Automotive Service
Bookkeeping for auto repair shops tracking parts inventory, labor margins, and the gap between shop software and the bank account.
The Industry
An auto shop is two businesses running side by side. Parts and labor. You buy a part for $80, mark it up to $120, install it in an hour you bill at $95. The math looks simple until you factor in the parts that sit on the shelf for months, the cores that never get returned, the jobs that come back for warranty work, and the tech time that doesn’t make it onto a ticket.
Shop management software tracks the work. Estimates, repair orders, customer history, parts lookups. But the numbers in the shop system don’t match the numbers in the bank. Processing fees, timing differences, vendor credits, and cash payments that never got recorded. Somewhere between the repair order and the deposit, the trail gets murky.
Who This Covers
Who This Covers
General repair shops, tire dealers, quick lube, transmission specialists, body and collision, detailing, car washes. Any automotive business dealing with parts inventory, labor billing, and shop software.
What Makes It Different
What Makes It Different
Parts inventory that needs tracking when used, not just when purchased. Labor and parts billed together but taxed differently. Core charges that need to come back as credits. Vendor statements with hundreds of line items. Tech pay structures that vary by shop.
What We Handle
Monthly bookkeeping that reconciles your shop software to your bank account. Parts tracked as inventory and expensed when they go on a job, not when they arrive on the truck. Labor revenue separated from parts revenue so you can see the margin on each. Sales tax handled correctly with parts taxed and labor exempt.
Vendor statements reconciled to catch pricing errors and verify core credits. Payroll for techs whether they’re hourly, flat rate, or commission. Books that show you what the shop actually made, not what the repair orders said it should have made.
Parts and Labor Split
Parts and Labor Split
Revenue and cost tracked separately for parts versus labor. You see the margin on each side of the business. Know whether your parts markup is holding and whether your labor is covering overhead.
Inventory Tracking
Inventory Tracking
Parts expensed when installed, not when purchased. Cost of goods sold that reflects what actually went on jobs. Inventory value that matches what’s actually on the shelf.
Common Problems
Shops that expense parts when purchased can’t see real job profitability. You bought $8,000 in parts this month and billed $12,000 in parts revenue. Looks like a 50% margin. But $3,000 of those purchases are sitting on the shelf, and $2,000 of last month’s purchases went on this month’s jobs. The real margin is different, and you can’t tell which jobs made money.
Sales tax is the other trap. Ohio taxes parts but not labor. If you’re taxing the whole invoice or missing tax on shop supplies, you’re either overpaying or building up liability. Small errors on every ticket add up to real money over a year.
Core Credits Lost
Core Credits Lost
You pay a core charge on the part. You’re supposed to get it back when you return the old one. But cores sit in the back. Credits don’t get verified. Money disappears a few dollars at a time.
Vendor Statement Drift
Vendor Statement Drift
The parts supplier sends a statement with 200 line items. Nobody checks it against what was actually ordered and received. Pricing errors and missed credits go unnoticed.
What Changes
You know your real margins. Parts margin tracked separately from labor margin. Job costing that shows which services make money and which ones barely cover the bay time. Oil changes might be break-even while brake jobs carry the shop. You’ll see it in the numbers instead of guessing.
The shop software and the bank account tell the same story. Vendor statements get reconciled. Core credits get verified. Sales tax gets filed correctly. The books reflect what actually happened, not what the repair orders said should have happened.
Pricing Confidence
Pricing Confidence
Know what jobs actually cost to complete. Set labor rates and parts markup based on real data. Stop underpricing work that looks simple but eats margin.
Cash Visibility
Cash Visibility
Deposits reconciled, credits tracked, timing differences sorted out. Know what you actually have versus what’s still sitting in a processor or owed back from a vendor.
Northwest Ohio’s Trusted Bookkeeping Partner
The Next Step:
A 15-Minute Discovery Call
Let's talk about your current bookkeeping situation. We'll assess your needs, outline a plan of action, and give you a clear quote.
