"Part of our theory is that our customers are also our neighbors," he said.  "We like to get involved because community involvement breeds relationships, and our goal is to develop relationships with all our customers."

Orinda Motors contributes time and money to a wide range of local events, Pennebaker said.

"We do everything from hosting car washes for local organizations to sponsoring our local Little League, the Orinda Baseball Association.  We also sponsor the city's Fourth of July parade, and our shop manager teaches classes on the basics of car operation at the local high school.  Not only do we donate financially, but we also take part in helping out at these events."

Getting involved in trade organizations is also important to him, Pennebaker said.  He said he has held various offices for the Automotive Service Councils of California (ASCCA) and is this year's president.

"ASCCA has helped me in so many ways," he said.  "I joined in 1999 through the local Mount Diablo Chapter 20 and quickly became involved at the state level.  I've served as membership committee chair, executive committee secretary, vice president, and as a member of the board of directors."

Pennebaker said his participation with ASSCCA has been a life-changing experience.

"ASCCA has played a big part in helping me to realize my dreams and goals and get my business and life where I want them to be," he said.  "And the critical component that the organization provides is input when it comes to government regulation and legislation.  These efforts are the only thing that protects us from onerous over-regulation.  It's critical to our industry, and ASCCA does a great job of staying on top of it."

Pennebaker said he purchased Orinda Motors, formerly known as Orinda Garage, from his former boss in 1996 after working there for 24 years in various capacities. 

The shop has been a landmark in Orinda since 1922 and was an Atlantic-Richfield gas station with two bays when he started working there, Pennebaker said. 

"I did it all around here," he said.  "I started out pumping gas, and then began training to be a technician.  I went from Master Tech to shop foreman, and then pretty much ran the shop myself starting in 1992." 

Orinda Motors consists of three businesses operating out of two buildings totaling 7,000 square feet:  Orinda Motors Inc., a full-service repair shop; Express Oil Change and Tire Center; and Orinda Auto Rental.

Orinda Motors employs five ASE-certified technicians, two of whom are ASE Master Technicians; two service advisers, one service manager, one parts manager, and one office manager, Pennebaker said.

Express Oil Change and Tire Center employs six people, including a manager and five lube/tire technicians, he said.

If you include tires, Orinda Motors and the Express Oil Change and Tire Center carry a parts inventory of approximately $40,000, Pennebaker said.

"Other than 200 different types of tires, we don't carry much, maybe some filters and fluids," he said.  "We get most of our parts from our vendors, who can normally deliver to us in an hour or that same day, so it's convenient and we don't have to carry a lot of parts." 

Another division of Orinda Motors, created in 2004, does mechanical restorations on classic vehicles, Pennebaker said.

"My manager, John Vanek, wanted me to get into custom car restorations, but I was reluctant," he said.  "I told him no.  My theory was that it's too hard to work on classic cars.  They sit around too long, and it's tough to get parts for them.  But, eventually, I decided to put my faith in John and I said OK, and I'm happy I did."

The first car that came through the door was a 1957 Thunderbird, and from there the business was off and running, Vanek said.

"Our regular customers started bringing their classic cars here," he said. "Pretty soon we were restoring all types of cars -- a lot of muscle cars like Mustangs and Camaros and some really rare old cars, like a 1937 Cord 812." 

Pennebaker said that six years ago, he reached a point in his life that he wanted to be able to spend more time with his family and travel the world.  He said he was able to achieve it by setting up systems and delegating responsibility to his managers, and by hiring the services of an automotive management training organization.

"I started working with Maylan Newton and the Educational Seminars Institute (ESI)," he said.  "They helped me understand how to run an automotive service business and helped me hire my management team.  They also train my service advisers on a continual basis, through team building and management consulting."

Although he admits that some mistakes were made along the way, Pennebaker said he eventually started to see some light at the end of the tunnel.

"I decided that I wanted to be less involved in the day-to-day operations of the shop," he said.  "I realized that I had to get the shop set up so that it could run without me around.  The main thing I had to do was allow my manager to manage.  As long as you're micro-managing your business, you can never leave."

His plan worked -- in the last few years, Pennebacker said he has traveled to Europe, Egypt and other parts of Africa, and Central America.

Pennebaker said he sees a bright future for his company.

"As long as this business is operating the way it is right now, I have no vision of retirement," he said.  "As long as we can continue to be involved in this community and provide good service, we'll be here."