m o rinville ne ws.co m
http://mo rinvillenews.co m/2013/09/22/new-sho p-o pens-in-familiar-spo t/
New shop opens in familiar spot
DC Transmissions owner Darcy Barilla poses beside Kermit, a custom power train project he worked on recently.
The shop, in addition to full transmission and general auto repair, also does custom work for car and truck
enthusiasts. – Stephen Dafoe Photo
by Stephen Dafoe
Morinville – A lif etime of working around transmissions, motors and other parts of vehicles has culminated in
the start of Morinville’s newest garage. Darcy’s Custom Transmissions and Auto Repair opened in early
September in the old Morin’s Auto location on 100 Street, north of the Fire Hall.
Owner Darcy Barilla grew up in Morinville and grew up in the transmission business. His f amily owned a small
f ranchise in St. Albert. Barilla started his shop as a home-based business three years ago, but the Red Seal
certif ied mechanic decided to open a storef ront location and moved into his present 100 Street shop Sept. 3.
“I was working f rom home, which was good,” Barilla said of his home-based business. “It was a decent living. I
was OK with it, but it was time to take it to the next level. ”
Barilla specializes in transmissions, transf er cases and dif f erentials, but the shop also does general
transmission services, engine work and general auto repairs. T he only thing the shop doesn’t work on is tires.
Wif e Donna Marie Barilla said with the business growing, the time to open the storef ront location was right.
“When your home-based business gets to a point where its growing and developing and ultimately you
interf ere with your home, I think the timing is right,” she said, adding Darcy’s long-time partner Sheldon Linbeck
also passed away in June, a situation that prompted Barilla to take the business f orward – partly because the
time had come and partly in honour of his f riend’s memory. “You recognize that lif e is short and you have to
make a leap.”
While the shop is a f ull service auto repair and transmission shop, the Barillas have a passion f or cars,
particularly customs. T hey hope to eventually run a f ull custom business and already do many custom power
train projects f or car enthusiasts. “T here have been a lot of side projects,” Donna Marie said. “Once you name
them, you have to keep them.” T he couple encourages their customers to put their projects on the businesses
Facebook page because the vehicles are of ten in the early stages when Barilla works on them. “We f ollow their
projects and we hope they f ollow ours,” she said. “We have a lot of DC projects out there and we hope people
put them on our Facebook page.”
Paying it forward
Sharing the joy of custom vehicle projects with f riends and clients is not the only way the new business is
looking to share. Barilla is currently in talks with Morinville Community High School to having students come and
work at DC Transmission Repair. Helping a young person to get of f on the right f oot on a career path is
something Barilla says he is passionate about, an opportunity to repay the opportunity he was given and to do
the right thing in a community he is proud to call home.
“I’d like to def initely give it back,” Barilla said. “I want to teach what I have [learned] back to somebody else. I’ve
got a certain way of doing things and it’s by the book.”
T he couple is hoping Morinville and area residents will drop by f or everything f rom an oil change to custom
transmission work. Darcy the Transmission Guy is located just north of Morinville on 100 Street. T hey can be
reached at 780-939-6741.