Tom Dwyer Automotive Services

***just received a check reimbursing me for the full price of the brake service. thank you Tom, I appreciate your honesty and taking responsibility. Though the guy at the counter was very clear that if I wanted the service done over I would be paying for it I am thrilled to have this situation remedied.***
** I just read the owner response. I want to make clear that I was never told that if the sound persisted they’d replace the pads for free. Quite the opposite, the guy at the counter said they’d replace them at my expense. I recall distinctly being quite angry about that. And, I never received a call or message about the brake service. However, if the last comment is true and I receive a full refund for the service I’m happy to re-​rate this business 4 stars. Taking responsibility is HUGE. In fact, should a check show up for the brake service, I’d even return as a customer as the comments below seem to indicate a thoughtful response and real concern… even if I didn’t get that the first time around. I’ll update this review if a check for the service arrives.**
ORIGINAL REVIEW BELOW
I’ve a mixed experience with this shop and won’t be back. Here’s why: Took my 2004 MDX to have the brakes checked and was sent home as they noted nothing was needed. That won me over as I was ready to pay for the service. So I took it back when they needed to be done about a year later. A few days after the service a horrible grinding sound from front brakes developed – in fact, it’s still there. I brought it back and the tech took a drive with me and noted the problem. Then the counter guy comes and tells me the brakes are «glazed» and I’m responsible for it but the tech will «scuff up the pads as a courtesy». I’ve since taken it to 2 different dealerships and both noted it’s nearly impossible to glaze brakes and the pads on the car now are not OEM or very good quality. Rather than simply replacing my pads and eating the $ 80 in parts it would have cost the shop, they blamed me for the issue and lost a customer and get a not so fantastic Unilocal review. Town and Country Honda may be a bit more expensive but their service is awesome.

I’ll be honest, I hate the hell out of car maintenance. Even an oil change tends to have me seeing red because I know every nickel I spend on my car is a nickel swirling into what seems to be a neverending black hole of… well, car maintenance.
So for a number of years (I am too horrified to admit just how many) I neglected my poor lil’ Focus. And then I straight up stop driving and adopted the popular PDX lifestyle of biking for just about a year so there she sat. Neglected, ignored. But when the weather took a turn for the crappy, I turned to my loyal steel steed and worked she did! But the years of neglect had come home to roost in the form of hella dash lights and the requirement to disconnect my battery when I parked it for the day.
I had Tom Dwyer bookmarked for at least a solid 2 years with the intent of eventually coming here. Of course what spurred me was the need for new tags, and the sinking feeling my car wouldn’t pass DEQ without some help. Again with that whole hating car maintenance attitude I still dilly dallied but finally called a week ago to schedule an appointment. Dean was the guy I talked to and he was friendly, thorough and quick to get me in. And was also understanding that the day I was to bring it in, was OF COURSE, Snowmageddon. I waited till the evening when it wasn’t so icey and limped the poor lil’ Focus to drop it off.
Dean called me the next morning and started with something you never hear — «Are you sitting down?» I wasn’t, but told him to lay it on me anyways. I won’t list the boring specifics but DAMN, I was really stupid to have waited so long to get the car checked out. He told me all the things that needed fixing and dollar signs were flashy before my eyes in the bad way. He asked me if I was going to drive this car for awhile, or was looking to buy a new one sooner or later. Considering I intend to drive this thing into the ground, I reviewed with him what did and did not need fixing. Whilst still spendy, I viewed it as penance for my laziness and okayed the needed fixes.
I was pleasantly shocked when I received a call late Thursday saying my car was all ready for pick up. The amount of work they did in basically 3 days was awesome, especially since I had been expecting for sans car for at least a week. I picked her up today, paid my tiny fortune, and proceeded to get the girl all legal-​like for driving. It’s kind of a relief to know my car isn’t going to fall apart anytime soon now.
Is it the cheapest? Nope. But I FIRMLY believe you get what you pay for and here you get expert advice and service, and no shenanigans I’ve ran into at other mechanics. They don’t try any scare tactics like «OMG your brakes are going to fail, we can’t legally let you leave the lot» LOOKING AT YOU MIDAS (and guess what, my brakes were fine, jerks). Now that I’ve ponied up to get the thing running, I’ll be using this place for all my car needs.
But hopefully I won’t see y’all too soon.

Great service! The staff are fantastic! Dean helped me the entire time and explained to me what was recommended and why, without making me feel like an idiot. I never spent more than 5 minutes waiting for anything. The services were completed at the agreed upon time and the final cost was less than the estimate. They really did great! The cherry on top is that the mechanics did an excellent job as well. I left the lot and it was like having my brand new car back. I am thoroughly impressed! The shuttle service is a life saver. I just cant wait in a shop all day so when I was able to get dropped off at home and picked up at no extra cost it was truly wonderful. I only have one car and so dropping off for service is tough if I can’t get a ride. Chuck was a blast to chat with! Thanks again! I’ll be back!

