There is a very good chance that I will be moving to Providence, RI in a few months. Can anyone recommend a good indie shop?

Thanks.

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14 E250 Bluetec "Sinclair", Palladium Silver on Black, 153k miles
06 E320 CDI "Rutherford", Black on Tan, 171k mi, Stage 1 tune, tuned TCU
91 300D "Otis", Smoke Silver, 142k mi, wastegate conversion

19 Honda CR-V EX 61k mi
Fourteen other MB's owned and sold
1961 Very Tolerant Wife

There is a section of the shop forum that is devoted strictly for this purpose. You can do a search over there and find one, I'm sure.

What in God's good name did you do wrong that you should be transfered from this lovely state of Texas to RI? From the nearly biggest (we don't really see Alaska as a contender) to the absolutely smallest. Hell, Brewster county in W Tx. is bigger than RI.

Have a good time and come see us when winter sets in.

I've often asked what I did wrong to be stuck in Texas for 18 years!

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14 E250 Bluetec "Sinclair", Palladium Silver on Black, 153k miles
06 E320 CDI "Rutherford", Black on Tan, 171k mi, Stage 1 tune, tuned TCU
91 300D "Otis", Smoke Silver, 142k mi, wastegate conversion

19 Honda CR-V EX 61k mi
Fourteen other MB's owned and sold
1961 Very Tolerant Wife

I checked over there....nothing.

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14 E250 Bluetec "Sinclair", Palladium Silver on Black, 153k miles
06 E320 CDI "Rutherford", Black on Tan, 171k mi, Stage 1 tune, tuned TCU
91 300D "Otis", Smoke Silver, 142k mi, wastegate conversion

19 Honda CR-V EX 61k mi
Fourteen other MB's owned and sold
1961 Very Tolerant Wife

Not to run this thread into any length in the wrong forum but in Prov RI (I grew up there but don't tell anyone) is a MB dealer called Viti Bros. Don't know about any indies, I can check tough. RI is a very congested, 'me first' attitude, isolated little state. CNN recently rated Rhode Islanders as the ' dumbest' drivers in the country. It is a place where drivers will pull out into traffic oncoming from their left and stop it so they can take the left across 2 - 3 lanes of traffic when an opening comes. Good Luck. Have a second set of rims and buy some snow tires for the ride for the winter. Roads are typically the worst around too. What city are planning on moving too? in Prov itself or nearby?

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dtf
1994 E320 Wagon (Died @ 308,669 miles)
1995 E300 Diesel (228,000)
1999 E300 Turbodiesel ( died @ 255,000)
2006 Toyota Tundra SR5 AC 4X4 (115,000 miles) rusted frame - sold to chop shop
2011 Audi A4 Avant (165,000 miles) Seized engine - donated to Salvation Army
BMW 330 xi 6 speed manual (175,034 miles)
2014 E350 4Matic Wagon 128,000 miles
2018 Dodge Ram 21,000 miles

Your poor cars.

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Adam Lumsden
(83) 300D
Vice-President of the MBCA International Stars Section

My first suggestion is DON'T MOVE TO RHODE ISLAND! If you shoot there are no public ranges, only "sportmans clubs" and almost all have a 1-2 year waiting list. You'll also need a state issued "blue card" to purchase a handgun. The taxes here suck. One of the highest state income taxes. High taxes on fuel. Providence has very high property taxes. Expect to pay at least 300K for a dump of a house in a marginal area. If you call anywhere more than a few miles from your location you will pay "long distance" toll charges on your phone. Never mind that the entire state would fit into most "local" calling areas in Texas. Jobs are tough to come by unless you "know" someone. Politicians are the most corrupt in the country. They actually elected a convicted felon mayor of Providence, twice. Traffic is awful. Parking in Providence atrocious. Winter is either 35*F and raining for WEEKS or subzero, again for weeks. Rhode Islanders are generally provincial minded morons. Need I go on? The only reason I am here is my wife. I would return to Texas in a heartbeat. If you insist on moving here there is one decent indy, Hans Imports in North Kingstown, RI but they are not cheap. Always have a few old MB out front though. Don't do it, you'll be trapped like me. RT

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When all else fails, vote from the rooftops!
84' Mercedes Benz 300D Anthracite/black, 171K
03' Volkswagen Jetta TDI blue/black, 93K
93' Chevrolet C2500HD ExCab 6.5TD, Two-tone blue, 252K

I dont know of any indies (mainly because I do all my own work) But if you run into an problem, I could probly help. I have been repairing cars on the side for quite some time now (and now even have the garage to do it in). Brian Carlton has seen the setup, he's been by the house looking at my 86SDL Ive been parting out. I work in Newport RI and live in Canterbury CT (53 mile 1 way commute) so am not too far away.
if you want to PM me for more info.

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Dean

Well let me be the only one to say that Rhode Island isn't all that bad! There is a lot of nice places to go, great restaurants, Newport Jazz festival, nice beaches, great boating, and don't forget Block Island, for a day trip.

I have lived there until recently, and wouldn't hesitate to move back. It's near halfway between Boston and New York, and there is likely much more things to do than in Texas, sorry guys!

I do all my own repairs so I cant suggest an indy............good luck...BB

Dean has a terrific setup for working on vehicles.

I was a bit saddened to see a perfectly good SDL reach the point where restoration is not economically feasible.

BTW, Dean lives in the middle of nowhere. It's 3 1/2 hours home for me.

There is actually a place in Rhode Island that is called "Middle of nowhere" and it is!

Living in the midwest/great plains all my life I can't imagine anywhere in RI being the "middle of nowhere". You can drive across the state in what, an hour? Try driving from Houston to El Paso sometime-then you will know what "middle of nowhere" is.

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Keep everything as simple as possible-but no simpler--Albert Einstein

I don't think a B-737 can make it from Houston to El Paso in one hour.

I was looking at the map. The section from 83 to Ft. Stockton looks like 200 miles on the surface of the moon.

What do you do if you break down at night in this section??? Bet the cell phone is worthless.

I ate breakfast there yesterday on my way to work. They put on the best breakfast (if you can find them)

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Dean