Art of Maintenance Auto Repair

I have been going to this place for years for my oil changes. I’m willing to pay $ 33 for an oil change if I know I’m getting good service and good quality. However I will never go back to these guys. Last time I got my oil change they left my oil cap off. I drove to work in Clackamas and then on the way home notice that smoke was coming out from my hood. What?! Cap was still underneath hood. Took it in the next morning they looked over fluid level and didn’t really say much. This time, I go in, they are booked out til 1pm. I have to pick up my son from school so that won’t work for me. I schedule appt at 9am the next day. Drop my car off. The guy at the front desk asks me when i need it back. I told him «as soon as possible» and ask that they call me when they are done. It usually takes a little over an hour… I’m sitting at my little coffee shop for an hour and 45 mins. No call. Walk over since they must be close to being done. And they hadn’t even started. The same guy at the desk was like oh, I’ll get it in right now. Not going to work for me since I was leaving to go out of town!!! That’s why I scheduled an appointment!!! Wth? I told him about my dissatisfaction with this appointment and the last and he seemed to care less. They care less about customer retention. They won’t get any more of my money.

Came here yesterday for the first time and had an okay experience. I received a coupon in the mail and called ahead to make sure they had time for a quick oil change, break/​9pt inspection and tire rotation. He quoted me an hour to an hour and a half over the phone. When I got there I asked for an estimate on the rear license plate bulb and he said he would call me and let me know to add it onto my service. I went to grab some food while I waited, and 45 min later still hadn’t received a call so I walked back to the store. When I asked about timing he seemed annoyed, and said he quoted me an hour and a half over the phone. Yes, but I was expecting a call about the bulb. His coworker then realized he forgot to input my phone number into the computer system. Good thing I checked back. To calm they confusion they were nice enough to throw in the bulb at cost minus labor, and were still able to get it done in an hour and a half. When I left the sticker on my window says I need another oil change in 3000 miles (average is more like 5−7K so it seems like they are really pushing for more $). I then asked about a recommendation for a transmission place near by and he had nothing for me… except maybe one in Oregon City. I would come back for basic service but not much more. Beware if you have a long wait time then beware that this is the first car place I have ever been to with NO TV, music, magazines or anything to do in their waiting area. They do have WiFi though, and there are some food carts up the road on MLK and Killingsworth.

There are a lot of auto repair options on MLK by just looking at google maps. I had a front right headlight out. Not a big deal. This place was super clean inside the office. Nice waiting room. Very nice for an auto shop. Friendly service. One of the front desk guys was busy with a customer but another came from the back to get me going on the paperwork. My car was pulled around and they started on it right away. Waited in the waiting room for about 20 minutes. So all sounds good RIGHT… NO!
They told me it wasn’t just a bulb that was out but that they checked that and then other things and it must be an «electrical issue.» They said they wanted $ 90 bucks to do an inspection and find out what the problem was. So you want me to pay you $ 90 just to tell me what the issue is?
I ended up calling Subaru dealership and explaining my situation. Abel at the shop said that didn’t sound right and it was probably just the bulb. They probably are trying to get $ from you or just don’t know what they are doing. Well… he was right! He told me to come in FREE OF CHARGE… No inspection fee. Yeah…20 minutes later he tells me it is just the bulb that is out!!! $ 27 dollars later and with a new light that works. Imagine that Art of Maintenance. Maybe you are the artists of RIPPING PEOPE OFF!!!

So, I know a bit about cars. Not a whole lot, but enough to troubleshoot most problems. I diagnosed a transmission problem with my 20 year old car and was hoping to get it fixed at a local shop. After a $ 99.50 inspection fee, I was told that I either had a transmission problem or a differential problem and it would take another $ 300 to further diagnose it.
Hello… it makes noise in first gear but doesn’t in second… I don’t know what differentials you guys work on, but on planet Earth cars don’t work like that. OK, what will a new transmission cost? Try $ 4,000.
I was told that «these things aren’t cheap.» True, nothing wrong with a car is cheap, but there is a big difference between $ 4,000 and the $ 2,700 I was quoted later that day (after a FREE inspection).
I came to the shop referred from a friend, but cannot recommend this shop.

