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Black Rock Auto
Rating Details »
- Hours:
Mon-Fri. 8:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
33 reviews for Black Rock Auto
To be honest, I have no other auto repair experiences to compare Black Rock to (the last time I got a car serviced was in high school during the pre-Yelp days), but here's my two cents...
I am a girl who knows nothing about cars other than I drive one and I would like it to work so it sucks when I have to do maintenance on it. With that said, I feel like I could be easily taken advantage of (upselling, etc). However, both times I went in to get my car fixed, all they did was the simple maintenance for about $45. I feel like the other times I got a car serviced, the bill was at least a couple hundred. idk
Dave and his crew are nice people who are there to help you with your car needs. They are so accomodating and just way too nice.
I didn't want to write this review, but I think it's important for yelpers to know.
If you have a foreign car, this is the place for you. Dave knows his stuff solid. But, as far as American made cars? He really dropped the ball with my two cars. There were two separate repairs, on the car1 he put the part in backwards. On car2 he wrote it off as "being old, and stuff just wears down" When I brought car2 to my new mechanic, he diagnosed the problem over the phone saying that it was extremely common in Focus's. After driving car2 for months with noise, one visit to the new mechanic and it was driving beautifully.
If I ever fulfill my dream of getting an old VW bus, I'll totally take it to dave. He gets 5 stars for attitude, and has always been really willing to work with me. When I contacted him about the part being backwards, he reimbursed me for his labor. Again, above and beyond in friendliness. But, I'm afraid I just can't trust him with my current vehicles.
These guys are great. Great service, loved how thorough they were. He actually showed me the old clutch and why it had needed replacing. They changed the oil for me and told me which additional items needed to be done in order to be cost effective labor wise. I had a main belt that clearly needed to be replaced and a bunch of clips that evidently had fallen out as the previous owner must have lived down a gravel road.
My struts still need to be replaced and as soon as I've got the extra loot, it's back to Black Rock I go. I'm glad to know I've got a good mechanic in Midtown.
When my Jetta kept spewing coolant and overheating I had my car towed here. I communicated with them solely through the phone until my car was ready to be picked up. They explained everything to me in detail, kept me updated, made sure I understood what was going on (I don't know anything about cars) and took care of everything for a fair price. When I came in to pick up my car they kept all the broken parts and explained everything on the pricing sheet.
I will definitely be using their services again.
I hate cars! Well, not the convenience of coarse, but the foreboding reality of it breaking down and handing money to rip off mechanics. I had actually had friends help me in the past and had never stepped into an auto repair shop before today. My car was surging forward when it was waiting at traffic lights and making a cycling and a clicking sound... for about 4 months (why did I wait so long to have it looked at? See Above).
I made an appointment to have it looked at with Mark. He seemed nice enough over the phone. I drove my car up to the alley enterance and Mark proceeded to listen to my explaination and my cars buzzes and clicks. Minutes later he told me that it was my Air Conditioning condensor, which hadn't worked correctly since I bought the car. He reached in, disconnected a part, and.... problem solved.
Are you kidding me? I had made arrangement to get to work and deal with additional child care for my kids. I had mentally prepared myself by saying that this repair will be around $800. I had already lined up another shop to give me another quote. I had asked about my problem on various Internet Auto forums. WHAT IS HAPPENING?
When I asked how much I owed him, he said with a faint smile $15. I realized that I didn't have $15 cash, so I reached for my debit card. He said that it was on the house, if I would just send some business his way. ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE.
I am calling tomorrow for a Tune Up. I have found an Auto Garage that I will direct my business to along with anyone I can persuade. Thanks Mark and Black Rock Auto!!!!
As had been said before, Dave's pretty much the best there is. Took my 4Runner for a long overdue tuneup. It wound up being WAY over budget (moral of the story get your tuneups when they're due) However, Dave showed me each and every involved part, why it needed to go and stressed the need to follow a better maintainence schedule to avoid future suprises. He was thorough without being patronizing and adjusted my clutch as a courtesy. When in Sacramento I will ALWAYS bring my rig to Black Rock!
