Flintworks

I called Flint Works and spoke to Alden about a dead key fob for my Porsche Turbo. He said that he had the battery in stock and to come by whenever it was convenient. I drove over a couple hours later. Alden dropped what he was doing, changed the battery and checked that it worked. I asked how much I owed but he refused to let me pay anything, even for the battery itself. A nice surprise for me! I would not hesitate to recommend Flint Works for anyone needing professional, courteous service.

I’ve been taking all my cars to Flintworks since Alden opened shop 7 years ago. I first brought my BMW there for a new water pump, and I was blown away by his work and personality. After my first experience I found out he works on all cars, so now my Dodge truck and Subaru get serviced there to. Alden has always been patient when showing me what work needs to be done on my cars, and has never tried to sell me things I didn’t need. Overall Aldens exceptional work, honesty, and responsiveness is what keeps me coming back. I am moving to Sacramento next month, but I’m still going to bring my cars to Flintworks for servicing. Alden is a rare find, I hope he’s always around because I couldn’t imagine trying to find another mechanic like him.

These guys are solid! Small but effective shop with top tier mechanics. Honored my 3^rd oil change even though it had expired a couple of months ago! Super friendly and don’t try to up-​sale you on other services. Highly recommend for any service.

Very quick and good service. I heard of them when I signed up for 3 oil changes through Amazon local. Each instance the service has been great. I would definitely recommend this place.

They had the best price for changing front and rear brake pads on my Acura MDX thru Amazon local deal, so I decided to give them a try. Small shop, but the people are very friendly and there is free WiFi if you choose to wait. My brake job took only about 75 minutes, and Wes the mechanic took the time to explain his work and showed me a possible future problem. No pressure or pushing additional unnecessary work at all. Overall, a great experience and I wouldn’t hesistate to use them again.

Just wanted to share my experiences with Alden Flint from Flintworks. I bought a 2000 Boxster S from a private party. I planned on driving down to LA, picking up a buddy, and driving home to Chicago via Route 66. Based on the sellers recommendation and Unilocal!reviews I had Alden do a clutch replacement, an IMS bearing upgrade, and a pre-​purchase inspection. During the inspection he found a town CV boot, and recommended axle replacements with aftermarket parts. I picked up the car and got 200 miles down the PCH and the engine failed catastrophically. I took a cab to a U-​Haul, rented a truck and a trailer and hauled the car back to his shop. His assistant revved the engine near redline for close to 5 minutes while he listened to different parts of the engine trying to determine the cause of the noise. He pulled the pan and found copper colored metal shavings. I had him put the oil back in and had the car shipped home.
I had an engine rebuilder replace the engine with a 3.4 from a 911. While he was in there, he pulled out the oil filter. It was a twisted, shrunken wreck. According to Alden, he had changed the oil less than 500 miles prior to me picking up the car, so it didn’t need an oil change. Obviously, something was amiss. My new mechanic also found within two minutes of starting the inspection, oil in the coolant, coolant in the motor oil, and eventually, after tearing the engine down, a cracked cylinder head. He also found and replaced a bad starter.
After getting the car back, a quick check of the car revealed: non-​functioning windshield wipers, a flat spare tire, door locks that didn’t work, remote door locks that didn’t work (the key), a CD player that didn’t work, and a scan revealed about 10 faults involving electrical/​door lock problems.
I asked Mr. Flint to reimburse me because his pre-​purchase inspection sucked and he either didn’t do or lied about the oil filter change. I had four professional mechanics inspect the fiber. They ALL said the clogged oil filter caused the rod bearings to fail due to a lack of oil. He refused and said I was to blame because I had revved the engine to 6000 RPM.
I am in the process of legal remediation.
Ask to see his ASE certification and Porsche Factory training certificates that he states he has on his website. I spent hours in his shop and didn’t see one. My wife is a dentist and proudly displays her diplomas, medical licenses, and ADA membership.
I really like Alden. He’s a great guy. He’s easy to talk to, hard working, and earnest. I will never let him touch another automobile I own as long as I live and suggest you think twice before you do…
I posted this back in October, back before I filed a complaint with the California Dept. Of Consumer Affairs. I recently received a letter and phone call from their Bureau of Auto Repair stating that my complaint had been sustained, and that I could subpoena the expert’s report for my small claims ($ 9800) case. I come back here and my review has been removed. Hmm… interesting. Alden also never responded to my Better Business Bureau complaint either.

Needed to fix the headlight on my Boxster. Called ahead and Wes said sure swing on by… super helpful. turned out it was a different problem which he quickly ID’d and fixed on the spot… charged me a totally righteous $ 15 for labor and a new bulb for a different light that also was bad. Cannot overstate how great they were and friendly. I can’t imagine how much a dealer would have «hosed» me for the same fix. Under $ 40 out the door in 15 minutes. I LOVE THIS BUSINESS!!!