Had the thermostat housing gasket changed it was worn out and coolant was leaking; again had that fixed before going here; now it was steaming for some odd reason and needed that looked at. I thought the Art of Maintenance crew would be able to help me out. Unfortunately they went in and replaced the parts I just got fixed; which is weird because it was all new and they charge me 900 for the same things. To back track before they started I told them and showed paper work that the parts were fixed and replaced; just in case that would help them out. When I came back to get my car I found out they replaced the same parts anyways. Even though I was frustrated I decided not to say anything, thought at least it’s fixed. Just two days later the car broke down again. So I took it back thinking well that sucks maybe they didn’t do it right; but I’m sure they will help me out. They realized that they messed up with the diagnosis of the car. But they were reluctant to help me in any way. Telling me it was another problem. Which is what I explained in the first place; sadly this wasn’t a pleasant experience. Sorry and doing nothing to help me out doesn’t make for good customer care. Not the end of the world but it really sucks to not have any help. (Was also told when I took it back that we have a more important car to look at before we can even look at your car; not sure that’s the best thing to say to a customer.) Please don’t take your car here if you’re looking for a good price and quality help.

Extremely concientious. Spent a lot of time and effort diagnosing the problem with my Volkswagon 2006 Passat. They had a pretty good idea that it needed a fuel pump (very expensive). However, because they weren’t sure, they referred me to a dealership. AND they did not charge me for any of their work/​time. What a wonderful experience. I so appeciated their honesty and forthright communication. Restores my faith in car repair shops. Bill is the best.

Last thing I had fixed there was windshield wiper issue: my wipers stopped working during heavy snow, perhaps because I used them to wipe away too much snow. Everybody said, «Oh probably you blew your wiper fuse.»
Art of Maintenance charged me $ 100 «because we had to check the whole electrical system to find the problem» plus another $ 10 for part/​labor. And the problem? The wiper fuse (which costs pennies & takes just few minutes to replace & is such a common problem & so obvious under the stated circumstances).
So I felt ripped off. I bet they didn’t even check the whole electrical system — just replaced the fuse & decided to make an extra $ 100. The guy looked really guilty when he presented me with the bill.

I have been here 3 times in the last 12 months and just not got what I need.
They failed to change the oil and filter on a standard service.
Could not identify a failing coil pack.
Booked me in for an hour earlier then they open on a weekend
unable to switch my winter summer tires over — but took them 3 hours to realize.
Your milage may vary but I cannot recommend.

I can’t believe these guys are in business. We took our Jetta there at least 5 times from January until June, promising to fix the problem and telling us all we needed to do was some sort of drive so that we could get it through DEQ when in fact it needed a new catalytic converter!!! They weren’t interested in fixing the problem, I think they felt that since it was an old car it wasn’t worth their time. The VW mechanic we ended up taking it to fixed the problem and we’ve been driving it since with not one single issue AND it passed DEQ! We’ll never go back here again nor will we recommend them to anyone.

When I left, the mechanic apologized that his work didn’t fix the problem, and to his credit, I didn’t give them the chance to finish fixing the issue. Here’s a few reasons I left early and why I’d never go back:
1 — after asking them to flush the radiator and heater core, they told me a diagnostic would be better, to make sure we weren’t ‘shooting in the dark.’ Roughly $ 92 in diagnosis later the list of «possible problems» was the exact list of suspects I had been given when I came in with nothing conclusive.
2 — $ 160 for the radiator flush/​cleaning — not a crime, but nothing to brag about, and was irritating when lumped with their «diagnosis».
3 — They got behind, so I gave them another hour under the understanding I’d have the rig back. I showed up 30 minutes early so that I could have the bill/​paperwork done and be out of there as soon as it was ready. When I showed up I was informed that they were just disconnecting the machines and ready in minutes. When I asked him to draw up the bill he disappeared for 15 minutes (I timed it), brought me a bill, and when asked about the paperwork disappeared for a bit longer for no apparent reason. over 40 minutes after being told they were just unhooking the machines I finally got it back.
4 — a list of sudden car problems experienced just afterwards and missing items that I can’t prove had anything to do with them. (Venting my frustrations and suspicious without proof here is how they earned a second star).