I took my Rav-4 to get serviced here, based entirely on it's impressive Yelp reviews. I was very much impressed and would only be repeating most of the other reviews, so I'll be brief-
David was awesome. He was a cool guy and really got a kick out of explaining everything to you in detail. He even showed me the parts that had to be replaced and explained how I could do it on my own next time. I felt like I trusted him, and that's pretty darn important when it comes to finding a good mechanic.
I highly recommend David and Black Rock, and I'll definitely be bringing my car back when needed.
It almost seems silly to add another 5-star review to a place so universally loved. Almost. When I called on Tuesday (with these reviews, I'd be a fool to go anywhere else!), they offered to get me in immediately as soon as I told them my brakes were making a "funny noise." I couldn't make it then but broguth the car to the first thing Wednesday morning. When I suggested that I could pick the car up Thursday if need be, David looked confused and said that they would certainly be done same day. What?! Most places fuss about same day for an oil change. And I though I might need new rotors -- still they said same day.
And same day they meant. Lucky me, the rotors were fine (in spite of the POS pads that were on the car and in need of replacing). They also noticed a dead fog light (that I knew about) and two dead license plate lights (I had no idea).
When I picked up the car, the price was less than the estimate and I left a very happy woman.
My only complaint is that they don't open a little earlier so I wouldn't have had to rush out to get to work on time. I made up for it with a chat when I picked up the car.
I think Vinh said pretty much what I want to say.
I am afraid of getting my car repaired as I worry that mechanics will take one look at me and think:
Female + doesn't know crap about cars = $$$$
This didn't happen at Black Rock. They took great care of the car, and worked really hard to get it into great working condition. As we were not in a hurry to get it back, I told them to take their time, and they called us every day or so to give us an update on what was going on, which turned out to be a big-ass problem with a system in the car.
Because they were so great the first time around, we took our second car in and were in a jam, we needed it back that same day and they did it.
Took a car into them that my husband was thinking about buying, and for $90 did a completely thorough examination. Pissed the current owner off, but my hubby used the info to bargain. And, he knew exactly what he was getting into.
All times they take a lot of time to explain what they did and what was going on with the car, and they charged a very fair price. Much better pricing than the dealer without the "slick".
Great place to go.
Black Rock Auto is simply the BEST. There are many reviews here already so I'll just highlight the pros/cons in brief.
PROS:
* David (owner & mechanic) and Mark are honest and friendly.
* No hard sell or upselling of services
* Estimates are reasonable and consistant with other shops. In fact my estimate was $75 lower then some other nearby auto places for a tune-up (distrubutor replacement and spark-plugs).
* Clear walk through of the problems
* Identifies other areas of problems that need to repaired and explains exactly why. Again, no up-selling, just reasonable facts and warnings.
CONS:
* Facility is small (2 garages) and a little run-down looking. But don't let the appearance of the shop undermine the high quality services.
Overall, highly recommend this auto repair facility.
There's a reason this place comes up in "the best of Sacramento" on Yelp automotive - they are the La Bonne Soupe of broken cars. A couple guys doing a thing in a funky little shop - who obviously love what they do.
My story - I have a Nissan 240SX I bought during a midlife crisis in '96 (it didn't work - I got divorced) - it's our beater car now - squeaks and rattles - I drive like a maniac on meth - so it's been through H-E-double toothpicks. Anyway we would like to extend it's life a bit - it is a fun car - and I'm a sentimental guy - and I'm too cheap to buy that Audi TT I want to replace it. We just put $1500 into it at Japanese Service Center - they did a bunch of work, but the price was a little high and I wanted to try some place new.
The fundamental new problem was stupid - my steering fluid reservoir had a split hose - all the rubber parts are falling off the car these days - 12 years in car years is like 47 in human years - hold on, I'm 47...... The steering was screaming because I let the fluid get low - doh. Anyway Dave and Mark proceeded to give my car a very good going over. My fuel system warning light has been going off, so they did about twenty things diagnosing the problem. Sort of like that TV show House, if House was as nice as Marcus Welby.
