Verified — real FDD extraction
SBA-eligible · directory code S0974 since 2017
LINE-X
Automotive · independent · est. —
LINE-X is an automotive protective coatings brand best known for spray-on truck bed liners. Shops apply durable polyurethane/polyurea coatings to truck beds and other surfaces and sell related truck accessories. A franchisee operates an installation shop applying coatings and selling and fitting vehicle accessories.
LINE-X net unit count declined -68.2% from 2021–2025 per its FDD Item 20.
New to franchising? Start here
A franchise is a business where you (the franchisee) pay a company (the franchisor) for the right to open and run a location using their brand and system — think a local Anytime Fitness or Taco John's owned by a small-business owner, not the corporation.
Before you can buy in, U.S. law requires the franchisor to give you a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) — a long legal filing covering its fees, finances, and history. The numbers on this page come straight from that document:
- Franchise fee — the one-time cost to buy in.
- Royalty — the ongoing cut of your sales you pay the franchisor.
- Item 20 — how many locations opened and closed, the basis for our verdict (from Proven & strong down to Distressed — or Too new to judge).
The verdict
Showing strain
Distress
The disclosed record shows weakness — shrinking units, elevated exits, or churn — worth reading closely before going further.
Exit rate · latest year
27.2%
vs 5.5% across 19 automotive systems
Cost to open
$402K–$1.0M
Item 7 total investment range
SBA loan defaults
13.3%
vs 14.8% avg across rated brands
Behind the verdict
the record, factor by factor · Item 20
3-yr trend · Item 20 Table 1
terminations + ceased-ops vs. all exits · Table 3
transfers vs. base · Table 3
actual vs. projected openings · Table 5
Item 19 disclosure + completeness
Systemwide units
2021–2025
Survival record
FDD Item 20 · outlet status by year
In fiscal 2025, 49 of 180 franchised outlets left the system — a 27.2% annualized exit rate, vs 5.5% across 19 automotive systems. Not every exit is a failure — but this is the measurable floor.
Show the outlet tables ↓Hide the evidence ↑
| Status (FTC) | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outlets at start | 445 | 446 | 431 | 418 | 180 |
| Opened | 13 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Transfers | 11 | 15 | 7 | 5 | 4 |
| Terminations | 10 | 13 | 9 | 4 | 0 |
| Non-renewals | 0 | 0 | 10 | 169 | 12 |
| Reacquired by franchisor | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ceased — other reasons | 0 | 9 | 0 | 60 | 37 |
| Outlets at end | 446 | 431 | 418 | 180 | 142 |
| Net change | +1 | -15 | -13 | -238 | -38 |
The lender's view
SBA 7(a)/504 loan performance · FY1991–present
Banks have made 212 SBA-backed loans to LINE-X franchisees since 2000. Of the 143 that have resolved, 13.3% were charged off (defaulted) rather than paid in full, versus 14.8% across 576 rated brands.
13.3%
19 of 143 resolved defaulted
78.8%
avg. charged-off $ ÷ approved $
10.5%
default rate × loss severity
$636,955
what recent franchisees borrowed
65 mo
approval → charge-off, defaulted loans
15 vs 24
distinct banks still lending
Charge-off rate by loan approval year (%)
SOURCE: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA LOAN DATA (DATA.SBA.GOV), FY1991–PRESENT · MATCHED TO LINE-X BY FRANCHISE NAME · RESOLVED = CHARGED-OFF + PAID-IN-FULL
The owner's side of the deal
FDD × federal loan record
Who finances it
the Huntington National Bank
10.4% of this brand's loans
That lender charges off 10.0% of its loans to other franchise brands, vs 14.8% nationally.
Who buys it
69.0%
first-time franchise owners
The rest already owned at least one other franchise. Across the corpus, brands bought mostly by repeat operators charge off at roughly 10% versus 17% for brands sold mostly to newcomers.
Does experience help here?
−2.7pp
multi-unit vs single-unit owners
Owners of multiple units default at 13.6%; single-unit owners at 16.3%.
Computed from 212 SBA 7(a)/504 loans to LINE-X franchisees joined to the brand's own FDD. Debt service assumes level amortization at the average disclosed term and rate. A lender's rate excludes its loans to this brand, so it reads the lender, not the brand.
