The Black Forest

I don’t typically take the time to write reviews, but I was so grateful for the service I received at the Black Forest that I am making it a point to write one! I was traveling at night near Auburn when my check engine light came on, so I spent the night in a hotel and arrived at the Black Forest early the next morning right when it opened. I was welcomed by extremely friendly staff, eager to help me and make me comfortable. They assessed the car (Mini Cooper Clubman) efficiently and gave me a thorough explanation of what the car needed in order to be restored to good health. They were busy that day, and the car needed a lot of work, but they squeezed me in and made it all happen quickly so that I could get to work on time that afternoon. They gave me a ride to a place I wanted to hang out while they were working on the car, and they picked me up right on time. The car felt way different after it was worked on — way more power, way smoother ride. I definitely recommend this place if you need any work done on your European car! Thank you, Black Forest!

Terrible garage! I had a Mercedes that needed some electrical work done. My car sat outside for three weeks waiting for those bimbos to find the problem and the time to work on it. This incompetent, worthless father, mother and junior son team (owners) always made me feel unwelcome when I stopped in to get an update. They never fixed my car and charged my $ 833.00 for supposedly diagnosing this that and whatever! Wow! Anyhow, I’ve begun a complaint with Ca BAR and will never go back again! Absolutely pitiful experience! Small town pirates! Beware! Please! ps. My car was repaired by another shop in Rocklin for $ 118.00. It was a wire that became loose from a connector!

I drive a 2004 VW Jetta TDI. Over a year ago, she started shaking, hesitating, belching black smoke out her exhaust pipes. After spending lots of money and time with two different repair places in Grass Valley, a stranger at the laundry mat turned me on to The Black Forest. And I am so very glad he did. It took them quite awhile to get to the heart of the problem. But they never stopped trying. Several times, they thought they’d found the issue — and I was ready to pay them for the repair. Then, they’d realize their assessment was incorrect and would just dig deeper. There were multiple opportunities along the way for them to charge me for unnecessary work — but they didn’t. After much thoughtful sleuthing and deep research, they figured out what was wrong and she is running great once again. I find the folks at The Black Forest to be extremely honest, caring, and qualified — and will drive the extra miles to Auburn to have them work on my Jetta for as long as I have her.

Like this place. Took my old Mercedes diesel in. It was making a funny noise, which the head mechanic Jody helped me to diagnose in two minutes with his stethoscope. Everyone in the shop is very helpful & generous with their knowledge.

I have a 2010 Mini Cooper S that I have taken to The Black Forest on two different occasions. They are very professional and get the work done is a timely manner. Mini’s are not cheap to maintain but they make the experience a pleasant one. I would highly recommend them and will return for future services.

This is a local, family owned business that takes great pride in being thorough and efficient! I have two vehicles that they service, a Land Rover and a Mercedes and additionally they have helped me complete a remote purchase of a BMW for my daughter going to college in Hawaii!
Keep in mind these type of vehicles are expensive to maintain no matter where you go. TBF has always worked with me to explain and complete the repair and maintenance work in a professional and understandable manner. Their workmanship has been top notch and their hourly rates are far under the cost of the dealerships.
This crew always goes above and beyond any other mechanics I’ve ever dealt with. You always get a hand wash and detail of your vehicle upon completion and they are happy to drop you off and pick you up whenever needed!

Our car was done the same day we took it in! not to mention they vacuumed and washed our car!

took my C280 for for deal inspection had 48 hours to decline the sale– Paid the $ 95.00 inspection showed the transmission needed attention but was not serious. Was told if I was to keep the car I should do a $ 500.00 service went and did that still had problems a friend refferd me to another shop that said they do a complete service fro $ 380.00 the trans was still giving me trouble the new palce check it out and said that it would need $ 820.00 which included a bunch of parts and full service. when the new place drained the Trans fluid is was dark not like new fluid. I feel like I just gave TBF $ 500.00 for nothing. TBF wanted $ 211.00 to recharge the air. the new place did it for $ 108.00

This story is LONG OVERDUE!
Part 1: 7 Years ago I took my 528e (the one my dad drove off the lot in «84) into Black Forest after it’s shifter linkage broke. After paying them $ 800 dollars I picked it up to find that there was no longer a 5^th gear. I returned immediately, only to be told in a not-​so-​friendly tone that the transmission was shot and that this car would only continue to «nickle and dime» me. Well smart enough to know when I was being played but young and foolish enough to not fight for my rights, I walked away without paying for a new transmission but also without a 5^th gear. Over the following 7 years, anytime I found a new mechanic, I would mention the dilemma. The general consensus was that most likely the guys at Black Forest had botched the job, but no one was ever willing to perform a detailed investigation for fear of unraveling bigger issues or at least driving up a huge bill. Needless to say, this was a point of SEVERE DISAPPOINTMENT on my part, not to mention a drain on my car’s performance, health AND gas mileage. I did go as far as to write a detailed letter to the folks at Black Forest, but it went unanswered.
Part 2: A few months ago I took my car (the one with a perfectly functioning transmission) into a new shop here in Berkeley near my new place. Anyway, when I mentioned the old 5^th gear problem, I finely heard the words I had been waiting for, «oh that, I bet I know what that is». An hour later I got a call informing me that a bolt ¹⁄₈ cm too long had been wrongly installed, preventing the proper shifting into 5^th gear. Simply put, this old source of disappointment was alleviated by a 30 cent bolt and 15 minutes of the mechanics time.
I am so happy to finely be able to put the whole thing to rest BUT must admit that my skin still crawls when I think about how MISTREATED i was at BLACK FOREST.
I wish there was a NO STAR option. What ever you do AVOID THIS SHOP!

