A lot goes into running and maintaining a successful appliance repair business, including the perfect fleet of repair service vehicles. Whether you specialize in one appliance, like dryer repairs, or you’re a jack of all trades, the best vehicle for your appliance repair business will have the right features for your needs.
Buying a used truck is a great way to lower the cost of purchasing vehicles for your appliance repair business. However, sometimes the fuel economy and lower insurance policies on newer models can be more cost-effective in the long run.
Continue reading to discover more about what to look for in your fleet vehicles and the best trucks and vans for your appliance repair service.
Discover the top three best commercial automobiles to add to your appliance repair business fleet. Every appliance repair technician needs a reliable truck that can get them to every job site, be it residential, commercial, or industrial.
Appliance repair trucks should be versatile enough to suit your needs. For example, having significant towing capabilities means you can hitch on additional space if you have a larger job while still getting good fuel economy. Continue reading to learn more about the top three best vehicles for appliance repair professionals below.
The Ford Ranger is the best 4x4 truck for an appliance repair business. This powerful vehicle is ideal for all-terrain driving conditions. Whether you service appliances in the snow, rain, or sunshine, this truck will get you where you need to go.
The Ford Ranger seats five passengers comfortably and has plenty of back cab room for large appliances. The large backseat of the Ford Ranger gives drivers the easy accessibility of a van and the back cab storage of a pick-up.
Some of the best features of the Ford Ranger for appliance service company owners include the following:
2023 Ford Ranger Raptor
Check out some of the top things to keep in mind about the Ford Ranger:
The Chevrolet Colorado is a beast on the road and one of the best all-wheel drive vehicles for an appliance repair business. With impressive best-in-class towing capacity, this pick-up truck is a great addition to any appliance company fleet.
The Chevrolet Colorado gives the flexibility to hitch extra storage bins to this heavy-duty truck when needed or use the Five-foot two-inch truckbed to store your gear.
One of the remarkable aspects of the Chevrolet Colorado is the built-in lockable tailgate storage compartment. This feature helps business owners maximize their vehicle storage space and keep equipment safe from the elements and theft. Plus, the compartment has a built-in drainage system, so you can use it as a cooler during your off days.
Some of the impressive features of the Chevrolet Colorado include the following:
Check out some of the top things to keep in mind about the Chevrolet Colorado:
The 2023 Chevrolet Colorado
A group tour vehicle is what some see when they look at the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Cargo van. However, the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Cargo van is a choice option for appliance repair technicians who want lots of storage space and the security of four walls and locking doors.
The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van is a long-lasting option, made with German engineering that you can rely on, that will get years of use in your appliance repair fleet.
Some of the impressive features of the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van include the following:
View some of the key things to look for in the Mercedez-Benz Sprinter Cargo van below:
2023 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Cargo Van
When building your fleet for an appliance repair business, there are a few things you want your trucks or vans to have. Below, we’ll discuss things to look for, like storage space, carrying capacity, racks, fuel efficiency, and more.
One of the most important things to look for when purchasing the best vehicles for an appliance repair business is storage space. Depending on your business and the services you offer, you’ll want ample space for air conditioning equipment, refrigerator repair tools, dishwasher repair equipment, and more.
You have several choices for storage space. The first option is a pick-up truck. Pick-up trucks come with accessories like roofs and covers for the back so you can maximize your storage space.
Vans offer lots of easy-to-access space in the back area of the vehicle. Vans can be customized with wall and roof storage to get the most out of what space you have. Unfortunately, vans still have limited space, especially if you’re working with large appliances like refrigerators.
Cube vans or box trucks are a middle ground between a can and a semi-truck. From the back, a box truck looks like a semi, but from the front, it looks like a pick-up with a box hitched to the back. These vehicles have lots of space to carry multiple pieces of large equipment from one job site to the next. Plus, the lockable back door means easy supply storage and security.
Utilize the space of your pick-up truck by adding a special rack to carry additional equipment for your appliance repair business. Some of the racks you can add to a vehicle include the following:
Even vans and box trucks can be customized with special racks to help strap heavy equipment into place during transport or store tools in an easy-to-access place.
Every vehicle has different load restrictions that could affect your appliance repair services. Your vehicle should bear the weight of heavy equipment like refrigerators, dishwashers, or laundry machines if you hope to succeed in the appliance repair industry.
A pick-up truck or box truck typically has a higher carrying capacity than a van, but do some research for the options you’re considering to determine what the carrying capacities are for each.
The types of doors to access your tools and appliances are something worth considering when buying trucks or vans for your fleet. The kind of door access your vehicle has will depend on which type of vehicle you choose, a pick-up truck, van, or box truck.
If you choose a pick-up truck as the best vehicle for your appliance repair business, you can only access your tools by leaving your vehicle. You may have to open a tonneau cover and ensure tools are properly stored between jobs so they aren’t stolen from the back of the truck.
In contrast, a van lets you reach into the back and grab a clipboard or tool from the driver or passenger seat. At the same time, a box truck has a door in the front cabin to access the back and a back garage-style door for easy loading and unloading of materials.
An appliance repair technician does a lot of driving, so fuel efficiency is a must-have quality in vehicles for an appliance repair business.
Vehicle models grow more fuel efficient with every new release. So consider if buying a used truck or van for your appliance repair service business offsets the long-term fuel savings of a newer model.
If your appliance repair company offers repair services in all types of terrains, choose a vehicle with fuel efficiency that can handle rugged rural roads and bumper-to-bumper traffic.
To determine a vehicle’s fuel efficiency, divide the number of miles driven on one tank by the number of gallons in a full tank. For example, if you get 1,000 miles from 50 gallons of gas, you can drive around 20 miles on one gallon.
To find the cost of your vehicle per mile, divide the total of your gas bill by the number of gallons. Following the above example, if 50 gallons costs $200, it would cost around four dollars to drive 20 miles.
Insurance coverage is a vital part of running a business, especially one in the repair industry. You'll need an insurance policy - or multiple policies - that protect you and your business from unforseen events and accidents.
Alongside regular business insurance coverage, workers compensation insurance (if you have employees), and commercial property insurance to protect your equipment and property against accidental property damage, you need commercial auto insurance like fleet insurance, general liability insurance, appliance repair insurance, and more.
Consult with an accountant and a legal professional to ensure your appliance repair business insurance and all associated car insurance is up to date.
Remember, insurance on newer cars is typically cheaper than on used models, so consider this when budgeting for your new appliance repair vehicle.