Can one mobile detailing van break even at three jobs a day?

Yes, one mobile detailing van can cross this worked operating break-even at three completed jobs per day, but the margin is narrow and the schedule is nearly full. In the StartFigures base case, three vehicles produce about $13,314.75 of monthly net revenue and $1,051.80 of monthly operating surplus. The mathematical threshold is 2.70 completed vehicles per field day, so the practical planning target is three.

That answer depends on a $205 retained net ticket, an 80% contribution margin, $9,600 of monthly fixed costs, five field days per week and the StartFigures convention of 4.33 weeks per month. It also depends on finishing the selected package mix inside about 9.8 field hours a day. The result is a worked planning case, not a national average, local demand forecast or promise of profitability.

The StartFigures Auto Detailing Business case is one self-contained cargo van with a paid working owner-detailer and one part-time helper. It serves vehicles at homes and workplaces and captures wastewater for locally authorized disposal. A fixed studio, paint or body repair, overnight custody, memberships, fleet contracts and multiple vans are outside the case.

Count completed vehicles, not bookings

The revenue unit is one completed paid vehicle. An inquiry, quote, scheduled appointment, cancellation or no-access event produces no service revenue. A job counts after the promised service is delivered and its retained sale reconciles to the payment record.

Net revenue excludes sales tax and pass-through tips. Discounts, refunds, chargebacks and rework reduce retained revenue or contribution. Separating these fields prevents the route from mistaking a busy calendar for an economically complete service day.

The scope fits U.S. Census NAICS 811192, Car Washes. Census explicitly includes automotive detail shops and mobile car and truck washes, but the class also includes fixed wash formats. It defines the activity; it does not supply this route's ticket, demand or costs. U.S. Census Bureau, NAICS 811192.

Build the $205 ticket from one service mix

A current Washos menu provides starting-price and time anchors for five mobile packages. StartFigures applies an authored mix to those starting prices. The source varies by market and does not establish this operator's realized package mix or retained price. Washos pricing.

Each completed vehicle belongs to one primary package. Multiplying every package price by the full vehicle count would count the same job several times. The $4.50 size adjustment is an assumption, informed by the source's $10 and $20 published adjustments; replace it with the route's actual vehicle mix and retained charges.

Diamond Ceramic may require covered space, surface preparation, curing controls, warranties or a weather policy that cannot be delivered at every customer site. If field conditions make it unavailable, remove it from both the ticket and duration mix.

Use contribution before fixed costs

The model assigns 20% of net revenue to chemicals, towels and laundry, route fuel, water and authorized disposal, card fees and other job-linked leakage. The remaining 80% contribution covers the paid owner and helper, van and equipment costs, insurance, software, marketing and other fixed operating costs.

For the base case:

• Monthly break-even revenue: $9,600 ÷ 80% = $12,000.
• Completed vehicles per month: $12,000 ÷ $205 = 58.54.
• Completed vehicles per field day: $12,000 ÷ $205 ÷ 5 ÷ 4.33 = 2.70, so plan on three.

At three completed vehicles per day:

• Monthly revenue: 3 × $205 × 5 × 4.33 = $13,314.75.
• Monthly contribution: $13,314.75 × 80% = $10,651.80.
• Simplified monthly operating surplus: $10,651.80 − $9,600 = $1,051.80.
• Annual revenue using 52 weeks: 3 × $205 × 5 × 52 = $159,900.
• Annual sales-linked costs: $159,900 × 20% = $31,980.
• Annual operating result: $159,900 − $31,980 − $80,000 payroll − $35,200 other overhead = $12,720.

The formula excludes depreciation, loan principal and interest, income tax, replacement capital, working-capital timing and owner distributions. A route can pass this operating threshold and still run short of cash after those items.

Stress the ticket, contribution and fixed costs

The three-job conclusion changes quickly when retained ticket, contribution or fixed costs miss the base case.

At two completed vehicles per day, the simplified monthly shortfall is $2,498.80. At 2.5 vehicles it is $723.50. At 3.5 vehicles the simplified surplus rises to $2,827.10. Fractional daily volume is useful for monthly averages, but the route still completes whole vehicles on a particular day.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported $4.157 per gallon for regular gasoline in the week of September 7, 2026, with large regional differences. Treat it as a dated sensitivity reference; use route miles, actual vehicle economy, idle or power-system fuel and current local receipts in the model. EIA Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update.

Make three jobs pass the route clock

The weighted midpoint of the five published service ranges is 151.5 minutes. The route also needs driving, parking, customer access, containment, setup and pack-down. StartFigures tests 30, 45 and 60 non-service field minutes per completed vehicle.

The base three-job day already uses 49.1 field hours across five days before separate quoting, booking, bookkeeping, purchasing, towel care, maintenance and disposal records. Four jobs are not a credible high case under this mix. They require a much shorter package mix, unusually compact routing, parallel work that safely reduces elapsed time, more labor or another operating design.

A vendor selling a $1,895 pressure-washer and 100-gallon tank kit says operators may perform two to six full details per day. That broad vendor statement does not override the package-duration arithmetic. Stateside Equipment Sales kit.