My brother drove down from Seattle for Thanksgiving, his check engine light came on in Chehalis. He tried every Mazda dealership for his Mazda M3, nobody could see him until Monday. I told him to call Tom Dwyer who said they could check the code, which was for his thermostat and sent him on his way with the caveat to not turn on the heat until the car was at operating temperature. The manufacturer of the car wouldn’t support him but Tom Dwyer did, they are the best and most honest shop in Portland.

We’ve trusted our cars to Tom Dwyer for nearly twelve years, and have never had a negative experience. His friendly and knowledgeable service advisers are terrific to deal with, the technicians are first rate, and I have never considered taking our cars anywhere else.

These guys are great! I was traveling through Portland recently when my transmission started giving me problems. I «limped» into their shop based on their Unilocal reviews to have them take a look. It was right at closing time and nearly everyone had gone home. I explained that I was nearly 100 miles from home so one of the guys from out back was called up to take a look at my car. They spent nearly an hour diagnosing my problems and then were honest enough to refer me to a good local transmission shop. THEY DIDN’T CHARGE ME A DIME!!! They are definitely customer oriented! I would highly recommend this shop!

Best service. I had been taken advantage of at other shops, even the dealership I go to. Dean gave me an honest run down and estimate. He even found me a buyer for my car at a fair price, since it was too damaged for me to afford to fix. My brother is a mechanic in Michigan and he agreed with everything Dean recommend I have fixed and the price. Highly recommend, very honest, best customer service.

When you are new in town, it’s hard to know whom to trust. Tom Dwyer solves that problem. They are always honest. prompt and within their estimate. My 11 year-​old Vibe runs like new, thanks to the TLC it gets at Tom Dwyer and they never try to upsell or fix stuff that isn’t broken.

I’ve been going to Tom Dwyer for maybe six years now, and I think the world of them. When I started, I had an older car. They have a policy about beginning new relationships with older cars, and I slipped in just under the wire. For the next several years, they helped me keep my car running and in good shape. They also monitored situations that were on the way to becoming problems (like a clutch that was beginning to slip) so that I would be clear about upcoming decisions and prepared for them when the time came.
Earlier this year, my 20-​year-​old baby finally started to fail. Thanks to the ongoing discussion I had with the folks at Tom Dwyer, I had a plan and was prepared. Now I have my new car and am happy to continue being a loyal customer. As someone whose knowledge of cars is limited, having a mechanic I trust is an absolute godsend.

Swift. Honest. Fun to do business with. Attentive. Excellent Customer Service. This shop reeks integrity. There can’t be in town — perhaps on the planet — a better experience to have when your vehicle is ailing.

We’ve used them many times. Honorable, service oriented and responsive. We always go back and are always pleased.

When I read the reviews for Dwyer Automotive I really didn’t believe all the claims. I thought they must be exaggerating their reviews. I want to tell you everything you read is true. They are every bit as knowledgeable and courteous as everyone is stating. They are prompt, truthful and you feel like they really care about you and your car and not just trying to make a quick buck.
I can’t imagine going to another mechanic now.

I cannot say enough positive things about this business. Been coming here for years and they are honest, trustworthy and candid. If your car is on it’s way out, they will tell you instead of milking you for increasing repairs.
I like the staff at the front desk and have brought vehicles in here for pre-​purchase inspections and value their expert opinions.
And lest I forget, I love their reading material, library loans and free bumper stickers for their customers.

I was in Portland last weekend visiting family when my car unexpectedly broke down. After calling a tow truck, my dad recommended towing it to Tom Dwyer’s. I called ahead and they said they would do their best to help me out, as I had to head back to Seattle the next day.
After dropping it off, they said they would get back to me the next day so that I could adjust my plans if necessary. Less than two hours later, they called me back explaining what was wrong and how much it would be to fix it. They didn’t try to sell me anything else, which I really appreciated.
I figured I would give them a call around noon the next day to see what progress had been made. To my surprise they called me at 11 AM to tell me my car was all ready to go!
I was so impressed by their level of service and willingness to go above and beyond and beyond given my situation. They truly under promised and over delivered. I will definitely be back!

