West Escondido Automotive & Transmission

Absolutely awful service.
I initially brought my vehicle in to have my transmission serviced, and was told I needed $ 2600 in repairs. I went ahead to have the repairs done, and upon picking up my vehicle my alignment was completely off, check oil light on, lights out in my dash, and severe death shakes. I returned the car the following day, and at the end of the day when I picked it up, NOT A SINGLE THING HAD BEEN SERVICED, and my gas needle was below the empty line. Apparently they had test driven my car around 80 miles, using my gas that they did not compensate for.
The following week I dropped my car off for a third time, in which case I demanded that the alignment be adjusted since it was perfect prior to my initial visit, and to fix the death shakes. They fixed my alignment, not my death shakes. They did refund me for replacing the steering stabilizer but not for the half tank of gas they used trying to diagnose a problem they created.
I would not recommend this auto shop to anyone. I wasn’t taken care of, listened to, or compensated for accordingly. Save your money, save your time.

Today I picked my BMW up. Over priced on parts that you can get cheaper at the dealer but they won’t install them for you. Even if they are OEM parts. Only think of themselves. They make 100 percent profit off their 130 dollar an hour over priced labor fee and can’t let me save a few bucks by bringing them the same damn part for less out of my pocket! They told me that they do repairs according to manufacture standards but yet when I ask for my water pump to be replaced they don’t touch my 80 – 100 dollar thermostat. Could that be because they want to charge me 3 hours of labor again thinking I would come back to them when it goes out. If I took my car to BMW they wouldn’t have ignored that and paid the same cost. They would have recommended it knowing that they go out together. This place doesn’t care. To top it off he didn’t care that I was upset about it. Anyone (company) with half a brain would know to offer that replacement part as well.
Instead they offer me a six hundred dollar job. More money for them right???
I agree with one of the other Posts here, Leo’s a cool guy.

3 stars for this location, but LEO THE SHUTTLE DRIVER IS WHAT GOT ME TO RAISE IT TO 4. He made the experience so much better!
I scheduled an appointment for 1030 am for an oil change. I originally was going to wait at the shop while they performed the work, but they stated it would take a couple of hours since they would have other cars to work on as well. They mentioned the shuttle service so they can take me home while I waited. Great! No problem, except It would have been nice to know that they would take 6 hours to complete. I was picked up at my home at 430 pm.
They do more than just an oil change though. They also do a 4-​point inspection and check tires, spark plugs, etc, to let you know what may need fixing/​replacing. They also wash your car. Cost for all that on a 2005 Pontiac Vibe — $ 45. Not bad, but the wait was ridiculous. I get it, I took the shuttle service home to wait, but I still had other things to take care of for the day ya know… 2 hours wait, fine, no problem, but 6? C’mon. Or at least TELL me that in advance and I’ll decide then and there if I want to leave my car there.
Leo, the shuttle driver, is a humble & kind individual and we chatted about this and that very easily without it being an awkward and silent drive home. I’m not much of a people person, but his easy going spirit helped to be able to chit chat.
Would I come back for service, probably not.
Would I come swing by to say hello to Leo, yup!

This place is the most honest, reliable and thorough auto repair shop I’ve been to. Whether the job be large are small, they always accommodate. Thanks for always being there for my cars. The staff is courteous and knowledgeable.

Great customer service with a comfortable waiting area. Stayed after closing time to finish my 60,000 mile tune up…

Excellent Service! Tim took great care of me as a customer. After inspection, I had to decide whether to pay for the fix or use the vehicle as a trade in to buy a new car. Normally, an auto shop would pressure to fix the vehicle, but that was not the case. Tim provided me with excellent advice on how to get the most money for my car. He created a pleasant experience and I would recommend Tim and the West Escondido Automotive & Transmission team to anyone looking for unparalleled service and advice.

Where to start. I had my car towed here this weekend because it was driving terribly and overheating. We they opened on Monday I received a call to go over what was wrong. I apparently have a crack in my radiator and I am losing too much coolant. Now we all know you can’t drive with problems like this, and to keep things easier I would have loved to have my car serviced here.
EXCEPT for the fact that the quote was OVER a thousand dollars? Research and be your own advocate, no where else in San Diego will quote you this high. So not only this, but the diagnosis is $ 99 and does NOT go towards any repairs done at the shop (also a first for me).
To keep the negative ball rolling, to pay for the diagnosis they do not take credit cards over the phone. Well you can imagine that this is very inconvenient for someone without a car mind you, to drive to the shop to pay the fee that already feels too high. So instead my poor family has to be inconvenienced so that they can fax over authorization. This is a terrible way to do business. First gouge the client then inconvenience them, for some reason I do not this this is the recipe for returning clients. AAA recommends them but that’s not saying much because AAA isn’t that helpful either. I now organized everything with another shop that is doing the work for half the price with amazing reviews.
Do your homework people and don’t get caught in the moment of car frustration and make rash decisions like I did because your then caught in the madness of undoing it all later.

I trust them, and they are good about explaining what any why things need to get fixed. Pricey. I keep going back because they fix things correctly and I feel they do it right. Wish I wasn’t paying full rates, but the dealer. GMC… Is disgusting so… ask for Jim, he explains everything well.

I am so happy I found a good automotive place that has fair prices and amazing service. Brian does a great job and the entire staff is knowledgeable and friendly. I love how they have a shuttle to drop you off where you need and the shuttle drivers have always been very nice and friendly as well. This is the only place I will take my car because they are honest and thorough.

I took my car there for an estimate to have a leaky radiator replaced. When they called me to tell me what it would cost, the guy told me that the radiator is not the big issue and that there is a blown head gasket and that both heads would need to be replaced at a cost of over $ 5000. I asked him how they could tell and he told me their «software» told them it does. Hmmmm. I ended up taking the car to Brian’s Automotive and Diagnostic in escondido to have them give me an estimate. They said they did an actual leak down test on the heads (that’s how shops usually do it) and that there is nothing wrong with the head gaskets or the heads. They ended up putting in a brand new OEM radiator and only charged me $ 600. My car has been fine ever since.
Maybe think twice about West Escondido Automotive

Do not take your car here. My transmission needed work and I spent $ 4,200 to have it rebuilt. After the work was completed the transmission did not work properly. I took it back while under warranty and they put in a transmission cooler and charged another $ 270 in labor and $ 225 for parts. Transmission still did not feel right. Shortly after the warranty expired I took it in for service and they admitted the TORQUE CONVERTER was not performing properly and recommended I replace the valve body. Since the warranty was up they stated the cost would be my responsibility. I ensured them the transmission never worked properly since they rebuilt it. They stated since it was out of warranty they would not back the job they did and basically told me it was my problem.
50,000 miles after they rebuilt my transmission, the transmission failed again. I drive from San Diego to Temecula every day and back for work and had to pull off the highway as the car wouldn’t shift and slowed down to 20 mph. I called them and they said since the factory transmission failed when it had only 55,000 miles on it, this must be a pattern with the transmission. This is insane. Who says that after being reminded I spent $ 4700 to have them fix the factory transmission?
IT GETS BETTER — I took the car in to a much more honest shop Los Turbos Transmission and they fixed my transmission for less than $ 2000. Guess what they replaced? The TORQUE CONVERTER. They said the old one burnt up and was completely faulty.
I have never spoken to or dealt with such a lackadaisical staff in my entire life. They denied any responsibility and made me feel completely helpless and showed me they did not value my business or trust in them as a shop. They never even offered to diagnose the problem and try to find a resolution that worked for both of us.

I took my car in due to a coolant leak. I was told the thermostat housing needed replacement and the job would cost $ 805. I was shocked at the quote. They advised the repair required the removal of the intake manifold. I declined the repair and took the car to the nearest Ford dealer. Ford’s price was $ 485 and they informed they never remove the intake manifold for this type of repair. I saved nearly $ 400 by getting a second opinion. I’m never coming back to West Escondido Auto and Trans.

