Columbia Automotive

Presiding over each of Creative Car Audio's four area locations, the auto-outfitting staff of Mobile Electronics Certified Professionals helped lead the auto electrifier to a berth in Mobile Electronics' 2010 Top 100 Installers. Wielding automotive add-ons by manufacturers such as Alpine, JL Audio, and Kicker, talented technicians outfit motor carriages with everything from radar detectors and subwoofers to full-window tints and dashboard snow-cone machines. Technicians also breach the bounds of the shop’s auto-centric moniker with additional mobile services for boats, RVs, and power-sport vehicles as well as dockside service for in-need watercraft.

Technicians at Columbia Glass Tinting, formerly known as The Tint Center, coat home, office, and automotive windows with film, and they sustain customer relationships through their commitment to quality service. They present a range of decorative films with different patterns and colors with which to embellish windows and increase privacy. Technicians also use SunTek window films to reduce energy costs, prevent fading, and strengthen glass against storms and an NBA player confusing the car's window for a backboard. When it is not tinting windows, Columbia Glass Tinting's team also protects paint jobs and replaces glass.

The eight workstations at The Tuning Spot hum with the staccato clicks of socket wrenches and the soprano whine of air tools. Industrious figures crane their necks beneath a scissor lift and slip under rides in flat bays. The industrious workers aren’t licensed mechanics, though— they are the cars’ owners, learning to baby their own rides in the 7,000-square-foot DIY garage.

Burgeoning technicians gather together in the bustling shop, discussing issues with timing belts and fuzzy dice that only ever come up snake eyes. A team of experienced mechanics stands by, ready to jump in and assist. ALLDATA, an online database of repair tips and specs, also aids students as they learn to care for rides without expensive trips to mechanics.