We were driving from Duluth to Minneapolis during a recent wind/snow storm. Trucks passing us by threw up lots of muddy water & muck so we kept using our windshield wash & wipers. Just 2 miles of Hinckley, MN (on Hwy 35) our wipers hit each other and the driver's side (of course) wiper got caught and bent up and looked like a triangle, not a blade. 2 miles later we turned off the highway to look for a wiper. When my hubby spotted Slim's, he decided he'd rather pay to get a new one installed than buy one & try to get it on himself (in the wind/wet snow) & said he'd probably be fighting with it for a while. We pulled into Slims and one fo the guys took a look at it, looked at their stock for wipers & found he didn't have the right size. He called Napa and had the correct size delivered in less than 5 minutes. He installed it and double checked the wiper action for both. Seeing that the other one was running too close, he also adjusted that one. $20.00 later with great service and a quality wiper, we were on the road in less than 20 minutes total. Was impressed enough that I decided to write up a review the same day. Thanks to the guys at Slim's Service. PS. We got some gas too, even though we still had 2/3 of a tank. We had no problem with the gas running slow or the pumping action. I used to have a car that had that problem but it was the angle of the piping in the car that lead to the gas tank & let the gas bubble. That happened at many stations. Our Kia doesn't have that problem at all. read more

Slim is not a good mechanic he rips people off and does a horrible my Ford was smoking out of the engine he charged me.an arm and a leg for a coil pack and insisted to be rude GO TO KIETHS TOWING slims stinks. read more

i slid into the ditch on sunday afternoon, Dave was able to get there within 20 minutes and pulled me out. i do realize it was the weekend, but it was still $350 just to pull me out so i could drive away. i wish i would have shopped around a bit more to find someone else as i'm sure there would've been something else a bit cheaper in hinckley. read more

Left the wheel nuts loose on my wife's car won't go back, had another shop tighten and check the others,not good Dave

Was having some trouble with car starting passing through Minnesota. Pulled up and they were kind and quick to check the vitals and look under the hood. Was knowledgeable and helped us move along! read more

Sold me a tire that was discontinued and overpriced claimed that's the only one they had for a Honda and of course the valve stem was bad, I was from out of town and had very little options, reviews were good but not in my situation. Just be fair and honest. read more

They've been in Hinckley forever. We have a cabin a few miles away, and they have saved us several times, going back to the '60s.

Thank goodness for Slim's. Nothing worse than having a great weekend and the catching something in your tire on the way back to the city. The guy that helped us was the nicest and although he couldn't fix the tire he sold us a used one and got us back on the toad within an hour! So, so grateful that we didn't end up with a flat on the Interstate ironically as we pass a vehicle and a couple on the side of the freeway getting a tow. Ugh! If you find yourself in Hinckley with car probs, I highly recommend Slim's! read more

I only give it one star because I have to in order to leave a review. I'm disabled and stop to see about a tire. He put a new tire on but didn't balance the tire because of his out of date equipment. Plus he scratched and took chunks out of the rim. I contacted the attorney General. He sent letters to Slim asking what he was going to do about my rim. Slims did not answer the Attorney General. Now I'm taking him to court and can use all the evidence that the Attorney General gave me against him. This is what I call a hack shop. I was once ASE certified in Auto Body and Auto Mechanic. Look up the Truth And Repair Act. If any shop like this rips you off. read more

My car began to misfire on the way to Duluth. I stopped at Slim's, where the mechanic replaced the coil pack, but the care still misfired. I asked him to try a new spark plug instead, but he refused. I had to pay for parts and labor, despite him refusing to fix my car. Ultimately I got my car towed to another shop where they replaced the spark plug and my car ran good as new. TLDR: Don't waste you money here. read more

David picked up my daughter and her car when it needed towing and service. He was understanding and helped her hen she was upset about it. He fixed her car quickly and his service throughout the experience was awesome. I'm grateful he helped her. Thank you. read more

Helped us quickly figure out what was wrong with our car!!!!And, didn't charge us a thing! Thank you!

