I found the price to be more reasonable than some other options I checked out. The people were very nice.

From my first inquiry, I received the attention I was looking for from a new auto shop. Tim didn't push or try to quote me on something that I didn't necessarily need. He responded to all my questions and was not only professional but also, personal. Nice comfortable family office w cute little guard dog that actually runs the show. I believe this will be my go to shop for all my future car issues and maintenece. So far a great feeling of trust and is so rare! read more

Can't say enough good things about this shop, all the guys here are top notch. Very knowledgeable and they will answer any questions you have pertaining to your vehicle, even after the work is done and they also keep you informed on everything that's going on with your vehicle while it's being serviced. I've been coming here for a while now and I will continue to, great customer service and outstanding service being done here at all times. I would recommend anyone to come here if you respect good work and your vehicle being well taken care of. read more

Import Auto Service - Auto Repair Near Me - Santee, California

Sure, German engineering is at the absolute pinnacle of automotive science. You know what else it tops? Repair costs. Typical BMW dealership service costs: - Oil change: $385 - Brake service: $550 - Brakelight repair: $730 Plus, did you know that the dealerships no longer offer loaner cars for "standard repairs?" So you can either sit there and wait or you can uber yourself back and forth. About seven months ago, my 435i just crapped out on me in the middle of the highway. It was moving, but super slow and RPM sat above 5K to go 25 mph. When I took it to the dealership, they took a cursory glance at it and quoted me $3,600. Plus, they claimed I needed new tires and new brakes as well, for a whopping total of $6,145. I also asked them to check what the rattling noise was under the car and they told me that the shielding was loose and they'd have to charge to tighten it. Enter Import Auto Service. I messaged several repair companies that specialize in BMW repair and Scott with Import Auto Service was the quickest to respond. He got me an appointment for very next day, which by itself was extraordinary, considering the earliest the dealership could get me in was three weeks away and two other repair shops that even answered me said the earliest they could look at it was 7- 10 days later. Next day, I slowly drove my car there and Scott got me in right away. Within 15 minutes, the mechanic came back in and said that my head gasket needed to be replaced as well as needing new idler pulley and tensioner pulley. At this point, I'm expecting at least $4-6K. Tim, the owner, strolls in with a grimace and says, "Yeah... that's gonna cost a little bit." Scott starts punching in numbers and says, "Ok... so, the best we can do is about $2,300....." Say what? I ask again and he confirms. Before he could change his mind, I assent. I ask about how long it'll take and he says - get this - "We can get it ready for you by tomorrow after 12pm." Holy mackerel. By 10am the next day, I already have a voicemail from Scott letting me know that, 1. It's already done 2. They fixed the shielding free of charge 3. They got a better price on the parts so they'll be only charging me... $1,400!!! (too bad I can't capitalize numbers) I arrive by 2pm and my car's pulled up to the side, ready to go. I ask them about the tires and brakes and they said, "Tires? They're fine. Why? And you have at least another five to seven THOUSAND miles on your brakes still." Do you know how rare it is to find a mechanic who's honest and does great work? Let's just say the last honest mechanic I found back in Florida was the second longest relationship I've ever had, right behind my wife. Now, Import Auto Service does all of my auto repairs, from oil change (dealership: $385, Import Auto: $125) to anything major. It feels great knowing that I can rely on them and their expert opinion on whatever I need on my car. Tim and Scott won my business for life. read more

Thank God for Import Auto! I was price gauged other places. They were were fair and not ripping me off. Very respectful making racist comments. Definitely will come back. read more

Great team. They will get y'all in and out as soon as possible. Very respectful and in a great safe location.

I woke up to a check engine light on my Porsche during Memorial Day weekend. After the holiday, I took it in to their shop for diagnosis. Scott and Tim were very respectful and attentive to the issue without being pushy. I had a diagnosis and estimate within 20 minutes which I was super impressed by! They were also very honest about my car issues and shared it was still driveable . We agreed on the repair and within two days my car was back to normal with no additional surprises that most mechanics like to throw in it's very hard to find an honest and knowledgeable mechanic when you drive foreign vehicles . I'm very appreciative of their service and have found someone I feel confident in read more

Oil change completed. Service was great. Pricing was in par. Tim and team appeared to be honest and helpful. Will update review as I continue to use them read more

Tim and his team are simply the best! If you want an honest, highly skilled, efficient, friendly group of mechanics, look no further! The team always comes through for me and my family and have very reasonable rates, compared to others. I will not take our cars anywhere else. A big shout out to Shawn as well for going the extra mile to help with a major brake issue. Every person I have dealt with has been top tier! Thank you IAS team for helping to lighten my stress level when it comes to the frustration of car repair issues! read more

Brought in my 05 VW Passat because I was having an error message with the breaks. They did a free diagnostic and told me they wanted to do one thing before they started an entire process because the one thing could fix all of it. I really appreciated that because it showed they genuinely just wanted to do what the car needed and not like other shops who are just money hungry. The guys here are super nice and efficient. The price I paid was great and my car runs perfectly again! read more

As a female, I am not a fan of going to a mechanic by myself. This morning, I went in without an appointment for a check engine light issue. Sean was very friendly and helpful. I was thoroughly explained by Tim and Sean the concerns that came back with the vehicle check. They were very honest and I never felt pressure to get extra work done. When I gave the ok for repairs, I was told that parts would be delivered within the hour and I would be out the door shortly after. That is what exactly happened. The waiting area was very comfortable with soda, water, and coffee available. I am happy to now have a go-to shop I can take my vehicle and feel comfortable that I'm not being taken advantage of. read more

If you are looking for quality work, honesty, great communication and all completed at a reasonable price quote, this is the place you have been looking for. Let me first start off by saying that Scott is an amazing employee here at this shop and he worked so hard to satisfy the needs I had for repairs today. So a bit of backstory worth mentioning and I believe you will see why this shop deserves and earned a five star rating. My son drives a nice car that cannot just be taken to a normal shop. My son is also a U.S. Marine based near this shop and as you all may be aware, you work around the schedule of the USMC and not necessarily work around your personal schedule. My son's car recently began having some issues with the brakes and needed some attention. I did what I do best and that is to send out a request for a quote via yelp and see what comes up. I got four of the five requests and I did what I do best and I turned to the Yelp Reviews and did some research via Yelp on what the company is about. What I found on Yelp was some great reviews from this shop and also a great video explaining they have over 60 years of experience on vehicles that are not normal everyday types of vehicles, which is half the battle. I called the shop and spoke to Scott. I asked about the quote to verify this quote included all four brakes and the work behind it and he confirmed the quoted price. I then began to explain my situation regarding my son being in the military and his ability to get the vehicle to his shop. Scott threw out some dates and times and then all of a sudden he says to me, "you know what, you tell your son to get it to the shop when he can and we will take care of it for him." as Scott knew that he was in the military and he understood that it is the "military's schedule" and my son was subject to those restrictions. I was able to text my son and found that he could bring it in today if they could get it done. I phoned Scott back at the shop and Scott took the vin number and ordered the parts immediately. Long story short, my son got the car in the shop today and Scott had pre-ordered the parts so they were waiting for my son's car. Who does this???? My son was able to get his car in and got all four brakes completed and they treated my son with respect and showed him all the issues they had found from the previous mechanic that put a bandaid on my son's car. The work was completed professionally in a timely manner and treated my son with respect. I could not have asked for anything more. Oh, by the way, I am about 100 miles away from my son and shop but they made this process so simple for me and assured me that my son would be taken care of. Not only was the work completed as explained above, but they completed the work below under the quoted price. So, if you are looking for quality work, great customer service, great reasonable prices and experience on higher end vehicles, this is your place to go to. Thank you, Scott and IAS for the amazing work and for taking care of my son, which just also happens to be a United States Marine. read more

Import Auto Service - Getting new brakes by professionals at a great price. Nothing better than this. - Auto Repair Near Me - Santee, California

Honest and very welcoming staff. I'll be taking my car here for everything. They had my car done so fast and everyone was really friendly.

Highly recommend! Very very reasonably priced, told 2 hours and they took under 2 hours including check in. Got my Lexus RX 350 serviced here. They offer shuttle services if needed, but I just hung out and waited. Excellent customer service and there's a cute dog there too. Major points there read more

Brought in my wife's Smart Car with a blown PCV Valve. We live far away but after getting quotes all over the place from shops that didn't seemed like they'd worked on Smart Cars, this team really came through. Long story short, Tim runs a great shop and I recommend having them work on your vehicle, especially if it's a Smart Car. Good communication, good customer service, & fair labor hrs read more

Yea please don't take your car to the dealership This is the best place why??? -CHEAP! -reliable! -can work on any foreign cars! -SAVES you money! read more

This place was great to me, not only did they get my car to pass smog for the same price VW services were trying to charge me for just a diagnostic report but finally fixed my AC after YEARS of me telling VW mechanics that something was wrong & then they just charge me for a new air filter. Pat was so fast & nice. Front office service was also very nice & welcoming. read more

They diagnosed my BMW very quickly and told me what was wrong with it. The staff was very helpful and all of them had a smile on their faces. I recommend you give them a try, and you won't regret! read more

Import Auto Service - my car - Auto Repair Near Me - Santee, California

I'm looking forward to a different set of wheels and haven't given up yet with the owners help assuring me that any day now..... My ship will come in and the new ride will be all mine! read more

Import Auto Service - Auto Repair Near Me - Santee, California

My experience with the people here was great, but the issue I came in for was not fixed. Another issue they found while inspecting the vehicle was repaired (apparently my rear axle was bent), but I left with the vehicle making the same sound as I came in with. So I called to have them look at it again. They had my vehicle all day and ended up grinding the rotor down a little bit because the caliper was rubbing and said that they fixed the sound "80%". They didn't charge me for this but it also was not fixed. Not even a little bit. So I was tasked with finding a different shop and shop #2 diagnosed the sound right away as having a worn pinion bearing in the rear differential. So I was stuck paying for the really expensive labor twice, which does not excite me. I will not be back. read more

I chose this business because of the 5 star ratings on yelp and a friend recommended them. I walked in and told them I had a severe oil leak and wanted to see if I could make an appointment after describing the issue. Not living far away, my wife drove the car in. Tim took the time on the first business day of the week when I thought they would be too busy to check my vehicle. In just a few minutes he confirmed the source of the leak (damaged oil filter). I had other issues he could have pushed to have done right away but he made me aware of them and I will be back to have them service my car. Honest and professional, probably the best " walk in " service I have ever had. Absolutely FIVE STARS! read more

Great service and low prices. Highly recommended! Honest mechanics that don't try to pressure you. I'll be back... read more

No, I did not end up doing business with them but I will give them 5 stars for reaching out to me and responding quickly for my inquiries not like a lot of other automobile repair facilities. read more

Import Auto Service - Auto Repair Near Me - Santee, California

Had a radiator issue and they serviced my car with no issue . I would recommend them any day and time .

I would like to start off by saying this shop and all its Employees were wonderful to work with. I initially brought in my vehicle for some prevenitive maintenance and the price was fair and work expedient. One of the parts that had been replaced a gasket to be specific did not seal and was defective which they could not have known. This caused some leaking and damaged another component on the vehicle. I promptly took it back and they honored their work and all in all got my vehicle running awesome again. They changed a couple parts out that were affected from the gasket not sealing at no cost to me. They even put gas in it and testdrove it to make sure I could be on my way!! I give them an absolute 5 star rating and wish I could rate them higher. Thx Tim and Scott! JAMES 2012 AUDI A4 QUATTRO read more

Import Auto Service - MY A4 - Auto Repair Near Me - Santee, California

I could not recommend Tony and Scott more. Brought my 2021 VW Jetta in for minor repairs and they were both super helpful, gave me an accurate repair diagnoses and made the repairs within the time given. No hassles just great work and they have lots of experience working on cars. FYI, they love dogs so bring yours if you have to wait. read more

