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auto manufacturing for Sale in Illinois

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Auto Repair & Service Shops
+2

Add-On: IL Based / Inspection & Fleet Repair / $783K TTM Adj. EBITDA

IL, US

Add-On Opportunity: Illinois Based / Propane Cargo Tank Inspection & Fleet Repair / $783K TTM Adj. EBITDA / 28.2% Margin / Federally Required Inspections COMPANY OVERVIEW The Company is an Illinois-based commercial fleet-services provider specializing in federally required cargo-tank inspections, testing, and repair services for propane delivery vehicles. Its services include annual external inspections and leakage tests, periodic internal inspections and pressure tests, pump rebuilds, piping and valve repair, welding, safety-system diagnostics, parts supply, and routine commercial fleet maintenance. Federal regulations require propane cargo tanks to complete annual inspections and leakage tests, along with internal inspections and pressure tests every five or ten years, depending on the tank. These requirements create recurring customer contact and frequently generate follow-on repair and parts revenue when deficiencies are identified. KEY KPIs - $2.77 million of TTM February 2026 revenue - Approximately $783,000 of TTM adjusted EBITDA - 28.2% TTM adjusted EBITDA margin - $2.89 million of FY2025 revenue - Approximately $864,000 of FY2025 adjusted EBITDA - 29.9% FY2025 adjusted EBITDA margin - 49.1% TTM gross margin - Repair services and parts represented 95.9% of FY2025 revenue - Parts represented 46.6% of FY2025 revenue and generated a 42.0% gross margin - Seven full-time employees plus the owner - Four of seven employees have at least five years of tenure - Eight service vehicles with an estimated fair-market value of $417,000 - Illinois ranked fourth nationally in propane consumption during 2024 ADD-ON RATIONALE The Company represents a compelling tuck-in for an established fleet-services, truck-repair, tank-services, or commercial-vehicle platform seeking to add specialized propane and hazardous-material cargo-tank capabilities. An acquirer would gain a recurring, federally driven inspection practice, an experienced technical team, established propane-distributor relationships, and a high-margin parts and repair operation. The Company would allow a larger platform to offer inspection, repair, and retesting under one roof while reducing vehicle downtime for fleet customers. Potential integration benefits include: - Introducing cargo-tank inspection and propane delivery-system repair across the acquirer’s existing customer base - Cross-selling chassis, engine, and routine fleet maintenance to the Company’s propane-distributor customers - Applying platform purchasing power to parts, which represent nearly half of revenue - Leveraging centralized accounting, scheduling, human resources, and administrative infrastructure - Recruiting and developing additional qualified inspectors and technicians - Improving utilization of the Company’s existing facility, fleet, and technical workforce Revenue declined modestly from $2.89 million in FY2025 to $2.77 million for the TTM period, while adjusted EBITDA decreased from approximately $864,000 to $783,000. Despite the moderation, the Company maintained a strong 28.2% adjusted EBITDA margin. Historical results also include marine-services activity that has since moved outside the transaction perimeter and is not separately identifiable in the general ledger, representing an important diligence and normalization item. The principal currently performs or witnesses required cargo-tank inspections. Adjusted EBITDA includes a $125,000 replacement cost for the principal’s operating role, and a buyer should establish qualified inspection continuity as part of the integration plan. An existing fleet-services platform should be particularly well positioned to professionalize this function, expand technician capacity, and integrate the operation without requiring it to serve as a standalone platform.

-Asking Price
$2,770,000Revenue
$783,000Cash Flow

Market Snapshot

National transaction benchmarks for auto manufacturing businesses.

Under $500K

Median revenue$467k
Median cash flow$104k
Median sale price$250k
Multiple range1.5x - 3.0x

$500K to $2M

Median revenue$1.42m
Median cash flow$372k
Median sale price$913k
Multiple range2.2x - 3.3x

A variety of factors can cause businesses to trade outside this range, including earnings quality, operational transferability, key-person risk, growth trajectory, and geography, so a listing priced above or below the typical multiple usually reflects real differences in the underlying business.

What to know about auto manufacturing acquisitions

GW

By George Wellmer

Cofounder & CEO

Key diligence, valuation, financing, and transition considerations for buyers evaluating auto manufacturing acquisitions.

Customer and program concentration is the whole risk

Get revenue by customer and by program for at least three years. Specialty manufacturing at this scale often depends on a handful of OEM relationships or fleet contracts. One lost program can reset the business, which is exactly why the asking prices in this group range so widely. Concentration is the number that explains the multiple, so price it explicitly.

Backlog and contracts are worth more than a good trailing year

Value signed backlog over historical revenue. A builder with a contracted order book and renewing programs is fundamentally more valuable than one with the same trailing revenue earned from finished one-off jobs. Ask for the order backlog as of the diligence date and the contract terms.

Equipment, tooling, and certifications carry real value

Inventory the tooling and certifications, and verify they transfer. Specialized jigs, molds, machinery, and quality or regulatory certifications can represent a large share of value and a barrier to entry. About 17 percent of these businesses own their real estate.

Engineering and skilled-trade talent are scarce and central

Identify the key engineers and fabricators and plan to keep them. These businesses run on specialized skills that are hard to hire, and the knowledge often sits with a few people. Around a quarter of these sellers offer financing, which gives you room to structure a transition that retains critical staff.

Working capital and build cycles tie up cash

Model the cash locked in long build cycles and progress billing. Custom builds can run months, with materials and labor funded well ahead of final payment. Understand the billing milestones, deposit structure, and work-in-process so you can size the working capital you must bring.

Regulatory and liability exposure varies sharply by sub-segment

Match your diligence to the specific product. Aircraft and marine work carry certification and liability regimes that automotive customization does not. Confirm the relevant approvals, insurance history, and any open claims for the exact sub-segment you are buying.

Frequently Asked Questions

Answers to common buyer questions for this market.

Request revenue by customer and by program for three years and calculate what share the top one, three, and five accounts represent. A business that earns most of its revenue from one OEM or fleet contract is a different and riskier purchase. Then ask what is contracted going forward versus what simply repeated historically.