The most Honest and straight forward Audi BMW shop in CT. I've used several others in my past life but these guys stand out the most. I worked in CT from 2016 and from 2018 to 2021 I lived in Hartford County, and I wouldn't take my car anywhere else. True gearheads work here that are all very knowledgeable with European cars inside and out. They can be slightly more expensive than others but I think it's worth it. My 2013 Audi A4 has always been serviced by these guys, with a couple of exceptions where I serviced at European specialists that's also im Branford CT, but if I were to compare the two, these guys are way more knowledgeable. Also a plus; these guys strictly use Motul oils for their regular service, which is awesome because that's the best oil there is...yes yes I'm biased. Overall Excelerate is an A++ shop. read more

Inquired about a coilover install on by 2025 GLI. The job was coilovers, strut bar install and toe arms and upper control arms for the alignment adjustment. Quote i received didn't seem to have an alignment included and was $2300. The coilovers have camber plates and I have new mounts. I can understand if you are expensive. That's your perogative but this is robbery!!!! Install & Adjust BC BR Series Coilover Kit (Customer Supplied) $1,748.00 Install Rear Camber Arms & Rear Toe Arms (Customer Supplied) **Only Accurate If Done w. Above Job** $508.57 Install Front Strut Brace (Customer Supplied) **Only Accurate If Done w. Above Job** $52.97 read more

I brought my 2005 S2000 to XLR8 due to a shaking/vibration at 70-80 mph (OEM wheels and suspension). I suspected an unbalanced wheel and chose XLR8 specifically because they have a road force balancer and specialize in sports cars. They test drove the car and confirmed the issue. During the road force balance, they broke one of the wheel studs. I was told this happened during lug nut removal and that the stud must have already been damaged. I had personally removed and installed the wheels prior to this visit without issue and always torque to spec, but since the damage had already occurred, I allowed them to continue the service. After a second test drive, the vibration was still present and they were unable to diagnose it further. They suggested it might be related to an engine torque damper and specifically assured me that it was not caused by the wheel/tire setup. I left $208 poorer, with no resolution to the issue, and a broken stud which I later replaced myself. A few months later, I had new tires installed and the wheels balanced at a different shop. The vibration was completely gone. This confirmed that the issue was indeed wheel/tire related, directly contradicting XLR8's diagnosis. The only reason this is a two-star review rather than one is because communication was timely and the documentation/photos provided were thorough. Unfortunately, the quality of the work and the diagnosis itself fell well short of expectations. read more

Excelerate (XLR8) Performance is an outstanding group. This team has gone above and beyond to help me with me my needs and questions on both of my orders. My last order was a couple of months ago and they had a part that no one else did, and shipped it out same day. This next order had a number of items and they walked me through the entire process. I can't recommend them enough and will continue to use them for my b9 needs. Thanks so much Excelerate!!! read more

Being that I didn't recognize the business I reached out to them to inquire about a cold air intake advertised on Facebook. I specifically asked if this was the whole cold air intake system with air filter and pipe reaching back down to the back of the engine with the location to install my mass airflow meter. I made the salesperson aware I wanted to replace my large factory airbox/filter that covers the engine with cold air intake pipe & filter. The sales person that I spoke to say yes but when I received the item; it was just an air box with no piping and no filter just a carbon fiber air box which is not what I needed. After communicating with various staff at the business and multiple emails back and forth finally received a return authorization. I feel this is a poor way of treating the customer, the wrong part was sent no fault of my own. I was charged $324.99, minus the restocking fee for their mistake $50.39 refunded $274.60 and paid $65 to ship this part back. So now I'm out of $115.39 for a mistake I did not make and I'm supposed to be ok with this? This company has poor communication, poor customer service and I would've continued to do business with them had they worked with me in getting the correct part needed; instead I gave my business to another reputable company. Air intake, motor & transmission mounts ordered from Uro Tuning. From here forward Uro Tuning & ECS Tuning will be my go to for online ordering. For anyone that plans to use XLR8 Performance to order parts online make sure you know what you're ordering and make sure you do your own research don't rely on the staff's knowledge to send you the correct part. Order at your own risk. read more