After getting somewhat lost the day before (thanks mapquest!) we were near empty kicking through the countryside on our way to 35S. My only complaint is that it sounded like my car was being filled up with meringue instead of gas, that the pumping action cut out every two seconds. I tend to like to 'set it and forget it' with gas so I can look around, try to find slim, you know, get a grasp on my surroundings. Oh well. I got fed up with how long it was taking and cursed slim and his lack of service and left. so, if you need gas, and are in Hinkley, this may be 1 of 2 options in town. read more

This place is amazing. Stopped by on our way north from the cities because our car was making some new noise. Took 20mins to do a quick diagnosis and see what needed to be fixed. Dave was so sweet and even took the time to make our two small girls smile while we waited. He wasn't able to find anything directly wrong but took the time to figure out possible options and see about when we could schedule a fix without totally throwing off our vacation. Would absolutely recommend to anyone in the area or traveling through. read more

I owe these guys my life. I cannot say enough good things about them. I'm from Duluth and I got my car stuck on a minimum-maintenance road just outside of Hinckley. Keith's, the tow service that Triple-A works with, said they wouldn't come get me and didn't offer any help. After knocking on a nearby house, the guy that lived there took us in his F250 to try to get my car unstuck and almost got stuck himself because his truck was too heavy and the ground was too soft. So, he took us into town to Slim's. They also couldn't help us with their tow trucks BUT they worked tirelessly for an hour and a half trying to find someone with a big, jacked-up truck or tractor that could help us. They probably called 30 different people. Eventually someone who was as dumb as we were could help and did help and after two and a half hours, we were free. I cannot thank these guys enough. Can't say anything about their gas but they worked for a long time to help us city folk and there was nothing in it for them at all. Thank you. read more

Amazing little service station. They had a replacement tire for our pop up trailer, despite it being an odd size. Very friendly staff. Also had propane and firewood. Had to stop there in a pinch, but would go out of our way to stop there again. read more

I ended up needing to use Slim's Service in July 2009 (July 4th weekend). I have lived in the Twin Cities for many years but would make regular trips up to Hibbing, my hometown. Dad died August 2008. The next year mom decided to give me Dad's 1996 Chevy pick-up. She had spent around $1100 at a place in Hibbing to have the vehicle gone over and everything that needed fixing was fixed. I caught the bus up to the Range and drove the truck back to the Cities, stopping at Tobie's in Hinckley. When I left Tobie's, I could see that southbound 35E was already heavy with traffic returning to the Cities after the holiday weekend so I turned south on the road just east of Tobie's. This was a paved road but south of the casino (right where the road takes a sharp right turn), it was rutted gravel. I had barely made the turn when my truck suddenly stopped and wouldn't restart. I called 911 on my cell phone to request a tow. A while later someone from Slim's arrived. It was a Sunday so my truck wouldn't be looked at until the next morning. I checked in at a nearby hotel. The next morning someone from Slim's called to say the problem had been identified--when my vehicle had been given the once over by the Hibbing garage, the coil wire wasn't put back on properly. Slim showed it to me and said that it was supposed to be pushed on until one heard a "snap"--that meant it was all the way on. He surmised that it hadn't been on securely and when I went over the rutted road, the thing had popped off and I was then dead in the water. The total was $94.08, $85.00 of which was for the tow. I appreciated the fact that he was honest about what it was--I know there are garages out there that will take advantage of people, particularly women, and overcharge them for things that were never wrong or were never done to the vehicle. I had always intended on writing a thank you letter to Slim's Service but never got around to it. IA Yelp review, which has a wider audience, is a better idea. (The Hibbing garage reimbursed me for my hotel, the tow, repair and other associated costs.) read more

Kid's car slid in the ditch off 35 just north of Hinckley. By the time I got there, Slim's truck had arrived. He was there less than 15 minutes. Ran a cable to the car and quickly winched it out. It was a breeze. Handed him my AAA card, nope, they don't take AAA. I was charged $180!! WHAT A RIP-OFF!! NEVER use these guys. I live in nearby Pine City, so I'll sure spread the word. I'll be happy knowing I'll at least be able to keep locals from using them. read more

