SF Auto Works

I have taken fairly old Honda here for a few years and will not be using this shop anymore. I want to like these guys — the shop guys that I talk to are always really friendly and informative when I speak with them, but a few problems detailed below and I have to recommend against anyone using these guys:
1. I brought my car to them about a year ago to fix a strange sound. Paid a lot of money, they claimed they fixed it, never really told me what the problem was other than they checked some belts. Noise continued, but since they told me everything checked out, I trusted them that it was NBD. Well, now that the car is dead, it turns out it was a faulty alternator that has since died, causing me a lot of headache. Bottom line: They failed to identify the issue that I specifically identified and I trusted them to find and fix and I’ve been left with expensive and time consuming repairs and major car trouble.
2. I have asked them to rotate tires as part of service and they didn’t do it. No one wants to spend the time to have work done and then things not get done that you’ve asked for.
3. When they perform their service, they do not give you any paper work with details of what exactly they do. So they’ll tell you that they are doing a «major service» but there are no signs, no documents telling you exactly what that means, but you sure can pay a lot for it.
4. They aren’t open on Fridays.

Brought my 05 wrx here for service. Kevin knows his stuff and I would trust him to fix my car again

I’ve recently moved to San Francisco and needed to get my 2011 Subaru Outback serviced. My previous mechanic in Mt. View was a Subaru specialist and have since developed a preference tor service shops that focus on a particular make. After reading the stellar reviews for SF Auto Works by fellow Subaru owners, I called them up. They got me slotted in that week. Dropping of the car was painless, taking only 5 minutes to get the service order for a 60K mile maintenance written up. By 3PM that afternoon, my Outback was ready to pick up. Kevin ran me through what was found and fixed during the service, pointed out what may need attention next time and rang me up. Another 5 or so minutes and I was on the road. I am definitely happy with the service rendered at SF Auto Works and will be coming back for all my Subaru maintenance needs.

I just moved to San Francisco. I checked reviews of dealerships which didn’t offer much hope, so I looked at indie shops. SF Auto Works has strong ratings so I gave them a shot. (Unlike what some reviews suggest, they work on all major Japanese brands.)
Over the years, I’ve managed to find a few good mechanics, a few honest mechanics, and a few cordial mechanics, but seldom at the same place. This place covers the bases.
Owner KEVIN Hrebic and JOE Pramana are good on the phone and even better in person. Warm and exceptionally knowledgeable, they actually take time to listen carefully to your car issues, concerns and questions. They manage expectations very well — both in terms of when the work will be completed and how much it will cost.
My Honda Fit has been driven hard — both stop-​and-​go city traffic and long trips across the country. With about 115,000 miles, I was wondering if my clutch and starter motor were on their last legs. Raising those issues at most shops would be an open invitation to replace them. Not here. They said the clutch — thanks no doubt to my brilliant driving — still has many more miles to go. As for the starter motor, they said it is showing its age, but, since starter motors don’t failure precipitously, I should just keep it until it gets far more dodgy. Further, they observed that the starter has to be taken off to get to the clutch, I could save money if I could coordinate the replacement of both of them at the same time. When have you ever had a shop 1) put off replacing something they might do immediately and 2) help you plan repairs down the road to keep your costs down?
By winning your trust and confidence, they assure they’ll get your money down the road, but they are willing to wait until the right time. It doesn’t get any better than that.
(They don’t have a receptionist/​phone operator like a dealership, so getting through to them first thing in the morning can take some time. Unless it’s an emergency, call after the morning rush. They also don’t have 12 – 20 mechanics like a dealership, and they’re not open from 0700 to 1900, so, depending on the work to be done, they may need to keep your car overnight. This is somewhat unusual in my experience, but I’ve decided it’s a no-​brainer when they don’t load the bill with over-​priced and/​or unneeded things. Also, note: they are not open on Fridays which is probably a clever management strategy for getting and keeping really good people which is what you want.)
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Postscript: January 2016, I was having trouble with one door lock. I called Kevin to see if they did such work. He said they use Locksmith Central (on 24^th in Noe Valley) for locks and I should check with them. I called them for an appointment. The guy on the phone asked me about the problem. Listened patiently and then said, «why don’t you buy some Tri-​Flow lubricant, spray it in the cylinder, and see what happens. It may take care of it. If not, call me back, and we’ll give you a quote to work on the door.» The lube worked like a charm. No charge. I guess good outfits keep each other’s company. Add them to your list of trusted service providers.