I wouldn't go here again. The main guy I dealt with Seth ripped me off. I had a 15 min convo with him about my vehicle prior to agreeing to drop it off. I don't usually go to them but my European auto mechanic was booked for the month. Specifically told him I needed a new battery and wanted to see about an issue that seemed like a fuse. The dude charged me $200 for a diagnostic fee to tell me I needed a new battery (which I already knew) then wanted another $200 diagnostic fee to see about the fuse when the first fee should have been applied to the fuse and not the battery...... crazy enough my cousin Anthony also went there the week after me. He had a very similar experience where they dogged him for overages and ridiculous charges. I've got a hundred thousand dollar car so my car is like my everything. Very particular with who I let work on it, but had no other options in that busy month. They could've had a lifelong local customer if they weren't crooks. The dude Seth literally got an attitude w/me when I asked him about the extra unnecessary diagnostic fee and how he never should've applied one to the battery. I could've tested that battery at home and told him it was dead which is what I did. I was pretty baffled he got defensive when I approached the topic so I decided to not keep my car there for the fuse issue and take it somewhere else. I haven't encountered a place this sneaky in a while. Atleast not in Branford. Wouldn't recommend or return to. Hope others have more positive experiences. read more

This is very honest and personal review. I don't think Excelerate Performance is a bad shop I just had an unpleasant experience with them. I would advise you read my whole review before making a decision on doing business with them. I state the facts on what happened with my opinion and personal thoughts sprinkled in. I also made a list of major takeaways for the people who can't read the entire review. · Took three business days to do a carbon cleaning after originally quoting one day for the service. · They diagnosed my car with a "bad" turbo using only assumptions. · They didn't plug map sensor back in after service, which made me believe the "bad" turbo diagnosis. · Steve (I assume the owner) is a very nice guy, treated me with respect and did seem very genuine. · In my opinion, Excelerate Performance is a better installation/tuning shop than a service/diagnosis shop. I brought my 2012 Golf R in for a carbon cleaning and mentioned that I was getting breakup under hard acceleration and if they could maybe look into it. They told me a carbon cleaning is typically a one day process, and so I planned accordingly. Day 1 they called me late in the day explaining that they had an "employee call out and weren't able to get to the car". I was annoyed but understanding. Day two Steve calls me in the middle of the day to tell me that the screen for the turbo inlet pipe was blocked and that the believed my turbo was bad/blown. They came to this conclusion because of the restricted oil passage and my explanation of the getting breakup under hard acceleration. They gave me a quote for replacing the turbo, I declined, opting to do the repair myself and asked them to finish with the carbon cleaning as soon as possible. Steve was very nice about the whole situation and said that they might not be able to get the car finished by the end of the day. Then about an hour later, Vince the service advisor calls me telling me that how much longer it's taking to clean the carbon build up and said "it's the worst he's ever seen" and gave me a lecture on what brand of gas I should have been using. Sure maybe I should have been using Shell or Mobil One gas for the 6 months I owned the car but that is surly not the reason for the carbon build up. The EA118 engine is one of the early VW direct injection engines and is notorious for carbon build up. Vince's phone call demonstrated that they haven't done many carbon cleanings or have done work on the older VW/Audi direct injection engines. Day three I pick up my car. They gave me the key, I start my car and it has a check engine light (didn't have one when I brought it in). The car is running really rough (also not the case when I brought it in) and I assumed, being only a novice do-it-yourselfer that the process of diagnosing my car could exacerbate the "bad" turbo; I got home, parked my car, got a rental car and started ordering parts. I start to take my car apart about a week after I got it back from Excelerate Performance and found that the MAP sensor wasn't plugged into the throttle pipe... that explains the check engine light and the poor running condition of the car when I went to pick it up. I continue to disassemble the car, pull the turbo, and inspect the thrust bearing and wastegate actuator. The bearing had very slight up and down play and the wastegate actuator had zero play and seated properly in the compressor housing. All in all, what I found was not enough to warrant an emergency replacement, but hey, maybe the slight play in the bearing was causing the issues I was having, I'm no expert... Fast forward a few days, I get the car back together and running. To my dismay, my car is still having the same exact issue I was having when I brought the car in for the carbon cleaning, the breakup under hard acceleration. I bought VCDS to scan for codes and see that the "breakup" is a misfire. So I did the first thing you do when a VW has a misfire, and changed the plugs and coils, and guess what? That fixed the breakup/misfires I was having under hard acceleration. All that wasted time, energy and money just for some replacement plugs and coils. After all said and done, I ended up wasting a lot of money on Uber rides, rental cars and expedited shipping charges. I went to Excelerate Performance expecting to pay more for a better professional service and was looking for a good shop to be able to bring my car to when I was having problems I couldn't solve. Sadly, the entire experience I had with them left a really bad taste in my mouth, each little unpleasant experience wasn't a deal breaker but it was the combination of my car taking Three days for a quoted one day service, the assumption of the "bad" turbo and the amateur mistakes. In my opinion, if you have an older Audi/VW direct injection engine looking for diagnostic or service work done, I would look elsewhere. read more