Convert completions into scheduled jobs

If 90% of scheduled jobs are completed, divide the three-job target by 0.90. The route would need 3.33 scheduled jobs per day on average to yield three completions. That creates a conflict: the base mix has almost no room for an extra full booking when every customer arrives.

Resolve the conflict with measured operations rather than overbooking blindly. Use deposits or cancellation terms where lawful and appropriate, maintain a geographically compatible short-notice list, confirm access and property permission, offer a shorter package that fits recovered time, and measure each cancellation reason. Never count an overbooked slot twice in the capacity plan.

Pay for labor and insure the actual operation

The Year-three payroll is $80,000 for a paid working owner-detailer, one part-time helper and an employer-cost allowance. BLS reports that the May 2025 national median for cleaners of vehicles and equipment was $17.23 per hour and the mean was $17.78. OEWS excludes self-employed workers and does not set an owner salary or local offer. BLS OEWS occupation profile.

IRS Publication 15 states a 2026 employer Social Security rate of 6.2% up to the $184,500 wage base and a 1.45% employer Medicare rate without a wage base. Add applicable unemployment insurance, workers' compensation, overtime, leave and benefits. IRS Publication 15.

The model includes an authored $6,000 annual combined insurance allowance inside other overhead. Progressive identifies commercial auto, general liability, business property and workers' compensation as coverages a mobile detailer may need to assess. Insureon publishes medians for separate policy types among its purchasing customers, but the coverages, limits and populations differ; adding those medians would not create a quote. Give a broker the actual van, drivers, territory, equipment, chemicals, customer-vehicle exposure and payroll. Progressive Commercial and Insureon.

Treat wastewater as a launch gate

EPA guidance says outdoor vehicle wash water can carry detergents, nutrients, metals and hydrocarbons. It also explains that commercial facilities often recycle water or treat it before discharge to a sanitary sewer. State and local rules control the actual route. EPA vehicle washing BMP.

Austin prohibits polluted untreated mobile-wash water from entering its storm sewer and describes collection and authorized disposal. It says unauthorized sanitary discharge can be fined up to $2,000 per day per violation. San Diego tells mobile businesses to locate drains, minimize water, contain and collect wastewater and use an authorized disposal route; it cites up to $10,000 per day per incident for polluted discharge to its municipal storm system. These are local examples, not nationwide penalties. Austin Water and City of San Diego BMP.

Before offering exterior work, confirm where service may occur, what must be captured, whether sanitary disposal needs authorization or pretreatment, how recovered water must be transported and what records must be kept. Stop the job when containment fails or the approved disposal route is unavailable.

Keep the opening budget separate from operating break-even

The StartFigures base opening allocation is $100,000: $48,400 for a cargo van, $12,600 for mobile equipment and secure upfit, $4,000 for wastewater recovery and disposal setup, $2,500 for initial supplies and PPE, $2,500 for booking, website and branding, $3,000 for setup fees and deposits, and $27,000 for working capital.

Ford lists a 2026 Transit cargo van starting MSRP of $48,400 and maximum payload of 5,103 pounds when properly equipped. Configuration and the actual payload label matter. A 100-gallon water load alone weighs about 834 pounds before its tank, equipment, occupants, chemicals and recovered wastewater. Ford 2026 Transit.

One premium vendor lists equipment-only, installed, launch and turnkey packages starting at $49,995, $54,995, $59,995 and $89,995, plus water recovery from $2,500. Those offers show that premium configurations can approach the high planning scope; they do not establish required equipment or delivered cost. The Final Wipedown.

The five modeled annual operating results are −$16,220, $664, $12,720, $17,032 and $21,244. They sum to $35,440, so this simplified case does not recover the $100,000 opening allocation within five years. Financing, tax, replacement capital and cash timing can make payback slower.

Decide with route evidence

Before treating three jobs a day as viable, replace the worked assumptions with:

• Retained net price by mutually exclusive package, vehicle size and condition.
• Drive, parking, access, setup, service, recovery, pack-down and rework minutes by job.
• Booked, completed, cancelled and no-access jobs by source and weather condition.
• Chemical, towel, water, disposal, card and route-fuel cost per completed vehicle.
• Loaded vehicle weight, axle results, maintenance, downtime and equipment failures.
• Paid owner and helper hours, employer costs and administration outside the field day.
• Repeat completed jobs at 30, 60, 90 and 180 days.
• Dated insurance quotes, authority requirements, disposal terms and monthly cash balances.

The decision rule is strict: proceed only if ordinary paid tests produce at least three completed vehicles at the retained $205 average, the actual package mix fits a sustainable route day, wastewater has a documented authorized path, and the loaded van and cash plan pass their separate checks. If any condition fails, reduce the opening commitment, shorten the radius, revise the menu or stop.

The Auto Detailing evidence register distinguishes sourced context from assumptions. The business plan and financial model use the same one-van decision scope while disclosing the paid model's separate hourly-fee architecture. The break-even calculator lets an operator replace the worked ticket, volume, contribution and fixed costs.

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