Terrible experience, will never go back, and PLEASE BE AWARE of false promises. PORSCHE owners should NOT go here due to lack of familiarity and experience with our cars. I originally called Flintworks to help with a known OBDII problem inherent with my car and problems with readiness codes not being set. The owner Alden was very confident that he could get the readiness codes set, however now I realize that he had no clue and the information he relayed was completely wrong. Here is the summary of my experience:
I brought the car into the shop after Alden said he can fix this problem and Kevin, his mechanic said that the codes will not set because the 2 year old 02 sensor was bad and there were 4 spark plugs that were loose. I was charged $ 1000 to tighten/​torque down (not replace just torque) the spark plugs and to replace the O2 sensor with the guarantee that the codes will now set.
After 2 weeks, 4 drive cycles and 500 miles the codes still have not set. In addition and most importantly, Alden relayed that according to his equipment the sensors are ready and I should pass smog. Well, I took his advice and paid another $ 70 to find out that my codes are not ready and that the information Alden told me was clearly wrong.
As a result, I will now have to pay another $ 400 at the dealership to mechanics and personnel who have a much better understanding my car and proper procedures. In all, I have spent $ 1000 and going back and forth to Alden’s shop a total of 6 times with no resolution to my original problem. To add insult to injury, the mechanic Kevin left the business this week.
One last kicker, Alden said that he didn’t charge for checking my car the last time and by doing this he gave me a break. I said what did you do and he relayed we hooked up the car to our diagnostics tool. I watched the mechanic do this and it literally took 5 seconds. He also said that he didn’t charge for the mechanic to explain the problems to me. This is the first time I’ve had any shop consider to charge me for talking… The break was $ 155 for plugging the diagnostics tool.
This is the first review I have created ever on Unilocal since I was so compelled and frustrated at this shop and Alden. I will NEVER come back here again.

Friendly customer services. Reasonable pricing. Had the brake pads, rotors, and sensors for front and rear replaced. Will be back for more services.

This is the best auto repair shop I have hired, and I have had work done at 6 shops in the last two years. I would definitely use them again.
I needed some expensive repairs on my Boxster, and I called the various Porsche repair shops to get the best price. Flintworks had the best price, and the owner also explained some interesting details of the repair work that I had not heard from the other Porsche shops that I had spoke with. As it turns out, I got the new customer discount so the final price was better than the original estimate. The work was done when promised, and the quality seems good (it has been only a week).
Additional repairs — every car shop will try to upsell you to do more work on the car, and this shop was no exception. Thankfully, they did not hardsell the additional work. I did approve *some* of the additional work, but I did not approve a front brake replacement for $ 800 — this cost seems high to me considering the cost of parts and the small amount of labor involved.
One minor thing that bugged me was a cheap part ($ 50) that they replaced without asking me. They did not charge labor, so maybe I should be thankful, but I still like to know in advance of everything for which I will be charged.
On a personal level, they are great as well. Very pleasant to deal with.

I really love the staff and ownership at Flintworks. They have done a marvelous job with my Porsche Boxster (my baby). They have handled several issues for me and each time they have resolved them quickly and efficiently. They are reasonably priced (why go to the dealership)? Alden and staff are incredibly police and returned my calls and emails quickly and efficiently. If work does not need done, they let you know and they always give the car a full safety check. I highly recommend Flintworks Auto.

Took my 1990 Porsche 964 here for routine oil /​mtnc /​checkup.
The team at Flintworks is incredibly nice, personable, transparent with what they’re doing and are great communicators throughout the process. Sure upkeep on a classic Porsche is expensive, but I feel so much better trusting it to people who know, and I know are going to do right. This is my new go to shop.

I tried out Flintworks after the reviews on Unilocal and Angie’s list. I asked them for a routine oil change. It was performed while I waited.
The car was checked over and returned to me within one hour.
Pros:
Genuine nice people.
Honest work.
Very competitive prices.
Fast and on time.
Cons:
None so far.
Will definitley return for future services.

