San Francisco German Auto Repair

I called Pete's Mechanic Shop because the previous owner had major repairs (air suspension compressor and shock absorbers) performed there. The work was still within the stated warranty period, but the shop refused to honor the warranty simply because ownership of the vehicle had changed. If a repair is still under warranty, I believe the quality of the work should stand on its own, regardless of who owns the car, unless that limitation is made very clear upfront. Instead of standing behind their workmanship, they declined to help based solely on the change of ownership. This experience left me disappointed. If you're considering this shop, I recommend asking for the warranty terms in writing and confirming whether the warranty transfers with the vehicle before relying on any warranty coverage. Reply: Thank you for your response. I respectfully disagree with several points you made. First, my concern isn't about the length of your warranty—it's that you declined to honor it solely because ownership changed. In my experience, and with many repair facilities, warranties on parts and workmanship stay with the vehicle unless they are explicitly stated to be non-transferable. I was never provided with any written warranty terms indicating otherwise. Second, your explanation about compressor abuse does not match the condition of my vehicle. The vehicle has never displayed an air suspension warning message, nor has it been sitting low overnight. The suspension maintains its height normally when parked. The issue is that the compressor does not respond at all—the vehicle cannot be raised or lowered. The air springs continue to hold pressure, which indicates the system is sealing properly. Based on the actual symptoms, I don't believe it's accurate to conclude that the compressor failed because it was repeatedly operated while the vehicle was sitting low.

Excellent service from Lilliane at Petes Inc! I compared three other shops, and Petes offered the best price and the best customer service. They repaired my driver-side axle quickly and professionally. Lilliane was fantastic to work with, and Im glad to have found my new go to shop for future car repairs. Highly recommend!

I had some pretty extensive work done on my old car earlier this year at Pete's. They were thorough and were proactive in informing me of estimated cost, and it was right on target. I had a bit of trouble with my car this week and fully expected a terribly expensive repai since my car is a 1976 240D. I arrived to pick it up only to be told that there was a ZERO charge, as it was under warranty from prior repair. They didn't have to do this. Many places would just charge, and the customer wouldn't know the difference. I know I wouldn't have, so that just impresses me more with their honesty and transparency. I won't go anywhere else for repairs!

Exceptional service! These folks solved a problem no one else could fix despite two years of shopping the problem around. Highly recommended!

Great service! Fast and competent - and also very nice and helpful Recommend highly.

A trusted shop in the neighborhood known for detailed diagnostic skills and expert repair. The guys are always extremely quick and professional. The price is competitive and low in comparison to dealers, frendly and honest team.

Pete's has been consistently reliable, professional, honest, and human since I first went to them eight years ago. I can't imagine finding anyone who could hold a candle to Pete's. And on top of it all, everyone is a delight to work with. Beat that!

We have had our Mercedes serviced several times over the years at Pete's, and it's always a good experience. There expertise, timeliness, and cleanliness are all top-notch.

*** warning estimate may very. No attempt to contact *** *Response to Greg: to be clear I am upset that there were zero attempt to notify that an error was made on the estimate, and that the cost was going to be nearly 30% more. I called another mechanic and got at quote for $1200 for both axels. Hopefully you learned to contact your customers and inform them of any changes you're making, especially when you have them sign something. I have a 1985 Mercedes-Benz 300D with a broken axel. I took my car over to Pete's. They emailed me an estimate,and I had to sign before they would start working on the car. When I came in to pick up the car, I was charged nearly 20% more than I was quoted. When I asked about the discrepancy I was politely told that there was a mistake on the estimate and that someone should have called me to revise the quote. No one had called me or emailed me. Then I was told that actually the new price was a real deal and that really I was not getting charged for an additional two hours and filling up the fluids. At that point, I asked what was the point of the contract if they weren't going to update me or honor it. The woman said she understands and would honor the estimate that I was sent. A week later the manager left me a message to let me know that he was upset with me and accused me of not wanting to pay them for the work they did and said I was not welcomed at the garage anymore. Wasn't planning to go back to a garage where the Manager can mess up an estimate then won't notify me of changes. Good luck. I choose to ignore reviews I saw here talking about this exact thing.

Everyone here is proud of their jobs. The warm greeting from the guy outside, washing the treasured older vehicles, to Lucia the administrative person, who is a natural educator of all things car mechanical. I must have asked her a handful of questions right off and she graciously and enthusiastically answered them. It was clear from the start and out the door that this business will do the work you need right then. They'll let you know if they see something coming up. However, you're the one, who determines what to get done on this visit. The pricing is what one expects for a great job; nothing inflated like the car service departments at dealerships. I like to support independent businesses. Often, though, our experience is that they're super short staffed. It's hard to get questions answered by phone or even email. Not so here. Everyone works as a team to respond to your needs. Plus they value a quality job. I drive a 2019 Mini Cooper S. It's clear that their expertise expands well beyond BMWs and Mercedes.