Repair Order Volume Drops While Repair Order Revenue Increases

Takeaway: According to Xtime metrics by Cox Automotive, service activity at franchised dealerships in the U.S. decreased in 2023 while revenue from repair orders increased. The average Repair Order Volume Index was lower by 2.4% year over year, while the Repair Order Revenue Index average increased by 5.8% compared to the average in 2022. Repair order volume has generally trended lower since the pandemic, driven at least in part by lower new-vehicle sales, whereas revenue per repair order has steadily increased due in part to higher labor and parts prices.

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What’s next: In early 2024, the Xtime Repair Order Revenue Index was at a record high. When looking at volume (or number of repair order tickets), we saw the opposite trend, with the Repair Order Volume Index reaching one of the lowest levels in the data set. The benefit that dealers continue to have is very strong pricing power both from parts and for labor. Fixed operations performance, or the contribution to the dealers’ bottom line, continues to be very strong. Strong average ticket size growth is expected to continue in 2024, which will further drive revenue growth.