"All great things have small beginnings..."

Welcome to Goat Automotive, a modern take on the automotive repair experience. What's so different?

There is no middle man (commonly called the service writer). There is no floor manager demanding forced-services your car doesn't need, to meet his sales quotas. It's just you (the customer), communicating directly with your own private mechanic who listens to your needs and over-delivers.

Labor is warrantied for 30-days, in writing. This is unheard of with other private mechanics. You actually have to take them to small claims court for them to uphold their work.

"Your car deserves the best treatment and care available. Your wallet deserves a break..."

Scare tactics are never employed to secure a sale. The mechanic informs you of everything good and bad happening with the car, and maps out a timeline detailing when each item can or should be fixed, in a manner that fits your schedule and budget. Never a "your car needs all of this, right now, or it will explode imminently..."

Forced selling leaves the worst aftertaste in the customer's mouth, and makes them reticent to ever take their car in for basic maintenance and check ups.

Quotes are given in writing, and your mechanic works within the quoted price. No surprise charges or hidden fees at pickup. Ever. This transparency is constant throughout the process with Goat Auto, and restores a great deal of integrity that has gone missing with other auto repair shops in recent years. 

And all you have to do...is call or email to schedule an assessment. It's that painless. In most cases, we work with your schedule. 

There are sheep, and there are Goats...

Meet your mechanic. Most know me as Miguel, because I've spoken fluent Spanish for the last 13 years, often working in occupations where English was rare or foreign.

The day I learned to crack playful jokes in Spanish was the day I began to break down cultural barriers with my customers...

My life, all of its anecdotes, successes and failures can be linked directly to cars. They have been the motivators and metaphors for the majority of my accomplishments and pursuits.

"Where did you learn so much about cars?"

That's a FAQ my customers ask me when I've diagnosed or repaired something their usual shop couldn't. I believe in providing direct, straight forward solutions which don't cost a lot of time or money.

I'm a Texan since 1990 (when I moved here). I've worked in the auto industry since 2006: the first four years at dealerships, the latter 6 for Advance Auto Parts as an assistant manager. I became increasingly discouraged by the customer experiences I saw with other shops and parts stores around town:

Customers being repeatedly misinformed. Their cars were misdiagnosed during very basic problems. Shops double and triple charged the customer for mistakes the mechanic or service writer made. Basic, easy jobs being poorly executed. Supporting parts being broken by careless technicians; and everyone's favorite auto repair felony: selling jobs the car never needed.

I eventually reached a crescendo in my career where I'd had enough passive viewing from the sidelines. I wanted to impact positive change and return to a proven approach for helping people with their auto problems. This is the origin of Goat Automotive, which I started from [effectively] nothing in 2013.

I began that year with three customers: a trio of beautiful German sisters whose names and faces I will always remember. One of them received a nice runaround from hell at the local Ford dealership on the nearby motor mile. Twice they told her the car was ready, so she went to pick it up...and parts were still falling off of it when she got there.

Over multiple visits, the service writers and managers tried to bully her or talk down to her for being a woman. This is the type of behavior I find unacceptable in any industry.

So I took over and fixed their cars up. As affordably and quickly as possible. Word of mouth spread with each successful car repair. Referrals came flowing in.

By 2016, I had over 70 customers without ever posting a single advertisement. My shop is now fully stocked for the work that I do, and the calendar fills up 3-7 days in advance during the busy season. 

The shop space is small, the overhead is low, and the service will keep you coming back when you or your family need dependable, affordable car care.

This is not the job that makes me rich or pays for my racing hobby. It's the one that makes me smile while I work...that lends fulfillment where previous jobs felt like a steady death march.

About Your Obsessive Mechanic...

Now for the full bio, for those who like to read and process info:

I grew up in a Marine Corps family under a career serviceman. My father was in the Corps from 1965-'85. Organization, efficiency, cleanliness and integrity ruled the roost. My brother and I never lost these virtues. Also, our mom was a bad-ass and didn't tolerate bad attitudes from her boys.

I started turning wrenches and researching auto repair back in 2001 when I had my first vehicle, a 1994 Jeep Wrangler YJ. In those days trucks and 4x4s were my obsession. I learned everything I could about outdoor survival, 4-wheeling, and building the ultimate rig that could survive a weekend of wheeling without breaking down. This pursuit of perfection with my builds and repairs has never left me since: pray for the best...prepare for the worst.

Years later, life threw its curve balls. I sold the Jeep I loved so dearly after a 7-year auto marriage and moved into European cars, VW and Audi specifically. My first new vehicle was a 2006 Volkswagen Jetta GLI, fully optioned and loaded with smooth Wolfsburg turbo power. It showed me everything good and bad about German car ownership.

I worked for Volkswagen of America for 2 years during the gas crisis of 2006, when anything old or new with a TDI engine was worth more than gold and silver combined. Then the diesel cars ran out. VW missed the EPA requirements for diesel emissions the first go-round in 2007. Most of you know how that turned out in 2015 during "Dieselgate". So I did the unthinkable: I moved to the dark side and sold Hondas and Toyotas for 2 more years for Roger Penske at Round Rock Auto Group. This was the game changer.

Penske had a proven system for selling and customer relations. "RRAG" honed me as a salesman and a communicator. I never had to lie or sell my soul to make a deal. The high mpg and improved safety of the Honda-Toyota brand carried me through the nastiest economic recession since the 1930s. But commissioned sales became a grind. I hated the inconsistent income and the prejudgments people brought through the door with them. Many of them had just been treated like crap by the nearby dealers, so who could blame them?

I wanted to cross over and become a service writer. I was always too tech oriented and mechanical to be a car salesman. For this, and many reasons, I was always destined to be a mechanic, and a personal consultant to people who'd been badly burned by hacks and frauds.

I hold a B.A. from Texas State in Mass Communications and Business, but my strongest resume comes from my two shop cars, both of which are OLD and well maintained.

The daily driver is a '94 Toyota Camry with almost a quarter million miles on the original engine and transmission. The paint is also original. The interior looks remarkable for the age of the car. It has served me since 2010 and demonstrates the longevity I can erect from a well made Japanese car.

The other vehicle is a competition 2005 Pontiac GTO, which I built from a stock, comfortable street car into an absolute track monster that breaks hearts and turns heads everywhere it goes. I have over 3000 hours of research and wrenching in the GTO, but you'd never know until you peeked under the hood or saw the underbody with the car up on a lift. It's been all over the country. It started life as a drag car, and evolved into the corner carver and road racer it is today.

Why does any of this matter to you, the customer? Occum's Razor:

It means I know how to fix your daily driver correctly, the first time...it means I don't believe in car payments or unnecessary debt...and it means if you have an old or new hot rod or muscle car you'd like to breathe new life into, I'm your source. And I look forward to meeting you this year.

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