Vic’s Auto Center

I take my Saab in to them for service. It has become more of a challenge to repair this car since GM stopped selling them but their work has always been good and reliable. It is a good little car with very low mileage so hard to give up on it. What recently happened was above and beyond what anyone should expect of a service center. I had a failure of one of my taillight assemblies. I special ordered the part and when it arrived a piece was broken out of it. They installed it so I had a working turn signal and charged me nothing. I re-​ordered the part from another company, took the car back in today and they swapped it out for me and still refused to charge me a nickle! I don’t know what to say as thank you feels inadequate. Thus the 5 stars.

My Mother had taken her 1968 VW beetle convertible here for years, since 1991. In Sept of 2014 she took it to Vic’s. They said it needed an engine rebuild (something they had said before). They got it running but recommended she not drive it home as it was unreliable. They arranged for a tow home while she decided to fix or sell. It is in great condition, but $ 5,000 for a rebuild was something she had to think on at 87 years old. The Vic’s mechanic who worked on it that day called her the following day and offered her $ 500 for it. She felt that was unprofessional. As the original owner she offered the VW to her family as we all had grown up with it. I bought it from her for $ 5000 and had it towed to California. No doubt the engine needed a rebuild, leaking oil, cracked wiring, lots of things. A VW depends on air cooling. Proper air flow, through hoses, around the sheet metal shrouds, no changes to venting etc is critical. Here is where Vic’s did not do a professional job. Numerous seals of the cooling areas were not functional, cooled air could vent before being used in the system, but number one I found a red mechanic’s rag in the fan blades inside the fan housing. The VW beetle is infamous for over heating the Number 1 cylinder when the air cooling system is compromised. Well guess what, the #1 cylinder has little to no compression, most likely due to over heating caused by a fan clogged with a Vic’s Auto mechanic’s rag. Shame on you and your treatment of a 24 years of loyalty, senior citizen customer.

I suspected I needed a new alternator on my Nissan, and I needed it quick! I called Vic’s at 9am, they told me to bring it in said they’d do their best. They didn’t disappoint! They had a new one installed and ready just in time for me to pick it up and drive to the airport. Very professional, excellent communications, couldn’t ask for more. Thanks for the expedited service!

In November, while I was in Lake Oswego for business, I discovered a leak in my car. I called Vic’s and they repaired my car immediately (within 2 hours) so I could make the drive home to Seattle and charged me a reasonable rate.
I live in Portland now and took my car to a mechanic in Sellwood yesterday who misdiagnosed my problem, suggested repairs I didn’t need, and treated me lousy while doing it. So, this morning I decided to return to Vic’s.
Once again the service was phenomenal. They diagnosed the problem, provided me with an estimate, and repaired it at a reasonable price. I couldn’t ask for better service.
It’s so difficult for a consumer to find a mechanic you can trust to do a reliably good job while providing excellent customer service. Vic’s has managed to do this flawlessly twice for me now and I can’t recommend them highly enough.

I received such great customer service and quick, straight-​forward auto services that I felt compelled to review them even though I mainly just review restaurants. So I needed the bulb for one of my signal lights changed. I called at 4:05 pm and they told me what needed to be done with my car. They asked if I could get in before 430pm since many people pick up their cars after this. Since I live 5 minutes away I went right away. They changed my light bulb and charged me only the cost of the bulb $ 3!!! (Seriously?! That’s it?! No service cost?) I was out of there by 4:25pm. The lady at the front desk was the one I spoke with on the phone and she was quite nice. Overall, this is a great no-​fuss place. Do you really need anything more than people who know how to get the job done? :-)

My car was missing, hesitating, idling high and I couldn’t diagnose the problem myself. Not knowing any better, I dropped my car off service here because I could walk home. The job was a comedy of errors and overcharging and it would take me far too long to give all the gory details here. Let me just say that if these guys can’t tell you right away, up front, what is wrong with your car, take it somewhere else. My job should have cost a couple hundred but was nearly a thousand bucks as they threw part after part at my car, hoping something would stick. What finally stuck was my impression that these guys are only good at hooking a computer to a car and doing what the computer says to do. Good old-​fashioned «I’ll figure it out for you» doesn’t live here.
With the exception of the loaner car they provided, this was a miserable experience and I will never return to this outfit. GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!

I was very pleased with the service I received at Vic’s Auto Center. I brought my limping van in, and they were able to diagnose the issues and make the repairs at the exact cost they quoted me. My car was ready the next day, and when I picked it up, it had been washed, and the interior had been vacuumed. It drove and sounded like new again. I heartily give Vic’s my highest recommendation.

Took my ailing car in and they did everything you ask for. From the stopping by to making the appointment to giving my car back freshly washed I can’t recall getting that kind of service anywhere let alone from an auto repair shop. Worth the money and worth the drive.