Ideal Automotive Services Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $438K – $1.1M
- Disclosed sales
- not disclosed
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Ideal Automotive Services is an automotive franchise providing maintenance, repair, and diagnostics. Franchisees run the service centers, managing technicians, scheduling, and customer service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Ideal Automotive Services franchise requires a total initial investment of $438K – $1.1M, including a $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Limited operating history: franchising since 2024. A system this young has fewer than three years of Item 20 outlet history and rarely enough SBA loans for a charge-off rate, so its grade rests on less evidence than an established system's. Read its Item 20 tables and talk to its first franchisees before relying on the grade. Other new franchisors
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✗ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored4 of 5 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing; the rest are marked “Not cited” beside the figure.
Overview
- Investment
- $438K – $1.1M
- 45th pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 15th pct Automotive
- Units
- 7
- 8th pct Automotive
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Automotive · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Automotive median · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $438K – $1.1M including a $45K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSThis franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that.
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 46/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHPositive: net +1 franchised outlets in the latest year (1 opened, 0 closed) (Item 20).
- DATAThis franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Ideal Automotive Services Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Ideal Automotive Holdings, LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 6 of the 2026 FDD
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Jian "Jeff" Li
- Incorporated in
- NY
- HQ
- 1517 132nd St, College Point, NY 11356
- Auditor
- DA Advisory Group PLLC
- Unaudited
Affiliated brands
- does
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 6
1 other brand on this site name Ideal Automotive Holdings, LLC as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2026 FDD). Spelling variants of the same group may be listed apart; a brand is never grouped with an owner its filing does not name.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Jian "Jeff" Li
- Headquarters
- NY
- Founded
- 2024
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 107% above the typical automotive franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
The filing's Item 7 TOTAL row prints $437,500 to $1,085,000. Its own line items add to $464,660 to $1,185,000. The total is shown as the franchisor printed it; the lines are listed as printed. NOT FOOTING (lines sum 464,660/1,185,000 vs printed TOTAL 437,500/1,085,000): filing's arithmetic: the 17 printed lines of the Single Unit table sum to $464,660 / $1,185,000 while the printed TOTAL is $437,500 / $1,085,000 (+27,160 low, +100,000 high over the print).
Full Item 7 breakdown17 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $45K | $45K | |
| Your Training Expenses | $5K | $20K | |
| On-Site Trainer’s Travel Expenses | $4K | $8K | |
| Premises Deposits | $20K | $100K | |
| Utilities Deposits | $500 | $3K | |
| Professional Design | $3K | $30K | |
| Leasehold Improvements, Construction and/or Remodeling | $100K | $300K | |
| Signage | $10K | $50K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment | $200K | $400K | |
| Computer Systems (1 month) | $1K | $2K | |
| Initial Inventory | $10K | $30K | |
| Office Equipment and Supplies | $2K | $15K | |
| Grand Opening Marketing | $10K | $30K | |
| Professional Fees | $2K | $20K | |
| Licenses and Permits | $160 | $2K | |
| Insurance | $2K | $30K | |
| Additional Funds – 3 months | $50K | $100K | |
| Total initial investment | $465K | $1.2M |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $438K – $1.1M
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $100K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $45K – $45K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 48.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $400 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $23K |
| Inventory (initial) | $10K – $30K |
| Total fee load | 48.0% of rev |
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Ideal Automotive Services makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD - a voluntary item under the FTC Franchise Rule - so no unit revenue figures are disclosed. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Ideal Automotive Services unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for annual revenue, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
No financial performance representation
This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that.
Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 48.0% — above the Automotive median of 8.0%.
Disclosure
This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Automotive medians
How Ideal Automotive Services Compares
Category median of published Automotive brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 7
- Opened
- 1
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- N/A
- Company-owned
- 6
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Signed, not yet open
- 0
- 0.00 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 1
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 1 state reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
1
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
1 current owner across 1 state.
- NY 1
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Ideal Automotive Services is a micro-scale franchise with critical financial opacity, no performance benchmarks, and franchisor viability concerns—avoid until Item 19 is disclosed and unit growth is demonstrated.
Why this reads harsher than the B grade: the grade weighs financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency across the whole filing, while this summary lists individual flags without that weighting. The flags are worth checking with current owners; neither is investment advice.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
0 case reference(s): 2 pending, 0 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
No audited financials on file
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Newly formed entity (organized Jan 4, 2024). Item 21 contains only an audited balance sheet as of September 30, 2024 (cash $45,000 contributed capital); no income statement, so no revenue or net income figures are reported.
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 46 / 100 verdict
- 01MINOROnly 3 units in system with unknown/likely stagnant growth trajectory
- 02MEDNo Item 19 financial performance disclosure (avg revenue and net income not disclosed)
- 03MINORHigh investment range ($437.5K-$1.085M) relative to tiny 3-unit system limits due diligence
- 04MINORWide investment spread suggests unclear cost structure or territory-dependent pricing
- 05MED6% royalty on undisclosed revenue makes ROI projections impossible to validate
- 06MINOR10-year term with minimal system scale creates long-term partnership risk
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 48.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 3 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 15 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | New York |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | NY |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 2 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 98 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 107 hrs
- Training location
- Central Office / On-Site repair shops / Online
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 7 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Syndicate System (CCC ONE)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Syndicate System (CCC ONE)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
1 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Ideal Automotive Services franchise?
The total investment to open a Ideal Automotive Services franchise ranges from $438K – $1.1M, 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 Ideal Automotive Services franchise owners earn?
Ideal Automotive Services makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD - a voluntary item under the FTC Franchise Rule - so no unit revenue figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Ideal Automotive Services?
Ideal Automotive Services is franchised by Ideal Automotive Services Franchising, LLC. Its parent company is Ideal Automotive Holdings, LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Ideal Automotive Services FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Ideal Automotive Services FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Ideal Automotive Services's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Ideal Automotive Services (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 Ideal Automotive Services franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Ideal Automotive Services has 7 total units in the United States, including 1 franchised units and 6 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Ideal Automotive Services a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Ideal Automotive Services as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 46 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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
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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.