New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Has anyone else noticed that there has been a recent surge in new Z owners and want to be Owners popping up on this site and over on CF. In my opinion it portends well for the future of our favorite marque. Hopefully it will also be the beginning of at least a stabilization of prices.

One of the questions always asked is where can I find a shop that can work on my Z. Of the many resources we have here a National list of Z (LT5 specifically) competent shops is not one of them. I'm not sure the list over at ZR1.net is up to date or complete. I would like to use this thread to assemble such a list.

I am only aware of few.

Tier One Shops - High level LT5 competence

ARIZONA
Bill Boudreau - ZFDoc - Cave Creek, AZ (Phoenix Area) (602) 319-6575 http://zfdoc.com/

Larrys Engine & Marine, 600 W Lester, Tuscon,AZ
520-623-5373

CALIFORNIA
Pfaff Engine Builders, 5362 System Drive, Huntington Beach,CA
714-296-6726

COLORADO
Jerry Price, 3160 N Industrial Way, Castlerock,CO
303-621-5101

ILLINOIS
Haibeck Automotive Technology, 430 W Kay Unit D, Addison,IL
630-458-8427 http://www.zr1specialist.com

Pete's Performance Parts Chicago, IL. 847-778-4507 https://zr1pete.wordpress.com

INDIANA
Pepmeier Engine Development 10298 Copper Ridge Drive
Fishers, IN 46040 317-503-3287 pepmeierengines@yahoo.com https://toddpepmeier.wixsite.com/pepmeierengines

KENTUCKY
Graham Behan, KY
Senior Lotus Engineer & mentor to virtually all of the most well known LT5 shops.
*Graham Behan*
New Concord, KY 42076
260-701-8860
email: grahambehan@yahoo.com

MINNESOTA
Doug Rippie Motorsports, Waverly MN. 763-658-6109 http://dougrippie.com
(Rippie is one of the pioneers of ZR-1 performance, they still offer a performance package. Their willingness to do maintenance and repair is unknown at this time)

PENNSYLVANIA
JWC Performance, 605 Guilford Ave, Chambersburg,PA
301-991-6991

TEXAS
Steve Schroder
Crossed Flags Performance, LLC
37007 Red Rock
Magnolia, Texas 77355
(832) 748-1286 cell
sschroder@crossedflagsllc.com

VIRGINIA
Evolution Motor Sports - Fredericksburg VA. http://www.evolution-motorsport.com/ tel:540-737-8779

WASHINGTON
Scott Carlson, Benchmark Auto, 8248 NE SR 104, Kingston, WA
360-297-6812


Tier Two Shops - General Competence, Willing to work on the LT5 - Possible Mixed Reviews - might have once been a tier 1 shop but current status is unknown.


CALIFORNIA
Franks Performance, 2020 S. Susan St. Unit E, Santa Ana, CA.
714-403-5758 www.franksperformance.com

Precision Motive, Hayward CA. (510) 886-0789 http://www.precisionmotive.com

Northstar Automotive, Mountainview CA. 650 967 8388 https://www.northstarauto.com

COLORADO
Purifoy Chevrolet, Ft. Lupton, CO 303-659-8311 http://www.purifoychevrolet.com

FLORIDA
Corvette Masters, Orlando, FL. Phone: 8615 US-17, Maitland, FL 32751 (407) 831-3990 http://corvettemasters.com

SS Performance Auto, 5760 Progress Rd, South Miami, FL. 33143, (305) 668-9792, www.ssperformanceauto.com

Eismanns Corvette Center, (561)746-0229, 213 Venus St., Jupiter FL. 33458
Http://www.Eismannscorvettecenter.com

GEORGIA
South Georgia Corvettes, 1396 Dillon Rd, Thomasville, GA 31757
229-224-2919

Corvette Performance Center, Canton, GA. Paul Sisia 770-609-4242 paulsisia@aol.com

LOUISIANA
Ebert's Engine Service, Abita Springs, LA 985-960-2483

NEW HAMPSHIRE
Bank's Chevrolet, Concord, NH 603-224-4055

NEW JERSEY
Pine Belt Chevrolet, Eatontown, NJ 732-542-1000

NEW YORK
Vette Doctors, Amityville, NY. (631) 841-0779

PENNSYLVANIA
Brady's High Performance, Willow Street, PA 717-283-0056

TENNESSEE
Freedom Cars, Nashville, TN 615-254-5252

CANADA
Stevenson Specialty Cars, 35 Brook St. Unit 1, Port Perry, ON, L9L 1B5
905-982-0826, StevensonSpecialtyCars.ca Dave@Stevensonspecialtycars.ca

Ok guys who can we add?

