Mesa Automotive goes from ‘can’t find’ to ‘can’t miss’ in new home near Sam’s Club

Tim Harty, The Business Times

Jimmy Gundelach fixed the problem he had with people not noticing his auto-repair business, Mesa Automotive. He moved to a location where you have to go out of your way not to notice. 

And he didn’t have to go far, just a little west and across the highway to 2540 U.S. Highway 6&50 to the triangular lot where Grand Junction Quality Sales used to sell used cars.

The bright-green letters that say “Mesa Automotive Service and Repair” on a black backdrop stand out, readily visible to: people stopped at the busy intersection where Highway 6&50 and Rimrock Avenue meet; anyone turning to go to Sam’s Club or veer off onto Independent Avenue; and traffic merely passing by on Highway 6&50.

The difference in visibility has been night and day, as Gundelach said at his previous location, 2583 U.S. Highway 6&50, next door to Ed Bozarth Chevrolet, “We tried really big signs and flags and banners and everything” to get noticed.

And those visuals didn’t work. Instead, what brought people to his shop was word of mouth, and he had several dealerships that brought cars to him to repair for eventual sale.

Now, his new location brings people to his shop, where he has encountered a different problem. People remember there used to be a used-car dealership there.

“People come in and ask me, ‘What do you do here,’” Gundelach said, incredulous that “service and repair” on the sign isn’t obvious. “I don’t know what else to say.”

Car sales, however, are part of his business plan as he is trying to get an auto-sales license. Then, Mesa Automotive may need to add “and Auto Sales” to its signage.

If it happens, Gundelach intends to take a different approach than most used-car dealerships.

“Ideally,” he said, “we want to be a mechanic selling cars versus a salesman selling cars that doesn’t know anything about cars.”

Gundelach said he and a trusted friend will be the ones picking out cars that Mesa Automotive will fix and “try to put a better product out there.”

Gundelach, who is 39 years old, said he has worked at eight dealerships since he was 20. He said the approach of most used-car dealers is to repair only what is necessary, and he understands it. To go beyond that is to eliminate profit, and businesses are in business to make money.

Still, he believes he can go the extra mile on repairs, sell more reliable cars, and his conscience will allow him to sleep at night.

If the auto sales don’t come to fruition, Gundelach will be content doing what he does best: repair vehicles.

He said his background as a mechanic at dealerships made him versatile and prepared him to own his own business.

“I tried to spend my years from 20 years old until now working for as many different manufacturers as possible, to absorb as much knowledge as I can,” said Gundelach, who added he started as a lube tech, and after about 10,000 oil changes, moved over to a tire shop.

“I did all the factory classes at each dealership. … That’s where I started absorbing knowledge on all of that. I just went from the bottom, detailing, and then various training service, trying to see my potential.”

He has encountered customers who came to him after going elsewhere and not being able to get their vehicle fixed. And Gundelach was able to do the repair.

“I don’t get stumped too easily,” he said. “I get customers that they’ll come in here and say, ‘Well, I’ve taken it to four other places,’” and in half a day Gundelach will have it figured out for them.

“It’s rare that it has to go to a dealer,” he said.

In addition to customers now being able to easily find Mesa Automotive, Gundelach hopes they will give his business a chance by comparison shopping for repairs. He said checking with more than one repair shop is a good practice in general, even when it means a potential customer chooses a competitor instead of his shop.

He gave the example of an 18-year-old girl who showed him her invoice from a different shop, which had charges such as $76 to look at her exhaust and $50 to test her battery.

“I was like, ‘You’re being charged $900 for nothing. They didn’t do anything,’” he said. “I was like, ‘All this would have been about $300 in our shop.’”

He gave another example of an 80-year-old man who came to him after getting a $10,000 quote from a dealership that told the man he needed an engine replacement. Gundelach said he and another mechanic looked at the engine and determined it just needed a small repair.

“We fixed it for $1,200,” he said.

Gundelach said many car owners just need to learn to check more than one place for repairs.

“That’s the hard part is they don’t know to try and search around,” he said. “I mean, everybody advertises they do it differently and they’re cheaper, they’re better. But when I see the invoices, it’s hard to be a mechanic and know what I know and see what people are paying for nothing. You know? So, it’s really the educational thing, that people need to know that you can go to two places and get an answer, too.”

If Gundelach gets the influx of business he’s hoping for, he will have the space to grow the repair business to accommodate it.

“We’ve got three bays right now,” he said. “We’ve got enough room to add probably four more lifts and four more mechanics if we start growing. It’s got good potential and enough space.”