I did NOT get any work done here so the 1 star does NOT reflect the quality of labor… but more for shady business practices… which is worse.
I called and Joe answers the phone. Joe continues to stigmatize this industry. I ask how much for a 90k service for my truck and what was included. He quotes me $ 599 and tells me what that include. But at 90k, a timing belt change is recommend by Toyota, and I tell him this… He didn’t even know that until I mentioned it. Of course he back pedals to save face and went on and on about how people do it at different times. But the kicker is he originally quotes me $ 599 for the 90k… then I correct him with the timing belt… he then says it is $ 1000. OK, sounds fair. I then ask, does that include everything he just mentioned in the $ 599 (oil change, fluid changes, etc) He says yes. Then this long winded idiot goes on about what the timing belt consists of and he says all this will be $ 1500. He forgot he just told me all was included for $ 1000. No way am I taking my truck to a shop when the guy doesn’t even know what is included… but worse, I know if I did, there would be a call that would go like «Hey, while we were doing the change, we noticed that XXXXXX and XXXXX were worn and we recommend you change that for $$$$.» I have been to plenty of repair show and know the signs of good and bad business practices.

Great customer service!

SF Auto Works did me right the first time and keeps doing so every time I take my car there.
I have taken my Miata there and they’ve done great work and re very kind. More than all of that, they are very honest and care about their customers. They know what they’re doing and they keep me wanting to go back go them.
Real loyalty is measured by your repeat customers and not by some cheap coupon deals!

This shop specializes in Subaru and Mazda work, so it made sense to bring my ’02 WRX here. (The owner of the shop also has an ’02 WRX).
I’ve had them do both the 90k service as well as a timing belt swap. Each time, the owner took a wonderful amount of time to thoroughly explain each service and break down the labor and parts costs. Neither service had hidden charges or upsells. No complaints, will definitely be going back next time my car needs work.

If you’re looking for an amazing, easy to work with, and honest mechanic. look no further! Kevin has been such a blessing with my recent car problems. After my car decided it was going to give me a run for my money I took it to the mechanic that had done my last oil change who had told me that the issues I had been experiencing with my car was the starter. Well after trying charge me to diagnose my issue with my car but stated all signs pointed to my starter being the issue. I had them replace the starter. The following day when I picked up my car, I noticed my car seemed to start kinda rough. Well Monday, I feared for my safety when I got in SF traffic and my car wanted to cut off whenever I took my foot off the gas. I found SF auto works and spoke with Kevin. He offered to diagnose my car for free and was so helpful. I dropped my car off as soon as possible. The following day, he called and informed me of what the cause was and fixed it. My car was ready promptly and is running better than ever. They were even so nice as to put gas in my car! Im so blown away with my experience with this auto shop and will continue to see them for any car needs in the future!!!

Our aging Mazda (150,000 miles and counting) had an intermittent, minor engine problem that was rapidly getting not-​so-​minor. We figured it was a sensor problem and that a quick reset would take care of it.
Nope. The guys at SF Auto Works tried every piece of diagnostic equipment they had. Everything checked out. Then they used equipment from another garage to test alternate issues. Still no answer. Then they started checking and replacing the most likely problem parts to see if there were any mechanical problems.
Bingo! The catalytic converter was totally wrecked. After replacing it, they test drove the car on two separate occasions, each time for an hour, to make sure they’d solved it.
However, the problem returned a day or so after we took it back, and they went at it again. After more test driving, they established that the problem occurred every 2 – 4 hours, and that we’d have to take it to a dealer to fix it. Which is kind of pointless at 150,000 miles.
Total price tag, after more than two weeks of diagnosis, trial replacements of multiple parts, and hours and hours of test driving: $ 1000. That’s right. After all that work, they only charged us for replacing the catalytic converter — and they found us a good deal on the new one. It ended up costing a few hundred dollars less than what they quoted us.
You do have to take into account that SF Auto Works is not open on Fridays. And they don’t have a ton of storage space, so make sure you call before heading over. But these guys are the best. And I say that as someone who’s about to buy a new Mazda… which we will definitely be taking back to SF Autoworks when it needs service.

I had been taking my 2005 Subaru Outback to Putnam Subaru downtown for repairs for the past few years as I had an extended warranty with them, overall Putnam’s repairs/​service was ok, but definitely on the expensive side. Once my extended warranty ran out I was looking for another reputable service/​repair shop in SF to go to, and hopefully be a little cheaper than Putnam, and of course through the power of Unilocal found SF Auto Works as the go to place for Subaru’s in the city.
A couple weeks ago I took the car in for a fairly major 80,000 mile checkup and timing belt/​pump replacement, front end bushings, wheels rotated etc. I was very satisfied with their work, costs were reasonable, good communication, timeliness and courteousness.
I could not recommend them more, especially if you own a Subaru!

Wow these guys are great. Honest, and they know their stuff. They only sell you what you need and will tell you if something is optional or if there is a cheaper but equally reasonable fix. They clearly know their way around Subarus and like to talk about them. Clear explanations of work to be done and breakdown of projected cost upfront and after the work is complete. Fast, responsive, always answer the phone.
Also, as a woman who has done engine work herself and has a semi-​complete shop in my own garage, I find that sometimes when I talk shop with the repair guys they get intimidated or ignore me. Not here — I found SF Auto Works to be decidedly non-​sexist. Win.

I’ve been taking my 2002 Subie here for the past ten years. Even though I now live in the East Bay, I make the trek into the city since these guys are so awesome. They’re very knowledgeable, friendly and honest. They’ve never tried to upsell me on anything and I’m always impressed how fast they are.
My Subaru now has over 150K miles on it and is still running like a charm thanks to SF Auto Works. Not too long ago they did a big head gasket replacement which took a full week and wasn’t cheap, but my car feels and drives like it’s much younger. They’ve done some other jobs like a slave cylinder replacement, brakes, oxygen sensors… every time, they do a great job.

This place is fantastic. I only take my car there now and they always deliver. I feel that they give you a straight answer and do not try to under estimate the work or cost that will be involved. They are usually quick too. They can get really really busy but if you can wait I feel they are worth it.

I’ve been using these guys for my Acura for some time. They do a great job, give honest advice and charge fair prices. If you need to find a reliable place to work with, this is it.

SF Auto Works was recommended to me by a friend over 3 years ago…
In that time, they have handled my regular schedule maintenance, my timing belt/​water pump replacement, my broken transmission mount replacement, and my brakes. I couldn’t be happier with their honesty, their prices and their service. For as long as I own my Honda here in the city, Kevin and his team can count on my business.

SF Auto Works told me that I had worn past my front break pads to the rotor and that they could replace the break pads and the rotors for $ 450. That seemed a little steep so I brought it to another shop who quoted me $ 200 for the same work. The new shop told me that I had not worn past my break pads and that my rotors were fine. SF Auto Works prices are high and, more importantly, they lied to me. Don’t go here.

Last week, SF Honda’s service department tried to talk my wife into $ 1700 of repairs we didn’t need. SF Auto Works helped us with a second opinion and we ended up spending $ 0.
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I have a 2002 Civic Si. It had engine problems recently so my wife took it to SF Honda and they diagnosed it as the ignition coil needing replacement, which we had them do.
The next day the Check Engine light came on and so we took it back to SF Honda. They diagnosed it as «you need a new catalytic converter» based on the diagnostic code alone, and estimated $ 1,700 for parts and labor. What? Could less than a mile of driving with a bad ignition coil really ruin a catalytic converter?
We called SF Auto Works for a second opinion. They said that SF Honda’s diagnosis was probably wrong (just based on «diagnostic code X = replace Y»), and that it was probably a result of the ignition coil problem and might go away if we reset the check engine light (free). If it came back on they’d replace the sensors first before going with the «nuclear option» and replacing the catalytic converter (which they said a Honda dealer would need to do).
SF Auto Works reset the Check Engine light for no charge. It has not come back on (it has been a week since it was reset).

Absolutely Stellar Shop!
I took my ’02 Subi WRX in to check out a check engine light that had been on and off for a bit. Right from the get go I felt good about the place as there were plenty of other Subarus in the shop being wrenched on. With a finnicky car like a Subi, it’s always reassuring to see that other Subaru owners trust the shop you chose.
They listened to the symptoms I had been experiencing and estimated that it would require a compression test and leak test to see if anything in the engine was FUBAR.
Once they opened up the hood and dug around a bit, I got a call that they suspected it was a much simpler problem. They recomended to put off the expensive engine checks and checked the timing belt instead. They found the problem (that another mechanic had already ruled out as the problem) by 2pm the day I dropped the car off.
A phone call later they had informed me of the problem and, because of a special order, would have my car ready in 2 days. They delivered the car to me on time (and mostly within budget!).
I couldn’t be happier with their service.

I just had my second clutch installed by these guys. I am confident in their expertise and pricing. They communicate the service very well and even took me back to show me the worn parts and the status of the work. I have a ’97 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport. The job cost about $ 1200, a hundred less than the estimate.
I was lucky they took me right in without an appointment but they are usually booked so it’s better to make a plan for this type of service.