Our History
The building has worn a few names, but it has always been a place where people bring the vehicles they depend on. Since 1981, the Pinkalla family has kept that tradition moving forward.
1981
Pinkalla era begins
2
Generations of experience
45+ years
Serving Racine
Four names. One address.
Before 1981
The shop we call home began with the Kinsman family. Known then as South-Side Mobil, it was operated over the years by Jerry Hougard, Curt Hipke, and Chuck Holten.
The business later passed to Wally Millbraph, who owned and operated the station until selling it to Chuck Pinkalla in 1981.
1981
Pinkalla's chapter began in 1981 as Chuck's Mobil & Radiator. Radiator repair and cooling-system service were the shop's specialty, alongside full-service Mobil fuel and oil.
It was hands-on, local work—the beginning of a reputation built one repair and one customer at a time.
The next chapter
As vehicles changed, the shop changed with them. Chuck's Radiator & Automotive grew beyond cooling systems to take on the brakes, steering, electrical, and engine work that kept customers' cars and trucks on the road.
A second generation joined the work, carrying the family's practical knowledge forward.
Today
Today, two generations of repair experience are backed by modern tools, equipment, and service information. The name has changed, but the commitment to capable, personal service has not.
Decades of adapting have taken the team from radiator cores and carburetors to fuel injection, computer diagnostics, modern air conditioning, and the increasingly complex electrical systems found in today's vehicles.
The bays now serve family cars, work trucks, fleets, and equipment—whether the visit calls for routine maintenance and tires or major engine and transmission work. Through it all, Pinkalla Auto Solutions remains an independent Racine shop built around doing the job right.
The people behind the work
Pinkalla Auto Solutions is still shaped by the people who show up every day, know the work, and know their customers.
Still on Durand Avenue
