What is this "Launch HN" thing now?
Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
11–20 of 86 posts
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#12This is really neat, and I think it could work well for most basic maintenance work. I'm really curious about the logistics.
How do you handle catastrophic failures during a repair? For example, what happens when a rusty bolt head snaps off and now a component needs to be drilled and tapped? I've worked on my fair share of older cars that have lived their lives on salty New England roads, and this happens more often than you'd think. Does the car get towed to a repair garage in these cases?
I see wheel/tire mounting and balancing listed as a service. How does that work? Are you able to get the balancing machine into the service vehicle, or do you pick them up, leave the car on jack stands, and then bring them back balanced (probably disconcerting for the customer)?
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#13What is this "Launch HN" thing now?
It's a new thing we've been experimenting with for this YC batch. See https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13670456 and https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13492779 for some background. Now's a good time to share any thoughts about it if you'd like to send us an email at hn@ycombinator.com.
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#14This service is only available in Toronto, Canada.
Seems like a good idea if the price is right. I'd love this for regular car maintenance.
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#15This is really neat, and I think it could work well for most basic maintenance work. I'm really curious about the logistics. How do you handle catastrophic failures during a repair? For example, what happens when a rusty bolt head snaps off and now a component needs to be drilled and tapped? I've worked on my fair share of older cars that have lived their lives on salty New England roads, and this happens more often…
I'm glad you like the idea :)
We have a few partner shops across the city that we'll get the car towed to in the case that we can't complete the work at their home. That being said, we've completed thousands of repairs and less than 1% have needed the tow service.
Off rim tire changes and wheel balancing are the only services we offer that are non-mobile. These are 'experiments' for now, but we have them on the site because we have other mobile partners that will bring a large truck with the balancing machine and complete the repair.
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#16I love this idea, but it's also some super hood shit. This is absolutely a done thing in lower income areas-- "shade tree mechanics" is the term of art I know. I would imagine the biggest issue would be ensuring a feeling of reliability and professionalism to a sort of sketchy proposition. (A random stranger coming to your house to work on your car.) Plus, as a practicing shade tree mechanic when I was young and brok…
Thank you! We're trying to change the way consumers see this service. Our mechanics dress clean, bring you your favourite coffee, and teach you a bit about the repair as well to educate you about the trade. Our customers range from low to high income individuals who just want to save time and effort and spend that time with their family or on their hobbies. We've seen a ton of our customers build strong relationships with our mechanics and request them over and over again. I do agree that working remotely is tougher to do then at a shop and that is why we compensate mechanics 3x more than a shop and provide them the independence of a business owner. We've seen happiness on both sides of the equation so we will keep pushing!
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#17Let's get serious for a moment here. Beyond relatively simple home garage fixes, how do you plan on addressing larger issues that a mobile service could never handle. Something that requires a lift for example? Exhausts, transmission, basically anything under the body. Are teams available? How did you handle mounting / balancing with TireSwap?
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#18Let's get serious for a moment here. Beyond relatively simple home garage fixes, how do you plan on addressing larger issues that a mobile service could never handle. Something that requires a lift for example? Exhausts, transmission, basically anything under the body. Are teams available? How did you handle mounting / balancing with TireSwap?
The mechanic shows up in a tow truck.
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#19[deleted]
Re: Launch HN: Fiix (YC W17) – Same-Day Auto Repair at Your Home
#20I love this idea, but it's also some super hood shit. This is absolutely a done thing in lower income areas-- "shade tree mechanics" is the term of art I know. I would imagine the biggest issue would be ensuring a feeling of reliability and professionalism to a sort of sketchy proposition. (A random stranger coming to your house to work on your car.) Plus, as a practicing shade tree mechanic when I was young and brok…
Thank you! We're trying to change the way consumers see this service. Our mechanics dress clean, bring you your favourite coffee, and teach you a bit about the repair as well to educate you about the trade. Our customers range from low to high income individuals who just want to save time and effort and spend that time with their family or on their hobbies. We've seen a ton of our customers build strong relationships…
It sounds like you guys are on the right track, but small input -- the coffee bit is somewhat campy. I think it's kind of unnecessary burden on your mechanics that will be tough to uphold as you scale. Additionally, speaking from personal needs, I couldn't care less if I got coffee -- I just want a professional mechanic who won't fleece me. Stick to making that your value prop, and I think both sides of the marketplace (techs, and consumers) will be better off for it.