But what really made me smile is that they noticed my rear end was making this thunking sound - my payback for twelve years of punching the gas for the hell of it - 240's are rear wheel drive & I love to burn rubber - see Two Lane Black Top if you don't get it. Anyway, back to the review - I had destroyed a couple bushings in the rear end and to replace them means dismantling the rear which was a $1000 I didn't want to spend. Dave and Mark checked out the racing sites on the web - 240's are popular for "drifting" so there's a small collection of gearheads out there writing about them - and the gearheads had a way of shimming the rear end to fix this problem. Dave and Mark gave me a $200 solution to a $1000 problem. This is not typical car repair shop behavior - usually they try to up-sell services - not save you money with creativity. I was very impressed.
Epilogue - just took the "nice" car in (Acura TL) for a check engine light problem - this was a sensor on the cooling system that was causing the fuel system to mix the fuel incorrectly. They had promised to finish by five o'clock but called at one to say they were running late. I said I didn't care as long as I had it back that day (my snowboard was waiting and the rack doesn't fit the Nissan). They called before five and said they had it finished. Wow. Great service. Go here, you won't regret it.
You're likely to miss Black Rock Auto your first time around. You'll see Sandra Dee's, you'll see AZ Auto Shop and you'll completely miss Black Rock Auto. But if I can offer you one word of advice - persevere!
Now, I'll be totally honest with you, I know nothing about cars. In fact, I'm pretty sure my wife knows more than me about them (does that make me less of a man? Eh...don't answer that...). But I do know this - good service, honesty and genuine geniality. And I found each of those at Black Rock Auto. Dave and his friends are nice. Not "nice for mechanics" but just nice...period.
People always say you need to know a good lawyer and a good mechanic and usually when someone recommends a good mechanic it's the second cousin of the uncle's dentist's. Take it from me and the dozens of other Yelp reviewers -- we know a couple good mechanics and they're all at Black Rock Auto. But not only good mechanics, they're good people.
I don't know about you, but, generally, having to get work done on my car is a stressful experience for me. This could be because my old car was a BMW and no matter what, I never seemed to leave the mechanic with less than a $400 bill. "Oil change and coolant replacement. That'll be $450 maam."
Now, I find going to the mechanic an experience significantly less stressful. Of course, it could be I traded in my BMW for a user friendly Acura, but I tend to think it is more the helpful folks at Black Rock Auto. I find their prices eminantly reasonable and their staff all helpful and willing to explain and show you anything. They charge roughly $20 for labor, and even if other things need to be done, the price on labor has never changed. Last time I went, a friendly mechanic also checked out my bike for me and gave me some suggestions on how to fix my squeaky brakes.
To top it all off, it's hard to feel stressed when you are awestruck by the wonders of their six-toed cat.
The saying goes:
"Everyone should know a good doctor, lawyer, and mechanic." Get to know Dave (& friends). You won't regret it.
All the cliches of a reliable and honest mechanic can be said about Dave...but the best part about Black Rock is that Dave is a DIY hippie (is that an oxymoron?).
The nicest and well-priced auto repair I've ever been to!!
The interior handle of my driver's side door of my Dodge Nitro had broken off a couple nights ago. I called the dealership and it cost $150 an hour for labor and probably $100 for the part. So "somehow" they figured to estimate me about $400 (because they said it would take the whole day just to take out the car door panel and change it,..uhh ya right?!?!)
Then I decided to go on the most useful place in the world - YELPS!
I found Black Rock Auto to be the best rated. I called up and got Mark, and he was very helpful and concerned with my situation (which is what rarely happens at car dealerships cause all they care about is the money). I brought the truck in and they estimated it for ($72 for the part) and ($60-$90 for labor).
I ended up scheduling an appt. for Friday (today) and it took them only 45 minutes or less to install. Not only was Mark able to fix it, but he even explained and showed me what happened and probably caused the breakage.