Feel free to provide updates, good and bad, we really need to vett these shops!

This should be a list of people who know what they're doing, particularly on an LT5 engine.

H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Bill Boudreau at (602) 319-6575.
http://zfdoc.com/
Cave Creek, AZ (Phoenix Area)

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Corvette Masters - Orlando, FL


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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Not heard of this one. Would you say they're "LT5" savvy(?); not just C4s generally?

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Does Lingenfelter and Doug Rippie still work on our cars?

Any new info on Vette Doctors in NY or Tony’s Corvettes on MD?

Not sure I would include Corvette Mike in Anaheim, CA. although in a pinch they would do, unless someone has better info.

This should be a list of people who really know what they are doing....
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

I know the owner, Robbie Hooper, quite well. He serviced my Z starting around 1992 until I left Florida in 2001. I don't know how extensive work Robbie has done on LT5s but knowing his tremendous knowledge in all automotive stuff, I am sure he can tackle any work even for LT5s.

Even nowadays, I call Robbie at times to ask for his opinion on diagnosing.

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

One more member recommendation for this shop and I will add then to the list.
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Robbie’s Corvette Masters is located next to Rogers Corvettes. Rogers is a Chevrolet dealer that only sells low mileage and excellent condition Vettes of almost any year. He has sold to me and many other ZR-1 owners. He recommended Robbie for mechanical work.


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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Any votes for Dave Mullins Corvette in Dallas?
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Yet to be an owner, and surely a novice in the purest sense, but any experience with West Coast Corvettes in Anaheim, CA?


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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

More of a C1,C2,C3 shop. Can’t comment on C4 or ZR-1 ability.
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Some Observations for you :handshak:

Happy New Year Everyone :cheers::cheers::cheers:

Buy High.....Sell Low

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

That would be DMS Corvette Shop in Garland (suburb of Dallas). I sent them an email to see if they are familiar with ZR-1s, if they are, I'll check them out.

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Precision Motive in Hayward Ca has worked on ZR-1s in the past but don’t know how extensive the Z knowledge is at that shop. I do know they put the automatic in the Steel Blue 91 with the Shinoda body kit floating around and worked out all the bugs,not sure who did the plumbing for the nitrous setup. The owner of the shop Pat Hendrix is a great guy to deal with and he’s had this shop for years.

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Possibly the better solution is to list two categories. Vetted known level one “Master Shops” and level two “Basic Competency” Shops. Based on member feed back we can move shops between the two or out altogether.
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

What’s the story on South Georgia Corvette? Still in business? They did a lot of Z work 10years ago.
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

The American Heritage Repair shop in CA cropped up in response to the reconditioning of a ZR-1 on CF.....Maybe of interest to your list?

This also cropped up in a google search which google searches may also locate other ZR-1 Repair Shops (try several different searches regarding the ZR-1) :thumbsup:
ZR-1 Repair and Maintenance Costs

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Thanks Cliff. I am familiar with them, they are a relatively new (10 yrs or so) but highly respected corvette shop in SoCal. I was not sure of their ZR-1 capabilities. As we all know willingness to work on a Z and higher level LT5 work are two very different things. This may be another good example for a two tier list. I will update the listing accordingly later today.
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

This just posted over on CF regarding the presale inspection on the low mile 90’ for sale in SOCAL. A good example why these shops need to be vetted.
H