These guys are fantastic. We called for a tune up appointment and they talked us down to a lube-​oil service with a promise to inspect everything. Sure, it turned out we needed more than just an oil change (we knew in advance there were issues) but we were given options and an honest opinion. Fair price. Great Service.

Fantastic service!
My car broke overheated on the interstate thanks to Jiffy Lube forgetting to screw my radiator cap back on. AAA towed me here. We were returning home from a business trip, it was me, my babysitter, my 14 month old, his carseat, and a bunch of luggage looking like a homeless camp in their lobby.
They weren’t able to check out the car until the next day, but we were fortunate to have friends in Portland who could pick us up and put us up for the night.
The VERY NICE guy at Art of Maintenance (whose name unfortunately escapes me) stayed late so that we could wait in the lobby and not have to sit outside in the rain waiting for our ride. I am eternally grateful!
The next day they checked out the car first thing in the morning. Ran some tests to make sure the overheating had not damaged anything. Luckily everything was OK and I was only out $ 99, which seemed very reasonable to me!

My subaru has had a few oil leaks for a while now. when my wife took our car in for an oil change they said they could fix it for super cheap… about $ 300. I thought this was a bit sketch as we figured all the leaks would cost a lot more and require a major fix. she had them do it. a month later we noticed the oil was low again. took it in and they said the work was under warranty and would fix it, but they checked it out and said it was not leaking. I obviously stopped using them and the next time i had my car serviced at another mechanic they said the part was indeed leaking and that multiple leaks would have to be fixed to stop the loss of oil. anyway, they suck.

Art of How To Screw People
A vehicle breaking down can be a very stressful situation. I was stressed because I depend on that little car. Art of Maintenance added to the stress.
Here is why — I got the first quote from «Art of Maintenance» near my home in North Portland. I needed a clutch and I could walk to the shop. Quote to get the work done, 1700 — 2100.00. Really? «Art of Maintenance» wanted to crack open the trans to «reseal» it along with the clutch, the clutch costing over 700 because they wanted to change out the master and slave cyl’s. Really? They charged me 100.00 to look over the car and I’m happy to say I left that place and went else where. They quoted me 1100.00 for a timing belt change that also included all sorts of «extra» work.
Going to another place the mech advised me it was just a simple clutch job at 510.00. No need to replace the cyl’s but they did show some external wear and the hydraulics were fine. They also gave me a quote on the timing belt, only because I asked and know it’s due to be changed, 600.00. As they did the work I sat in the very nice waiting room for a few hours and watched how each person was treated. Wow, top shelf. Like Les Schwab good. I am so glad I went to the Clutch Dr all the way in Beaverton!
What do you think would have happened if my transmission had been cracked open by Art of Maintenance? I shudder to think these guy are really doing business like this. I understand the need to advise the customer on other issues with the car, but to mislead them into the doing the work is flat out dishonest. Not even giving the other options to do the work is wrong. Options make people happy, these guys were not into giving options. I am savvy enough to know what needs to be done if given the choice. They earned this review through their mistreatment of me and they lost my business.

I used to bring my car to Firestone since it was convenient and they gave me a free tire rotation since I had firestone tires. They always seemed to find problems with my car regardless of whether I was getting an oil change, car check up, etc. and tended to quote me pretty high prices. The last time I went in they basically told me most of my car needed to be replaced for $ 3500 while my car is a ’98 mercury sable and perhaps not even worth that much. I chose not to do all the maintenance and decided to get a second opinion before scrapping my car. Art of Maintenance did a full vehicle inspection and said most of it was actually in pretty good working order and the earliest I would need to fix anything depending how often I drove was probably 3 – 6 months down the road. I’m glad I got the second opinion because while I’m still working on getting a new car, now I don’t have to be in a rush and can still drive my old one until I find the right one. They were very friendly and thorough for me as well and struck me as honest at the time.

