As I've posted before a few times, I've always had great service and advice from Mike Shields at SPD Tuning (http://www.spdusa.com).

He keeps his appointments; prices are good; and if he says it's in stock, it's in stock.

Mike,
Just like to know how you are making out with that STi RA wheel group buy. Sorry to be such a pain in the ass about it but if you are really going to sell them for the price that you said you were...im waiting..LOL
Thanks Nick

Yeah I agree. Mike is great to go through. He answered all of my questions/e-mails in a timley matter and sent my parts that I ordered on time.

I don't know, it's 50/50 with me, I got my corners and side markers right on time, but the steering wheel had some problems, and when i returned it, he never replied to me, no notice of receivement or depature of the package..so I don't think I'll be gettin stuff from this guy again.

Hi,
I had the chance to meet with Mike a few time, very knowledgeable! He's not going to sell you stuff for the sake of selling... Prices are good, advice are priceless.

Matt

mike's a great guy.. been around for a long time...
knows his stuff!!

but....

he needs to update that web site!! :D

j.
www.subiegal.com

Mike has been by far a great guy to deal with, and meeting the guy was an exercise in getting info that you didn't know you needed, given to you in a way that even I could understand. :D

And Mike for the love of all things holy, listen to Subie Gal!!!

Bought my P7's from Mike, good price, good service, good advice.

highly recommended

spent lots there and going to spend a LOT more real soon.:)
and what trip to SPD dosent end with a trip to Leo's
tom@kartboy.com

i didn't buy anything from mike but I've asked him a lot of questions in the past. The thing is even I didn't buy things from him he still answered my questions. It's not like I don't want to buy things from him, but I am staying in GS for now so no performance upgrades just yet... :D

He's a great guy, met him last year at SEMA.
Also, bought my springs from him 2 years ago, got them quick and no problems.

oh yeah, he does need to update his web site :rolleyes:

Mike is tops in my book. Always ready and generous with his information and advice. I have purchased sway bar, ss brake lines etc from Mike in the past and hope to do business with him again.

Three thumbs up! :)

Happy Motoring!

Mike is good in my book.
I ordered my Prodrive RB5 wing from him.

responses were always quick and exactly what I wanted to hear.
Mike would even sit on the phone and shoot the **** about cars.

keep up the good work.

All of my experiences with Mike have beeen pleasurable. No complaints here.

EXCEPT:
Hey Mike....Please update your website!!!!!:p

Mike has always answered my questions and is a great vendor.

I have purchased parts from him several times and he has promptly corrected any problems I had with product and worked out a speedy replacement.

If you get something from him it, you know it is good stuff.

Dave

....any volenteers to help him update the content and prices of his website?

He was the first person I came into contact with regarding parts for my car(about 2 years ago). He returned my email questions promptly and thoroughly. The tech and automotive philosophy on his sight are incredible. If you have any questions on suspension for your car, the answer is on his site. I think he knows more about Subarus than SOA!

I haven't dealt with Mike in awhile, but he's always been great!

I bought my first part from him (rear sway bar) about 2.5 years ago, and several other products since then.

I've been very satisfied with his products and customer service. I'ts great to just chat with someone and gain knowledge at the same time.:)

-Mike.

Bought just about everything from him

His take off set prices are just best bang for buck

i got STi exhaust and stromung center pipe for less than 400
STi WRX-RA suspension for 500
and carbon fiber strut bar for about 230 ( seriously )

i'm happy with his knowlegeable service
talk to him when you have time.... or check out his website and
READ EVERYTHING!

I spoke to Mike at length several times he was always happy to help and very very well informed.
I purchased a set of Speedline GT-1 in 18" silver from him. They are beautiful and I love them.
They have transformed my WRX.

Owen

Mike is great, he hooked us up with great pricing in race lines....thanks Mike! Easy to deal with, prompt service and great parts!

Mike is a great guy to deal with. He definately knows his stuff. Just wish he'd update his site.

My first experience with him was in 1999, when I ordered an 18mm sway bar, Eibachs, and KYB (before the AGX came out.) The suspension was almost $900. It took well over a month and I was VERY nervous that I just got took. He kept saying they were locked up in customs, blah blah. I did recieve it though and am quite happy about it.

My next experience with Mike was when I met him at the SEMA meet last year. Great to talk to, knows his stuff. Rather slow car tho...

Next meet with him was in Corona at a rallycross. We had quite a discussion on turbocharging and stuff. He also dissed my Rx7...

Soon after, I bought some STI motor mounts from him and had them delivered within a week, to my moms house.... 700 miles away. It's alright though since I was not in a hurry and she just forwarded them to me.

All in all, I'm impressed with his service and knowledge, I just wish he would update his site.

Chad
93 1.8T

I called SPD tuning to get the cost on the Stromung muffler, his first price was over the manufacturer so I asked if he could work on the price. He told me that he does not need my business and that basically women don't know how to buy anything. Well I am never going to give them my business and am going direct through Stromung. I have never spoken with anyone more rude. All he had to say was that he can't do anything on the price but instead he made a rude comment and hung up one me. Just wanted to mention my experience.

Mike has an excellent rep here, so I find this quite hard to believe.

- Steve

Hey I will bet you have spoken to many many more rude people than Mike Shields. He is a straight forward guy but never rude to me and I have made some major buys from SPD. There are a lot of different explainations for what he said to you. And like any small business person he would rather have your business than not, but not at any price. Best of success with your car.

