Phil Beargeon may have just opened P&M Auto Repair at its Suisun City location, but he has been working on cars almost all his life. The San Francisco native remembers dropping out of school early and breaking into repair shop work at the age of only 15.
“I used to ride motorcycles and that was my interest,” said Beargeon. “So I actually got started in motorcycles and found there really wasn’t a lot of money in motorcycles, so I switched to cars so I could make a living working on cars.”
Working since February of 1970, Beargeon knows auto repair before computers were put into cars. The vocation has kept him on his toes continuously, as he works to keep up with changes in technology.
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“That’s what you have to do,” he said. “It’s a grueling business but it’s all I‘ve known. I’ve been working at it my whole life.”
When cars first started working toward becoming more technologically advanced, Beargeon said their computer systems were quite antiquated. Nowadays every make has its own unique system, some even carrying fiber optic technology. Beargeon said he and his workers go to classes to try to stay current, but most of what they learn occurs there in the shop.
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“A lot of it is hands-on training,” he said. “We have modern day equipment, up to date equipment that helps us to diagnose and trace out where the problems lie. I try to keep it all updated so that we have the most current info to help us help you.”
The shop does maintenance repair under the hood: oil changes, tune-ups, diagnosis of engine light issues, and the like. Beargeon said he was never very much into doing collision repair, so he and his neighbors next door, often have opportunities to assist each other.
“There’s no conflict but we can share back and forth in between us to help each other out if we get stuck,” he said.
P&M Auto Repair moved to its current location last month. The shop that was previously on Union Avenue in Fairfield now enjoys a more visible location right off the side of the freeway and space double the size of the old shop; Beargeon couldn’t be more optimistic about his decision to relocate to Suisun City.
“I see a lot of prosperity in this location,” he said. “This was a good move, it was very positive and I see great things happening here.”