Bonney Automotive

Dave over at Bonney Auto took my car in when I brought it over late in the afternoon before Thanksgiving, pointed out that I needed a refund on the replacement part I brought over (turned out to be bogus), and fixed my car up when another mechanic said it was busted.
Never bringing my car anywhere else ever again.

Nicest guy. Stayed open late to patch our time. I would return here every time. Complete fair, kind, and professional.

A few weeks ago I brought my car to Bonney after reading the great reviews the company received on Unilocal… and because the place is right down the street from me. I was quite disappointed with the experience and should have seen this coming from the first phone call.
After a quick hello, I was harassed for being a salesman by the mechanic who answered the phone. After explaining how I am just a person looking to get my car fixed, there were mumbled apologies on the other end of the phone and I was asked to drop my car off after hours and I would receive an estimate over the phone.
That phone call never came. I ended up having to call Bonney a week later to see what the deal was with my car and received a mediocre explanation (at best) and no estimate whatsoever. He clearly had no idea what was wrong with the car and it had been sitting for a week. He then told me I would receive a call the next day with the information I was requesting.
I waited for my call through the second week and received nothing so I decided to go over there, the only time I could, after work around 6pm. I caught them off guard but was finally given an explanation of what was wrong but he STILL hadn’t drawn up an estimate for me. Ridiculous… This is pretty standard stuff. He said he’d call me the next day (again) and apologized for the lack of service, saying he’d been overwhelmed lately.
Not surprisingly, I never received that phone call (it was a Friday) so the following Wednesday I went over again after work around 6pm and demanded my car. The whole experience was frustrating, waiting three weeks for nothing, and I would not recommend Bonney to anyone until they seriously work on their customer service.

I have visited this shop four or five times, with two cars that I have owned. In all cases I have been pleased with the service I received.
As an example, I recently took my (pretty old) car in, because it was making a metal-​on-​metal grinding or whirring noise when shifting. I was very worried about a transmission problem, but the mechanic figured out it was just a heat shield rattling at certain RPM levels. Charged me ½ an hour labor for diagnosis and re-​securing parts after removal.
That’s an example where a dishonest shop could try to take advantage of someone.
In another case, I brought my car in to address an engine idle problem. The OBD code indicated an oxygen sensor problem before I took it in. Bonney diagnosed it as exactly that and charged me a reasonable price.
I know some reviewers have said it’s said to see Joe go. He was definitely a good mechanic and a great customer-​facing person. David has worked on my car last three times and I’ve been very happy each time.

These guys saved me!
So I had to drive to Providence for work later on that day. I get into my car, run a couple of errands and my car start vibrating! I’m thinking one of my pistons is misfiring, but I don’t know that much about cars! I head to Bonney’s (they had changed my oil a couple days back and they were the only mechanics I knew of in the area).
They took care of me right away. Turned out I had mice in my engine and they had flooded one of my pistons (which is why it was misfiring). Anyway, the guy carefully cleaned all my pistons and explained everything as he was doing it. It took him about an hour clean everything; my car was running great after; he charged me $ 50; I haven’t had any problems since; and I made it to Providence on time! Life savers!
I would definitely recommend this place to a friend in a crisis!

These guys are the best. They’re trustworthy and provide top notch service. I would not take my car anywhere else.

Ever since Joe left, this garage has gone from ‘stellar’ to ‘meh.’ Things just aren’t being run in as organized or professional a manner as they were previously.

best place for auto repair! fast service at a reasonable price. they even let me keep my car there for a week while I was out of town. I will be telling all my friends about them!

Simply «the best «service is professional and turn around time for repairs is unbelieveable. Fair pricing and considering service it is truly a bargin.
I have refered many people to them and everyone was has had the same positive experience as I have had. I strongly recommend everyone check this place out for all your auto repairs and maintenance

Ron and Dave were AWESOME! My check engine light was on so I had Auto Zone run a diagnostic which suggested I had a large vacuum leak and problems with my coolant thermostat. I’m thinking a $ 200+ repair. Bonney Automotive ran another diagnostic that read a misfire in cylinder 1 and problems with my thermostat. Someone looking to scam me could have suggested that both needed replacing, the misfire possibly being the more expensive of the two. Dave suggested that it was just my thermostat that was causing the computer to read the vacuum leak and misfire. He repaired my car in 2 HOURS (time and travel to get a new thermostat included)!!!
They took the time to explain everything, topped off fluids and cleaned gunk off of my battery… all for less than a quarter of what I was expecting to pay. My check engine light is off and there are no codes reading on the diagnostic.
We are a 2-​car household and will be returning here for all of our vehicle needs.
These guys are HONEST, knowledgeable, super nice and have fast service. If you want a job done right, GO HERE!!!

Joe and his team are not only pros but good people to boot. I highly recommend Booney Auto, very good and dependent.

I brought a seemingly nice-​looking used car that I found through Craig’s List to Bonney Automotive for a pre-​purchase inspection.
Joe and Gary, the mechanics with whom I dealt, went over the results of the inspection, ultimately recommending that I avoid the car given its extensive repairs needs. They provided explanation for each of the findings and offered advice on alternate cars I might consider given my needs and budget.
The price of a pre-​purchase inspection (as of ⁴⁄₂₀₁₀) was $ 35. The business hours they gave were 7:30AM to 4PM, but cars can be picked up after hours.
If I consider another used car, I will definitely be returning to this shop – it was more than worth the $ 35 for great advice and peace of mind.

I bring my car here for all repairs. They are very nice, honest and fast. Joe is great. He even drops me off at the T in the morning so I don’t have to take the bus from the shop to Davis. Everything that was done to the car is explained in detail. I’m very happy with all the work I’ve had done at Bonney Automotive.

I had bought a car and was in need of a mechanic, and wasn’t really sure where to start. I found these guys after reading tons of reviews online, and they turned out to be fantastic.
They are really reasonably priced, will do tons of work quickly and efficiently, and will even fix things that they might notice otherwise. I will definitely use them as my regular mechanics!

It’s so hard to find an automotive place that you can actually trust — Bonney has been great all around. I found out about Bonney from a friend after going to Meinke and getting an outrageous quote for new brakes. I was about to pay the money and get my brakes fixed with Meinke but figured that I should get a second opinion before committing to paying so much money. I called Bonney and they were able to take a look at my car the same day. They told me that me that my brakes were still in ok condition and I had at least another few months of driving before they would have to be replaced. On top of that, they gave me a quote for when I was ready to get them done and it came out to be several hundred dollars less! I went back at the end of summer 2008 and had the breaks replaced and they did a great job. Since then, I’ve gone for oil changes and other small fixes. Joe is very friendly and helpful!
If you want a garage that is always going to give you a straight answer and the best deal, go here.

Had a flat tire one morning before work. Called and even though they were busy the guys fixed my flat and were super nice about it. Made my day! I’ll be going back very soon

Had a really good experience with a pre-​purchase inspection here. Haven’t had any work done and I don’t know much about cars, so I can’t vouch 100% for this review, but they seem to have positive reviews elsewhere on the internets (google them), and they came off as really friendly, honest guys.
I think it’s definitely worth trying them out. Easy to get to from Davis Square and seem to be less pricey than other places in the area (they quoted me at $ 65 whereas other places quoted $ 80 – 100, and actually only ended up charging $ 45).