By Karin White
As reported in this year's "How's Your Business?" annual survey of the Automotive Service Association's independent automotive service and repair facilities, there are an estimated 82,000 independent mechanical repair facilities, and there are approximately 36,330 independent collision repair shops in the United States. Combined, these two segments of the industry enjoy sales of approximately $77 billion - $53 billion for the independent mechanical repair segment and $24 billion for the independent collision repair segment.
Among mechanical shops, the 82,000 figure does not include the approximate 21,495 auto dealerships with service facilities that took in approximately $30 billion ($17 billion in labor and $13 billion in parts) in 2005, according to the National Automobile Dealership Association (NADA).
Among collision shops, the 36,330 figure does not include the approximate 8,383 franchised dealerships with body shops generating an estimated $10 billion in 2005, according to NADA. All totaled, independent and other segments of the automotive service and repair fields result in a $117 billion per year industry.
