There are many types of car businesses around that are considered profitable. These range from used car dealerships where one sells used cars (or even buys to sell them as well) and to auto body detailing shops  where you can make rides look and feel pretty by applying ceramic coating for cars and such.

If you are passionate about automobiles and want to turn it into a business - it can be done! After all, the auto industry is one of the most important industries in the country. The industry has historically contributed 3-3.5% to the nation’s overall Gross Domestic Product or GDP. In 2018, the market size was at $545 billion - so, yes - there is money to be made here. 

Let’s look at two of the more popular car businesses to see which interests and can turn in a sweet profit for you.

Used car sales/Buy and Sell

Typically, when you leave the lot with a new car, it’s value depreciates significantly. This isn’t the case for cars purchased during the pandemic. According to a report by CNN Business, a dealer selling a one-year-old used car will get about 80% to 85% of its original price. Now, car dealers can sell one-year-old used cars for about 95% of the original price - and that’s just the average. So why the increase? Because of the disruption caused by the pandemic, supplies needed to make new vehicles became scarce.  But pandemic or not, it’s still a lucrative venture.

Auto detailing

Auto detailing or car detailing is an activity of systematically performing operations and procedures that keep a vehicle in its best possible condition. These procedures are done mainly for cosmetic purposes and not mechanical. Car detailing services are much more precise and labor-intensive compared to your regular car wash. Common detailing services include: polishing, paint claying, exterior wash and dry, sealing and waxing, vacuuming, leather trimming, and even perfuming. Paint correction,paint protection film or PPF, and ceramic coating.

Depending on where you are in the country, average costs of detailing services run from $140 -$175 and can even go as high as $300. So, why does this venture make good money? Just like how we want to look good, we want our ride to look good as well. Detailing gives cars a more thorough clean compared to a regular car wash.

Service -based businesses

If you have a car (or two) and even have time to spare, you may consider entering into ride-share services like Uber or Lyft (carpooling can work too!). If you have extra cash, putting up your own taxi fleet or limo service is also a good idea as people still need to go places (plus you can help out others by employing them as drivers), or even teach people how to drive.

There are many car businesses to choose from that can potentially earn you big bucks. But as with any business, it’s always best to do your research first to make sure that youu not only have the capital, but also have a service the market needs.