Shop Look: Express Lube NY

Shop Name: Express Lube NY

Location: Painted Post, New York

Owner: Tom Metarko

Bay Count: 2

Staff Size: 5

Daily Car Count: 35 to 40 

Tom Metarko has spent two decades building up his quick lube brand, Express Lube NY. First opening in Elmira, New York, he focused on operating there—until just this past fall, when he took over a facility in Painted Post, New York, and gave it a total makeover for the business’ newest location.

In just months, with the help of his community, Metarko turned the building around and launched the new location. While he’s still hard at work implementing improvements, he shares the work he did to make the building not just operational, but a sight that customers both notice and trust.

A Fixer-Upper

In 1996, Express Lube of New York first opened in Elmira—a location that it has since sold after opening its most recent spot in Painted Post. The Painted Post building was constructed in 1991 before operations ceased in 2017, meaning it sat dormant for nearly a decade before Metarko stepped in.

When Express Lube took over the Painted Post facility, it had to undergo a lot of work to bring it up to its standards. Metarko took over the building last October, and by December had completed all the renovations.

“The guys that work for me helped out. And my brother is a retired union carpenter, and so we got some of his friends and went to town,” recalls Metarko.

The building received a fresh look, and now stands with sculpted brick walls and a metal blue roof.

A Blue Dream

Moving inside you’ll see new, blue epoxy floors, aligning with the shop’s blue-and-white color scheme. There’s a man door allowing customers to enter the building, upon which you’ll find the shop’s two bays to the left, and the office to the right.

For regular oil changes, customers usually remain in their vehicles. However, for state inspections the office is used for customers to lounge in and wait. Inside, there are a few chairs, a counter, a computer console, a bathroom in the back, and an expansive window for customers to see what’s going on in the bay during service. While the shop floor was the main focus during launch—as it’s where customers will be spending the most time on average—Metarko intends to focus more on optimizing the office in the coming months.

In between the shop’s two bays is a console containing the shop’s bulk oil dispensers. To the far left of the shop floor are the stairs leading to the cellar, where the shop keeps its drums of oil and its boxed oil. 

In the front, in between the bays, is an island for the shop’s computer system. Express Lube NY uses the ISI Software system, with a keyboard and monitor for each bay. 

As part of the renovation, the interior was painted, along with the addition of a new catwalk and a separate oil room to hold bulk oil. On the walls are posters advertising the shop’s 14-point service for customers to see. The facility also implemented a lift for New York state inspections and tire rotations—the latter of which has helped elevate the shop over others in the area.

“A lot of people in our area don't do tire rotations while they do the oil change. So that's something novel that we do,” says Metarko. “We've gained some national fleets because they like to have their tires rotated every time they get an oil change.”