Check Engine Express

I’ve been a loyal customer of Check Engine Express since they opened. An honest mechanic allows me to drive our cars longer, and I can trust that they are being fair. They always explain options and allow me to pick how far we want to go with repairs.

Shane and his team have been my go to since moving to the area; they have always gone out of their way to ensure I get the best service and highest quality. I could not be happier and enthusiastically recommend them to anyone looking for honest quality work. I recently purchased a new car and had them so a pre purchase inspection; this was the best decision I could have made. They provided me with a detailed report including recommendations and expected future costs. With their expertise I was able to negotiate over $ 2,000 worth of necessary repairs from the dealership before buying including breaks, battery, timing belt, water pump and sunroof (that only failed once every dozen times, now that’s a thorough inspection!!!). Every dollar I spend with Check Engine Express seems to save me two or three dollars down the road!

Great honest mechanic. Shane will tell you exactly what needs to be done and won’t try to sell you anything you don’t need. I trust him with my cars and now my mother’s car. He runs a clean honest shop.

I have had my 10-​year old Saab serviced at Check Engine for a couple of years now. They know all makes and models of cars, are thorough, and always tell you whether a repair is necessary and why, or optional and deferrable. I have not comparison ‘shopped’ as I trust them to be fair and honest. I especially appreciate their willingness to ‘show you’ the problem and explain what they need to do. They also follow up after a significant repair or diagnostic to make sure everything is okay.

NEED TO EMPHASIZE: THIS IS THE MOST HONEST MECHANIC I HAVE EVER DEALT WITH AND IS THE ONLY ONE I WILL EVER DEAL WITH IN THE FUTURE!!!
The guy that runs this place is a friendly chatty fellow named Shane. He used to work as a mechanic for a variety of dealerships and is quite knowledgable regarding the field of automotive repair. I tried out this shop strictly by coincidence, place of work is across the street from his shop so it made for convenient drop-​offs and pick-​ups.
My first visit with Shane at Check Engine Express was for an oil change. During the process of the oil change it is customary for them to put it up on the lift and take a quick look around to make sure everything else looks ok. I know what you guys are thinking… here’s where the upsell is coming to chisel a few more bucks from me. Well, after my first oil change he informed me of some items that were a bit worn nothing to be worried about, but to keep an eye out for a few things. Shane does NOT try and sell you services or parts that you don’t need and when you do need something he will always try and get a generic part and save you a couple of bucks wherever possible.
A few months later, my car is running funny, stuttering, not reacting to the gas being pushed down so I bring it to him again. He does an initial diagnostic and can’t really figure out what is happening. It takes him two days to be able to figure out what is happening (I get my car back and drop it back off in the morning) and he finally figures out what is happening. When it comes to the bill he axes 75% of the labor charge because he treated this as a learning experience for himself as opposed to charging me for his learning experience. Again, helping the litle guy out again where it hurts the most… the wallet!
Many months later, my wife brings her BMW to the dealership in Bloomington they list out a 10 page report of «absolutely necessary fixes» along with the labor and parts required for the job. The estimated bill is somewhere in the ballpark of $ 2500. I immediately tell my wife that we are getting a second opinion from Shane at Check Engine Express because this doesn’t sound right. Shane reviews each line item line by line and inspects the vehicle and comes to us with an estimated bill of $ 1500; final bill $ 1500. Come to find out, not only did he only fix what needed to be fixed, but we also found out that the BMW dealership was only going to fix a portion of what was apparently broken on the car. Essentially, coming out of this deal we spent $ 1000 less and got more fixed than if we went to the dealership.
Check Engine Express is an automotive repair shop that operates out of the western metro. They are a full service auto repair shop (brakes, tune-​ups, and scheduled maintenance), that also performs engine diagnostics (check engine light and/​or other sensors). They offer free pick-​up and dellivery of your vehicle.
RE-​EMPHASIZE: THIS IS THE MOST HONEST MECHANIC I HAVE EVER DEALT WITH AND IS THE ONLY ONE I WILL EVER DEAL WITH IN THE FUTURE!!!
Note: I live in St. Paul and now work in White Bear Lake, however, I will drive all the way out to Minnetonka just to be sure that I am not getting jerked around by someone else at another shop.