European car repair service near Hayward, CA

Straightforward, patient and considerate of my ignorance when it comes to cars. Mostly interacted with Bruce, who was very helpful, but the small interactions I did have with the rest of the staff were just as nice. Reasonable prices and a very professional atmosphere. If you’ve got a Volvo (or Subaru I suppose), this is your place! Anna Nelson

Wow! I never thought in my wildest dream I could find an honest, experienced, and affordable mechanic to work on my car, but I did. Thanks, Jay! My son's car was leaking coolant and I knew that was an issue that had to be addressed immediately. I called several mechanics in Richmond, CA who asked for $95 just to diagnose the car. I stumbled upon Jay on the internet by random luck and I called him. He told me he could come out to my place and inspect the car, but because I live at the University Village he could not work on the car (due to restrictions imposed by the university). However, he said to bring the car to his place and that he would check it and, if possible, fix it that same day. Drove to El Sobrante, met Jay, and in 5 minutes he confirmed what he had already suspected on the phone, the radiator was cracked and leaking. He quoted me the price for the radiator and labor, and to my surprise, it was not an exuberant amount. As a UC Berkeley student I am on a limited budget, but what he had quoted me was manageable. Dropped the car off at 12:30 pm and it was fixed by 3:30 pm. Additionally, he gave me a 30 warranty on the labor and, of course, a 1-year warranty on the radiator. So, if you are a Cal student in need of repair work on your car Jay is your man.

Bob's saved us today: it was a Friday afternoon, the car started doing something wonky (chugging), and they were still open. We called in, dropped by, and were on our way in less than an hour: Bob's replaced the very part that was causing the problem, with their customary smile. These guys are incredibly generous with their time, especially for recurring customers like us, the loyal Volvo types that are willing to endure trips to the service center for the safety and drivability of these great cars. Best Volvo place in Berkeley!

Had my 1999 9-5 Saab radio remarried at this place. They did it quickly and charged a fraction of what others would have. The manager and workers were friendly and knowledgeable. Will be coming back here to get my next big repair done.

My Mercedes 2003 c240. The whole front end was busted. Conrtol arms, bushings, etc. I took it in, and the work was fantastic! My car came back clean, and running smooth! I'll be back for my shocks and hoses my car needs. I'm super happy with the service! Happy I found someone I can trust, and knows my Mercedes. YAY!

I took in my 2007 Nissan Murano because the dealership said I had both exhaust manifolds cracked and leaking. Niki and his team discovered that I really only needed one replaced and the other would be fine for a few more years. This saved me a lot of money and I never would have known the difference! I appreciate the honesty. The other thing to mention was that they ran into some issues with the replacement because the old one was so beat up. Niki said it would take another day to complete, but I was going out of town with my family. He and one of his mechanics worked extra hard and got it done in time. Very good service! -Patrick Naylon

I brought in my 1987 Dodge B150 van. Yes, a really old van that wouldn't pass smog. A "gross polluter" per the smog shop. Michele and Dennis worked on my car diligently to figure out what the issue was. Turns out the timing was way off. After 2nd smog test, the van no.'s were really good to a low emissions vehicle. Yeah! Dennis also pointed out that my steering column was very loose. In the past, I've been told that the whole steering column needs to be replaced. But here at GF Automotive, it might be repaired, saving me a whole lot of money. GF is an honest auto mechanic shop. Hard to come by these days. Thank you Michele and Dennis for all your help!

You took my car to get its smog check after my oil change. And my car was sparkly clean inside & out!

I was looking for an honest, straight forward, no-glitz service shop who could take care of our 2 Subaru's. I Yelped the Walnut Creek area and found Car Doctor with straight A's. That piqued my interest. After reading the other reviews, I thought I would give Car Doctor a try. I know my cars histories inside out, as I keep a spreadsheet on their services, mileage when anything happens, etc. I even know how many millimeters are left on my brake pads. I was 99% sure I needed rear shocks, and I knew the rear brakes on the wagon were very low. And that's what also Car Doctor said. No up sale, no gimmicks, just the honest truth.

Car shaking while driving at speed. Seemed obvious alignment problem. Had alignment done. Received car back WITH NO COMMENT. I drove car and shaking still there. Took car back to tire/alignment shop. Now they tell me it’s the shocks. Something they probably should have noticed and told me already. But I know a little something about cars and it didn’t seem right to me; the car clearly passed the bounce up-and-down test. So I took the car to Expert Auto Care (EAC) being reviewed here. They put the car up on the rack, and within minutes came back to me to show me rattling tie-rod and bad ball joint…OBVIOUS, they were so bad. On the opposite side they showed me an adjustment nut was rust-locked into place and rounded-off. It obviously didn’t happen within the last week, when I had the alignment done, because of the corrosion. You would think the alignment shop would have noticed and told me that too. And how the heck could they do an alignment with either of those problems??? Also, they showed the tire shop we got the tires from (not aligned so), used a single 6oz weight for balancing. EAC said maximum single weight to use, according to state regulations, was 2oz. This is something else you’d think would be noticed by the alignment shop. All in all, EAC ball parked a couple of thousand dollars to service a $2000 car, and suggested it might be better to buy a new/newer car, and we should go home and think about this. Which was very good of them. (Not that I wasn’t going to do that anyway). On the shop wall there is cost of service, and the 20-25min diagnosis should have run between $60-$95, but EAC charged me nothing $0. Which was very very kind of them. I can highly recommend EAC for, at least, diagnosis service honesty. And, based on EAC’s diagnosis (which they showed me) I cannot recommend “Wheel Works of Mt. View” for suspension work.

Very nice experience

Had my first experience with Pat's Garage when I took in my 2012 Fisker Karma for routine 10K mile service. Every aspect of the experience was terrific, starting with the initial consultation and advice, scheduling, reception, the work itself, and delivery. Pat and his crew are extremely knowledgeable about this rare car, and very professional and helpful throughout the process. I know that Pat is a Karma owner and enthusiast himself, and quality of service and work reflects his passion for the car. Behrooz Shariati

I've been bringing my car here since I bought her and have received excellent service every visit. German is an exceptional business owner and very pleasant to work with. He is great at explaining things to someone who is not car savvy at all! Danisela Mancia

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Excellent friendly service, they know what they're doing! Tom G. 2010 Honda Accord San Francisco, CA

I never thought I'd find a mechanic that would delight me enough to write a 5 star review, but this place is different than any other auto mechanic I've ever dealt with.I came in for regular 30K service and spongy brakes, expecting a costly brake job, among other things. After dropping off the car, my phone rang a short while later. I answered, going into my typical defensive mode that I've grown accustomed to from past experience with auto mechanics, ready to question every single thing "wrong" with the car and the thousands of dollars about to be estimated to fix it."Your car's fine," said the voice on the other end. He explained that the brakes had plenty of life left and just needed to be bled. The only thing needed was an oil change and new air filter. The honest diagnosis was the most refreshing words I've ever heard coming through the phone from an auto mechanic