Marco Delgado
Shop Foreman
ASE Master Tech with a soft spot for big-block Chevys and impossible electrical gremlins.
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Three generations of grease under the nails.
We're not a chain, a franchise or a dealership. We're the Delgados − and the best crew of mechanics in Kern County.
The shop story
A two-bay Texaco and a borrowed toolbox.
In the summer of 1976, while the rest of the country was waving flags for the Bicentennial, Ray Delgado was signing a lease on a shuttered Texaco station at 2418 Chester Avenue. He'd spent ten years turning wrenches at a dealership that paid by the upsell, and he'd had enough.
His promise was simple: tell people the truth about their cars, charge a fair price, and stand behind the work. Word spread from the oil fields to the orchards. By 1984 Torque had six bays; by 2005 it had eight and a waiting list on Saturdays.
Today Ray's daughter Linda keeps the front office humming and grandson Marco − an ASE Master Technician − runs the shop floor. Ray still stops by most mornings with donuts and opinions.
CHESTER AVEEST 76Bakersfield, CA
Mile markers
Fifty years on the odometer.
- 1976
Doors open
Ray Delgado opens Torque in a two-bay former Texaco station. First customer: a '68 Ford Galaxie with a cracked radiator.
- 1984
Six bays & a sign
Expansion into the lot next door, and the hand-painted orange-and-mustard sign still hanging out front today.
- 1998
Linda takes the desk
Ray's daughter joins, computerizes the books, and introduces the "Show & Tell" policy of showing customers every old part.
- 2012
Marco makes Master
Third-generation Marco Delgado earns ASE Master Technician status at 26 and starts the classic restoration program.
- 2021
Hybrid & EV ready
New high-voltage training, insulated tooling and a dedicated EV bay − because the future still needs mechanics.
- 2026
Fifty years strong
Eight bays, eleven ASE-certified techs and over 62,000 cars fixed. Same corner, same handshake.
The crew
Meet your mechanics.
Combined, our team has more than 140 years under the hood. Here are a few of the folks you'll meet.
Linda Delgado-Shaw
Service Manager
Twenty-eight years running the front desk. Remembers your car's name and your dog's.
Terrell "T-Bone" Jackson
Drivetrain Specialist
Transmissions, diffs and clutches. Can diagnose a bad bearing from across the parking lot.
Rosa Nguyen
Diagnostics & EV Lead
Our scan-tool wizard. Hybrid and EV certified, and the reason check-engine lights fear us.
Shop rules
Painted on the wall in 1976.
01
Tell the truth.
If it doesn't need fixing, we say so. If it can wait, we say that too.
02
Show the part.
Every replaced part is yours to see, keep, or have us recycle responsibly.
03
Stand behind it.
24 months, 24,000 miles. If our work fails, we make it right − no arguments.
Certified
Trained, tested & licensed.
ASE Blue Seal11 certified technicians
CA Bureau of Auto RepairLicense #ARD 00241976
STAR Smog StationState-certified emissions
BBB AccreditedA+ rating since 1998
Come say hey.
Coffee's on, and the shop dog's name is Lug Nut.