What it costs — and what it drags
FDD Items 5–7 · fees, investment, royalty
Buying in means a $50K franchise fee (Item 5) and a total investment of $402K–$1.0M (Item 7). The franchisor publishes no earnings claim (Item 19) — ask current and former franchisees for real numbers.
To open (Item 7)
$402K–$1.0M
all-in investment range
Franchise fee (Item 5)
$50K
upfront, one-time
Royalty (Item 6)
6%
of sales, ongoing
Your figure — this brand discloses no Item 19 earnings; validate with current & former owners.
Royalty you'd pay / yr
$60K
6% of sales, before profit
Over a 10-yr term
$600K
royalties alone, excl. ad fund
This is not profit. It's the only money the FDD actually pins down — what you put in, and the royalty you owe on every dollar of sales. Your real take-home depends on labor, rent, food cost, and ramp-to-breakeven, none of which any FDD discloses.
Build a real pro-forma for LINE-X with an independent CPALabor record
US Dept. of Labor enforcement · franchisee-level · FY2005–present
Federal investigators have concluded 1 wage case against operators of this system, recovering $4K in back wages for 2 workers. These cases name franchisee-owned locations, not the franchisor itself.
Concluded cases
1
Back wages owed
$4K
Employees affected
2
Since 2020
0
Read this carefully. The employers in these cases are individual LINE-X franchisees — separately owned businesses operating under the brand name — not LINE-X itself. The franchisor is not the respondent and in most cases is not a party. What the record shows is how this system's operators run their payrolls, which is worth knowing before you become one of them. Counts rise with system size and with age: a 20-year-old, 10,000-unit system will out-count a young one regardless of conduct. Source: DOL Wage and Hour Division concluded compliance actions, FY2005–present, most recent finding 2008.
Modeled risk
FDD Risk Score · modeled from the public record
Modeled from the public record, this brand sits mid-pack: riskier than 70% of systems we score.
Risk percentile
70 / 100
Measured
Modeled SBA charge-off
15.5%
Observed SBA charge-off
13.3%
Top drivers: Item 20 exit rate (raises) · Item 3 litigation (log) (lowers) · Net unit growth (raises) · Single-lender dependence (raises). 50+ resolved loans and complete disclosure data — the score is checkable against the brand's observed rate. A linear scorecard built from this brand's own disclosure figures plus the federal loan record behind its franchisees; full spec and cross-validated accuracy on the methodology page. A score is context, not a verdict.
Distress signals
news-sourced · bankruptcies, closures, lawsuits
No recent closures, bankruptcies, or major lawsuits found in the news for LINE-X. That's a good sign — but it reflects news coverage, not a guarantee.
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. An independent CPA is paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing LINE-X's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.
Talk to an independent CPA before you buy →LINE-X franchise questions, answered from the filings
What percentage of LINE-X franchises closed last year?
In LINE-X's latest FDD Item 20 (fiscal 2025), 49 of 180 franchised outlets left the system — an annualized exit rate of 27.2% — compared with 5.5% across 19 automotive systems tracked here. That counts terminations, non-renewals, and "ceased operations — other reasons." There is no official failure rate, and not every exit is a failure, but this is the measurable floor.
How much does a LINE-X franchise cost?
Per LINE-X's 2026 FDD, buying in requires an initial franchise fee of $50K (Item 5) and a total initial investment of $402K–$1.0M (Item 7).
What royalty does LINE-X charge?
LINE-X charges an ongoing royalty of 6.0% of gross sales, per Item 6 of its 2026 FDD.
Does LINE-X disclose earnings (Item 19)?
No — LINE-X's 2026 FDD makes no financial performance representation in Item 19. That is legal and common, but it means the franchisor publishes no earnings claim; ask current franchisees for real numbers.
How often do SBA loans for LINE-X franchises default?
Across 212 SBA-backed loans to LINE-X franchisees since 2000, 19 of the 143 that have resolved were charged off — a 13.3% default rate, versus about 14.8% across all rated franchise brands. This is the lender's-eye view of franchisee failure, drawn from public SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA data and independent of the franchisor's own disclosures.