About Our Shops in Catonsville & Finksburg, MD

The Auto Clinic of Maryland story begins with a WWII veteran, a pilot of 56 bombing missions in Europe. After the war, our founder, Albert Steinbach, attended Johns Hopkins University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration. Shortly after, Albert would rise through the ranks of several large corporations, eventually becoming vice president and general manager in charge of seven divisions spanning the east coast and overseeing over 3,000 employees. While Albert was well-versed in the inner workings of big business, he was laid off in the late 1960s due to the recession. Albert quickly realized, however, that the best way to put his skills to use was to start his own company. After some research, he decided to start an auto repair business because he assumed that cars would always need to be repaired. After years of hard work, at the age of 57, Albert opened a franchise with his son, Ken, who was a college student at the University of Maryland at the time.

In 1975, Albert opened the doors to his new auto repair business. Despite a rocky start, Albert persisted and continued to run the family business with friendly customer service and excellent auto repair, ensuring that every customer left with a smile. In 1991 we added six more bays to give 12 in total, Caton Auto Clinic continued to grow and be known as a local leader for auto repair. In 1996 Ken acquired the property next door and the shop tripled in size to 36 bays- making it one of the largest in Maryland, however, we never lost the family values you find at smaller shops! In 2004 Ken’s son Scott joined the organization and grew to be its third generation owner. In April 2020, Ken and Scott founded the Auto Clinic of Maryland and purchased Nelson’s Service Center in Finksburg, Md, a shop known to match Caton’s values of customer care and expertise in auto repair.

Nelson's Service Center joins the Auto Clinic of Maryland family, which is also proudly affiliated with Caton Auto Clinic in Catonsville, Maryland, another shop owned and operated by the Steinbach family since 1975. Caton Auto Clinic has grown to be one of Maryland's largest auto shops while still providing excellent, award-winning auto repair service. With the acquisition, Auto Clinic of Maryland features two top-notch shops to give you expertise in service, timely repairs, and fair prices!