Apex Tempe is the flagship location. The building is a 1990s-built concrete tilt-up that James Caldwell purchased in 2003 for $480,000 against a $400,000 SBA loan and $180,000 of personal savings. Six bays at founding, expanded to eight in 2008. The Apex Fleet Solutions Tempe bay block was added in 2017 as part of the original launch of the commercial-fleet division.
Tempe is the headquarters location. James Caldwell still has a desk in the back office and is on the floor at Tempe at least one full day per week. The original 2003 customer base — twelve customers from the first six months of operation — still bring their vehicles to Apex Tempe twenty-three years later. The Tempe customer mix is roughly 55% luxury (Lexus, Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Range Rover, Cadillac), 30% domestic and Japanese mainstream (Toyota, Honda, Ford, GM), and 15% commercial fleet vehicles. Personal vehicle service appointments dominate the morning bay schedule; Fleet Solutions vehicles run the afternoon block.
Tempe is a licensed Arizona emissions inspection station. The customer lounge has wifi, espresso, charging stations, and four work tables for customers who want to work through their service appointment. Three loaner vehicles (a 2022 Toyota Camry, a 2023 Subaru Outback, and a 2024 Lexus ES 350) are available for service appointments scheduled to exceed four hours.
What we service at Tempe
- Personal vehicles · all makes
- Domestic, Japanese, Korean, European, hybrid, EV. Same hourly labor rate as the rest of the group: $145/hr.
- Commercial fleet vehicles · Apex Fleet Solutions Tempe bay
- Light-duty, heavy-duty pickup, cargo van, box truck, service van. Fleet-discounted labor rate $128/hr per the Fleet Solutions SLA.
- Pre-purchase inspections
- 110-point inspection protocol. $295 (luxury and exotic), $245 (mainstream). Written report with photographs.
- State emissions inspections
- Tempe is a licensed Arizona emissions inspection station. $25, walk-ins welcome Monday-Friday 7AM-5PM.
- Service appointments and walk-ins
- Monday-Friday 7AM-6PM, Saturday 8AM-2PM. Walk-ins are welcomed but appointments are prioritized for shop scheduling.
Tempe location manager
Carlos Mendez has been the Tempe location manager since 2019. He came to Apex in 2008 as a service technician — one of the three Camelback Automotive techs who followed James out of the dealer group during the recession. Carlos earned his ASE Master certification in 2012 and was promoted to Tempe foreman in 2015 before taking the location manager role four years later.
Carlos's bay specialty is European chassis work — air-suspension diagnostics, adaptive damping systems, and the Range Rover/Mercedes hydraulic complexity that the dealer service drives charge $400/hr for. Customers who bring their Land Rover or G-Wagon to Apex Tempe often request Carlos by name, and he still spends Wednesday afternoons in the bays rather than the front desk.
Tempe technicians
- Diego Saldana — ASE Master, BMW STEP certified, 16 years at Apex (longest tenure in the group)
- Brian Tran — ASE Certified (6 specialty areas), Honda HDS proficient, 4 years at Apex
- Antonio Reyes — ASE Master, hybrid + EV certified, 7 years at Apex
- Marcus Johnson — ASE Certified (8 specialty areas), Bosch FSA, 16 years at Apex
- Tyler Beck — ASE Certified, Apex Technician Development Program graduate, 3 years at Apex
- Hector Ramos — ASE Certified (7 specialty areas), 9 years at Apex, fleet bay foreman
- Maya Park — ASE Certified, EV and Tesla service certified, 2 years at Apex (came from Tesla Service)
- James Whitlow — ASE Certified (4 specialty areas), in Apex Technician Development Program, 1 year at Apex
- Cameron Yoo — ASE Certified (5 specialty areas), Porsche PIWIS proficient, 5 years at Apex