Good work and clean shop..nice machines but u will pay...$$$$ Not sure i will go back ........ read more

I had purchased the MSS Fully Adjustable spring set from Excelerate Performance for my Golf R, and had my local shop install the product. Excelerate Performance - as per their website - has partnered with MSS Kits (UK). The springs sold were known to have issues, and have already gone through a revision. The were marketed as fully-adjustable, with a lowering range of 10-30mm lower vs. OEM ride height. Once installed, the product barely reached half way down to that advertised figure. When I contacted Excelerate and the owner of MSS Springs, they had me troubleshoot the install via e-mail, by way of photos and measurements. The springs were installed correctly. It was then brought to my attention by other parties that this product has been known to have issues with its advertised ride height. Excelerate refused to work with me on a refund, now claiming "their relationship with MSS has changed". As of this writing, a year later, the website of Excelerate Performance continues to falsely advertise a product they know has issues (they've publicly admitted to this issue on VWVortex forums). A real shame. To this date, I haven't received my money back. read more

Excelerate Performance - Excelerate Performance co-developed MSS Springs fully adjustable kit. User forums are abound with complains regarding this product. - Auto Repair Near Me - Branford, Connecticut

These guys are a one stop shop. I've been here several times this year for various upgrades, tweaks, and diagnoses for my GTI. They've done everything from building my DSG transmission to dialing in a MSS spring kit. Each time I was pleased with the workmanship. Jaime and Dan are great mechanics--and Justin, Greg, and Josh are always a pleasure to work with. I especially appreciate Greg's patience with me and my incessant questions, and for Josh's cordialness. The first day I brought my car in he gave me a full tour of their facility (which is incredibly impressive). You can tell from talking to them that they are both passionate and knowledgeable. I also highly recommend their Cars & Coffee events which they occasionally hold throughout the year--it's a great way to meet the team and other like minded locals. read more

I've been taking my 01 TT 225 to Excelerate Performance for well over a year now. These guys do great work, service is outstanding and they take pride in what they do! (Rare these days.). Their new facility is outstanding and boasts a comfortable waiting area. My upgrades to date: Endurance clutch, remap, diverter valve, air intake, intercooler, downpipe and cat back exhaust, suspension, big brake kit, tires and rims, engine mounts, normal maintainance and repairs... she's BETTER than NEW back in 02. I'd highly recommend these guys! read more

