When we last checked in with Eric Muir in 2014, he was the co-owner of Brighton Auto Service with a 21’ long Mac Tools toolbox setup. Now, Muir is the owner of two automotive repair shops – Brighton Auto Repair in Brighton, MI and Whitmore Lake Auto Repair in Whitmore Lake, MI. He’s also added about another 10’ of toolbox storage to his setup, and that’s not including the second toolbox setup he has at the Whitmore Lake shop.
The start of it all
When Muir signed up for the vocational automotive program in high school, he initially took it as a “blow-off class,” and then found he actually liked it enough to make a career out of it. From there, he went to the ITT Technical Institute and got his degree, and then spent an additional year at Indiana Purdue University before moving back to Michigan to start working. Muir now has an L1 Advanced Drivability certification, ASE Master Technician certification, ASE Heavy Duty Truck Master certification, and Michigan Master Technician certification.
Why Mac toolboxes?
Muir’s current Mac Tools toolbox setup began to take shape about 25 years ago. At the time, Muir had talked to two different tool dealers about purchasing a larger toolbox, but the “no hassle” nature of the Mac Tools distributor won him over in the end and Muir’s been buying toolboxes from him ever since.
“He’s my go-to guy,” Muir says.
So much so that when Muir heard the tool dealer would be retiring in a year or so, he decided to buy an additional triple bank toolbox and triple bank hutch for his setup. The tool dealer’s retirement wasn’t Muir’s only reason though, he also needed more space to store his abundance of diagnostic tools and equipment.
At the Brighton shop, Muir’s setup is around 32’ long and consists of five side cabinets, two hutches, one triple bank upper toolbox, one triple bank lower toolbox, and two double bank toolboxes, not including the addition on the way. But that’s not all, with two shops, Muir also has a second setup at Whitmore Lake. This setup consists of two side cabinets and a double bank toolbox.
Aside from his toolbox’s size and many storage options, Muir’s favorite part of the toolbox are the side cabinets. In each side cabinet, the technician has a bunch of pull-out drawers, each containing an individual laptop or scan tool so Muir can easily pull them out when needed. Moving inside the toolbox, Muir notes his favorite tool is “anything Autel” and says he has around 10 Autel scanners.
To keep his setup organized, Muir keeps his most used tools toward the top and his lesser-used tools, typically his specialty tools, toward the bottom.
Time for a change
About seven years ago, Muir decided it was time to move on from Brighton Auto Service. Though the ASE Master Tech had spent 25 years of his career there, he decided it was time to open his own shop. A shop where he could focus on all the new technology coming into the industry and prepare himself for the future.
Ironically enough, when looking to start his new business, the location Muir found was the very first shop he had worked at for a year after college before starting at Brighton Auto Service. On top of that, when transferring his toolbox to his new shop, the man who towed his setup to Brighton Auto Service was the same one who came to tow it away 25 years later.
Five years after opening Brighton Auto Repair, Muir opened a second shop in his hometown, Whitmore Lake. Both shops specialize in diagnostics and automotive programming. Muir notes that they do almost all the programming for most of the repair facilities and body shops in town. He jokes that they’re the “last stop shop” if they can’t fix it, good luck!
The Brighton location has three technicians, not including Muir, who works full-time on the floor doing the diagnostics and programming for both stores. The Whitmore Lake location has three technicians, and both Whitmore Lake and Brigton have one service advisor each.
Check out pictures of Muir's box from 2014 to do a little before and after comparison!