Love this place. Super friendly & helpful staff. You never really know with a mechanic but I found this place on a whim and so glad I did! They did a great job for a great price! read more

I took in my Range Rover Velar for service. The team at Import Auto is first class from beginning to end. They care about their customers and answer any questions that may arise. Import auto will be service provider moving forward. Highly recommend! read more

I shop around so let me save you some research time with this short review. Knowledgeable, fast, honest, friendly. This is where you're treated like family. Walk in with peace of mind and walk out knowing you got the best service at the best price in San Diego. read more

Import Auto Service - 335i coming back to life - Auto Repair Near Me - Santee, California

Cons: online communication is lacking. They allow appointments to be schedule online but then don't respond to the requests. It took a few times trying to get one. They offer loaner cars on their website then they don't have them available. Made it known I'd like one and they never responded. Ended up having to wait there for hours. NO MASKS. Exactly zero employees were wearing masks, even when talking to people inside. There was no social distancing. Since your mask protects me, it felt like a blatant disregard for customer safety. And since I was stranded there, I felt my potential exposure was pretty high. Plus it's a California mandate that you wear masks right now. Pros: family owned, polite staff, free WiFi. While I can say I didn't feel ripped off and my car service seemed fine (minus the dirty rags left in my car), their blatant dismissal of health and safety in a pandemic left me feeling exposed. Which sucks because I want to support local business over a chain. read more

Tim and his team are absolutely the best! They took care of my two cars for years. Yesterday my wife found a metallic scraping noise under her car while she drives. I called them up and they told me bring it in right away. Found a loose part in the underside of the car. They diagnosed and took care of it right away, then refused to charge me anything for it! Great folks over there, thank you. read more

I went in for an oil change and was told I needed a strut replaced. I got a second opinion and was told the strut was fine. That was months ago, and since then the vehicle has had two full inspections and it's running great. I don't know if they wanted to scam me or didn't know what they were doing. Either way, it would have been expensive and I'm not taking that risk again. read more

Thanks so much guys for helping me unjam my driver door! Y'all are life savers! They were super responsive online and allowed me to come in the next day, and helped me right away. I will be back! read more

Tim and Scott are awesome not only in their business but just as honest humans. They helped me out with my fiat when nobody else in this city with work on it and when they reached a point where they knew nothing else could be done they sent me to the dealership. That in my opinion is the best customer service you can receive instead of people trying to keep pushing you on other crap and taking all your money. I will take my fiat to them for any and all future issues and I highly Recommend this place to anyone looking for work on their import vehicle! read more

The 2 gentlemen were very nice and accommodating. They also offered very transparent pricing and super informative of any questions I had. Will be using them for future car services. read more

Just found this place, I thought I needed brakes and they informed that I was fine no need to have my brakes done. I found a new place to take my car in if needed. It's so hard these days to find an honest mechanic. I will definitely recommend this place to family and friends. read more

What a Find! This is one place that is honest and won't take advantage or try to sell you something you didn't need. Brought the car in for AC not working. The price was reasonable and the service was great. I asked him to check out struts as another place said I needed repair but they were super expensive. Tim(the owner) checked and said they were fine and didn't need repair. My new go to place to go and recommend. read more

I took my car in to get a second opinion, and they performed a diagnostic test on the alternator free of charge, which saved me hundreds of dollar. I felt they were very honest, reliable, and affordable. I went back there to change the gasket cover for my car and got it done for one-third of the price the dealership was asking me. Overall, I am a satisfied customer and will definitely be back with any car troubles. I highly recommend them. read more

This auto repair place is a bit out of the way for me to travel to so on a few occasions I have taken my vehicle to other repair shops and not gotten the service I expected and was overcharged. I've never had that problem at import auto service and have decided to always bring my car here. I would recommend coming here first before going to any other place because their prices are the best in town I have found and they can handle all car problems. read more

Drove to Santee yo visit my family when my engine light turned on ... called this place and they took me in to inspect it... found the issue and fixed it up... super honest and super friendly...thank you guys very much read more