My 2nd and 3rd experience is what made me decide never to go to XLR8 rate again. My 2nd visit consisted of requesting 7 things to be done some relatively routine; MQB oil change, DSG fluid change, motor mount change, horn install and some, I would find out later, would cause big problems; changing DSG transmission pan fittings, moving transmission cooler pump, aftermarket oil cooler install. I was given an estimate of $3298 but when I went to pick up the car, and without prior notification, I had to pay $4380.00. I picked up my car on a Tues and drove home. It felt different but I couldn't pinpoint the problem. My 2nd day of driving was Sun. I drove 11 mi. away. Once I get back home I see a small puddle of oil on the ground. I jack the car up to see if I can see the source. I see, while searching; 3 screws missing on my fender cover, a black hose dangling not attached to anything. I removed my intake and saw the source of the leak ... the aftermarket DSG oil adapter. I have the mindset that things should be done right the first time and work that lasted only one day was a big disappointment and unacceptable. I called XLR8 and they said bring it in and they'll try to fit me in and would be given a discount on the labor. There was no mention of loaner cars being available or needing instructions for the oil cooler install. Being charged an additional $900, their work lasting one day and finding parts leftover dangling I totally lost faith and trust that they can do a good job. I ended up towing the car to Pagparts, a local tuner I've been going to for close to 10 yrs. Problems that were found: 1. DSG oil adapter leaking - I waited 7 months for this part. Excelerate claims I knew it was for a MK6 not MK7. I wouldn't have waited 7 months if I knew it was for a MK6. XLR8 Sales advisor checked with tech, who said it would work, so opted to continue with installation. 2. Connections they changed for transmission pan made the leak worse than when I brought it in. 3. Heater hoses bunched up caused a coolant leak in one line. 4. My TVS Stage 3 DSG tune mysteriously disappeared. Xlr8 keeps claiming transmission is fine, even though TVS tune can no longer be seen on Vagcom. After all the extra expenses and hassle I speak to the Sales Manager, Mr. Rob C, who proceeds tells me how I was wrong not to bring it in, how great a job they do and insults me with an offer of a $100 discount on my next visit or a $100 gift card both of which I decline. 3rd visit: What happened to my TVS DSG tune? XLr8 says transmission it is fine but still can't see TVS tune on Vagcom. They also tell me that one tire has a screw and a slash. Trusting them I order a new tire right away, $150. I go to my tire repair place and the screw is only 1/8 inch and slash is just a piece of loose rubber... didn't need a tire. Pagparts questioned what XLR8 did to transmission.After exhaustive troubleshooting and trying to re-install tune. Turns out I needed to replace the Mechatronics unit, fluids etc... spent $2600. Now, car "feels" back to normal and TVS tune can be seen via Vagcom. read more

So I decided I wanted to get the KW DDC coilover kit for my 2013 S4 for the sole purpose of having a comfortable ride for the family and a fun ride for me. I called up Excelerate since I knew they had some experience installing this system. I was immediately impressed by Josh's professionalism, attentiveness and the overall friendliness of everyone there. As for the quality of their work, it's some of the best I've seen; their welds, fit and finish on some of their custom fab work look better than any off the shelf stuff I get for either my motorcycles or cars. Once the system was installed I had an issue that was no fault of Excelerate but actually a KW assembly flaw. Josh and crew, especially his mechanic Jamie who is the man, went WAY above and beyond to get the issue resolved for me. I am sure he lost some cash on this deal, but he definitely gained a loyal customer for the way he handled it. I've dealt with shops in the past that have left me high and dry in similar situations but Josh et al. have restored my faith in performance shops. I definitely see myself making that 135 mile trek for future work. read more

I made the mistake of bringing my truck to another mechanic who destroyed my engine while performing a rebuild of forged internals in a 2018 Ram 1500. Excelerate diagnosed and fixed virtually every issue I had and it was simply the best communication I have ever received. Thank you Excelerate for rebuilding my engine, transmission and installing my whipple supercharger PROPERLY. They lifted all the anxiety off my shoulders and kept me in the loop every step of the way. I highly recommend them for any performance work being done to your car and would personally like to thank Mr. Craig Miller for the outstanding communication during this entire process. read more

Excellent service. Very happy with all of my times getting work done on my VW Golf R MK7. Highly recommend. read more

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Had tires mounted to wheels. Great service, great communication. Going to have service on my S2000 done there soon.

