About Us!

RalleyTuned was formed circa 2005 with just one person. At the time, we mainly focused on early watercooled VW performance. Our specialty was EFI conversions and engine swaps and mostly what we did was offer engine tuning, setup and troubleshooting help for people who were installing standalone EFI systems in their cars. It was during this time we met the guys at Demon Rally and TRAKS Racing. This ignited a passion for racing both on pavement as well as on gravel. We helped both teams upgrade their engine management and electronics as well as offered track support at events.

For a long time RalleyTuned was a side job that helped scratch the itch for tinkering on and tuning cars, but as demand grew we knew there was something to it. During the economic issues of 2008, we relocated from the west side of WA to Cle Elum. We saw a need for a European car specialist in the quickly growing Cle Elum/Upper Kittitas County area and when the opportunity for a location popped up, we knew we had to jump on it.

When the opportunity came up for the new location, the first call I made was to my long time friend and very good mechanic, Gus Shuart. We chatted for several months about what we could do and how to do it. The decision was made to partner up and open a full service location in downtown Cle Elum. We signed the lease on the building in March, I put in my 2 weeks notice at my job and made the switch to self employment full time near the end of March. That was right at the beginning of the COVID19 situation and the country essentially shut down. Some might call that a sign of things to come and that we had made a poor decision. However, we found the timing to be almost ideal! We put our noses down and remodeled the entire building as well as installed our lifts etc and were able to open the doors to our customers in May of 2020.

Brendon Porter – Owner/Front Desk/Technician

18 years automotive mechanical experience. 15 years of EFI install/engine tuning via RalleyTuned. First job as a tech was in 2004 at Bug Aid in North Seattle, Wa, started as a shop helper and trained as a technician for 2.5 years. Technician at Achtuning in Redmond, Wa for 5 years, 2 years as Foreman. Crew Member for Demon Rally team as well as TRAKS Racing VW Rabbit road race car for over 10 years. Raced Autox and did many track days and performance driving events through the years. Mechanical, electrical and chassis setup/alignment experience for 15+ years in automotive as well as dirt bikes, snowmobiles, lawn mowers…if it has a motor I am in!

Gus Shuart – Owner/Lead Mechanic/Shop Manager

20+ years as a career mechanic. Worked in dozens of independent automotive shops including Munich Motorsports in Conneticut and Cascade Autosport in North Bend, Wa. Crew Chief at Demon Rally team. European car specialist with experience in race/rally car setup and preparation, track support, electrical and mechanical diagnostics and advance mechanical skills. Loves track days in his s50 swapped e30. Very few makes and models he has not worked on and generally just a nice guy!