I think Tom Dwyer’s Automotive is the best! I went to him originally because he was a supporter of Portland’s progressive radio station. I liked his views and felt that anyone who put his money where his mouth was (mine, too) was probably honest. I’ve not been disappointed. I maintain my high opinion. The charges for routine maintenance have always been far less than anything ever charged by the Lexus dealer… never more than $ 100 and oftentimes less.
Two weeks ago I took my Lexus to him for a routine inspection during which they found my brake lights were not working. I planned to go to Eugene the next day and they refused to let me drive the car without the brake lights because it wasn’t safe. They needed a part to do the repair and because they had to order it they rented a mid-​sized car for me to use until it arrived. It took 5 days for the needed part to arrive. (Doug, their shuttle driver, took me to Enterprise to get the rental and waited with me until I was settled in the rental before leaving me to return to the shop. I felt very taken care of. And would you believe … Tom paid for the entire rental cost.
WOW! Now that’s service. Thank You… Tom.
I’m a senior lady and it was nice to be treated so thoughtfully.
I live in Northwest Portland and I am happy to drive to Sellwood where I know I will be treated so well.
I cannot recommend Tom Dwyer Automotive Service highly enough.

I’ve been going to Tom Dwyer for several years now. I have two cars that are in for all of their maintenance except for tire and break services. I am quite pleased with the service advisers that give you a call and are ready to have a conversation and have all of their facts lined up.
The vehicle scheduling and drop off is excellent. I really like being able to drop my car after hours and pick it up after hours. The keybox/​dropbox at the shop makes it easy to ride trimet and drop off/​pickup my vehicle outside of their working hours.
One time, there was a problem with a vacuum line not connected that caused a check engine light to come on. I took my car back, problem found repaired, and apology made. I never had to have a negative conversation, hear anybody get defensive, or have any harsh words. They treated me right, i would hope everything would go right, but when it doesn’t it doesn’t go negative.
This is in quite a contrast to helping my sister deal with her car, and her shop where everything is an argument such that i ended up helping her. I keep telling her to go to Tom Dwyer instead of dealing with people like that.
The inspections/​results/​invoice are great, and i save them all with the vehicle records i have for my cars. It might be nice if these were available by email too.
One of my cars has a problem that isn’t worth fixing, they priced it out, and honestly told me not to fix it, because of the age of my car and the cost was too high. I find this exceptionally honest to pass up revenue so that we can do the right thing for me. I didn’t need to fix that AC in a 16 year old car at such a cost and wouldn’t have known any better had they not explained it to me so thoroughly.
Have been incredibly pleased with the experience at Tom Dwyer Automotive, the quality of service and attention to detail is exactly what i want in a shop.

I don’t want to start checking in here as I am sure I would be the duke. Again, They came through on my 140k subaru for blowing all my belts. Done the same day within hours. There is a reason they deserve accolades. Cheaper than dealer, more than the cheat cheap mechanic, peace of mind, fixed car = worth it.

My wife and I have been taking our cars there for years. I’m perfectly comfortable taking our new Honda there for scheduled service (numerous benefits over going to a dealer’s service dept).
Tom and the staff have always been accommodating and helpful — often giving suggestions on when future planned maintenance should occur instead of estimating every little thing & sucking money out of us while we’re there.
I’ve recommended Tom Dwyer to a number of friends, colleagues and neighbors over the years & all have been completely satisfied.

My car was made in 1997, and «that is too old to begin a relationship with.»
Don’t worry we will have no relations ever!
Update:
I read the owners response. It would be like a doctor saying I don’t want to work on an old patients because they are «economically totaled.»
I understand that it isn’t «mutually beneficial» (i.e. not as beneficial for the mechanic) to work on all peoples cars, but to me this statement just says it is easier for us to make money on people with newer cars. The entire policy seems a way to keep away all but richer clientele. There are a few different mechanics in town that have no problems working on older cars and maintaining high standards. That is a five star mechanic.

I’ve got to admit, at first I wasn’t thrilled. They told me my baby had issues. Both cosmetically and mechanically. Daddy doesn’t take too kind to those type of words.
I went over the report card with them, trying to hold back my unease as they painfully detailed everything that wasn’t copacetic with my girl. Sure she didn’t purr like she used to, and yes I do like to drive her hard, but still, she’s my baby.
Ah my six speed, manual transmission, turbo girl, how can this be true? You eat mountain roads for breakfast, devour Subaru’s for dinner while putting the fear of God into those lazy Sunday drivers.
Yet, the Unilocal reviews for Tom were fantastic, with several from people who I personally know and trust. So were they really just blowing smoke up my tailpipe?
Nope, while it was hard to hear, they were right. And not only were they right, they were good. And extremely knowledgeable. So while the sting of being told my Audi girl wasn’t up to par was strong, their work and professionalism helped quell the initial mistrust and unease.
And while certainly not cheap, the free shuttle and a free rental car really shows their commitment to customer service.
The proof of it all? The TLB driving us home on the 4^th (since I imbibed a little too much) and she mentioned how she could really tell the difference in the drive. She said our baby took off like in the old days and you really had to hold on and take control or else she would get away from you. That’s exactly how my girl should respond.