1-800-Radiator & A/CFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C franchise requires a total initial investment of $464K – $1.3M, including a $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 8.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.9M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 14 loans[1]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $464K – $1.3M
- 37th pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- $1.9M
- 20th pct Automotive
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- 25th pct Automotive
- Units
- 194
- 29th pct Automotive
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Automotive · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Automotive avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Only 0.0% of 14 SBA loans charged off, well below the 16% franchise average.
19% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line). Within the 15-30% range most franchise investors consider acceptable.
Bottom line
- Total investment $464K – $1.3M including a $45K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.9M/year (median $1.5M), with an estimated 19% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 36/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 14 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- No protected territory and the franchisor reserves the right to compete in your area. Clarify territorial boundaries before signing.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- 1-800-Radiator Franchisor SPV LLC
- Parent company
- Driven Brands Holdings Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Driven Brands, Inc.
- CEO title
- Manager and Chief Executive Officer
- Daniel Rivera
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 4401 Park Road, Benicia, California 94510
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $290K
- vs $270K prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Affiliated brands
- Spire Supply
- Driven Brands Shared Services
- Driven Product Sourcing
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
1-800-RADIATOR & A/C franchisees operate automotive repair shops specializing in radiator, air conditioning, and related cooling system services. Day-to-day operations include customer intake/diagnostics, repair/replacement work, parts inventory management, technician scheduling, and direct customer sales for both warranty and non-warranty repairs.
- CEO
- Daniel Rivera
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2001
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 43
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 10 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $45K | $45K | |
| Start-Up Warehouse Equipment and Supplies | $42K | $85K | |
| Opening Marketing Packagenot refundable | $30K | $30K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses While Training | $3K | $10K | |
| Lease Deposit | $5K | $25K | |
| Delivery Vehicle | $5K | $45K | |
| Miscellaneous Opening Costs | $25K | $75K | |
| Opening Inventory | $250K | $800K | |
| Rent for first 3 months | $9K | $49K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $50K | $150K | |
| Total initial investment | $464K | $1.3M |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$284K
15.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
29%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
3.5 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $464K – $1.3M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $150K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $45K – $45K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 5.3 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 8.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $165 |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| Inventory (initial) | $250K – $800K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.9M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.5M
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $167K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 18.8%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- Key Performance Indicators & Market Share Analysis / Sales to Cost Analysis
- Sample size
- 189 units
- vs category median 70 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $147K→$8.9M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $872K→$2.8M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 10 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 221 Automotive brands
vs Automotive averages
How 1-800-Radiator & A/C Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 194
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Turnover rate
- 0.5%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 9.1%
- Net growth (yr3)
- -0.5%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +0.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 1
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 17
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Termination rate
- 9.1%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 15 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- California
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- New York
- North Dakota
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 14
- Loan volume
- $8.8M
- Median loan
- $477K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 12
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into 1-800-Radiator & A/C's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 9 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 8-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 14 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Mature, declining franchise system with corporate litigation overhang, unprotected territories, and marginal franchisee economics that warrant careful validation of unit-level profitability and franchisor financial stability.
Litigation (Item 3)
3 case reference(s): 1 pending, 0 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 36 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining (-0.5% YoY) suggests system contraction or saturation despite 194-unit base
- 02MINORMultiple pending class action and derivative lawsuits at parent level indicate potential governance/securities issues affecting franchisor stability
- 03MINORNo protected territory creates direct competition risk—franchisees can cannibalize each other's revenue
- 04MINORNet income of $167K on $1.9M revenue (~8.8% margin) is thin after 8% royalty, leaving minimal cushion for owner salary and reinvestment
- 05MINORHigh investment ceiling ($1.3M) with declining unit base raises ROI recovery concerns
- 06MINORData breach and regulatory settlements (no-poaching) suggest compliance/operational vulnerabilities at corporate level
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 20 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Geographical |
| Protected territory | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Solano County, California |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | California |
| Litigation count | 9 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
3 case reference(s): 1 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 40 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Site selection
- joint
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- WIZMO® Software System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: WIZMO® Software System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
29 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
1-800-RADIATOR & A/C · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C franchise?
The total investment to open a 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C franchise ranges from $464K – $1.3M, with an initial franchise fee of $45K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.9M. The median is $1.5M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 14 loans, meaning 0.0% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C has 194 total units in the United States, including 193 franchised units and 1 company-owned units.
Is 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 36 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent 1-800-RADIATOR & A/C, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Claim this brandOther Automotive franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Automotive category
Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.