Carlsbad Auto Service, Inc.

Carlsbad Automotive is the best. Fast, courteous service. They always take care of us when my wife and I need work on our vehicles.
Lance Smith

Was able to make my appointment at the last minute. Very friendly and quick service. This place was the cheapest smog test I could find at $ 38 with a coupon.

Always courteous,. I’ve been a customer for years now. I’ve had good advice and good service. All I all, excellent.

Just went here for my first time. Wayne had great customer service. Very personable and attentive. Will continue going here.

I took my 8 year old Mazda in for a check-​up 2 weeks ago. Had an appointment. Counter staff was cordial. Unfortunately, what I asked them to check was not checked, and an upper level «check list» was used instead. Serpentine belt tension not checked. CV joint boots not checked. Hoses not checked. Only fluid caps were removed and all fluids diagnosed ambiguously as «Service». I had even brought in a picture of a correctly tensioned serpentine belt from the online service manual, but that was disregarded.
The NEXT day, my «check engine light» comes on. It’s never been on before in 8 years. I inspected my air filter plenum to find that Carlsbad Auto Service Had Cracked it!!! And, «Paco» used low temp electrical tape to do a haphazard, partial patch job that melted and the engine sucked in. I promptly REMOVED the low temp electrical tape, cleaned the plenum, and re-​taped it with high temperature tape. After 24 hours, the «check engine light» went off on it’s own after I corrected Carlsbad Automotive’s incorrect & haphazard tape job.
I won’t be going back. I went to Carlsbad Automotive because of all the great reviews on Unilocal.My experience was a waste of $ 108. I’ll be taking my car maintenance business elsewhere in North County.

I called to schedule STAR smog check for my 2000 Avalon and was given an appointment within 2 hours. The service was completed in less than 30 minutes. Customer service at Carlsbad Auto excels in every way. I look forward to returning to Carlsbad Auto Service in the future for my other automobile services.

I had a tremendous experience, as good as it gets! They were knowledgeable, friendly and provided expeditious service.

It was time. I got the DMV bad newsletter when my renewal notice came. Because my S-​10 truck was sooo old, I had to have it inspected by a gross polluter before I would get my new tags. Like most, I went over to AAA, paid the renewal. No tags issued. Comeback when it’s been inspected. I drive the truck once every blue moon, the last time I took it out, I had to buy a new battery for it. which was a few months ago. It’s NOT my daily driver. Searching for the most inexpensive way to get around this, I spotted a coupon from a gross inspection station. Took the truck over to them. The one guy there «holding the fort down», said he couldn’t smog it because they had lost their state certification to inspect vehicles. I asked for a reccomendation. He was sooo negative. So I asked him about the auto services next door at Carlsbad Auto Service. He had nothing good to say, period. I hesitated, then said what the hell, I got to get this done. So I entered the gates and parked the truck at Carlsbad Auto’s loaded parking lot. Went in, saw Scott, wanted to know how long it would take for inspection. He said about 45 minutes to1 ½ hours, so my wife picked me up and we went shopping. I would get a call when it was done. Got a call, said upon inpsection, the gas cap has cracks and doesn’t pass. I said, put on a new gas cap (they are also a certified NAPA auto service center). So, the agreed. Over the next ½ hour, my thoughts were going from I’m going to get hosed one item at a time, or they are going to be honest and diligent. Got a call to pick it up, it passed. Knowing I was only going to have to pay for a silly gas cap and a smog inspection, I was elated. Got back there before they closed, went in to pay, and instead, got a nice review of what my car needed besides the ol’ smog check, as they had done a complete inspection at no cost. Wanted to let me know that I should be concerned about a few of them and they didn’t pressure or SELL me that I needed it now, or otherwise make me feel guilty about ignoring the upkeep of my vehicle. In other words, I’d trust them enough to send my wife or daughters over to have them work on one of our many vehicles, without worrying about getting taken to the cleaners. Are they worth a 5 star? More like a 6…

I chose this place for a smog check since it is close to my house and the price was reasonable. I was able to get a same day appointment at a time convenient for me. They performed the smog check quickly, and even added air to my tires since they noticed that the tire pressure light was on. Overall they are friendly, helpful, and professional. I will definitely be back for other services.

Honest, communicative and knowledgeable. I’m a experienced car guy so giving a shop 5 stars is not something I do all the time. Above medium in terms of pricing but keeps you abreast of all stages of your repair and tries to make it less expensive when they can in terms of part options. I would go back for certain.

I appreciated the honest communication regarding my vehicle. I felt well informed about what I could do to my vehicle but not pushed into additional service right away.
Scott was very helpful!

Carlsbad Auto is just THE BEST! Stu and Greg always listen to my problem (which I generally deliver in a non-​descriptive girly way) then get straight to work diagnosing what needs to be done. They are fair, honest and always get me back on the road as soon as possible. Since the late 80’s, from routine oil changes, to annual smog checks, to flat tires (which I’m famous for) to big time maintenance/​repair — I wouldn’t think about going anywhere else.

Shady and incompetent.
I brought my car in diagnose to repair a humming sound. They misdiagnosed and said it was my fuel pump. After replacing it, the front desk guy said they «mostly» fixed the humming, but it turned out to be a 2-​part problem (complete lie) and that I needed to replace my air compressor TOO. I declined and drove away only to realize my car wasn’t fixed at all. I brought it back and told them to put the fuel pump back on and fix the ac compressor.
After the 2^nd fix, my car wasn’t humming anymore. except now it was stalling instead when I turned my ac on! I brought it back a 3^rd time and they said, oops «sorry we over filled the system». Car still stalled after that. In the end, they refused to even compensate me for the labor charges and I paid them to put my car in worse condition than it was when I brought it in.

These guys are amazing, fastest SMOG check ever! Great customer service, extremely friendly and unbeatable prices. Do yourself a favor and bring your car here!

These guys are the best! The aftermarket rim on my Ford truck had some major damage to it. Greg researched online, made several phone calls and finally found a machine shop that was able to repair my, no longer available, rim. Not only that, the total repair came in about $ 300 less than repair shop quoted Greg and I.
I’ve been taking my cars to Carlsbad Auto Repair for years. Greg, Stu and the rest of the guys are total pros, extremely honest and they don’t let the tough jobs stump them. Not to mention, their yard and sales area are VERY clean! Thanks guys!

Wonderful and honest people work here! They did a great job on my car and charge very reasonable rates. I highly recommend this company!

Super friendly staff. Got my car in about 10 min before scheduled appointment time and was done quickly (smog check) for a very fair price!!! I’d recommend them for the smog check and now I’ll have to give them a try for servicing the car as well!

They have excellent customer service and got my car fixed quick.
This is exactly what you are looking for in a car service place, especially if you don’t know the area and are scared to find a new car place.
Do it! You won’t be disappointed in the work or taken advantage of.
Thanks!

My husband and I have found our place for anything wrong with our cars! We moved to Carlsbad in November and Carlsbad Auto has been there for us on the few emergency situations we’ve been in so far. After cross country trips we had everything from electrical issues, radiators break and the routine oil changes. They always for the job done QUICKLY and kept us up to the hour informed on what was going on.
We will continue to take our cars here while we’re living living in Carlsbad!

Since my last review, the owner, Wayne, reached out to me to discuss the concerns I was having in my last review. He admitted that the person who did my estimate made a mistake and indeed over estimated by a couple hundred dollars. He even went so to shop around for the same service I needed with other reputable shops in the area to prove his prices are competitive.
Although I’m still disappointed in the mistake they made, I appreciate the fact that they owned up to it. But like with any mechanic, make sure to double check the information they are giving you is correct.