About Iowa Transmission Rebuilders

Iowa Transmission Rebuilders opened in September of 1993. Clark Fratzke was the manager and transmission rebuilder overseeing almost all operations of the shop. We operated out of an old 2 bay gas station building, doing transmission service and rebuilding, wheel alignments, brakes, tune-ups, carburetors, fuel injection service, and steering and suspension repair.

In 1997 Clark and Donna Fratzke bought the business from the owner of the shop at the time, and continue to run it as a family owned auto repair shop today. As the business grew, in 2001 we moved to a larger building 2 doors up the street to accommodate our growing needs and those of the customers.

In 2006, as the shape of our growing town had changed, we decided to build a new shop along Highway 20 making it more convenient for our customer with a cleaner, more comfortable reception and waiting area for our customers, and a shop area that is easier to clean and maintain.

The new building is constructed in ways to keep the cost of day to day operations lower so we can pass the saving on to our customers, while providing a quality finished product. This new shop is warm in the winter and air conditioned in the summer, so you know the technicians servicing your vehicle are happy and comfortable as well.

Meet Our Staff

"Growing up on a farm I had the opportunity to operate and maintain some of the farm equipment, and having older brothers who were into farm equipment and cars, we had plenty of them around.

"When I was 16, the transmission in my car was failing fast, so I borrowed a book on rebuilding transmissions from a neighbor and studied it. I took the transmission out of the car, carried it to my basement, then disassembled it. When I got the parts I needed I put the transmission back together. Once that was done, I carried it back to the machine shed and put it back into the car, and with great success it worked!

"During my high school years I worked on a lot of the neighbors', family and friends' vehicles including rebuilding several transmissions. After graduating from high school I attended the Auto Technician Course at Hawkeye Community College. Upon completing that course I landed a job at AAMCO Transmission in Waterloo, Iowa. In 11 years at AAMCO I was their transmission rebuilder, service manager, and also completed Center Manager School.

"In my spare time I enjoy working on classic cars, wood working projects, and spending time during the summer on the porch with my family and friends."
-Clark Fratzke

Donna grew up in Independence, Iowa, and has lived there almost all of her life. Donna is familiar with the auto repair business as her parents owned an auto body repair shop when she was growing up and she had the opportunity to spend time there. Donna has also been married to an auto technician for over 22 years.

When Donna graduated high school, she took a job in customer service at the local Fareway grocery store. She began to know everyone in the area that bought groceries along with their kids and grandchildren. After 24 years, she made a career change, and became Office Manager at Iowa Transmission Rebuilders — doing eveything from assisting with parts, delivering vehicles, and paying the bills, to greeting customers and answering the phones.

Donna enjoys quilting and spending time on her porch with her family. In her spare time, if she isn't working on one of her own quilting projects, she may be putting together a quilt top for the local quilt guild (Calico Cut Ups) to finish and donate to Cedar Valley Hospice to give comfort to the terminally ill or to the sheriffs department for children caught in a bad situation.

I've been tinkering with cars since I was 8 years old. I started in my grandfather's shop and then progressed to a larger shop of my fathers. My passion with cars started at a young age, by just wanting to help my dad and grandpa out and show them that I could do things that they thought I could not.

I enjoy all types of cars, each present their own challenge when working on them, from old classics to the cars of today which present the most challenge and ultimately are the most rewarding to repair. After graduating High School I decided to join the military in which I served 6 years and did one tour in the Middle East. After the military I graduated in 2002 with a degree in Engine Machining from Southwest Tech in Fennimore, Wisconsin.

I like the engineering aspect of building a car from scratch or making something you just can't buy anymore. I've been working on cars for many years and as I do I learn the world is always changing, therefore I have to adapt along with it.

In my free time I like to fish, relax, and get away from it all. I enjoy restoring old cars, building race cars and racing engines. I also enjoy helping people. The best part of my day is when I go home and spend time with my kids. Even if for some reason I had a bad day they can always cheer me up with nothing more than a smile!