Diagnostics & inspections
Find out what’s actually wrong before anyone spends anything. Out-of-province, insurance, safety and AMVIC inspections.
- Diagnostic$80
- Insurance inspection$120
- Safety inspection$120
- Out-of-provinceto post
On the lift — exhaust work, welded in-house
We’ll tell you
when it’s nothing.
Red Seal work in southeast Calgary. Nick specializes in Rams and welds his own exhaust — which means he can tell you which of the two it actually is.
- Shop
- 4333 54 Ave SE
- Tech
- Red Seal, 15 yrs
- Rate
- $160/hr
- Diagnostic
- $80, waived if we fix it
That tick is one
of two things.
They sound identical from the driveway. One is a morning’s work. The other is an engine. Raise the truck and look.
Raise the truck
Ground0.00 m
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From the driveway
A tick.
Unknown
This is where most quotes come from. It shouldn’t be.
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On the lift
Exhaust manifold studs.
$120/hr · typically 1–4 hours
Common. Cheap. Nick welds exhaust himself, so it doesn’t leave the shop.
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Inside the engine
Cam and lifters.
$2,500–$5,000· about 20 hours of labour*
Rare. Ruinous. Sounds exactly like the one above.
You don’t find out by guessing.
You find out by putting it on the lift.
Waived if we do the repair the same day. *Published industry range for 5.7L Hemi cam-and-lifter replacement — not a quote from Newstead. Yours starts with a look.
Send us the sound.
People record their engine and post it to strangers on the internet, hoping someone will tell them the truth. Skip that part. Record ten seconds on your phone, text it to Nick, and he’ll tell you what he hears — before you’re on the hook for anything.
Text the clip to Nick368 997 7796 · a real phone, answered by one of the three people who work here.
Times it was nothing.
Any shop can print the word “honest.” This is the only version of it that costs the shop something: the jobs we talked you out of.
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Example — replace with a real job
- Came in for
- —
- Quoted elsewhere
- —
- What it actually was
- —
- What we charged
- —
-
Example — replace with a real job
- Came in for
- —
- Quoted elsewhere
- —
- What it actually was
- —
- What we charged
- —
-
Example — replace with a real job
- Came in for
- —
- Quoted elsewhere
- —
- What it actually was
- —
- What we charged
- —
Note for NickThree real ones here and this section does more work than every “5 stars” badge on the internet. Send them over and I’ll set them.
You have ninety days.
Alberta has led the country in interprovincial migration for twelve straight quarters. If you brought a car with you, the province gives you 90 days to register it — and it can’t be registered until it passes an out-of-province inspection. We do those.
- 18,165people moved to Alberta from another province in a single quarter (Q3 2025, Statistics Canada)
- 90days from becoming a resident to registering your vehicle
- 14days your inspection certificate stays valid once it’s issued
Out-of-province inspection
Price to post
Alberta requires inspection facilities to post their price in plain sight — and tells drivers to shop around.
Note for NickThis is the one number on the site that should be yours. Tell me the figure and it goes live.
Five things, properly.
Everything below happens in our own bay. Shop rate is $160 an hour; most jobs bill at $120. Prices are what they are, and they’re posted.
Rams, exhaust & performance
The reason people drive across the city. Custom exhaust welded in-house, Ram diagnosis and repair, performance work.
- Exhaust repair$120/hr
- Custom exhaustquoted
- Performance & modsquoted
Engine & driveline
Rebuilds, swaps and transmission work — including the jobs other shops send away. European and Japanese imports, Nissan and Subaru especially.
- Engine swap$120/hr
- Engine repairquoted
- Transmissionquoted
Brakes, steering & suspension
The things that stop you and the things that point you. Alignment on our own rack.
- Four-wheel alignment$199
- Brakes$120/hr
- Suspension$120/hr
Routine
The boring, necessary half. Book it online and it’s done by lunch.
- Oil change$75
- Tire rotation$49
- A/C recharge~$200
Three people. That’s the whole shop.
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Nick
Red Seal technician · owner
Fifteen years in the trade, trained at Camosun College. Rams, exhaust welding, European and Japanese imports — Nissan and Subaru especially. He answers the quote calls himself, which is why he sometimes doesn’t.
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Ashley
Co-founder · operations
Nick’s wife. Came from government administration and case management, with a degree in Justice Studies. Runs payroll, the books, and everything that isn’t a wrench.
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Leo
Mechanic
Came up through the auto and towing trade. Handles scheduling, and hears about it first when something isn’t right.
Running a few vehicles?
We already look after small-business fleets — trades trucks, vans, the things that don’t earn while they sit. One number, one shop, one person who knows every unit.
Put it on
the lift.
Eighty dollars to know. Nothing, if we do the work the same day.
- Shop
- 4333 54 Ave SE, Unit 4333
Calgary, AB T2C 2A2 - Hours
- 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Open some holidays, at our discretion
Note for NickYour current site opens at 9:00 on one page and 8:30 on another, and never says which days you’re open. I used 8:30. Tell me the right answer and the days and I’ll set both.