$100/Hour With Your Pick-Up Or Van

If you love cars and prefer driving to just about anything else, you can turn your interest into money-making opportunities that involve cars and being on the road. You can combine that fascination together with another area in which you're experienced and put it on wheels to create a new, money-generating niche for yourself.

For a one-person business based around a motor vehicle, the van or pick-up is often the vehicle of choice. It gets reasonable mileage, maneuvers easily, and holds lots of cargo. Your major considerations will be adequate power and size, the costs of maintenance and repair, and reliability.

• Using a pick-up or van, you can start a mobile detailing business. There's an increasing demand for high-quality detailing, particularly in urban and suburban areas. Detailing is popular because appearance pays, not only for those who look good, but for those who make them look good.
• If you enjoy working with animals, you can establish a mobile pet car business. You can turn the back of your van into a deluxe studio where Rover and Fluffy can be bathed trimmed and cared for in style.
• What about mobile locksmithing? People who have locked themselves out of their homes or their cars need help immediately. If you provide instant response, you'll be a favorite with customers, police departments and shopping malls.
• Another convenience people will pay money for having their oil and oil filters changed without having to go to a service station. And depending on your interests you can go far beyond oil changes with the mobile maintenance concept. You can also do tune-ups on the spot, change tires, or make minor repairs. The key is to maximize convenience to the customer.
• Waste hauling is another lucrative opportunity. Our society is one where there's a lot of waste items that have to be taken away. Contact contractors, apartment rental services, condominium associates and landscapers to see if they want any trash hauled away on a regular basis.

Think twice about accepting anything that qualifies as toxic waste, and don't get stuck with any toxic waste. You lay yourself open to major disposal fees for certain materials, and even larger fines if you're caught dumping them illegally.

You may be able to pick up extra money by coming up with ways to recycle some of the items you're paid to haul away. Fix any slightly damaged furniture or equipment, and sell it at your garage sales or go to swap meets. You can also find markets for building materials.

Perhaps you like cameras and photography? Why not be a mobile one-man camera crew? You can sell your photography skills by videotaping events such as weddings, parties, ball games and any other special events. You can outfit your car or van with all the equipment you need, and you can rig a platform atop the van for that special high angle that most people don't think of. You can also shoot on-the-road tapes of proud car owners in their favorite vehicles.

Maybe you like variety - so you can combine these ideas in any combination that suits you. You'll find yourself making a lot of money - doing exactly what you enjoy doing, with no boss but yourself.