What can a mobile mechanic do on the spot?
More than most people expect. RAC WA says a mobile mechanic can do the same logbook service items as a service centre. Batteries, many starting problems, belts, scanning a warning light and plenty of smaller repairs can usually be done in a driveway or a work car park.
The limit is height. RAC WA says rotating and balancing the wheels needs a hoist at a fixed centre, and the same goes for bigger jobs underneath the car: a clutch, a gearbox, most exhaust work. A good mobile mechanic will tell you straight away when a job belongs in a workshop.
Broken down on a freeway or highway?
That's not a job for anyone to fix on the shoulder. Get everyone out on the side away from the traffic and stand well back, behind a barrier if there is one. Hazard lights on, then call roadside assistance if you have it. If anyone is hurt or in danger, call 000. Once the car is somewhere safe, a mobile mechanic can take it from there.
Mobile work around Perth
A van still needs a licence
In WA the operator of a mobile repair business needs a motor vehicle repair business licence, the same as a workshop. You can look a business up through Consumer Protection WA's online licence search.
Long distances, so give the right postcode
Perth's metro area runs from Two Rocks down to Singleton, and mobile mechanics usually work one part of it. Give the postcode where the car is sitting, which may be the office in Osborne Park rather than home in Baldivis.
Hot days
On the 26 days a year Perth tops 35 degrees, an afternoon on a sunny driveway is tough going for the mechanic and the car's electrics alike. If you can offer shade, a carport or a morning time, say so in the note.
Where the car is parked
The mechanic needs flat, firm ground and room on both sides of the car. Apartment and office car parks often have rules about repairs on site, so check with building management before the mechanic arrives.
Help the mobile mechanic get it right first visit
- The make, model and year, and roughly how many kilometres it's done.
- A photo of any warning light on the dash, taken with the engine running if it starts.
- What happens when you turn the key: nothing, clicking, slow cranking, or it starts then dies.
- Exactly where the car is, and anything about access like a gate code or a low car park roof.
What we'd do
We'd use a mobile mechanic for routine servicing and for a car that won't start at home, and send anything that needs the car lifted to a workshop. Say in the note which you think it is. If you're not sure, a mobile mechanic can diagnose it where it sits and tell you whether it needs to go in.