I would also give this place ZERO stars if i could. I took my car here to get an estimate on my window that wouldn’t roll up. They told me that I had a «faulty window regulator and motor assembly. Vehicle needs to have glass replaced and motor and regular replaced to effect correct repair.» My window was not cracked or broken, it had just fallen off of the track and «could not be reattached». They quoted me $ 600.
I took my car to a mechanic who said he would look at it for free. He took off the door panel and found that the window had fallen off the track and needed to be re-​glued. My motor assembly and regular were fine. He used some epoxy and now my window works fine. I understand that this isn’t the most effective way to fix the problem, but $ 600 is a little ridiculous. I told my mechanic what I was quoted and he laughed! He told me it was safe to say they were trying take advantage of me… apparently I could have bought a completely new door for $ 600, working window and all.
I don’t know why they are endorsed by AAA and I’m not sure how they have been in business for so long. I do not think that this is an honest establishment and I recommend taking your vehicle somewhere else.

Warning: Do not go here! These guys are a complete rip off. They charged me $ 800 for a $ 400 job!
My car broke down in Portland, so I could not go to my wonderful, fair, 5-​star rating mechanic in Seattle (Arne’s Auto Service), and I needed a shop within walking distance of a friend’s home. For an alternator, battery and two belts on a Honda Civic they charged me $ 800 – and my car wasn’t even completely fixed. I still had to take it in to Arne’s in Seattle. When Rodger, the manager there, took a lot at the bill, he was visibly upset and told me he had half a mind to call them. «I could have drove down there myself and done it for less» he said.
I have no idea how this place has stayed in business since 1977 since they COMPLETELY RIP PEOPLE OFF.

I was VERY disappointed with Art of Maintenance.
I went here to see why my a/​c wasn’t coming on. They looked my car over and said two parts needed replacing, one of them quite expensive. I was skeptical so I paid them for the analysis and left.
I then took my car to another mechanic and it was a completely different part that needed replacing (a relatively cheap part, I might add) and they fixed it while I waited.
Result: the a/​c works like a charm and if I had listened to Art of Maintenance I would have been out oodles of dough for unnecessary parts and repair and the a/​c likely still would have not worked.
But wait! It gets better. After I informed them of their misdiagnosis they refunded my money but then reconsidered and stopped payment on the check, sticking me with a $ 19 bank fee. Unreal!
I threatened to sue and ultimately got my money back. What a stupid way to do business. And AAA gives them high ratings?! That makes no sense.
I SCREAM THIS FROM THE MOUNTAINTOPS:
AVOID ART OF MAINTENANCE! THEY’RE UNETHICAL AND INEPT!

If I could give them zero stars, I would. Here’s my story:
My wife takes the car in to The Art of Maintenance because a radiator hose is leaking coolant. She also inquires about a quote for a tune-​up. Their quote for a new UPPER radiator hose and radiator flush? Almost three hundred bucks. Steep, right?
Keep reading.
Their quote for just replacing the air filter, a new set of spark plugs, and an oil change? FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS. Yeah, that’s not a typo.
So my wife tells me this, and after I finish putting my eyeballs back in my head I tell her that’s absolutely highway robbery, but to go ahead with the hose replacement and the radiator flush, and for them to skip the «tune-​up». After we got the car back, I did everything included in their $ 500 stick-​up– er, sorry, TUNE-​up– for less than $ 80 at O’Reilly’s. Just in case you missed it before, they wanted five bills to do a bunch of REALLY simple stuff.
The best/​worst part? I get a call from my wife this afternoon; she’s broken down on her way home from work, three blocks from where these clowns are. The problem? The ATF inlet hose is cracked… where it connects into the RADIATOR.
I don’t know who they’ve got working there, but apparently none of them are ACTUAL mechanics.

The guys here are super friendly and very good at what they do. They’re also honest and stand behind their quotes. I needed a new water pump and was quoted $ 270 ($ 250 with a $ 20 coupon I had). I dropped my car off in the morning and went back at 5:30 to pick it up. When I got there they let me know that they had mistakenly quoted me the wrong price and that my engine type would make for a $ 400 fix, but they said they were going to stand by their original quote. So I got a $ 400 repair for $ 250. They easily could have tried to squeeze another $ 150 out of me, but they were happy to let me pay the original $ 250.
Great service, fast service, and very friendly staff!