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      09-03-2013, 09:36 PM   #1
redEYEjedi
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Best Socal Tuning Shops (Top 3)

Hey there forum,

I'm curious to know what shops everyone uses for their modding these days. I know socal has a huge selection of shops, so obviously its to our advantage as consumers to be able to pick and choose who we send our business.

Question is, who are your top 3 socal tuning shops, and most importantly, WHY?!

Sharing is caring, and would definitely like to hear other peoples opinions and feedback. I know every shop has it's own fanboys, so if you feel inclined to "rep" your shop, please provide some reasons as to why.

Thanks in advance and hoping to hear some varied responses!
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      09-04-2013, 12:58 AM   #2
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This oughta be interesting...
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      09-04-2013, 01:17 AM   #3
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I think EAS is pretty good. There mechanic takes pride in his work. I've go e there a few times now and never once have had an issue.

They also stock a lot of goodies for our cars and are pretty much a one stop shop.

-D
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      09-04-2013, 09:26 AM   #4
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Joe @ Trinity Autosport, been dealing business with him for some time now, great guy to work with and does his job well. Although I also don't wanna take away credit from other reputable shops such as EAS, MRF, Supreme.
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      09-04-2013, 11:39 AM   #5
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AUTOTALENT, been dealing with them even before i got the m last year, their mechanic Zolti is a fuckin genius... he takes pride in his work and wont let a car out the shop until hes satisfied...
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      09-04-2013, 01:08 PM   #6
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I might be biased but LTMW has to be my #1 pick since they worked on my previous E90 335, numbers of flawless transformations and now my E92 M3...what can I say? Every work they did on my cars surpassed my expectation. I couldn't be happier with my shop choice. I am anxious, picky, and want my car to look coo, LTMW kept me happy for the past 4-5 years, seems legit

#2 has to be EAS, I dealt with them for few stuffs and trust me I am not even their regular customer but they always took care of me like I was their customer forever. Very professional.

#3 "If ever I believe my work is done... then I start Back at One......yeah yeah~."
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      09-04-2013, 01:14 PM   #7
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Malek at MRF is the man. The guy knows his stuff and is meticulous with everything down to the condition he keeps his shop in. I have to make the trek to the OC every time I want work done on my car but what the hell.
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      09-04-2013, 01:25 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlie@McKennaBMWService View Post
Joe @ Trinity Autosport, been dealing business with him for some time now, great guy to work with and does his job well. Although I also don't wanna take away credit from other reputable shops such as EAS, MRF, Supreme.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ROB_S2K View Post
Malek at MRF is the man. The guy knows his stuff and is meticulous with everything down to the condition he keeps his shop in. I have to make the trek to the OC every time I want work done on my car but what the hell.
Thanks guys. Much appreciated.
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      09-04-2013, 01:53 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ROB_S2K View Post
Malek at MRF is the man. The guy knows his stuff and is meticulous with everything down to the condition he keeps his shop in. I have to make the trek to the OC every time I want work done on my car but what the hell.
Agreed. I drive up from Carlsbad to have Malek work on my car.
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      09-04-2013, 03:22 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ROB_S2K View Post
Malek at MRF is the man. The guy knows his stuff and is meticulous with everything down to the condition he keeps his shop in. I have to make the trek to the OC every time I want work done on my car but what the hell.
Though I do not have experience with a lot of other shops I will definitely add a +1 here. Incredible service, knowledge, and attention to detail.
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      09-04-2013, 03:24 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ILSMKU View Post
I think EAS is pretty good. There mechanic takes pride in his work. I've go e there a few times now and never once have had an issue.

They also stock a lot of goodies for our cars and are pretty much a one stop shop.

-D
Thanks! I was literally at EAS, well across from them for a meeting but since it was a bit late didn't get to go in and check them out. Definitely on my bucket list to visit.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlie@McKennaBMWService View Post
Joe @ Trinity Autosport, been dealing business with him for some time now, great guy to work with and does his job well. Although I also don't wanna take away credit from other reputable shops such as EAS, MRF, Supreme.
Yes I know Joe and Nerwyll. Excellent guys with GREAT customer service and stand up guys in general. Will definitely be sending them business.

Quote:
Originally Posted by kchu221 View Post
AUTOTALENT, been dealing with them even before i got the m last year, their mechanic Zolti is a fuckin genius... he takes pride in his work and wont let a car out the shop until hes satisfied...
I also have known Sam from AUTOTALENT for years. Great guy and even better shop. Any idea if Zolti is knowledgeable with engine swaps? Maybe I'll just hit up Sam directly also. Thanks for the rec!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by creaminz View Post
I might be biased but LTMW has to be my #1 pick since they worked on my previous E90 335, numbers of flawless transformations and now my E92 M3...what can I say? Every work they did on my cars surpassed my expectation. I couldn't be happier with my shop choice. I am anxious, picky, and want my car to look coo, LTMW kept me happy for the past 4-5 years, seems legit

#2 has to be EAS, I dealt with them for few stuffs and trust me I am not even their regular customer but they always took care of me like I was their customer forever. Very professional.

#3 "If ever I believe my work is done... then I start Back at One......yeah yeah~."
Thanks for the input Darren! I think the entire board knows you are the walking/driving LTMW billboard. I think with your mod direction and bank roll you could build or blow up any shops reputation through the roof! Between the E92 Liberty Walk M3 and your Honda Odyssey you win the stable of the year haha!

Quote:
Originally Posted by ROB_S2K View Post
Malek at MRF is the man. The guy knows his stuff and is meticulous with everything down to the condition he keeps his shop in. I have to make the trek to the OC every time I want work done on my car but what the hell.
Excellent to hear!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Malek@MRF View Post
Thanks guys. Much appreciated.
Malek, do you also do engine swaps?!

