attempt to diagnose a car at home or clear a check engine light.

Today there is no excuse to not have a scanner of some sort, stay away from scanners that are too cheap as they can do more harm than good sometimes. You can find great options on Amazon that won’t break the bank.

18. The Right Mindset

Having the right mindset going in will ensure things stay on course. Even though you are starting a side hustle things can grow fast if you want them to. It won’t always be easy and things will come up, understanding that this will happen and you are the one responsible is the right place to start.

The Secret To a Successful Home Mechanic Side Hustle

I have been in the car repair business for well over 25 years and there have been many times my side hustle saved my bacon. If we are going on a vacation, I pull in a few jobs so I have extra cash. Wife need money for Christmas for the kids? Pull in a few brake jobs.

The possibilities are endless, setting this up like a real business from the start and following these guidelines will put you on the path to success.

That is the secret, SET THIS UP AS LEGIT AS POSSIBLE from the start. Act like you are quitting your job and opening up a shop of your own. Reinvest what you make back into the business and take care of your customers better than anyone else.

Know your business

This article skims on some ket things but is far away from every thing, before you attempt this make sure that you are ready to take this on technically. You are responsible and there is no one to answer to but you, this is great freedom but you better make sure you know what you are doing before you start.

I was in the business for years before I started my home mechanic side hustle.

What Are The Benefits of a Home Mechanic Side Hustle?

There is a great feeling that comes with starting a side hustle fixing cars at home. The world is a tough place to get ahead in and having a skill is crucial to making ends meet.

A home mechanic side hustle offers you the real advantage of getting money when you need it. Your boss can fire you, you can get laid off or maybe a big unexpected expense hits you. Having your garage set up means you can bring in work to stay afloat.

The beauty is you can push when you want, and slow down when you want.

The possibilities are endless and setting this up like a real business from the start and following these guidelines will put you on the path to success.

Conclusion

Setting up a side hustle is one of the best things you can do for yourself if you have the expertise, skill, and mindset to work hard and succeed. I have been a professional mechanic for over 25 years, when I decided to start my side garage I was confident that I could do it and I did.

Many times I have been far out of my comfort zone and you need to expect, and accept that this is going to happen to you. Keep pushing forward, take pride in everything you do, and take care of people like they are your family, and the cash will come.

Here are some common questions about home mechanics

How do mechanics make six figures?

Mechanics who make six figures and above are very experienced. All mechanics at this level have a vast knowledge and understanding of vehicle systems and fundamentals. Starting a side hustle can greatly increase the pay scale if it’s done correctly.

Is being a home mechanic stressful?

Being a mechanic carries more stress than the typical job, things go wrong and there are a lot of responsibilities laid out for the technician. When you are doing things at home on the side you need to remember that you are the one responsible for everything. Make sure you are ready for this before starting.

Can I build and operate a shop out of my home garage?

Yes, keep in mind however that a side hustle usually means that you are operating under the radar a bit and you will most likely be missing the required permits and licenses to operate a business leagally. This article is intended to provide information and is not legal advice.

18 Ideas For Starting a Profitable Home Mechanic Side Hustle