So here's the story. We were on vacation up north and suddenly my Mercury Villager van became the Little Engine that Couldn't. It labored up a hill, creeping along 15-20 mph. Once on the flat highway, it topped off around 40 mph and sputtered along. Being over 300 miles from home is not the place to find out you got a car problem. And there's always the risk of being hosed for big $$$ because you're not from around these parts. Well, I drove the hobbled van into Iron River and it almost died a block before making it to Northland. Service manager Greg was in the door, greeting us the moment our van pulled in, just like in the old days. The shop has about 6 bays and they service all kinds of vehicles, including RV's and trucks. I told Greg my problem. He put it on a lift and ran some computer diagnostics on the spot. Greg found my oxygen sensor was all over the place with its numbers. Problem is, he would need to order the part and have it the next day. The following morning, I found out there were still other problems keeping it from working right. He would get back to me later. Our anxiety-filled afternoon lull ended when Greg called to inform us that the van was operational and the problem was resolved. I got a new O2 sensor, fuel filter and some oxygen flow thingie that was loaded with all sorts fo debris that caused the car to lose power. A full day in the shop and 3 parts later it came out to $346, believe it or not. I was expecting over $500 had I been in Chicago. The van ran great all the way back home. Now that I may be needing brake work in the next few months, I wonder if I should come back and get it done here, since I know Greg does a great job and for a lot less than Chicago-area repair shops. Northland has good customer service. They share their office and main phone line with Nicollet Signs, which is an odd arrangement in the waiting area, but I know I can trust them. It's good to know a place in town that can take care of a problem and be honest with me. Greg is a good guy who knows what he's doing and someone I can trust to get the job done right, even if it meant staying an extra day to get it finished. Turned out to be the nicest and warmest day of our entire week's stay... read more

I brought my truck in back in August 2019 and the owner checked to see what's wrong with it and he overcharged me to fix my truck and my truck wasn't fixed at all I had to pay someone else to fix it and the owner told me the opposite of what was wrong with it and he didn't fixed and still overcharged me I had to pay someone else to fix it and the person who fixed it was right I wont be doing business with northland anymore. read more

In March of 2014 my truck rolled over on an icy road outside Iron River. The tow truck drivers that helped us that night were wonderful. If the story stopped there, I would award 5 stars. However... I had considered having my low milage 2001 F250 with 7.3l Diesel returned to our home in Milwaukee area for repair, but mainly based on experience with the tow I elected to have Northland repair my truck. As the truck was upside down and then righted by tow, much transmission fluid had leaked and I was concerned about where oil might end up, Northland agreed to clean up and check out this. I rented a car, drove home, and communicated frequently with them while they did repairs on the truck body body and cleaned up engine. A couple weeks later they drove the car to me, and drove the rental home. That is when I began to realize the mess they had made. It started when they reported that the brake light had come on during the trip to my house. I had asked them to check and align front end while it was in their shop. They did an alignment and said otherwise front end was ok... However, the brake light was now on and a clear grinding sound sound was obvious from the driver side wheel. The wheel berings and both upper and lower ball joints on that side had to be replaced before the shop at home could align front end. Yet I had just paid Northland for an alignment... At that point, the local shop also let me know that the transmission fluid was barely registering on the stick, and since this was the shop that had recently installed and warrentied that transmission (a few months before the accident) my warrenty was now in jeopardy. Since correcting this, the transmission has not leaked, so clearly Northland never bothered to properly re-fill and check the transmission though they told me they covered that. I believed I was getting a replacement driver door, but found it was only repaired, and within a couple weeks the power window stopped working as the track was warped. However, the most troubling issues were not discovered until months later. When they worked on the engine, they replaced all glow plugs, but the following year it became clear these plugs simply were not working. Also while working on the engine, I was told oil had to be cleaned from turbo and air cleaner. During the following summer my engine lost power, and local shop found turbo vents had not been tightened - but even worse (months after the work) that shop pointed out that I did not have an air filter. I checked the reciept, and the good news was Northland had not charged me for an air filter... However, I would not run a diesel for an hour without an air filter, but found I had been doing so for months after the Northland work. I would never recommend this shop, wish I had shipped my truck home for the repairs. read more