This is definitely a great place to go to, to have any car problem fixed. If you don't want to be over charged and want to go someplace where customer service is key, I truly recommend this place to go to.
Thanks Mark & Dave!!
Dave gets all of my work. and always will.
guys like this in the automotive trade are for the most part gone.
if your tired of the rip offs and we have all been there, try black rock.
P.S. KEEP TOUR DISTANCE FROM THE CAT!!!!
I decided to try Black Rock after reading some reviews on Yelp and the moment I heard Dave's voice on the line, I knew he was the one.
Dave and his staff are knowledgeable, patient and friendly. He not only made me feel comfortable and aware of what was going on, he showed me the actual parts in the car! He also explained what needed to be done, why and the time-frame.
After going through so many horrible, overpriced and slimy mechanics, I'm finally ready to commit! But of course as soon as I find him, we move back to the bay area-- I might just drive back to Sac for the good service. And La Bonne Soupe Cafe.
I'll preface my review wit this: I don't know sh!t about cars.
But the guys at Black Rock Auto, Mark and Dave, are extremely nice and knowledgeable.
They will take the time to explain to you what is wrong with your car. In this day and age, that is all that one can really ask for... good customer service.
I would recommend this to anyone looking to get some services done.
If you are shy about these kinda things, don't be. When you call them, or drop by, they will drop whatever they are doing to help you get on your way.
Thanks.
Sometimes you can just tell about someone...
After getting what I knew was a completely ridiculous estimate for strut replacement, I did a little research and stumbled upon Black Rock Auto.
First good omen: They are two doors down from Sandra Dee's.
Second good omen: The gentleman who answer the phone when I ask for an estimate for shocks and struts, quotes me $400 less than my prior estimate. Explains his name is Dave and says, "I answer the phone, work on the cars...I'm the only one here". Owner/operator. Okay. The man is obviously accountable for the work he does.
After giving me a fair estimate on the phone, making sure to note the grade of part he'd be using, I made an appointment for the following week and dropped off my car before work.
Dave calls up a couple of hours later and proceeds to tell me some additional work I had wanted him to look into was unnecessary and tells me instead that my front brakes are pretty much ready to go, a minor detail which the prior garage had completely failed to tell me about. And yes, the brake job was by far cheaper than the repair I had requested he look into. By now my head is spinning. I can't believe that, for once in my life, I am actually dealing with an individual who affirms some faith into thi capitalist system of ours.
IMAGINE: Good honest work for good honest pay. Dealing with customers like real people. Like your neighbor. Such a Normal Rockwell moment.
He quickly quotes me a price, which I know to be about the same as the hacks that did my brakes a year ago gave me, and I immediately agree to have the work done. He addresses another problem with a lugnut which I knew I had and told me he'd try to work around it or do it for free.
WHAT?
So I show up after work and Dave is pulling my car in after a test drive. First off, his garage is awesome. Decorated with all the right indicators that Dave is "my kind of people", if you know what I'm saying. He brings me into the garage and proceeds to show me the parts he took off my vehicle and give me a little tutorial about what was wrong. Unlike a lot of other mechanics, Dave doesn't talk down to you. You can tell he is a man in love with cars and, moreover, with the mechanical workings of things as evidenced by the vintage, restored computers in his office.
He offers to replace my wiper blades for $9.00, sounding geniunely concerned for my safety and for the safety of others on the road. I swear, Dave is some kind of saint. He had reset the clock in my car because it was off. Proceeds to give me all kinds of advice about what type of repairs I'm going to want to look into and when.
I'm seriously not believing what is going on at this point in time.
Okay, so time to pay the piper. He 100% sticks to his original estimates and, lets just say, I get out of the shop for way less than the strut replacement alone was going to cost me at another shop. WAY LESS.
Please...if you have repairs to do, at least give Dave a call before going anywhere else. I guarantee you will not regret it. He's like the auto repair equivalent of that nice gentleman down at La Bonne Soup Cafe, I kid you not.
Dave and Mark are awesome. Easy to get ahold of, super informative, appreciate their opinions/advice.