“My experience with Corvette Mike was terrible..I went to them as I wanted to have the best shop work and document on my low mile (17,000) ZR! car I purchased. They misquoted, charged extra, when the work was done and I picked it up, only to find out they didn't test drive it . it didn't run any better...THEY DIDN'T EVEN TEST DRIVE IT AFTER PLENUM/INJECTOR SERVICE..... they apologized and wanted me to give them a chance to correct the problem. I did.....They told me it was a bad TPS, (TPS was replaced with new delco by me) only to find out that the TPS connector was them problem ..This was a 1600++ repair for injector and plenum removal and they didn't test drive it..(I know, hard to believe)......The worst part was when service manager (carl) tried to tell me he he spent 4 hours diagnosis and it should cost an extra 4-500 dollars.....Since then I have found many people have had issues with
Corvette MIke...I would not recommend this business as they have no accountability”

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Sounds like they screwed up, but not sure that you want to test drive your Z! I always pop the hood and do a visual inspection and then tell them you’ll be right back. U road test it and either give them a thumbs up or get into to them to fix it right!

BTW-tell them there are no greasy finger prints on the engine and you don’t want to see them when you pick up the car!


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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Updated...

I’ll ask again, Does anyone have a status on the following shops? All of these were once top notch LT5 Shops.

South Georgia Corvettes, Thomasville, GA.
Doug Rippie, Waverly, MN.
Lingenfelter Performance, Decatur, Indiana.

For tier two, any new info on Vette Doctors in NY or Tony’s Corvettes on MD?

Based on some internet searches...

South Georgia Corvettes, Appears to be out of business.
Doug Rippie, Still shows an LT5 package but no maintenance or repair.
Lingenfelter Performance, no reference to anything C4 let alone LT5.
Vette Doctors, Shows an LT5 package, possible maintenance and repair. Is known to work on Z’s.
Tony’s Corvettes, no specific LT5 reference. Is known to work on Z’s.

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

I understand that Tony's Corvettes in MD has a mechanic who is LT5 certified. Also Sport Chevrolet in MD also has a mechanic who is LT5 certified.

As for me, I stick with Wazoo who are all better than LT5 certified!

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Have to ask......how do you become LT5 Certified? :p
Seems it is based on the personal opinion of others who are not LT5 Certified ;)

Or it is based on the percentage of times you guess exactly what is wrong with an LT5 in the first step of a diagnostic process based on the insufficient information provided by an Uncertified LT5 operator :)

Having said that......a group of guys not LT5 certified may as a group be LT5 Certified and that is why I have suggested Jim and the WAZOO guys on a Sat are LT5 Certified (I have never heard of a complaint) :sign10:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

How does one become certified, enquiring minds want to know.

Graham

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

My understanding was back in the day Chevy dealers who were lucky enough to receive a ZR-1 had to send at least one mechanic for special training to be LT5 certified. Not every Chevy dealer had one on staff. I do not know where the training was held. I would assume most of them are now retired.

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

There certainly was a GM LT5 training class with an extensive curriculum. I too recall dealerships had to have trained technicians to sell ZR-1s. Not sure if it was called a certification. Weren’t there even little trophies technicians got for completion?

Probably long since discontinued by GM.
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

The WAZOO LT5 certifying process straight forward and starts with a critical evaluation of a candidate’s skills on the BBQ grille. Next up is stocking and maintaining the beer cooler. 21st and final step is cam timing while blindfolded with one arm tied behind the back.


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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Guess that means I would fail, since my Wife says I can't even handle the beer cooler part right.


Graham

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

My wife refuses to let me barbecue, she does it all. Claims I burn everything. There is however method to my madness. ;)
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Come on guys, this is serious, no sand bagging


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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Wonder if the LT-5 training curriculum is in a barn somewhere??? Would be a nice barn find..

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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Maybe it has changed , but the last time I checked the LT-5 Package from Vette Drs. was somewhere in the neighborhood of 21,000 dollars....I mean,really?

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Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Don't you have to spend a minimum of one night at a Holiday Inn?

Or must you buy one of the pewter mechanic with engine awards?
:D
:cheers:
Marty

You are LT5 Certified if.....
 

You are Certified if?? :thumbsup:

You mean the first step is Painting the Top End using High Temperature BBQ Rust Oleum? (using a BBQ grill for practice) :D

Painting Top End

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...67f6e5a3fa.jpghttps://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...6eb6b04738.jpg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...d5548a25b5.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...22bc95e44a.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...3719b3d95d.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...b166369188.jpg

Note: This LT5 is set up with Marcs chip for 91 octane :p

Ccmano has a great start on a list of Mechanics that can help keep the ZR-1 alive :handshak:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Any more recommendations? I can’t believe that is it...?

