Thought I should throw this out there for those here in the Phoenix metro area who want to save on maintenance and out of warranty repair costs. An excellent alternative to dealership pricing! Lonny is renowned for his craftsmanship and, very importantly, honesty. Just had my daughter’s Honda inspected as she will be leaving in August to attend CA Western Law School in San Diego and he and his staff did a fabulous job – much more than the dealership would have done. And yes, I will be using Lonny for regular maintenance on the CLS when needed. Tell him Dan sent you.

Dan, You have built such a credible reputation on this forum that anything you endorse I would buy into. Too bad you can't recommend anyone in Dallas.
Jay

As for "honesty," clarity is required, too.

MBUSA DOES NOT certify shops.

When the principal worked at a certified dealer, he received certified training from MBUSA.

Now that he no longer works at dealer, current and future training is not available to him.

Not so important anyway, as current models are usually still under warranty.

I edited the title to read “Independent MB shop (AZ)" however, could not edit the thread title.

Second that, I'd sure like a good shop in Dallas for non-warranty issues. I'm going to probably need brakes soon and don't want to do them myself or go to the dealer, a good independent knowledgeable shop would be great - and no, not Autoscope.

I was thinking about this and wanted to “clarify” further for the benefit of the forum.

MBUSA does, in fact, certify shops however, only collision shops at this time http://www.mbusa.com/care/service/collision-centers.do .

Although the MB Technical Training Department is responsible for providing training to MB dealership employees on diagnostic procedures, maintenance, and general repair independents also have access to STAR TekInfo http://www.startekinfo.com/StarTek/preview.jsp thus leveling the playing field to certain extent most especially if the technician(s) were previously MB trained and certified.

…Remembering that my referral was for maintenance (i.e.: fluid changes, brakes, etc.) and out of warranty general repairs.

Lonny Vanatta
Harrison Connor Automotive
14850 N 83rd PL, Suite A
Scottsdale, AZ 85260
480-596-3701

One of the indy's I went to here in MA, has certificates on their wall with technicians names that went to MB "factory" training. But then again, MA has a law that no car manufacturer can sell a car in MA that can only be serviced by the dealer.

As we all know, as all these cars become more sophisticated and complex, and require very expensive test equipment, indy's will start to disappear, and the dealers will have a captive market. Just think about the mandate for cars sold in the US to have CAN's by 2008.

Regards,
paul...