Dealers introduced Pickup & Delivery (P&D) to defend retention. They introduced Mobile Service to grow the business.
On the surface, the two appear similar: both remove the customer’s trip to the dealership. Operationally and financially, they are fundamentally different models.
Pickup & Delivery relocates the shop visit.
Mobile Service eliminates it.
That distinction determines cost structure, throughput, and long-term profitability.
Consider a routine 30,000-mile service:
Average customer-pay RO: $240
Flat-rate labor: 1.5 hours
A dealership offers two convenience options:
Let’s evaluate the economics — not the marketing.
The vehicle still goes to the shop. You’ve simply added transportation around it.
There are two common operating models.
Two employees retrieve and return the vehicle.
Typical logistics per RO:
Labor cost
3 hrs × $18 = $54
Vehicle operating cost
~25–30 miles × $0.65 = ~$18–20
Total transportation cost per RO: $72–74
That equals roughly 30% of RO revenue consumed by logistics alone.
And the vehicle still occupies a service bay.
Porter retrieves vehicle via rideshare.
Labor
1.5 hrs × $18 = $27
Rideshare
$40–60
Vehicle cost
~$10
Total transportation cost: $77–97 per RO
Again — same shop capacity used. No additional production created.
Pickup & Delivery improves customer satisfaction.
But financially it behaves like this:
Every additional RO increases expense without increasing capacity.
You’re scaling logistics, not production.
Now perform the same $240 RO at the customer’s location.
The repair still takes 1.5 hours — same technician labor as in-shop — so we isolate only the transportation component.
Assumptions:
Technician rate: $35/hr
Drive labor
0.67 hrs × $35 ≈ $23
Van operating cost
15 miles × $0.75 ≈ $11
Total incremental transportation cost: ~$34 per RO
No service bay used.
| Porter + Rideshare | Two Drivers | Mobile Service | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drive-time Labor | $27 | $54 | ~$23 |
| Rideshare | $40–60 | $0 | $0 |
| Vehicle Cost | ~$10 | $18–20 | ~$11 |
| Total cost per RO | $77–97 | $72–74 | ~$34 |
| Model | Annual Cost |
|---|---|
| Porter + Rideshare | $77k–$97k |
| Two Drivers | $72k–$74k |
| Vehicle Cost | ~$34k |
Mobile saves $40k–$63k per year before considering capacity gains.
One mobile van:
Three vans:
~$540,000 annual revenue
No building expansion.
No additional bays.
No added congestion.
Pickup & Delivery is a retention tool.
Mobile Service is a production platform.
P&D helps you keep customers. Mobile helps you grow service absorption.
P&D scales cost. Mobile scales revenue.
Convenience alone does not create profitability.
The winning model is the one that changes the cost structure.
Pickup & Delivery makes service easier for the customer. Mobile Service makes service easier — and economically better — for the dealership.
It cuts transportation cost roughly in half, unlocks capacity beyond the shop’s walls, and converts convenience from an expense into a growth engine.
If you’re deciding between expanding P&D or launching Mobile Service, the decision isn’t operational — it’s financial.
Dealers who understand this early gain a permanent fixed-ops advantage.