Isuzu Diesel Cabovers

Here is some good advice for any mobile oil change business operator. Get your pen and paper out because the information I am about to give you is golden. It can aid you in making the $100/hr mark I was talking about and you can really get a lot of these if you follow my sales advice I wrote in another post.

Target Diesel Isuzu Cabovers. This is a common commercial vehicles for many businesses and over the last five years at least 30-40% of them have switched to diesels. I think they are called the Isuzu NPR Turbo Intercooled Box Vans as well. These vehicles pay.

The great thing about these trucks for a mobile oil change company is they are easy to service. You can perform an oil change on these diesel vehicles in twenty minutes. They usually take about 14-15 quarts of 15W-40 motor oil. When I first started doing these I would get the oil filter from NAPA but then I found out that they get all their filters from WIX and just spray paint their name on them and take off the "5" or "4" for air filters. Anyway if you have a WIX supplier, which I highly recommend, then the number is WIX 57521. If you do not have one and have to go through NAPA then the number is NAPA 7521. The air filter is easy to change on these as well but they last for minimum of two years unless you live in a very dusty place. Any cabover before 2005 will take a WIX 56506, just to let you know.

Here is what I will say about these vehicles. They cannot be taken to your nearby Wal Mart Express Lube or Midas to get an oil change because they will not have an oil filter. All the companies that have these will most likely be taking them into an Isuzu or International Dealer. You can easily charge $120. If they complain about the price explain to them that the oil filter is expensive. It does cost $20 by the way but they can easily retail for $35. Case in point you should be able to make minimum of $60 from each cabover. Thats without any add ons. If you service two in a hour then you make $120/Hr. You might be able to push wiper blades (they take 22"), a coolant flush if the truck has more than 50,000, or a rear end fluid change. I love these vehicles. They are a pleasure to work on.

I just got a call from a company that I did a sales call on three months ago. They have two of these diesel cabovers. This is where effort pays off even if you do not see the results right away. Anyway I was picking up some parts when I noticed the truck, an Isuzu, of a famous brewing company in town that I absolutely love. I followed the truck and spoke with the delivery guy driving it. He told me who to talk to. Then I went to the location and showed the fleet manager the van. He really liked the van which is why I said earlier that its always highly important to have a professional good looking oil change van and equipment. I told him the truth "I was in the area, spoke with one of your guys, and thought maybe you could use a service like this." He liked it. But he didn't need an oil change now so I gave him my card and a magnet and left. It wasn't a big fleet so I did not write it down like I should have. He called me today while I was at my computer sipping a hot cup of cofee working on my waste oil boiler blog asking if we could get his trucks this week. See how a little effort pays off.

The great thing about the mobile oil change business is while I will say time and time again how its not as easy as people think it is....its an easy sell once you get going, are established, and know what to look for. If you are able to make it you will train your eye to see vehicles that pay well for your time and vehicles that will not. Speaking of vehicles that do not Isuzu Cabovers that are gas are not nearly as profitabe unless you were to do at least five of them. They are just as easy by the way, if not more than their diesel counterparts, and take a PZ-45 oil filter and six quarts of 5W-30 or 10W-30. Just don't try and undercut the competion on these because they still are commercial vehilces and you can charge a little bit more than passenger cars. A lot of times companies who own the gas ones still take them to the dealers as well.