I was sold a part that had a fitment issue. It wasn't as described/advertised. Tried to get it resolved with the owner. Our conversation went nowhere as he didn't want to hear any of it from me. I was refused a return and denied refund. Will never do business with them again. read more

MSS should be ashamed of xlr8. Bought these springs 5 months ago. Received a brown box that had a 2016 label on it for my 2019 car. Of course it had the wrong springs in it. Didn't know this till after they were installed. So they sent me some new mss205 front springs that looked used. Of course right away the springs started making noise. This is a known problem that mss said they have corrected. So now xlr8 tells me that mss will ship me new front springs. 3 months later nothing. While they will not tell me who at mss I can speak with. They sold me the wrong then then defective part for my car and now tell me to file a warranty claim. This shop is a joke. I'll of course pay to sue them just shops like this stop doing this to car enthusiast. MSS is JUNK. save your money and get coilovers I hope this helps at least one other person from going through this pain. I hate my brand new car. Thanks for nothing Craig @ xlr8 read more

Without a doubt the worst customer service ever!! I was originally quoted 2weeks for an exhaust from greg because "AWE have new robotic welding arms which cut production times in half" I put down my deposit and i never got confirmation i paid so i called 3x's for an email stating i put down my deposit.. never got it.. I call a week later to put another payment on the exhaust and just to find out the out status of the exhaust and was told "standard time for the exhaust is 4-5 weeks" wow but no big deal.. I call another week later to place another deposit and check on getting the exhaust installed at Excelerate i get quoted $218 plus whatever else i would need to do the install.. my car is a 2016 and the exhaust is a direct fit what else would i need?? the next day i call to talk to greg about getting the intake to go with the exhaust and check stock. greg calls awe to check on the intake and finds out my exhaust is ready' he calls me and says your exhaust is ready and we need payment to ship it to you. i said well i can't pay now but if you ship it you your shop i can just pay when i come he says fine we setup a date for the install i get an email from excelerate confirming my install date so i think i'm set.. Greg then calls back and says hey if we ship it to excelrate and you do the install i have to charge you shipping from awe to excelerate,tax on the exhaust,install fee & tax on that.. i decide i'll just have the exhaust shipped to me but i couldn't pay right away so i'd have to wait until after labor day weekend we agreed. I got impatient and asked a friend to do me a favor and take care of the bill for me. I called greg and i asked if my friend could pay the remainder of the balance and if he could would the exhaust ship the same day greg said "YEAH THAT'S FINE NO PROBLEM AFTER HE PAYS WE'LL GET IT OUT THE SAME DAY" my friend calls and pays the balance and i wait for tracking info.. No tracking info,i call the next day same thing no tracking. I call that friday before the holiday and greg says we need your friends license i say why didn't you ask for that 2 days a go.. we get the license to them greg "THIS IS PERFECT I'LL GET THIS OUT TODAY' Tuesday after the holiday i call awe directly to see what's going on they say excelerate has to release the exhaust.. I call i get josh on the phone he says"i find it hard to believe a friend would pay the balance and that my friend has to email him... Soooo an email is better then an actual picture of a nys drivers license?? I get my friend to email them and i think we're done.. nope!! still no tracking info.. my exhaust finally comes after way to much drama that could've been avoided if greg or josh would've said hey no we can't take your friends payment for the balance... read more

No attention to detail and awful customer service. Had them install new tires and they chipped my paint on my fender and tried to act like the damage wasn't caused by them. When I confronted Josh he didn't offer to repair the damage his negligent tech caused. AVOID THIS Place read more

I ordered a SPEC clutch kit from 034 Motorsports for my 2007 Audi RS4, and had it sent to XLR8 to be installed. The owner of XLR8, Josh Lockwood, called 034 and asked them to send a different brand clutch and told them that I was aware of the switch. When my car was ready to be picked up Josh told me that he had the part switched because he doesn't recommend SPEC clutches. He said not to worry, 'Clutchmaster is a better brand, and SPECS are junk'. I paid him and went on my way. After my 1500 mile 'break-in' period, his clutch failed. He now denies making the switch and says 034 just happened to send him a Clutchmaster, which 034 confirmed with me is an outright lie. The owner of XLR8, Josh, then became very difficult to deal with and I had no choice but to pay full price again for them to install the correct SPEC clutch, which luckily 034 Motorsports comp'd me for free. I would stongly encourage anyone to bring their car anywhere else but Excelerate. read more

I buy parts from their online store for my car. Awesome customer service!