Quote:
Originally Posted by slicer View Post
Agreed. I drive up from Carlsbad to have Malek work on my car.
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      09-04-2013, 03:42 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by redEYEjedi View Post

Malek, do you also do engine swaps?!


Yes. (Anything is possible with enough time. )

We do a lot here at MRF Engineering. Services include but not limited to the following:

-Performance Alignments
-Suspension Installation
-Exhaust Systems (Downpipes, Mid-Sections, Headers, Rear Sections)
-Suspension Tuning/Consultation
-Race Track Instruction & Vehicle Setup
-Aftermarket Brake pads/rotors Installation
-Big Brake Kit Installation
-Supercharger Installation
-Short Shift kit Installation
-Wheel mounting/Road-Force Balancing
-Aerodynamic parts Installation (Front lips, diffusers, trunk lips, wings)
-Exterior Cosmetics
-Interior Electronics (Gauges, peripherals, V1/Escort hard-wire)
-Performance Seats
-BMW Interior Trims, BMW Performance Steering Wheels
-General OEM Factory service & repair


Authorized dealer for (not limited as well):

-KW Suspensions
-Ohlins Suspensions
-Brembo Brake Systems
-StopTech Brake Systems
-Recaro
-Akrapovic Exhaust Systems
-AMS Tuning
-ESS Tuning MASTER Dealer (sales and installation)
-Macht Schnell
-iND
-BMW OE Factory Parts
-BMW Performance

Hope that helps!
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      09-04-2013, 04:20 PM   #13
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Not to slight those not mentioned (who by all accounts do very good work!), but I can personally recommend:

1. EAS
2. LTMW
3. CNC Motors

Additionally, I have had some good experiences with the following:

1. BMW of Riverside (great team of service techs and service advisers)
2. BMW of Murrieta (Boris Said's shop...one of those car guys you've got to meet!)
3. Sterling BMW

Thankfully there are a LOT of great shops in SoCal. The bad reviews are rather far and few between and are significantly over shadowed by the good reviews from a very diverse community of car lovers.

Chief
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      09-04-2013, 04:31 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chief View Post
Not to slight those not mentioned (who by all accounts do very good work!), but I can personally recommend:

1. EAS
2. LTMW
3. CNC Motors

Additionally, I have had some good experiences with the following:

1. BMW of Riverside (great team of service techs and service advisers)
2. BMW of Murrieta (Boris Said's shop...one of those car guys you've got to meet!)
3. Sterling BMW

Thankfully there are a LOT of great shops in SoCal. The bad reviews are rather far and few between and are significantly over shadowed by the good reviews from a very diverse community of car lovers.

Chief

Thanks for the input Chief!

The purpose of my thread was to keep things POSITIVE, hence my request for member's recommended shops for tuning/modding/service etc. I think everyone has probably had a bad experience with a shop or 2, but I don't want to know about the bad shops since I'm only interested in working with reputable shops that offer good customer service, knowledgeable advice, and honest work. Hopefully the recs here can be used as a more recent reference sheet for other forum members also!
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      09-04-2013, 05:14 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ROB_S2K View Post
Malek at MRF is the man. The guy knows his stuff and is meticulous with everything down to the condition he keeps his shop in. I have to make the trek to the OC every time I want work done on my car but what the hell.
Quote:
Originally Posted by slicer View Post
Agreed. I drive up from Carlsbad to have Malek work on my car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by emKel View Post
Though I do not have experience with a lot of other shops I will definitely add a +1 here. Incredible service, knowledge, and attention to detail.

+1

The only place I would recommend is MRF Engineering. Its a true boutique performance build shop. And they place a heavy emphasis on perfection. Its the only place I can go to and not have to worry about whether my car will come out better than when I left it. There are just too many shops out there passing themselves off as professionals who in reality just don't have the knowledge, or work ethic, to make it perfect.

Malek's work is as good or better than OEM, and that's saying a lot.

Its a ringing endorsement, because his work is that good.
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      09-04-2013, 05:38 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by redEYEjedi View Post
I also have known Sam from AUTOTALENT for years. Great guy and even better shop. Any idea if Zolti is knowledgeable with engine swaps? Maybe I'll just hit up Sam directly also. Thanks for the rec!!

Zolti is capable of anything on any car... that guy is a genius when it comes to cars.
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      09-04-2013, 05:45 PM   #17
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EAS! Quick stop for my car and they usually have items/parts for all BMW!
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      09-04-2013, 05:55 PM   #18
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AutoTalent is excellent.

If price is no issue: http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/b...many-more.html

This is a SICK build. The rear suspension is just amazing and done right with reinforced shock tower attachment points, TRUE rear coil over and adjustable rear arms.

.
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Let me get this straight... You are swapping out parts designed by some of the top engineers in the world because some guys sponsored by a company told you it's "better??" But when you ask the same guy about tracking, "oh no, I have a kid now" or "I just detailed my car." or "i just got new tires."
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      09-04-2013, 06:08 PM   #19
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Any places that are also ASE certified that also mods/ tunes? Would be handy since ive got an extended warranty that lets me go to any ASE certified mech for warranty work.
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      09-04-2013, 08:03 PM   #20
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+1 for MRF

A+ for detail
A+ for pricing
A+ overall

Malek is a very honest guy, and finding that is sometimes a difficult thing to come by especially when working on your car.
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Last edited by kwike92; 09-04-2013 at 08:43 PM..
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      09-04-2013, 08:11 PM   #21
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1. EAS
2. EAS
3. EAS

but I did run into a guy that uses Malek and spoke very highly of him as well.
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      09-05-2013, 12:59 AM   #22
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