Can we get this thread up as a sticky...? So we can continue working on it and make it more visible to newbies.

Thanks
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Don't do it

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Over the last several years, I have had many customers ranging from novice to the very best & well known LT5 builders. The following is a list of professionals I have encountered, who impressed me with their knowledge & approach to working on the LT5. Some you will recognize & others may be known only to locals. Satisfy yourself before using anyone on the following list.

In order by state;

ARIZONA
Larrys Engine & Marine, 600 W Lester, Tuscon,AZ
520-623-5373

CALIFORNIA
Pfaff Engine Builders, 5362 System Drive, Huntington Beach,CA
714-296-6726

COLORADO
Jerry Price, 3160 N Industrial Way, Castlerock,CO
303-621-5101

GEORGIA
South Georgia Corvette (SGC), 1396 Dillon Rd, Thomasville,GA

ILLINOIS
Haibeck Automotive Technology, 430 W Kay Unit D, Addison,IL
630-458-8427

KENTUCKY
Senior Lotus Engineer & mentor to virtually all of the most well known LT5 shops
Graham Behan
New Concord, KY 42076
(260)701-8860
email: grahambehan@yahoo.com

MINNESOTA
Doug Rippie Motorsports (DRM), 412 Pacific, Waverly,MN
763-658-6109

PENNSYLVANIA
JWC Performance, 605 Guilford Ave, Chambersburg,PA
301-991-6991

TEXAS
Henderson Performance Technologies (HPT),1660 Loop 337, New Braunfels,TX
830-620-1117

VIRGINIA
Evolution Motorsports, 88 le way Dr, Ste 123, Fredricksburg,VA
540-737-8779

WASHINGTON
Scott Carlson, Benchmark Auto, 8248 NE SR 104, Kingston, WA
360-297-6812

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Fantastic list! Thanks Jerry!
H
:cheers:

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

I think it's been over ten years ago or so, but I worked on a project that included preparing a list of "ZR-1 shops." My research was based pretty much solely on the inputs from members of this forum as well as those from Corvette Forum and possibly whatever else I was able to find on the web. There was no confirmation done on the validity of the recommendations and this is over ten years old so it's possible some of these shops no longer exist, but here is the list (take it for what it's worth -- this is not a personal recommendation from me as I have only personal experience with one shiop on this list -- ZR51/Bill Boudreau, who I would highly recommend):

Name, Location, Phone, Website
Bank's Chevrolet, Concord, NH 603-224-4055
Brady's High Performance, Willow Street, PA 717-283-0056
Ebert's Engine Service, Abita Springs, LA 985-960-2483
Freedom Cars, Nashville, TN 615-254-5252
Guldstrand Motorsports, Burbank, CA 818-558-1499 http://www.guldstrand.com
Haibeck Automotive Technology, Addison, IL 630-458-8427 http://www.zr1specialist.com
Henderson Performance Technologies, New Braunfels, TX 210-867-6286 http://www.hendersonperformance.com
Jim Watson Performance Concepts, Lawrenceville, GA 770-978-7400
Lingenfelter Performance Engineering, Inc., Decatur, IN 260-724-2552 http://www.lingenfelter.com
Pacific Northwest ZR-1, Vancouver, WA 206-755-0976 http://www.pnwzr1.com
Pine Belt Chevrolet, Eatontown, NJ 732-542-1000
Purifoy Chevrolet, Ft. Lupton, CO 303-659-8311
South Georgia Corvette, Inc., Thomasville, GA 229-226-4447
SS Racing, Dallas, TX 972-519-3553
The Vette Doctors Inc., Amityville, NY 631-841-0779 http://www.thevettedoctors.com
Tony's Corvettes, Gaithersburg, MD 301-869-7110
ZR51 Performance, Cave Creek, AZ 602-319-6575 http://www.zfdoc.com
Auto Masters, Bowling Green, KY 270-842-0454

Re: New Owners/National list of Z Shops
 

Thanks! Another great help for the quest to find competent shops. I’ll do some checking and comparison to the current list.

Also, We still need to get this list as a sticky...
H
:cheers: