Came in for a safety check and was very pleased with John's timely, thorough and professional service.

Great friendly and expert service! Visit John and he will take care of you for sure. Thank you very much. read more

I have very limited experience working with John. However, in the one interaction I had with him, he offered me professional customer service. He offered me the second opinion I needed to hear, and not what I wanted to hear. His honesty is second to none, and I am grateful for the advice he gave me when he easily could have taken advantage of my situation. Thank you John for your timely advice. When it comes to vehicle services and customer service, I recommend G.E.A.R.S. Automotive! read more

He was able to accommodate safety check on a Sunday. No appointment just drove up. Thankful to avoid last day of the month headache.

Great service, went in for a safety inspection and the clerk was extremely helpful. They even helped with some questions I had about my car and was extremely knowledgeable! Highly recommended! read more

I wanted to be able to like and rely on this guy (and want to think the beat of people) but have found I got seriously ripped off. Didnt know for sure until I went to an honest mechanic. John has a nice demeanor and a good story about my options, before I know it Im out $2000+. The scariest words to come out of his mouth: Im going to go work on your invoice. Plenty of good mechanics out there, avoid this scammer. read more

John was awesome. Super knowledgeable and straightforward, and doesn't try to upsell you on unnecessary BS. Fit me in on a last minute safety check and even made the extra time to replace my drive belt on short notice. Will definitely be a returning customer. Was very meticulous about how he charged me, kept very detailed records of labor cost and length of time required. read more

Friendly service. Was able to get my vehicle in for state inspection same day AND on a weekend. Would suggest to anyone in the area and will be coming back with all my vehicles. read more

John was awesome. Got us in on a Sunday, same day for Hawaii State vehicle inspection. Very professional and well versed on state laws. Was able to fix our windshield wipers and we were in and out within 30 minutes. Would suggest him to anyone in the Waipahu/Kapolei area! Will be back to do business with him again. read more

Very poor and awful service!! My son's car needed a safety check. Gears employee pointed out the deficiencies (blinkers needed new light bulbs, wipers worn out so he says and the third brake light was out). I understand these needed corrections so he offered to change the lightbulbs and the wipers for $108 just for labor plus whatever the cost of wipers and bulbs! Never have I ever had a safety check place offered to fix the deficiencies for such a ridiculous high price! I politely declined and said I can fix those things ourselves. I returned a couple weeks later after fixing what he said and what was written down on the "failed" paperwork. This guy suddenly comes up with new deficiencies at my second visit; he said front license plate not mounted correctly and a tow hook needed to be removed! He took pics of the car at the first visit so I told him why didn't he say anything about those things! He offered to fix it again! I said no need cause it's obvious that he's just trying to hustle me; which is ok I get it, but don't purposely look for things to fail me that is not a part of the safety check protocol! Wasted my money and my time! I've passed with many other vendors with the tow thing and the license plate just like that! This guy was just trying to find every little unofficial deficiencies to get my money!!! Shame on how you do business! I I do not recommend this shop!!! read more

Don't bother to get any type of car service from this place! Very unprofessional! No kind of Aloha! Came here to get my safety check inspection of course he had to fail it so I can fix my expired car registration. He said it will be $26 in cash to get it started. Had to withdrawal the money gave him $30..he didn't bother to give my change. He stated to call before 1:30p.m because "he is busy til closing @2" as soon as I got my car registration sticker..called the place many of times. No answer. Went straight from Kapolei DMV to Waipahu to the guys shop at 1225p.m he said he too busy why didn't I call. Like I said I called many of times came way before 1:30p.m He didn't answer! And now he said he doesn't have 5 minutes of his time to do my safety check that I already paid for and to come back tomorrow. I hope no one comes to this ripoff so called safety inspection shop/mechanic. ITS A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY. HE DOES NOT CARE TO DO BUSINESS NOT UNLESS YOU WILL PAY HIM! THERES YOUR TIP $3 AND SOME CHANGE BECAUSE U DIDNT EVEN GIVE A RECEIPT!!!! read more

Gears - Useless!!!! - Auto Repair Near Me - Waipahu, Hawaii

This is an update on the original review. I went ti Midas after having my air con worked on at Gears and having the air conditioner blow hot air within 3 weeks. They told me I had a leak in the line that carries the cooling fluid through the air conditioning system. That is all that needed to be done besides refilling the cooling chemical. I believe this guy at Gears charged me for some bogus part and only refilled the cooling chemical. For what he charged me I could have gotten a whole new air conditioner. Beware of this dude. He is dishonest and a total rip off. I should report him to the Better Business Bureau. Do NOT give him your money or waste your time with him. Go to Hayashi's on Kilani Ave. instead. I've always gotten good service and a fair deal from them. Below is m original review. Last year I went to Gears because my air conditioner wasn't blowing cold air anymore. The owner told me a part needed to be replaced. He opened up the hood and showed me where the part was supposed to be. It was supposedly some tiny piece that was buried beneath a bunch of other parts so the labor would be expensive. I actually looked at what was there and thought I could probably remove the ONE thing that was there within a few minutes, but hey, I'm not a mechanic. He also said if I paid in cash he'd give me a discount. The first discount he quoted was higher, then he changed the amount to a lesser amount when I said I'd pay in cash. I should have questioned him about that but let it pass. Yes I know. Idiot me. He gave no warranty and told me some BS about making sure I turn off the air con 5 minutes before stopping the engine. He said to run the fan only without the air con because if I don't that makes the air con break faster. ?? I had my car for 16 years and never turned off the air before turning off the ignition. Furthermore, this was the first time I ever had the air conditioner looked at. My little voice was telling me this guy was not on the up and up but I went ahead and had him do the job anyway because everybody else was booked or wouldn't answer their phones and I didn't want to go to the dealer because everyone says they charge more We had the air con fixed during late winter/early spring so it was still cold and I didn't really need to use the air con much but in less than a month it was blowing hot air again.. This guy is a total rip off. Over priced? Yes! Poor service? Yes! Did he really change the broken part? No He just refilled the chemical coolant, said he replaced the defective part and charged me $700+ for it. That's why no warranty. Don't bother going there. You may as well light your money up with a torch for all the good it will do you to get the job done there. Spring is here and the weather is warmer and I've got to pay someone else to do the job he didn't do. Live and learn. read more

I needed to get my safety check done and I called GEARS and spoke to a John. He stated he was able to do my safety check it was $26 dollars to pay in cash and to make sure I had my current insurance card. So I get there and right away he took my vehicle to inspect . After about 15 min later he says ok everything is good but u need the back wipers to be replaced and I say ok and he says $30 cash but if you pay cc then $30 but 3% for the tax and cc fees and I do not charge for labor . I then say so expensive well there is O Riley across the street I'll go pick up the wipers and be right back He then say well I have to fail you , then come back and I need to do it all over again . So because I was pressed for time I just said do it. So he put the wipers on and comes back and says $32.94. I then say I thought it was $30 dollars , he then say oh that includes the tax. What a rip off and no Aloha Spirit . I will never go to them again. read more

john at GEARS in waipahu is honestly the most honest, and straight forward mechanic that ive ever met (besides the ones i know back home on kaua'i) he gave us the best deal possible, and even went above and beyond by answering a night call to help us out! he treated us like he would his own family! i would recommend john to any of my friends and family and i actually already have! mahalo nui john, we look forward to continue doing maintenance with you! aloha read more

Gears auto inspected my vehicle to provide the best safety for the owner of the vehicle, John does a good job at educating and understanding what the problem is at most detailed information. Safety is my utmost importance, thorough diagnostics he will tell you what you need to and how to take care of your vehicle. Also super quick to set an appointment and usually the job gets done in a day, The price is fair though. read more

Went to this guy to see if he could fix my head lights, told me the $130 hr labor rate I said alright we can take the first step to fixing my car which is check the fuse & relays then if it's something more then that I'll take it to my dealer ship, he insisted it would take no longer then 5 mins to check if they were good but come to find out he took an hour to try find what the problem was with my low beam headlights & guess what?! He couldn't fix my car for me, he recommended I take my car to the dealer cause they can only fix it, so he basically charged me about $140 to tell me he couldn't fix my car for me. THIS GUY IS A RIP, I took my car to my dealer ship the next day & they found out what the problem was with in 30 mins read more

This Guy is a rip off ! Tried to charge me 1700 dollars to change a fuel pump. I went to Kawamata bros. and they did it for $400. Beware!

I can agree with the other reviews his guy is a total rip off! Spend couple thousands to fix my car and instead of fixing the problem he suckered me to fixing other parts so my car is now sitting in my garage, took it back and said he couldn't help me, do not trust this guy! Take it somewhere else but here. read more

Rip off my grandma who knows nothing about cars. Went there to see what was wrong with her car. No estimate given. Had to pay over $8,500.00!!! Said all parts put on was new since her previous mechanic put all wrong parts in her car. The thing is that the problem with her car is still happening! She took her car back questioning work. He said that she "agreed to services". He's lucky one of us wasn't there to question him. read more

Brought my older Mercedes to him to do work on the suspension and some leaks. He was very upfront about how much it was going to cost because of the age and condition of the suspension. Bottom line is he is a professional mechanic who does great work read more

Mr. John Gudo's economical "auto repair service's" is in my opiniona JOKE. I took my truck here by default as no one else would answer their phone, and to add insult to the mix I KNEWi should have reconsidered wheni seem the look of this shop. I had dry rotted tires from sitting in storage for 12 months and was having difficulty turning over. We agreed upon a set service in writing, then later got in contact about "other issues". When I came to the shop to see about these other issues I was obviously not buying it but wanted to understand where he was coming from as there may always be that chance. Long story short he was trying to get me for about $5,000 give or take, when I told him there is no way I'd be able to afford that the only optioni had was to get rid of the truck just to pay the almost $3,000 and I put $500 down cash. He says he's military friendly but he tried to get me any way he could, since I didn't have the money he wanted to charge me $25/DAY just for storage fee's. On top of that, and I may be speaking out of context but it kind of seamed to me and my military leadership that it was because we aren't locals that he tried to get all the bang for his buck that he could. Like all other reviews before mine, this guy is a scam. IF YOU ARE MILITARY DON'T EVEN BOTHER. Trust mei know. read more

This is the only place i go to and get my tires from which is GEARS in waipahu it's cheap and fast and John is an excellent guy to communicate with I recommend him if you ever need a tire from. read more

I gave John at GEARS FIVE STARS!!! I read the reviews and this certainly doesn't sound like the mechanic that worked on my car!! (ALL the reviews were written in 2012.) The day before I took my car to Midas (had an appt 10 AM), because my muffler was sounding louder and louder. After the guy at Midas took my information and said there would be a $70.00 assessment fee BUT they would apply it to the work to be done. Then he tells me it would be an hour and a half before they could put my car on the hoist to look at it. I said "I don't have the time to hang out and wait!" So, I came home and googled exhaust mechanic and got GEARS. I called and got in right away the next day. He assessed my car and quoted me a price to fix 'both' the mufflers. He drew me a picture of where the holes and problem areas were. He said he would call locally for the price of parts as well as the mainland. We had the parts here locally. He gave me a FANTASTIC deal! My car is a 2000 Honda Civic EX and just turned over 100,000 miles. He asked if the timing belt had ever been changed. I said I "didn't think so" He also asked if I had ever had a tune-up done and I said, "I wasn't sure!" He showed me how he knew that the car had never had a tune-up and that if the timing belt went out, my car would be useless. He again said he would call locally and the mainland for the price of parts. I gave him the go ahead to do the muffler. He then called me within 10 minutes of leaving and said that we had the timing belt here and he could have it done by 12 noon the 'next day' (on a Saturday!) He said he would do a tune-up and oil change for free! THIS GUY'S FANTASTIC and he gave me an AWESOME price. He's the real deal and I will never take my car to anyone else. Certainly try him. I am overjoyed with the work he did on my car. Oh, and he called me Saturday at 9:00 AM, stating my car was done and ready to be picked up! My husband came with me and John showed us the muffler/exhaust (lots of holes), and the timing belt which we / he caught just in the nick of time because there was some evidence of very thin rubber in a number of places. My husband said, he must have been in the shop late Friday night because my husband knows how much time it takes to change a timing belt. I would HIGHLY recommend him to any friends or family. I will not take my car to anyone else. Period! Thank you John for your expertise, taking the time to explain the problem(s), the extremely fair pricing, the willingness to call locally first and alternatively the mainland for the best price and above and beyond all other things considered, your honesty! Elizabeth R. Waialua read more