Meet Our Team

Nelson's Automotive: Staff Page Image


  • Bob Nelson

    With 33 years of experience in the industry, Nelson is an ASE master certified technician and is a certified emission diagnostician in Washington. Being raised around race cars, hot rods, and muscle cars, in high school, Nelson took every automotive class he could get into.

    After high school, the Spokane native went to college in Phoenix, AZ. There, he received an associate's degree in auto and diesel technology from Universal Technical Institute. He then began living and working in the Seattle area.

    Nelson said he grew up with a passion for the industry because his father was an automotive technician, and the legacy is likely to continue as his youngest son, who is 15 years old, is interested in working on cars as a career as well. Nelson and his wife, who will be married for 24 years in August, have three children.

  • Doug Millard

    Doug is a native of Bonner County and has 30 years in the industry. He has worked at the shop for 26 years, is an ASE-certified technician, and is also a great asset to the company. Millard has been married to his wife Carol for 28 years and has two kids. The couple, along with another local couple, own and operate Sandpoint Children’s Learning Center.

  • Mike Russell

    Mike is the go-to guy and fabricator when Nelson's Automotive needs to figure out how to get something to come apart or go together. The staff can always count on Russell to get them out of a bind. Russell has worked at Steve’s Import Auto, DBA Nelson's Automotive, for 20 years. He started right out of high school and is also an ASE-certified technician.

  • Paul Ewing

    Paul is a service writer and a great asset to the shop. With more than 50 years of experience in the automotive industry, Ewing has run large dealership service departments. He is a native of Bonner County. His great-great-grandfather, Richard Fry, opened the first trading post in Bonners Ferry and purchased the ferry from Edwin Bonner.

  • Per Mattsson

    Per is Nelson's Automotive Swedish transplant and an excellent technician. He has worked at Steve’s Import Auto, DBA Nelson's Automotive, for 28 years. In his 20 years there, he had only seen one car leave the facility, where he could not figure out what the problem was. Mattsson has 43 years of experience and is an ASE master certified technician. He has been married for 33 years to his wife Erica.