One day, just for fun, Denis Koch drove to one of his Tune Tech Inc. shops in a friends Porsche.


A customer at the counter asked about the sleek machine after watching Koch pull up, and was relieved to learn Koch had borrowed it. The customer said he would have taken his automotive-service and repair work elsewhere if Koch was making enough money to afford such a stylish ride.


Its a common concern about auto repair shops: Customers, afraid of getting swindled, look for any sign of deceit while keeping one hand on their wallets. People typically dont understand their cars, Koch says, and feel vulnerable when trusting the diagnosis and advice of a mechanic.


By keeping that in mind, Koch says hes been able to build long-term relationships with many of Tune Techs customers through the years. Its one of the main reasons Tune Tech has been able to expand to three outlets and 15 to 20 employees during the past 14 years.


With auto repair, theres a trust you have to build between the customers and the business owners, says Koch, who owns the small chain with his wife, Cheryl. Thats the big secret. Do what you say youre going to do, and stand behind your work.


Started here in 1989 as a two-person, two-bay shop that specialized in quick-service oil changes, the Spokane company now offers a broad range of repair and maintenance service, in everything but body work and tire sales.


Tune Techs three shops include an eight-bay operation at 3011 N. Monroe and a six-bay garage at 9029 N. Division, both on Spokanes North Side, and an eight-bay operation at 420 N. Pines, in Spokane Valley.


Tune Tech has considered opening a garage on Spokanes South Hill and has been approached about leasing space there. The company, however, isnt ready to expand again just yetit opened its North Division shop just last summer. Besides, Koch says, Tune Tech would prefer to own, rather than lease, a South Hill location. It currently owns all of the buildings in which its shops are located.


Koch declines to disclose Tune Techs annual revenues. He says, however, the company had a dip in revenues last year after 11 years of consistent growth. He attributes the decline to the slow economy. So far this year, however, activity has picked up, and he expects the companys revenues to surpass last years.


For now, Koch is spending most of his time at the Valley location, while he seeks a new manager to oversee that shop. Usually, he splits his time between all three shops, talking with customers and overseeing garage operations. Cheryl Koch takes care of other aspects of the business, including accounting and marketing.


Starting Tune Tech


Denis Koch has worked on cars since he was a teenager and took some automotive-repair classes at a vocational-technical college after high school.


The Kochs, who both grew up in Eastern Montana, came to the Spokane area in the early 1980s, when Denis was in the U.S. Air Force and worked as an aircraft maintenance worker at Fairchild Air Force Base.


When he left the Air Force, the couple decided to open Tune Tech in a small shop along Northwest Boulevard, in a building now occupied by a Maid OClover convenience store.


We started with a wrench in his pocket and a pen in my hand, Cheryl Koch says.


The company initially offered only quick-service oil changes, but Denis Koch says he quickly learned that they needed to offer a broader range of services to remain viable. Now, he says, only a small amount of the companys business involves oil changes.


During the 14 years since Tune Tech first opened, some changes have occurred in the automotive market that have been beneficial to repair shops, Koch says.


First, he says, cars and trucks have become more expensive, and vehicle ownersaware they are spending a substantial amount on their vehiclesare spending money more readily to fix problems promptly and to have preventative maintenance work done.


Also, he says, vehicles are more sophisticated now, and so more do-it-yourself mechanics are bringing vehicles to a shop than in the past. Nearly all new vehicles have computerized systems that monitor many of their functions, and problems with such systems can only be identified with special diagnostic equipment that a do-it-yourselfer typically wouldnt want to buy, he says.


For such customers, however, Koch says Tune Tech often will perform the diagnostic testing for a fee and give repair information to the customer who still wants to fix his or her own vehicle.