Had them do the APR pulley kit and tune on my 2011 S4. Justin Rogers was a great help, he was very helpful throughout the entire process. Very happy with the service they provided. I would highly recommend this establishment for any service or performance related upgrades. read more

I've been going to Excelerate Performance for almost a decade now. They have taken care of all my needs for both parts and service. Josh is one of the most fair people I've met in the industry. He is cordial and very straight forward. Jamie is his main tech and his automotive knowledge and expertise is second to none. I have built one car with them already, working on my second and I implicitly trust them with all aspects of the build. Highly recommended!!! read more

Great honest and straightforward mechanic! I went here after a local mechanic told me my audi was too complex to work on. Justin and his team were able to do the repair and explain the fix very throughly. Pricing and costs were commensurate with the difficulty of the repair. Would definitely go back again read more

I really want to give it a 0 star. Where should I start this whole experience was a nightmare from the beginning. My friend and I took in a gti 20th anniversary for a toning when the car got there it was running the car always turned on since we bought it a year ago. We dropped the car off the next day we get a call the call don't turn on. First I go there they give me some excuse then my friend goes and they try to give him some excuse. Did I mention he is a professional mechanic for over 20 years and corently works at a car dealership. Long story short they got the car to run over charge us and now the clutch is messed up. I do not recommend this place to anyone please do your research save your self a headache and your money.. read more

Walked in. Dropped of the keys and my appointment was done in less than an hour, it couldn't have went any smoother! Great service.

I initially took my A4 to Excelerate for an upgrade to S4 brakes. I was really satisfied with the work they did. Based on my satisfaction, I decided to take it to them again late last year. My catalytic converters were essentially shot so Josh was able to put some high flow cats in as well as an AWE Tuning quad-tipped exhaust. It's pretty difficult finding parts for my 3.2L compared to the more common 2.0Ts and what not, but Josh still went the extra mile in helping me out. Josh is a straight-shooter and I think this is what rubs some people the wrong way. Yet I definitely consider this an asset, especially considering the fact that he doesn't try to sell you anything you won't need and will tell you the best economical option. I'd take the candidness and impartiality any day. i have full faith in their work and, consequently, I would recommend them any day! read more

If I could give 0 stars I would, this company has nothing but the rudest employees. If they give you a wrong time to wait for their product and you are waiting a longer time they do not give any care in the world. They have the worst customer service I have ever witnessed. And after calling 4 times I finally received an answer on where my exhaust was. When asked if they could do anything for this wait time they said no and left it at that with no care for the situation. I have 2 other cars I was looking to improve and I guarantee I will never come to them again and I will be sure to make sure nobody I know uses them again. It's ridiculous how horrible this company is customer service wise read more

first of all, the sales guy (Craig) doesn't know anything about service.. he simply looks things up or uses past pricing from similar jobs to generate estimates.. so you'll NEVER pay less than anybody else even if the job takes less time. it has been said on google and on here that excelerate charges way too much. case in point, an alignment. WHY is an alignment through excelerate $220 and any other shop i've used been $120 (or less). excelerate uses a Hunter Hawkeye alignment machine just like goodyear, firestone, meineke or town fair. These guys know they can't get you on parts since this is the information age, so they price gouge on labor. i was quoted at over $2400 for a clutch job. WHY. they tried to add in parts i was going to provide as part of the labor in putting the car back together (new flywheel bolts, rear main, etc) which they would have done with my stock/used stuff anyways? i question the owner (Josh) whom i've never met in who he hires and how he justifies the outrageous labor. these guys hype themselves up in doing a better job than other shops, but that's really no different than starbucks saying their coffee is just better than dunkin donuts so it's a $7 coffee. i would never allow these guys to manifest labor that isn't necessary on my dime.. if your techs are so good, why can't they get work done quicker? read more