Highly recommend for great service all around!!!
Yup. everyone was right. I actually went to Black Rock beCAUSE of these reviews and i'm glad I did. they were not only super nice but they were super honest and who doesn't love THAT in a mechanic??? They're my main men from now on...thanks Mark!!
What can I say about Dave and crew? They are, simply put, the best, most hardworking, honest and helpful auto mechanics around.
The garage is conveniently located on the grid, well-decorated, cozy. Whenever I find myself waiting there, staff and friends always have a friendly smile and upbeat conversation to offer. Good vibes.
Something I especially like about this place is that when I ask a question about the inner workings of my ancient Toyota, Dave always takes the time to not only tell me the answer, but like a master professor, shines a flashlight into the area he's discussing so that I can see for myself. It might seem like a small gesture, but I appreciate his taking the time to teach me a little bit about my car each and every visit. Clearly he and the other staff members have a passion for what they do.
Bravo, Black Rock Auto!
I'm a believer.
After I limped my smoking and clutch-less car into their shop (which has lots of character, including at least two cats), the woman who I left my car with noticed that the bike I planned on riding home had soft tires. I couldn't quite believe it when she actually filled my bicycle tires for free and gave me some advice on why it was important to keep them filled up. I thought to myself, "these folks can't actually be THAT nice, can they?"
Not only are they that nice, they did a better job on my car than any of the pretty-darn-good mechanics I was using in San Francisco. They fixed an engine leak that no one else could find (and did it for free and without my asking), found a broken engine mount that another mechanic's inspection didn't find, found and replaced a worn axle boot, AND replaced my entire clutch (which was the original thing I brought the car to them for), all for an extremely fair price. And they saved all my broken parts and showed them to me and explained how they work, which I love. (They actually said they hate it when people leave quickly and don't let them show the old parts!)
These are my kind of mechanics: thorough, responsible, knowledgeable, fair, honorable, kind, and friendly. I will DEFINITELY be going back.
Great service to say the least. I had my car worked on by them and a few months later I had a flat, no AAA, no husband around, no tire iron either. I went around the block to Black Rock to see if someone could change the tire for me, but Mark had to stay with the shop since no one else was working yet. BUT, he gave me a small air compressor to take with me to fill up my tire to see how bad it was. Fortunately, it wasn't slashed, so I drove it over and they patched it up for me for $15. I went ahead and had it serviced and had the tires rotated and now my Volvo runs great. I don't know what I would have done without Mark at Black Rock! They're a girls best friend!
So. If you happen to have a mechanic in the family, well I have absolutely no clue why you are on here looking for a repair shop... but for those of us who lack that handy family member, Mark at Black Rock Auto is our long lost cousin! (We did not get the chance to meet Dave but I am sure he is great as well)
Based on the reviews of fellow yelpers we decided to take our new (to us) 4runner to Black Rock. Now I wont lie, after reading all the other reviews (5 star rating?!? Even with 29 reviews?!?) I figured that:
A.) Mark and Dave have some really great friends to post all these great things about them
B.) They paid someone to post all these things
OR
C.) They really are GREAT mechanics!
Let me tell you the answer is C!
We ended up bringing our Runner in for a "post purchase inspection" which lined out every little thing that was wrong with the truck. There certainly was a list BUT Mark was great about explaining what things needed to be done right away (meaning don't drive the thing till you fix it), what could wait till we have more $$ and what is going to be needed in the future. He even went so far as to tell us that we have a small oil leak but it is so hard to get to (you have to remove the clutch assembly or something way too expensive to do for just an oil leak that really isn't hurting things) that it makes more sense to wait to fix it until we have to install a new clutch. Now HOLD ON a minute, have you ever had a shop tell you NOT to do something because it's too expensive?!? (I know, I know, the majority of mechanics are honest, hardworking people but there are always a few bad apples that ruin it for the rest) But I digress- They got us out of there in 2 days (AMAZING for the amount of work that had to be done) and for less than I expected! Once the Runner was ready to be picked up Mark took the time to show us all the old parts, explain how they worked and why they needed to be replaced. He also gave us new wiper blades to throw on at the end of the summer.