I have been taking my Volvo to The Black Forest soon after I bought it. I was referred by family member who had been taking her BMW there for years. A little over a year ago I had to replace the timing belt and seals and stuff. I know absolutely nothing about cars! I took it in this month for my FREE oil change and was informed that I had a pretty bad oil leak that had soaked the timing belt and now has to be replaced again along with camshafts or something like that. I told them I would have to get back them to schedule an appointment and get some money together. That night when I got home and checked my email I had an email from the black forest saying that they reviewed my cars repair history and they believe that last year after changed my cam seals they believe the oil leak started soon after. They are taking responsibility for the leak and replacing the cam something or other and replacing the timing belt again free (parts and labor).
They are standing behind their work and making it right. If they never said anything I would have never known…
BLACK FOREST IS AN HONEST COMPANY THAT YOU CAN TRUST!!!
THANK YOU BLACK FOREST!!!

Count on it, your $ 75 oil change will turn into a $ 600 bill. At first I thought they were just thorough, but after giving them $ 2000 for repairs and then bringing my car back in for an oil change only to find out there are a bunch of repairs the MUST be done, I’ve shopped around and have came to the conclusion they just like to gouge the hell out of their customers. This sounds about right based off other reviews.
I’ve given Black Forest several chances because they are a local business but from here on out, I’m taking my cars down the hill.

First of all I find it very suspicious that you can’t find very many reviews about this place, even tho there are in business for many years, but if you go on their web side, you see 53 reviews and all of them are good.
The one good thing I can say is that they have good customer service.
I broke down with a dead battery almost right in front of their shop so I walked up there and asked them if they can help me. First answer was call a tow truck. Well after asking if they could just give me a jump and I drive up there and buy a new battery, jason walked down with me. Jumped the car, drove it up and voila! after an hour and $ 230 paid it saved my one day off. Now I have to say $ 60 to put in a battery which is already expensive at $ 159 is quite a rip off. But to show appreciation, I scheduled an oil change which ended in a repair estimate around $ 4000! Seriously? After getting 3 other opinions, one from a Roseville Dealership (they were still cheaper) half of the things don’t need to be done and the rest is getting fixed by a BMW expert called Ryan Gangemi down on Dry Creek Road in Auburn. For about a quarter of the cost they estimated. Like transmission service… everybody who knows Bmw very well knows that the transmission fluid is a lifetime fill. Now if you want to keep your beamer you change it anyway to extend the lifetime of your transmission. But $ 850 for an appr. 2 of work? Ryan estimated $ 225. Another estimate was for changing the front control arms completely, I actually only need the bushings, they estimated $ 1100 for that. After my own research the parts for that even if I have to replace the whole thing was $ 250. So $ 900 for 3 hours of labor? And the list goes on… Now another thing is that I’m a female so they think I don’t know a damn thing about cars so they take advantage of that. And save the BS that BMW is expensive to maintain. Every car is expensive to maintain! The thing about beamers is that they last way longer than any other car i know. So that’s my opinion about the Black Forest. If you have money to throw away, go there. If you want to save a little, go to the Dealership. Black Forest is still more expensive than them. If you want to have your beamer fixed and don’t get ripped off, go somewhere else! Now im sure they will flag my review so read it while you can!

Brought in my 1991 Mercedes 300SL for an oil change in the morning. They were booked, but were able to squeeze me in and do the work at the end of the day. One of the mechanics dropped me off at my workplace in Auburn and received a call when it was ready. Pretty straightforward.

Our BMW broke down on the way to Utah. We were towed into the Black Forest at about 4:15 P.M. They put our car ahead of others in the shop and quickly diagnosed that my fuel pump fuse was blown and the relay looked bad. At 4:45 the owner’s mother drove to Roseville (20 miles) to get the part. They close at 5 but stayed open until she got back to replace the part and get me back on the road. This kind of service is above and beyond. I would recommend them to anyone.

If you have a Beemer (BMW) TBF is A #1 in service. I will say it is very expensive to maintain a BMW out of warranty.
This is a family run business and they take GREAT pride in BMW’s and making sure your car is running top notch. They always hand wash your car after every service and even offer a free oil change once a year.
Top notch Pro, but be prepared to pay for it.