Steel hall for a car repair shop – from passenger cars to truck servicing

Are you opening a new workshop? Are you expanding your service with bays for lorries? Are you planning a HGV wash with water recovery? Steel hall for a car workshop is the quickest way to start such a business – and today the most technologically cost-effective. At MatBud, we have completed dozens of such facilities, and near Radom, we are just starting the construction of a workshop for a transport and forwarding fleet. In this article, we show what dimensions a workshop needs, how much it costs, and what you need to plan at the design stage.

Garage for passenger cars from 200 m²

A classic car workshop typically needs:

• • 2-4 bays with lifting platforms (approx. 25-30 m² per bay),

• • diagnostic zones (a diagnostic line is approx. 25 m²),

• • Storage for parts and tyres: 30-50 m²,

• • offices and reception: 20-30 m²,

• • toilet and staff facilities: approx. 15 m².

In practice, a comfortable car workshop requires approximately 200–375 m² of usable space. A height of 4–4.5 m is sufficient for two-post lifts and freedom to work on the vehicle at height. The exact dimensions are chosen individually based on the plot and the number of bays. The price of such a hall in an insulated version (sandwich panel, sectional door, service door) starts from approximately PLN 250,000 net – excluding workshop equipment.

HGV workshop – here the main hall begins

A lorry is a completely different scale. A standard tractor unit + semi-trailer combination is about 16.5 m long, and the height of a refrigerated trailer can reach up to 4 m. In order for the vehicle to be manoeuvred in, serviced from all sides and freely backed out of the hall, you need:

• • functional length of at least 20 m,

• • 16–22 m wide (two parallel bays + passageway),

• • clearance height 6 m (column lift + raised wheel),

• • an entrance gate with dimensions of at least 4.5 x 5 m.

Our latest project near Radom is precisely this kind of implementation. The steel hall for a car workshop, measuring 22x18x6 m, for a transport and forwarding company offers the possibility of expansion with additional service bays or a wash bay module. By adding one modular frame, the hall „grows” by another 6 m in length – this is a fundamental advantage of our I-beam system. You don't start a second investment; you extend the first.

Truck wash – what else to plan

A lorry wash requires structural preparation from the very beginning, as modernising a standard hall into a wash is usually uneconomical. You need to consider:

• • reinforced floor slab with drains and an oil separator,

• • mechanical ventilation (vapours and mists require constant air exchange),

• • water heating (boiler room or heat pump),

• • a special moisture-resistant casing – PIR core sandwich panels are definitely better than corrugated sheet metal here,

• • high-speed doors – they save heat and operator time.

A lorry wash requires a tunnel of appropriate length and height – the exact dimensions are determined during the design stage, taking into account the type of vehicle and the layout of the manoeuvring area. We often combine the wash with a workshop under one roof: one module for 4 entrances – 2 service bays and 1 wash tunnel with a chemical store in the corner. This layout optimises the costs of foundations, utilities, and permits.

Why is a lorry repair workshop a good business?

From the perspective of hall manufacturers, we see this clearly: truck garages are clients who build larger facilities, plan for longer, and return more often for expansion. The owners of such services themselves confirm that the hourly margin in a truck service is higher than in a passenger car service, and the client (fleet) is more loyal – orders are serial, planned, and predictable. For a farmer with a fleet of machinery, a transport company, or a mechanic expanding their business, a truck workshop hall is an investment that pays for itself within a few years of operation.

Steel workshop for a car repair shop – how much does it all cost?

The cost of a workshop hall depends on many factors – the surface area, the scope of equipment, the type of cladding, and the degree of preparation for a specific work technology. You can get an exact quote from us Configurator or you will get it by calling 780 770 705.

We will advise on dimensions, suggest whether a „ready-made” hall will suffice, or if it’s better to design a custom one for a specific work technology. We will also help you choose an expansion module for the future – so that your first workshop doesn’t block your path to a second bay in another 2-3 years.