I brought my son's Mercedes-Benz to this shop back in 2022, and in 2025 and last month and this…read moremonth of 2026 for the same issue "check engine light" Coolant diagnosis code.and I'm sharing my full experience to help others make an informed decision.
I gave this business 2 stars because Sameer Shatara (Sam) was nice
and friendly, Also he did honor the warranty on one part and he even changed a fuse for free, because he could not find the real reason of the check engine light and It kept coming back after he changed almost all the coolant parts lol.
However, I deducted 3 stars for the following reasons:
1.He did not charge me prices less than the dealership,I was charged pricing comparable to a dealership despite the use of non-dealership parts. So I decided to ask the dealership for any price before coming to him. Also, he buys parts from https://www.worldpac.com/ not sure till now if it is an OEM parts or not till the dealership told me they are NOT dealership parts.
2. The actual work took significantly less time than the actual estimated hourly labor he provided and did not address the issue.The diagnoses was not accurate, On top of that, Sam charges a $120 engine diagnostic fee that is NOT applied toward the repair--even if you move forward with the work/repair at his shop. All shops including Mercedes Benz dealerships typically credit that fee, so this adds unnecessary cost., at first in 2022 he ordered the wrong part after I got an estimate but then he said that was not the right part, so i thought he will charge me less labor since the estimate in essence was for the wrong part, the new part is less labor, yet he declined to reduce the charges , still did not fix the problem "check engine light came back on" . Again he charged me the same price as a dealership, the way I noticed how he calculates his estimates ,he adds hours to replace a part, for example one of my visits he charged me $400 parts/labor for Auxiliary coolant pump which was the same exact price of a dealership, he wanted 2 hours at the rate of $145 /hour, the dealership said one hour but the hourly was $300. So he adds more, I saw how long it took to replace that part, exactly 20 minutes lol. Still did not address the check engine light, that part was NOT necessary to replace by the way.
3. I asked for a receipt/invoice shows that I repaired and paid and details , I requested a written invoice and proof of payment multiple times. I was told the bookkeeper had the records, yet no documentation was ever provided and he did not keep the records in his system, nor returned my phone calls :( . Failure to provide basic invoices upon request is concerning and not standard business practice. He kept blaming the book keeper for not answering his phone calls.
Based on my experience with German Auto Tech, I recommend that customers carefully compare estimates with the Mercedes Dealership Walters Mercedes, request written documentation upfront, and consider obtaining a second opinion before proceeding with repairs at this shop.
Overall, while the staff was courteous, the pricing, misdiagnosis, and lack of records were disappointing. I recommend getting a second opinion, confirming pricing upfront, and ensuring that any parts used are truly OEM and properly documented before proceeding with repairs here. I also believe that a misdiagnosis should not be charged to the customer, especially when the issue remains unresolved after multiple visits. Mechanical work should not be a guessing game at the customer's expense. Either the diagnosis is accurate and the correct part is identified, or it should be communicated clearly before proceeding.
