Auto-Lab Complete Car Care CentersFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers franchise requires a total initial investment of $297K – $746K, including a $28K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $970K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $297K – $746K
- 32nd pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- $970K
- 10th pct Automotive
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 8th pct Automotive
- Units
- 20
- 12th pct Automotive
- SBA default
- N/A
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
Franchised units fell from 19 to 18 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $297K – $746K including a $28K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $970K/year (median $932K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 30/100.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Auto-Lab Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Wilson Holdings, L.L.C.
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Stephen R. Wilson
- CEO experience
- 2019 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- MI
- HQ
- 6001 N. Adams Road, Suite 255, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304
- Auditor
- Schlaupitz Madhavan
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $892K
- vs $901K prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
Auto-Lab franchisees operate full-service automotive repair and maintenance centers offering oil changes, brake service, diagnostics, and general repairs. Day-to-day operations involve managing technician teams, customer service, inventory, compliance with automotive standards, and meeting the 6% royalty obligation on weekly gross sales. Franchisees are responsible for local marketing, staff hiring/training, and maintaining service quality standards across their protected territory.
- CEO
- Stephen R. Wilson
- Headquarters
- MI
- Founded
- 2011
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 4
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $14K | $28K | |
| Equipment and Fixturesnot refundable | $131K | $225K | |
| Inventory | $5K | $24K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $25K | $180K | |
| Training Expenses | $3K | $5K | |
| Pre-Opening Expensesnot refundable | $15K | $25K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $8K | $8K | |
| Signage | $65K | $125K | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $3K | $5K | |
| Real Estate Rent | $0 | $42K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $25K | $75K | |
| Insurance (3 months) | $4K | $5K | |
| Total initial investment | $297K | $746K |
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
$155K
16.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
27%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
3.7 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $297K – $746K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $75K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $14K – $28K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $100 |
| Training fee | $600 |
| Transfer fee | $14K |
| Renewal fee | $14K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $970K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $932K
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 17 units
- vs category median 70 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $293K→$1.6M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $293K→$1.6M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 221 Automotive brands
vs Automotive averages
How Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 20
- Opened
- 3
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 5.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +11.1%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +5.3%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Ceased ops
- 5.0%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 4 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 1 7(a) loan on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 1
- Loan volume
- N/A
- Amount data pending
- Median loan
- N/A
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 0
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Auto-Lab presents meaningful caution due to missing profitability data, franchisor going concern issues, slow growth trajectory, recent franchisee bankruptcy litigation, and a wide investment range with limited financial transparency.
Litigation (Item 3)
In Re: Empower Central Michigan, Inc. (U.S. Bankruptcy Court - Eastern District of Michigan, Case No. 23-31281). Franchisee filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy on August 4, 2023. Franchisor opposed franchisee's motion to reject franchise agreement and related contracts. Bankruptcy Court ruled on April 3, 2024, that franchisor's rights under the contracts continued post-rejection and enjoined franchisee from competing and violating confidentiality provisions. Case closed October 28, 2024, after franchisee's Amended Plan of Reorganization was confirmed on August 21, 2024.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Schlaupitz Madhavan
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 30 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNo disclosed average net income despite $969,708 average revenue — inability or unwillingness to provide Item 19 financial performance representation is a major transparency concern
- 02HIGHGoing Concern = False indicates potential financial instability at franchisor level, raising questions about support, training, and system viability
- 03MEDSlow unit growth (11.1% YoY on only 20 units) suggests limited brand momentum and difficulty attracting/retaining franchisees
- 04HIGHActive litigation (2023 bankruptcy + attempted covenant violations) demonstrates franchisee distress and legal vulnerability in the system
- 05MINORHigh investment range ($296K–$746K) relative to modest unit count creates pressure on franchisees to generate returns in a small network
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 | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 15 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 3 mi |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 30 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Oakland County, Michigan |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Michigan |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
In Re: Empower Central Michigan, Inc. (U.S. Bankruptcy Court - Eastern District of Michigan, Case No. 23-31281). Franchisee filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy on August 4, 2023. Franchisor opposed franchisee's motion to reject franchise agreement and related contracts. Bankruptcy Court ruled on April 3, 2024, that franchisor's rights under the contracts continued post-rejection and enjoined franchisee from competing and violating confidentiality provisions. Case closed October 28, 2024, after franchisee's Amended Plan of Reorganization was confirmed on August 21, 2024.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 72 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 72 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and off-site
- Time to open
- 5 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- ALBMS (Auto-Lab Business Management System)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ALBMS (Auto-Lab Business Management System)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
21 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers franchise?
The total investment to open a Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers franchise ranges from $297K – $746K, with an initial franchise fee of $28K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $970K. The median is $932K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers has 20 total units in the United States, including 19 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Auto-Lab Complete Car Care Centers as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 30 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.
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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.