Who's behind the wrench
Built by
a racer.
Not a chain shop. Not a service writer. Built Better Performance is run by a racer who proves every part on his own car — and treats yours the way he treats his own.
The short version
Built Better Performance is a specialist LS and LT shop in Lebanon, TN — swaps, engine builds, and in-house tuning for classic trucks, muscle, and modern performance. The name isn't a slogan, it's the standard: every build leaves better than it came in.
We're not the biggest shop you'll call, and we don't try to be. Built Better runs on focus — a few builds at a time, each given full attention, none rushed out to clear the bay for the next.
On the track
Where the theories get testedRacer first
We don't just build it.
We race it.
Built Better is run by a racer, not a parts-changer. On weekends you'll find us at the drag strip behind the wheel of a turbo, LS-swapped Nissan 300ZX — built right here, start to finish. That's not a hobby kept separate from the shop — it's quality control.
Every combination we recommend and every tune we write gets proven on our own car first. If it can't take what we put it through, it doesn't go in your build.
How we work
Non-negotiable- 01
Honest numbers
We quote what it costs, not what gets you in the door — and if something changes mid-build, you hear it before the work happens.
- 02
It leaves right, or it doesn't leave
Nothing goes out the door we wouldn't run in our own car. If it's not right, it's not finished — deadline or not.
- 03
You talk to the person doing the work
No middleman, no front desk. The person who quotes your build is the person who builds it.
- 04
The right parts, not the most parts
We'll tell you what your goal actually needs. If a cheaper path gets you there, that's the one we'll point you to — even when it's less in our pocket.
- 05
Same standard, every build
Your build gets the same attention we give our own race car. No B-team, no phoning it in.
What we know
LS and LT platforms are what we know cold — the quirks, the weak points, what makes reliable power and what just makes noise. That focus is deliberate.
Tuning stays in-house because a calibration is only as good as the person who understands the combination — and we won't hand that to someone who's never touched the car. The day we stop learning is the day the work stops improving, so we don't.
Straight about the setup
Small shop. A few cars at a time.
Booked a few months out.
That's the whole point — no big overhead passed on to you, no pressure to upsell, no rushing your build to clear the bay. What you get instead is a direct line to the people with hands on your car, and the time to do it once, correctly. Want it fast and cheap? We're not your shop. Want it done right? We're worth the wait.
Let's build something.
Tell us about the vehicle and what you're after. We'll come back with a straight number and the next open slot.