[btn]By Kourtney Seaton[/btn]
Prentice Garage at 6328 N. 7th St. has been in business since 1932, and is one of Phoenix’s oldest ongoing auto repair shops. The fifth owner, Dan Kingston, a North Central native, acquired the business in March. It has been renamed Kingston’s Prentice Garage, with nod to the business’s deep community roots.
Dan Kingston, left, recently purchased Prentice Garage from Mitch Dehelean, right, who owned the auto repair shop for more than 20 years. On the wall of the revamped lobby is a framed history of the shop, which first opened in 1932 and is the only auto repair and service business in Phoenix to have operated continuously for more than 80 years (photo by Teri Carnicelli).
Kingston began working in the commercial truck industry after graduating from the University of Arizona in 1999. He is the vice president of operations for the Mack and Volvo truck distributorships in Arizona, which include Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff locations.
“Auto repair has always been a passion of mine and I was fortunate enough in the last few years to set a financial plan in place to buy a shop,” Kingston says.
After two years of negotiation with the previous owner, Mitch Dehelean, a North Central resident who owned the business for more than 20 years, Kingston now owns a piece of Phoenix history.
“He [Dehelean] wanted to make sure that the customer base was taken care of and he selected the right owner for the future of the business,” Kingston says. “His customer base was very loyal and many had multiple family members whose vehicles he serviced.”
Kingston says he is excited to continue the long Prentice Garage tradition of quality service at fair prices. The auto repair shop is undergoing a fresh new look including new signage, exterior building repaint and a remodeled waiting room.
Kingston says he has highly trained technicians servicing domestic and import vehicles of all makes and models, especially luxury brands such as BMW, Mercedes and Cadillac.
“We have all the latest diagnostic software available to auto dealers and offer excellent customer service,” Kingston says.
The new manager, Erick Miller, has been an employee for 10 years at the facility. “He brings a wealth of diagnostic knowledge as well as a familiarity with the existing customer base,” Kingston points out.
North Central News readers can bring in this article to receive a 10% discount off all labor.
For more information, call Kingston’s Prentice Garage at 602-265-2249.