Mike McBride

Edit: May I point out most of the women I know understand how to buy all kinds of stuff. I imagine you are a very good shopper. :)

Mike?...hard to believe.

Mike is a great guy w/ a wealth of info. I've bought things from him and also I've just asked him questions and at all instances he was honest and answered me quickly. Did you piss him off or something? ;)

I've never bought anything from him, but he did give me good advice and was very helpful when I had my Legacy. I will be buying from him in the future.

Maybe he was just having women problems that day. Happens to all of us.

JC

I am glad to hear that so many people have had a positive experience dealing with Mike at SPD. I wish I was that lucky, but that is fine. Maybe I caught the guy at a bad moment. Anyway thanks for the replies, I still doubt that I will buy from him but I am very glad to hear that is not how he usually does business.

MIKE KNOWS HIS STUFF. HE ONLY SELLS YOU PRODUCTS YOU NEED NOT THE MOST EXPENSIVE PARTS HE HAS. I'VE BOUGHT A WHOLE SUSPENSION SYSTEM FROM HIM, AND PICKED HIS BRAIN ON ENGINE MODIFACTIONS. I'LL BE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEXT TIME I NEED PARTS.

MELBA - No "all Caps" in your posts please! - Moderator

I bought my P1 suspension from him, had it in a week, no problems and lots of suspension advice before I ordered! I thought his prices were a bit high, but sometimes you just have no choice if you want a specific part, but I would deal with Mike again.

Shane:cool:

I've bought suspension & wheels, brake pads, sway bars, ScoobySport and seats from Mike, always with polite, prompt service, and good advice that I can't fault.

Just ordered my Eibach springs from Mike. He was very quick to reply to my emails and phone messages. Package showed up right when he said it would. I will deffinitely order from him again.

- Trent

I must also chime in and post my thanks to Mike-San. :D
He's more than just a business man; he will take the time to explain to you what to expect from what you're purchasing and even recommend alignment settings and further upgrades (useful ones!). Oh I even got to go on a short run in his car with him. :eek: He sure can make that 1.8l move!


Shinji N

Gotta give a thumbs up to Mike. I bought my Stromung cat back from him and although he is a little hard to get ahold of (He's very very busy) just keep calling. The items arrived just when he said they would.

I agree-- He has helped me with many questions, and Mike was the first Subaru tuner I came across. The STi-Mlist was also helpful.

Yup Mike is great, but not for the people he send items to prepare. Got the P1 Gold w/Toyo mounted and balanced. He sent that to someone and had the job done...probably that person didn't clean up the wheels before putting on weights, and by the time I received them, the weights fell off the wheels...now I have to get them rebalanced, which will cost me extra cash and time...sigh

Just telling my experience...although Mike is very good, yet remains my problem

-Alan (Another MY98 Owner)

I take I will have to call him because he doesn't check is e-mail very often then right? I am trying to get a hold of some wheels from him and I haven't heard back from him, yet.

Mike Shileds is cool to do bussiness with. I have ordered parts from him couple times and got all the parts on time. Would do bussiness with him again. Just like Jamie said that he really NEED to update his web site!!!! :D

SPD/Mike Shields is pretty good to deal with.

I got some Eibach springs from him this year and there was some confusion as to if he had them in stock and I had to do more emailing/calling to him than I would have liked but in the end everything worked out.

I would buy more stuff from him ONLY IF HE UPDATED HIS WEB SITE (and I had some $$$ to spend...) :D

-myk

Mike is great. I just ordered the P1 suspension through him and he gave great advice. I tried calling and missed him and he called me back within 5 minutes.

I'm sorry to hear that he has health problems though and will be shutting down SPD. I think he said it will probably be in the next month or so. Hopefully he will be okay and can pass on or leave up all the info on his website. It is a wonderfull resource. Just wanted to thank him again for the great service so far.

Dave

Please fill us in on Mike. What have you heard and where? Thanks.

Man I hope this is just a rumor, Mike is an awesome guy. Ive bought from him(not a problem at all) and received even more advice that saved me money. If he really is closing he will be sorely missed. I hope this isnt true.

If it is true and youre reading this thread Mike, the best of luck to you in whatever you do. You have been/ are a great subie enthusiast.

subysouth

First Rallispec, now Mike and SPD. The Subaru scene is changing - and not for the better.

Mikeis great. He knows everything about my car!

Having just ordered (10/29) an STi suspension setup from Mike at SPD then coming across all the threads about SPD closing has certainly made me nervous. The news from the posts is that he has a medical problem and has been hard to get in touch with and is going out of business.

Searching on "SPD and Shields" in the forums returned quite a few posts. Seems like Mike has earned more than a bit of respect from this group. That said, do I need to be concerned placing my order with him on parts that have to be shipped (literally) from Japan?

My experience with Mike so far is, yes, he is hard to get in touch with but does return calls. More importantly when you DO get in touch with him...jeesh, that guy is a wealth of information!

Any advice would be helpful to me as well as others thinking of doing business with SPD but are not because of rumors.

Matt

More or less, yes. From what I gather from speaking with him, he intends to stick around in the community, but will not be participating as a vendor ;).

Brian
http://www.ravensblade-impreza.com
http://www.imprezamods.com
http://www.scoobymods.com
Don't run naked through a snowbank... you get frostbite in the WORST places!