I was referred to Flintworks by the prior owner of my 2003 C4S, and my experience with Alden/​owner has been an upside surprise. Not only did Alden put up with my multiple calls with basic questions on my car and the IMS/​RMS/​clutch issues, but he patiently took the time to explain to me the background and what he suggested — always low key and patient.
When I did show up to get my work done, he was equally patient in person and showed me his shop, the work that was to be done, and also shared a bit more of his background (factory trained at 2 prior Porsche dealers and 4 yrs on his own). I really appreciated both his people skills as well as his technical/​mechanical skills as he explained how he does the IMS/​RMS.
Btw, Alden also knows when/​what to fix something and when it’s not necessary to spend extra money. When he had the transmission out, he saw that the drive shaft flex disc was cracked and recommended replacement (cost of part only since labor was already paid for). Conversely, despite another mechanic’s reco, he said that it was not necessary to change the valve cover gasket — it was fine.
When I came back to pick up the car, he showed me all of my old parts (I took pix) and gave me confirmation of what was done. He also test drove the car afterwards (you’d be surprised how often Porsche dealers don’t drive the car after they do the work), and confirmed that the car drove great.
Overall, the service was excellent, the price was more than fair, and I’m very glad that I drove more than an hours EACH WAY to bring the car to him for service — well worth it.
P. S. My new clutch is AWESOME — buttery soft compared with my old one (10% remaining and super stiff), and I’m ready to enjoy the car the way it was meant to.

Just got my 05 Cayenne S back from Flintworks again. I had a CEL that turned out to be 2 items: a misfire and emissions failure. They checked the cylinder with the misfire and switched out cable and spark plug to other cylinders to isolate if either were a problem. The emissions problem was small and they made the repair quickly. I also had an intermittent starter noise that Alden said was fairly common and would not lead to any other damage. He quoted me a price but said it was not necessary. So after Flintworks had diagnosed and fixed my minor problems, Alden informed me that there was no charge! How often does that happen at the dealer or anywhere else? I used to joke with other Porsche owners (with a different Porsche, different mechanic) that every shop visit was another $ 1000. Now I have a mechanic that I know is knowledgeable and fair. Thanks Alden.
…For some reason my previous review was filtered. Hope the Unilocal robot does not censor this one.

Satisfied with pretty much everything…
I got my cam actuator replaced, everything went smoothly on my 996 911. The repair was really fast. After a few days I was able to pick up my car. Good communication. I will definitely go back for future repair /​maintenance. (hopefully not repair).

I’ve taken my 2002 996 Turbo here a couple times now. First time was an oil change and a couple warning lights.
They ended up doing a couple things for me:
Brakes-​which I knew were coming up soon. He said they weren’t necessary immediately, but I figured it was in the shop and I may as well do them. (He called to tell me they noticed a bolt on my calipers somewhere had threads that were not perfect, so he got a new bolt from Porsche).
Oil change
Rear tires (got the same ones I was using the next morning when everyone else didn’t have them available)
Diag on my concerns (which he gave me quotes for and told me the fixes weren’t necessary if I didn’t mind an occasional warning light– one for the rear spoiler, and one for a misfire which was prob my coil packs).
Prices were good. Not cheap work, but certainly much less than the dealer and more convenient (close to home).
I did have an issue with the parts used for my brakes: they squeaked and that was embarrassing in a nice car. I brought it back, he said there was likely an issue with the rotors or pads and he replaced them with new parts the next morning.
Brakes were better after that, but on and off squeaking. I planned on bringing it back, but didn’t have time until a couple days ago. I had no choice when a coolant hose blew. I had it towed in. It was past 5:00, but I let Alden know I was coming and he waited for me so the car could be inside. I also let him know about the brakes…
He called me the next morning at 8:19am with a diagnosis and said he would need to order the parts (would get them the next day (Thursday). He called me Thursday morning at 8:34am and said the car was ready!
He replaced the hose (and showed me the blown hose), re-​did the brake work with genuine Porsche dealer parts and only charged me for the hose work. I insisted that I pay for the price difference of the parts as I knew they had to be more expensive, but he refused. He said he’s never had a problem with the brake supplier he uses, but wanted to make sure I was happy.
I am.

This auto shop provides excellent and quick service! Alden greeted me when I arrived and started working on my car right away while I was filling out the paperwork. He was super friendly and completed work on my car in less than an hour. They provide free wifi and there is a TV in the waiting area too. They also do not try to get you to perform extra services like other places do. When I told Alden about my squeaky brakes, he even took extra time to check them. I’m very satisfied with my first experience here and I hope to come back for future services for my car!

I had my 2009 Porsche Cayenne serviced recently (brakes and 10k service) and paid about half what the dealer would have charged for the same work. Porsche does not void the warranty when service is performed outside of a dealer. And the owner is a former trained Porsche mechanic. Plus a free ride home and pickup when the car was done. Don’t expect a formal dealer sales pitch, rather friendly honest details of the work and costs.
To me this is small business America at it’s best.

These guys are great for any Porsche service needs! I spoke to Alden about doing an IMS Retrofit on my 997 and he was very helpful and knowledgeable. Also the price of the IMS was by far the best deal I could ever find in California, now I see why people would drive hundreds of miles to get their Porsche’s serviced by these guys. Best price you could find for an Oil change too!
They scheduled me first thing in the morning, dropped me off at work and even picked up me up from work at the end of the day and my car was all complete. Couldn’t be more happy! Thanks Alden!
Highly recommended!