I finally found a competent and relatively reasonably-priced mechanic for my SRT-6 roadster.

I know many of us like to work on our cars ourselves, but given a lack of a garage to do so, the really cold weather right now, and the hassles of disposal of drained fluids -- I opted to just purchase the required parts online and find a good shop to do the work itself.

The place I located is called Autobahn Car Service, hidden in the back of a row of similar buildings in an industrial park off Coakley Circle in Rockville.

It's operated by Germans who specialize in Mercedes and BMW repair, and they received a number of 4 and 5 star reviews online, in various places. We had a bit of a language barrier, but I was able to get the mechanic to understand what I wanted by showing him the replacement parts I purchased and some printed out photos from how-to documents on the forums.

They got my Needswings coolant isolator hoses installed, swapped out my defective coolant pump, and did a radiator flush and fill with approved Mercedes coolant, all for around $220, and had it back to me the next day, before lunch-time after I dropped it off late in the evening. (They have a night drop slot to leave a key after-hours.)

I don't think they'd done any work on the Crossfires before, but the mechanic seemed pleasantly surprised to find familiar Mercedes SLK parts under the hood. He exclaimed, "Everything! It's all the same as the SLKs I work on. Mercedes engine. Great car!"

Thought I'd pass it along in case it helps anyone else out.... The place is a little bit difficult to find, but not bad if you have a GPS or something. I always like these little independent places that specialize in certain cars the best.

 

thanks, its always good to know of options.

I've been using Curry's Auto. They have several locations, most in NoVA, but they have one in Gaithersburg as well.
Have you tried them?

 

Nope... haven't been to Curry's Auto - but I'll keep them in mind if you recommend them!

I haven't lived in this area very long, so still learning about the best places to go.