Were leaving the casino driving back to the cities and car started shaking. Drove into Slims and they were all great. Thankfully it ended up being a quick fix, ice build up, (my husbands not the smartest when it comes to cars!). Trustworthy and genuinely nice people! Thanks read more

Fast service! We got a flat and ended up there to get a new tire. We had dogs and kids with us and they got us a new tire right away so we could be on our way! read more

Our car broke down on 35W. We called Slim's and lo and behold, they charged $150 for a less than five minute tow to their shop. We were stunned. After finding out their fee (yes, we should have asked in advance, but we were on the highway and NEVER thought it would be that high), we called other towing services in the area, and asked how much they would charge, and they were all significantly cheaper. I would NEVER get any service from them, and encourage everyone to compare their prices before committing to Slim's. Their quotation for repair was also hundreds over the other shops in the area, so we had it towed (again) elsewhere for the repair. We asked if they would drop their charge down by $45, but they refused. Watch out for them! read more

Do not bother using this service for towing. I was charged only mileage. 30 miles (round trip) cost me $157.00 Can not imagine what this would have cost if someone had not gotten me out of drift before this service arrived. read more

Being somewhat local to the area, I've frequented SLIM'S establishment roughly 5 times. I am the type of person that wants to give my business to the local shops...unless of course the "local shops" feel that they have the right to leave the customer with the feeling that they can charge astronomical amounts of money, leaving you with the impression that they could care less if you come back or not. Examples are as follows..SLIMS charges $4 to dispose of a spent tire..(compared to $3 at EVERY other tire shop) and then I have witnessed him selling that very tire for $60.00 for 2 tires that were worn beyond the warning mark (Not a legal tire). That told me a great deal about his character. Another example...I went to another shop to get a price quote on a set of 4 tires. The first shop quote were as follows..120.99 each, 10 bucks per tire mount , spin, and balance, 3 clams ea. for disposal= $24.00. Plus tax of course. Total= 587.00. (Within 5.00) Same tire quote...exact Same tire...exact same service... Tires $145.44 each, tire disposal $4 each, valve stems $3.50 each x 4, 12.95 x 4 mount and balance, total after tax...$704.33. Oil changes at Slims are average at best. The price of around $40.00. The reason they are cheaper is they use dime store filters as well as some oil which they call (synthetic blend) by something called "pro tech" or some absurd name like that. But in a pinch I would consider tossing it in my engine. But the oil vaporizes as the pistons make short work of of the "depleted molecular construction" of the oil. So plan to add more oil between changes. I use mobile 1 fully synthetic oil and after 4000 miles I don't have to add a drop. One more example...I had a puncture in a trailer tire. Slim was the only one who could get me in as I needed it fixed right away. He did well, great job in 20 minutes, and He tapped me $30 for an inside plug. The repair shop up the road will do a plug for $10, and they'll usually work with you to accommodate your schedule but sadly, they were unavailable. Point being, Slim's is okay if you're in a pinch; but if you have the time to shop around and do price checking, stuff like that, you'll be amazed. I wrote this review as unbiased as possible in hopes to help people save a couple bucks, and not to settle for sub-par service. Hope this helps, thanks for reading. read more

Early in September of 2015, my husband and I headed out of Hinkley toward the cities when we heard that telltale POP of the belt exploding in our tire. The tire itself was still holding air so we gimped it back to the nearest station in Hinkley, Slims Auto. We asked if they happened to have a tire that fit our Dodge Durango and was met with a curt...no. We went back to our room and upon much re-arranging schedules and pleading, my brother-in-law raced to Hinkley from St. Paul at neck-breaking speeds to meet my husband at Slim's WITH a tire that fit a Dodge Durango (they are rare,you know), only to be told, sorry we are closing...at a quarter to five on a Saturday eve. My husband and I drove our VERY RARE DODGE DURANGO to Slim's the next morning as soon as they opened to get our tire changed ONLY TO BE TOLD that if we didn't buy the tire there, they didn't change it....but he did it for us for fifteen bucks, which he pocketed an hour later. My ONLY review....I didn't know DODGE DURANGO's were so rare...peace out. read more