G
Very very helpful. Helped me fix my ford ranger over the phone. Didn’t even charge me.
Alen Bajric
a week ago
Pakenham VIC · All makes, all models
Pakenham's highest-rated mechanic — 147 five-star reviews before Day 1.
I'm James Garzia. I run Auto Labs Performance Centre out of a one-man workshop on Bald Hill Rd. I fix cars the way I'd fix my own — honestly, transparently, with photos before and after, and never a dealer markup. Grand Opening is Sunday 3 May 2026. You can book in now.
Straight to me. No call centre. No receptionist. No hold music.
147★ on Google · 41,000 Facebook followers · 1.3 million TikTok views
147
Five-star Google reviews
41K
Facebook followers
1.3M
TikTok views (one video)
5.0★
Average rating
Every number above was locked in before I officially opened. Imagine what happens next.
One mechanic · One standard · Pakenham VIC
Real customers. Real words. Real five-star reviews.
I didn't write any of the quotes below. These are from people who drove their cars to Factory 18, handed me the keys, and walked away with a better car and a better understanding of why it needed what it needed.
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Hero testimonial
“Wealth of knowledge, no bullshit, no upsells — just genuine advice with your best interests first.”
Titan Integrated Electrical
Facebook review · January 2026
That's not my slogan. That's a customer who wrote it about me on their own Facebook page. You don't fake those.
Three services. One honest quote. No surprises.
I keep it simple — a minor service, a logbook service, or the full major. Every quote is locked in before I touch the car, and the only person who decides if extra work happens is you.
Minor Service
Oil, oil filter, and a full safety check across brakes, belts, hoses, fluids, lights and tyres. Perfect for in-between logbook intervals and pre-road-trip peace of mind.
Logbook Service
Full logbook service to manufacturer spec — warranty-safe, stamped, and done on all makes and models. I use the right parts, not the cheapest ones.
Major Service
The full rebuild of everything scheduled: fluids, filters, plugs, belts, diagnostic scan, and a complete report of what I found. This is the service I'd give my own car.
Want a quote? → Call James on 0432 744 993 — every number is locked in before I touch the car.
The non-negotiable
Genuine parts only. Always.
There is exactly one reason I can charge less than a dealer and still stand behind every job: I don't cut corners on the parts that go into your car. No generic oil filters. No mystery-brand transmission fluid. No "close enough" spark plugs. If the manufacturer specs a genuine part and I can get it, that's what goes in — full stop.
On the rare occasion the genuine part isn't available, I'll only ever fit a premium aftermarket equivalent — same spec, same engineering standard, same warranty-safe fit. Never the cheap stuff. Never the mystery box from the wholesaler. If it won't do on my own car, it won't do on yours.
This is why the reviews on Google keep saying the same thing over and over: "He showed me the parts he was putting in. He used genuine stuff. He sent me photos." You shouldn't have to take anyone's word for it. You should just be able to look.
Spark plugs
Named-brand, correct heat range, correct gap, every time. If your car specs iridium, you get iridium — not the $2 copper set that the chain shop is putting in.
HKS oil filter
Premium Japanese-engineered filter — not the generic white-box filter that comes free with the bulk oil jug. The filter is the single cheapest insurance policy on your engine. I refuse to skimp on it.
Motul Multi ATF
Full-synthetic transmission fluid — the right spec for your gearbox, not whatever is cheapest at the wholesaler this week. Transmissions die because someone used the wrong fluid. Mine don't.
Every part that goes into your car gets photographed before it goes in — so you can see it, and so you have a record.
Got a dealer quote that feels wrong? Let me look at it first.
The video that got 1.3 million views on TikTok was me explaining how Ford quoted nearly $5,000 to fix something that took 5 minutes and a roll of electrical tape. That's not a one-off. Dealers and big chains get paid more when they find more things "wrong." I don't.
Bring me the quote. I'll tell you what's actually wrong, what's genuinely urgent, and what they've padded in. No charge for the conversation.
I quit my job for my family and this shop.
I'm a Pakenham dad. I was working a full-time mechanic job, building Auto Labs on the side, posting videos on TikTok in the evenings to share what I was learning. One of those videos hit 1.3 million views. Then another. Then 41,000 people followed the page. And before my doors officially opened, 147 people who'd had me work on their cars had already left a five-star Google review. That's when I went all in — for my wife, for my kid, and for the people who trusted me before I had a sign above the door.
Read the full story →Servicing Pakenham, Officer, Beaconsfield, Berwick, Nar Nar Goon and the outer southeast Melbourne growth corridor.
The shop lives at Factory 18/99 Bald Hill Rd, Pakenham VIC 3810 — just off the Princes Highway, 5 minutes from Pakenham Station and the Cardinia Shire Council offices. Most of my customers are local. Some of them drive hours to see me. I'll look after both the same way.
Get directions →One mechanic. One standard. One phone number.
Ready to experience the reason 147 people left a five-star review before I'd officially opened? Pick up the phone. I answer it myself.
Call James — 0432 744 993James@autolabsperformancecentre.com.au · Mon–Fri 8:00–16:30 · Sat 8:00–12:30