Our People

Started Scanwest Autosport in 1985.

Rob has been repairing cars since the age of 9, starting with his brother’s vehicles, and by age 11, he was already working in a shop.

His first repair? Rebuilding a 4-barrel carburetor for his brother’s 1966 Pontiac LeMans and installing it. He wanted to start the car to see if it worked while his brother was playing basketball in the yard. Rob climbed into the car and pushed in the clutch to start it. The parking brake wasn’t set, so the car rolled into a garage post and dented the fender.

"I can’t believe what I’m seeing" story:

A customer once came in with a 1974 Saab 99, complaining the transmission was stuck in 3rd gear. After working the shifter around a bit, Rob got it to come out of gear. The engine sounded a little rough, so he popped the hood—and immediately said, “We’ve got bigger issues.”

Looking down into the engine bay, he found the #3 piston rod lying on the inner fender, with a hole in the engine block. The rod had failed, punched through the transmission case, damaged the transmission, and exited through the side of the block.

The wildest part? The customer drove the car in that condition.

Started out as a shop helper at Scanwest.

After about a month, I said, “I would be of much better help to you in the office rather than working on cars.” I tend to get myself into trouble when trying to repair them.

First repair:

Replacing the engine in my '79 Saab 900. I couldn’t get the transmission separated from the old block once I had it out, so I had to have Scanwest finish it up for me. I became a customer from that point on—and started working at Scanwest two years later. I’ve learned a lot since then!

"I can’t believe what I’m seeing" story:

I haven’t seen a whole lot, but one story definitely stands out:

A customer once drove over a piece of rebar. It somehow managed to go through the lower splash panel of the bumper, radiator, intercooler, and A/C condenser—and came out the top, behind the turn signal light, inside the fender.

At Scanwest since 1989.

I’ve been repairing cars for over 30 years.

First repair:

My first major repair was replacing the engine in my own Ford Pinto wagon. As for other people’s cars, I rebuilt an automatic transmission for a Datsun B210 and installed it during tech school.

"I can’t believe what I’m seeing" story:

It’s a new story every day!

At Scanwest since 1996.

First repair:

Lynn’s first “repairs” weren’t repairs at all—they were disassemblies. He started by tearing down broken Saabs for usable parts. Many cars were sacrificed to save many more. To this day, we probably still have parts in our inventory that Lynn pulled from parts cars over 20 years ago!

"I can’t believe what I’m seeing" story:

A longtime customer once came in with a strange odor coming from his 900 convertible. Lynn popped the hood and discovered a rather large… gulp… cooked rat lying on the intake manifold. After removal—and a generous amount of air circulation in the shop—the job was done.

At Scanwest since 2002.

Larry is a valuable asset to the team. He keeps oil changes and other quick jobs moving efficiently through the shop. He also does an excellent job organizing our used parts inventory and keeping the shop clean and tidy so the techs can focus on their work.

At Scanwest since 1989.

Kathy has been part of Scanwest since the early days, spending many of those years working behind the scenes. Now serving as the company’s accountant, she’s regularly in the shop once a week—keeping track of the business and making sure the rest of us stay in line.

At Scanwest since 2009.

Cooper is our professional customer greeter—always happy when someone new walks through the door. He somehow knows instantly if you have a dog at home, and he’s quick to bark a friendly hello to both you and your pup. Cooper keeps a relaxed schedule and is usually only in the shop on Mondays!