So I’m driving my Ranger pickup on 78 and notice a lack of power, wtf~ the automatic clutch is slipping. So now I’m on Auto Parkway and its slipping again. This bus pulls in front of me and there’s Brian Bowersock’s big smile. My daughter says take it to Brian so we turn in to WEA&T. Right off I can tell this is a well-​run auto shop, I’ve worked on cars since I was in my teens. I was impressed with Michael’s knowledge of the problem and that he didn’t endanger other drivers by taking it out on a test drive (it was slipping into neutral on hills.) We picked up the truck a few days later and the costs were reasonable.
Too bad we didn’t get to meet Brian and get an autograph or picture with him. ~

I have had my much loved (and equally much repaired) 14 year old Oldsmobile Aurora taken care of a number of times by West Escondido Automotive & Transmission. They are always professional and thorough with their diagnostics and recommended repairs. I have had very unsatisfactory experiences with other repair places in the past before I thankfully found my way to this organization. They are, in my opinion, simply the best at what they do and always friendly and courteous as well. I would add a + to the five stars!
Addendum: I had my car in on 5÷5÷15 for replacement of valve cover gaskets necessitated by oil leaking on the manifold. Lots of work (and not cheap — mostly labor) but as always I was completely satisfied. Service writer Tim took great care of me as do all of the personnel in the front. I can always depend on West Escondido for the best assistance and service. Five stars for sure!

The staff is very friendly and more importantly knowledgeable. They let you know what’s going on and the proper way to fix it. Rather then just temporary solution they educate you on a more long term solution.
I normally work the Michael and he is great, but I had one of the other gentlemen recently and he was equally great!

Spoke to Michael on the phone. I emailed him about the issues with the hybrid I have. Although I didn’t like what I had to hear, his honesty validated everything the dealership said too. My hybrid is considered a loss, but I’m happy that Michael saved me the bs with the extra time, hassle, and money that I would have exhausted.

I called to make an appointment and requested that they give me a quote prior. Mike, (who helped me over the phone) said he would call me back that day but never did. I waited, and waited and still no call for 4 days. I decided to give them a call back to see what was the hold up. I also wanted to verify my appointment for the following weekend. I was not in their appointment book to have my vehicle serviced. This is bad… before I have work done to my vehicle, the service was very poor. Not using this place and I am glad that I check Unilocal out too. A lot of dis-​satisfied people.

My experience was horrible. Not only did i have to pay over two grand, but when the engine light came on 10 miles after the work was done i had to pay for them to do a test on it. Then when i get my truck back i am told that i have to pay for them to fix my hood that they broke.

HORRIBLE! !!
Worst place I’ve ever taken my car. I’m so bummed I made that mistake and I’ll never be back. I’m letting everyone I know to stay away from this rip off of a place.
First time it took a week longer than they said it would and they charged me $ 23 for a battery service on a battery that needed to be replaced as soon as I picked up the car (barely started).
Within two weeks of picking up my car I was already having problems with the car overheating, after they just replaced the radiator and the water pump. Every other automotive place that knows what they’re doing would have replaced the thermostat, they didn’t. Which then cost me more trouble and money in labor and wasted a lot of my time.
STAY AWAY FROM THIS PLACE!!!

I do not like writing negative reviews, but I feel I got swindled. I looked around for California STAR smog certification facilities in 92 029. This place came up and it was on Unilocal.Reading my fellow Unilocalers reviews, most were positive. I decide to set up an appointment, and they gave me the estimated wait time and cost for the smog. This was a 30 –45 minute job and will cost about $ 60 with the certificate. This is pretty standard.
90 minutes later I got called up and I was told my car failed smog. The car actually passed the emission requirements from the state of California, but they said the aftermarket K&N forced cold intake failed the vision inspection because it does not have a sticker. This same exhaust has been on the car since I bought it in 2007. Not once did this ever come up in previous smog checks. The worst part was when I asked them if I brought a sticker for the intake would it be sufficient. They told me they would have to rerun it and charge me an additional $ 60. They could have told me this would not pass because it does not have a sticker, but instead I waited double to triple the estimated wait time (90 minutes).
*EDIT* — I spoke with Brian and my biggest complaint is truly with the state of California… I believe better communication would have made a big difference for rating the service here. The long wait and lack of communication is not criminal but it does not warrant anymore than 3 stars for me.