Now more than ever before dealerships need Express Maintenance. I truly believe most of us have accepted this but I also believe most of us do not fully understand or even agree with the concept. Being exposed to several dozen dealerships has only convinced me more that the Express Lane is COMPLETELY misunderstood.

Express Service exists to complete MPIs (Multi Point Inspections).

The low skill level service provided in the Express Lane is ideally suited to speed and consistency allowing the maximum number of vehicles through the lane which affords a very high level of inspections which translates to service sales.

The proficiency of the Express Technicians, regarding vehicle inspections, is of primary importance and must be monitored, corrected, and tested on a regular basis. The higher the priority the supervisors place on the MPI the higher the priority the staff will place on them also.

• No Appointment necessary which eliminates an unnecessary cap on volume. An “old fashioned” belief is that setting appointments allows for control of volume and flow through the shop. Which never considers no-shows putting us below capacity every day.
• Express Advisor IS the Dispatcher for the department. The Express Technicians do NOT come under the control, at ANY time, of any other manager.
• Express Technicians work in pairs, two per lift and splitting the responsibilities of Wet Tech/Dry Tech.
• Filter Cabinet is stocked daily and throughout the day by the Parts Department and access is limited to Express Technicians.
• The MPI MUST be completed before ANY other work is performed on a vehicle. This should a dismissible offense if ignored.
•  The Express Advisor needs access the completed inspection report and will monitor the ¼ Turn Policy, ensuring completion of the MPI within the 15-minute window.
• Express Advisor is charged with the responsibility of reviewing the MPI (Vehicle Inspection Report) with the waiting customer no later than 25 minutes after the Tech was assigned the vehicle. This effectively “stops the clock” with the customer and allows for fewer low CSI scores.
• A Dispatch Log is recommended. This will allow an “at-a-glance” view if/when the Express Advisor is otherwise occupied and one of the other Advisors is taking up the slack. The log will clearly show each team, the completed ROs will be crossed off leaving active customers to determine the wait time.
• An Express Team should only require 20 minutes to complete a full-service including tire rotation. In the interest of “walk before we run” let us allow 30 minutes per service. That allows for four full services per hour and 32 per day at a minimum. Some customers will forgo the rotation if it is not presented properly.
• 

The Express Lane offers several revenue streams and additional profit centers that are not presently being exploited. We must stop referring to Oil Changes and begin “reprogramming” ourselves and our customers to refer to Services. Maintenance due by mileage is Dealer Driven based on local driving and weather conditions.

Factory Recommended Mainteances are a simple guideline as to the bare minimum maintenance required for a vehicle. By no means is the Factory Maintenance Schedule applicable to any one market.

“My responsibility, as a factory authorized dealer, is to identify the various types of driving conditions, road surfaces, weather conditions and other variables that will require additional measures to keep the customer’s vehicle not only in top driving condition but also in top “value” condition. A well maintained, documented and cared for vehicle is always worth more than the alternative.”

This is potentially the single most lucrative department in the entire dealership when you factor in the volume, up-sell potential, repair referrals and repeat loyalty that all come from a well operated Express Maintenance operation.