I am telling you- even if you live 30 minutes away you should take the time to check this place out! You will not be disappointed. "Woohoo! As good as it gets!" is right on the mark with Black Rock. They are now our new go-to place for anything automotive.
Oh and the new shop kitten is waaaayyyy cute (don't worry they still have the 6 toed cat as well)
The guys at Black Rock (and gal) are very friendly. Black Rock doesn't try to to overcharge you for services. They even show you the broken parts they remove.
I brought in my car for some brake work that seems to be going swimmingly. I brought it back in for some work on my OEM keyless remote system, and ran into many issues. Black Rock tried their best to fix the keyless remote problem to no avail. Unfortunately in the process quite a few electrical issues arose after they had been working on the keyless entry. Once I told them of the issues they were more than happy to fix the problems that arose at their expense. They truly felt bad that they couldn't get everything up and running.
I think Black Rock is a great place to bring your car for standard car issues, but when you are dealing with something so specific as OEM keyless remotes it's probably worth it to bring it to the dealer and take the extra hit in the piggybank.
I'm so glad I found this place on Yelp. My car had its first crisis. I had it towed to Black Rock. They were friendly and accommodating even gave me a ride to work and offered to pick me up if I needed a ride to get back to get my car. They seemed honest. I can't comment on the prices since I know zero about cars and mechanics but they found the problem and fixed my car in a day and a half.
Side note... I mentioned to a friend my car was in the shop. It came up in conversation that the shop is next to Sandra Dee's restaurant. My coworker mentioned how once after eating at Sandra Dee's she really needed to use a phone and had no cell phone. She wandered in to Black Rock. They were really nice about it and allowed her to use theirs. They just seem like really nice, honest and decent folks.
The reviews on yelp were right. Dave is a friendly guy who gives you a fair price and a little extra. I needed to get my brakes replaced and called around for several estimates. Dave was $70 cheaper than the lowest quote. When I got there he recommended several places to eat and when i told him I had planned to check out mochii yogurt, he helpfully offered to look up the cross streets for me. right away i could tell i was in good hands.
not only did he replace my brakes, he mentioned that he rotated the tires since he had them off, checked my oil, cleaned under my engine and some other stuff, i dont even remember now.
my brakes no longer make scary noises and i'm one happy girl.
Just exactly like everyone said. Dave's friendly as possible, stopped what he was doing to come over and talk. My trim panel was loose and he came grabbed a few screws and put it in place. Refused to even charge me.. definitely sending all my family to him.
I love DMV Dave and I love the Biodiesel Coop out of this auto place. Not only does Dave work on diesels and alternative fuel vehicles he does regular old gas cars. He's honest and wacky.
I've been a customer at Black Rock Auto for years and I am pleased to recommend it! Dave is a lovely man who takes pride in his work. He is honest and always explains everything to me, which I cannot say about any other auto shop I've ever been to. While he fixes your car or changes your oil, you can be entertained by his three pets: black cat, a tiny chihuahua dog and a large cat that has 6 digits on all four paws! You can also learn all about biodiesel vehicles, if you are interested. Skip the over-hipped, over-priced auto shops and go see Dave for a real down to earth mechanical experience! hooray!
After reading Black Rock's reviews on yelp, I took my car there to get my brakes done. Not only was the work done well, it was really affordable. Dave gave me a quote over the phone, which was 1/2 of some of the others I had received AND he stuck to the quote. He's a little whacky, but it makes it interesting. I ended up getting some other work done there as well, I fell confident in the work being done and the price I am paying.
Dave is a excellent mechanic. I took my 2003 Jetta in because it was giving me really bad gas mileage and the check engine light was on. Dave was able to find out what the problem was right away and gave me a Engine 101 class to explain what was going on. I was very pleased with the knowledge and explanation I was provided. I would recommend Dave and Black Rock Auto for all your auto needs. I will go back for sure and tell my friends and family to go there.
