Short answer
Automotive franchise owners most often need funding for lifts and alignment equipment, parts and tire inventory, diagnostic tools and technician payroll. Merchant Fund Express reviews open service locations for equipment financing, working capital or a line of credit from $5,000 to $5,000,000, based on the shop's own deposits. Send three months of statements, ID and any equipment quote; a complete file usually gets a decision in 2–4 hours.
Where shop owners need capital
Lifts and alignment
Long-lived, high-cost equipment that drives bay productivity.
Diagnostics and tools
Scan tools and software that new vehicles keep demanding.
Parts and tires
Stocking common parts and seasonal tires before demand.
Technician payroll
Skilled techs are paid weekly whether or not the fleet account has paid.
Need to product
| Need | Fits | Note |
|---|---|---|
| New two-post or four-post lift | Equipment financing | Long useful life supports a longer term |
| Alignment machine upgrade | Equipment financing | Send the vendor quote |
| Winter tire inventory | Working capital | Short need, repaid as tires sell |
| Fleet invoices paid in 30+ days | Line of credit or invoice factoring | Bridge business-customer receivables |
| Tech payroll in a slow month | Payroll funding | Working capital or line |
How a shop's deposits read
Auto service deposits mix retail card payments with checks or transfers from fleet and commercial accounts. Fleet revenue is valuable but can arrive late, which is why business-customer receivables sometimes fit invoice factoring better than a lump sum. A reviewer looks at both streams, existing equipment payments and parts supplier terms. If you carry parts on a supplier account, mention it.
Hypothetical example, not a past deal: a single-location owner wants a second alignment machine to stop turning away work. The vendor quote plus statements showing steady weekly deposits would let the reviewer size equipment financing so the payment sits well inside what the added bay revenue could support.
Every brand in this sector
See the Midas owner page for brand context and a need-to-product table built around full-service repair shops. Owners of other auto service brands can apply the same way; name your brand on the application.
Brand pages live now: Midas.
Owners of these brands apply the same way: AAMCO, Big O Tires, CARSTAR, Christian Brothers Automotive, Grease Monkey, Jiffy Lube, Maaco, Meineke, Take 5 Oil Change, Valvoline Instant Oil Change, Ziebart.
What to send
Auto shop questions we hear most
Is it worth adding a bay's worth of equipment?
If you regularly turn away work because a lift or alignment machine is tied up, the added capacity often pays for itself. Count the jobs you lost last month before deciding.
How do fleet accounts affect my application?
They help when they pay reliably. Slow payers are not a problem by themselves; invoice factoring or a line of credit can bridge them.
Should tire inventory be funded separately?
Usually yes. Tires sell through in a season, so a short working capital amount fits better than folding them into a long equipment term.
How fast it moves for a shop
- Apply in about 4 minutesName your brand, the shop address and the equipment or need.
- Upload statements, ID and quotesFrom the account that receives repair and fleet payments.
- Decision in 2–4 hoursUsually the same day on a complete file.
- FundingSame-day available; often the next business day.
Every product for this sector
Merchant Fund Express funds open locations in this sector with business loans, merchant cash advances, revenue-based financing, lines of credit, equipment financing and working capital. Already carrying an advance? It is considered. Not sure which fits? Compare MCA and a business loan.
What we will not do for an auto shop
We do not fund new-shop construction, the purchase of an existing shop from another owner, or the building and land. We do not size a payment on your best month. If the shop's existing equipment payments already take a large share of deposits, the specialist will say so and may suggest a smaller request or a structure that lowers the payment burden, before anything is signed.
Owner questions, answered
Can an auto service franchise owner finance a vehicle lift?
Yes, at an operating location. Lifts are a common equipment financing request.
Can I fund parts and tire inventory?
Working capital can cover inventory when the shop's deposits support the payment.
Do slow-paying fleet accounts hurt my review?
Not by themselves. Invoice factoring or a line of credit can bridge them.
Can I finance equipment for a new shop?
No. Merchant Fund Express funds operating locations, not new builds.
Are you affiliated with any automotive franchise?
No. Merchant Fund Express is independent.
Keep going
Merchant Fund Express is a separate company with no franchisor ties. Terms depend on the business's revenue and history.