Radis Mechanic Service

Have been going here for years with my VW Jetta and then Passat — nothing but honest and helpful. Thankful to have found a place I can trust with my vehicle and money!

Thank you for keeping my car in shape, Radis: you’re exactly the kind of neighborhood mechanic shop that everyone needs. I’m so glad I live nearby!

Radis is a great neighborhood Mechanic. They are extremely helpful, honest and kind. They go out of their way to help you, and are fast and efficient. The key start, and unlock button wasn’t working on my car. I took it to the dealership and they told me it would cost almost 200 dollars to reprogram it. I decided that was too much money and lived for over a year using my key to unlock my car. At Radis they opened it and changed the battery for FREE! I would recommend to all my friends to take their car here.

I was looking up towing around the Echo Park area and Radi’s came back as one of the options. I called, a girl answered, I told her off the bat that I was looking for a towing quote. She says that the towing is a separate service from their mechanical shop, leaving me to think — well, I need it towed to Glendale, so that works for me.
After a 1 – 2 minute hold, she says she has the phone number to the tow person, and only THEN does she asks if I am towing the car to Radi’s. I say no. She then refuses to give me the towing person’s number, saying that the tow person takes cars exclusively to their place.
Tow person, if your reading this, and this is untrue, she’s messing up business for you.
And lady at the mechanic shop, if your reading this, next time someone asks about towing, start with that. I can respect that — it’s business. But cut the fake concern you rushed out at the end when I said no. Your customer service was passable until then.

These guys are awesome. I have lived near Radis for about 3.5 years. I was nervous about taking my car to a new mechanic with the suspicion of possibly being taken advantage of. This has been a very positive decision. This shop is probably the most honest and trustworthy shop I have ever been to. Thank you guys for your continued service of being awesome !

$ 54 for an oil change?!! I have a 2013 hyundai santa fe 4 cylinder. No way! Dont ever come here and be fooled by the reviews. Watch out for the lady in the office… she has a very bad attitude.

Ripoff artists.
Don’t get sucked in by the lady who acts «like your aunt and is there to help you get the best, cheapest service»
She’s a wool puller and will take your money, more money than you should be paying, and the fellas doing the work won’t do a great job and may even cause more damage to your car.
When you go to dispute the terrible service and the fact you were duped, she’ll scream and freak and you’ll give up because frankly
She’s a pain to deal with and realize you’re better off leaving your money behind.
Echo park: when looking for a reliable mechanic in the neighborhood– DONT GO TO RADI’S

I showed up with a simple battery charge needed, and came away with answers to ten other questions I had. Questions a dude is usually embarrassed to ask because they are so obvious. Anyways I was given so much helpful advice. They didn’t try to scare me into preventative worthless repairs. I wish I knew the lady’s name behind the desk, but she is a sweet heart. I never use Unilocal,but I reset my password just to write this comment. Thanks guys!

My prius died while I was in four lanes of traffic, total engine shut down. Pretty terrifying. I looked up Radi’s on Unilocal,it was close to where I was, gave them a call, pulled in and within 10 minutes they told me what was wrong with my car.
They did a tremendous amount of research to see if the part I needed was under warranty and it looked like it was. They sent me to the Toyota Dealership to save me the cost of paying them. Mechanic’s just don’t really do that anymore.
They handled my situation so well, they really went out of their way to make sure I was handled quickly and was always informed on what my car issues were. The dealership themselves didn’t handle my car as well as Radi’s.

This place may work for the people they know… or maybe some of the reviewers here do not know they are being ripped off. I came here for two reasons: Because of the Unilocal reviews (this was the only time Unilocal reviews led me wrong) and I could walk home after dropping off my car. I wish I had gone to my regular mehanic, Jim Matson «the Most Honest Mechanic in L.A.» according to LA Weekly Awards, and rented a car.
I don’t believe half of these reviews after re-​reading because it is too easy to fake them for your own business. I was WAY overcharged, they did bad work which caused ADDITIONAL issues with my car and they refused to correct their mistake. I also suspect that I did not need all of work they told me I needed and paid for… BS to take my money. I went in for tires and a small oil leak. I was told I needed a timing belt and a new water pump — both which had been replaced less than 5 years ago. $ 1300 with 2 new tires on a 1985 Volvo DL 244… After I left, my oil leak was so excessive it ruined my alternator. They didn’t tighten something correctly and that is how the oil leaked all over my alternator and ruined it — told to me by 2 seperate AAA approved repair facilities. I should have trusted my gut but I trusted Unilocal reviews instead. STAY AWAY! Don’t let them lure you into a false sense of security with their «Come back 3 times we will check your fluids» … they will likely find a «problem». At least get a second estimate before you agree to work.
Two AAA Certified repair shops explained that the work they did was done wrong and the oil leak they caused ruined my alternator. This is after I was towed twice… once my car almost rolled downhill into an intersection on Sunset Blvd. They would only agree to «clean» my alternator and not replace it… which died on me the next day. They quoted me $ 400 to fix the alternator. One of the AAA repair facilities did it for $ 230.

When I was living at USC, this was the closest & highest rated repair shop on Unilocal I could find.
BIG MISTAKE.
I don’t know why everyone gives them 5 stars. I think the first time I went there, I thought they were great because of the great reviews. I thought I had found a great auto mechanic in LA along the lines of my awesome Bay Area mechanic who is a family friend.
DEAD WRONG.
The 2^nd time I went, they cheated me out of $ 1300. They really do prey on auto innard novices.
I’m planning to file a complaint with the California Department of Consumer Affairs. If you’ve also been cheated by this shop, please let me know and I’ll keep you posted on what I find out about the process.
PEOPLE. DO NOT GO HERE MORE THAN ONCE to get work done unless you personally know everything about how cars work and the reasonable price for such repairs.

Radi’s is the best mechanic shop I’ve ever been to. They take care of their customers very well. They have no problem explaining things for folks who don’t know much about cars. They are very honest and consistent. All of their staff are very knowledgeable and they are on top of their admin. Most mechanic shops don’t accept American Express, which I happen to use; they do and it makes the difference for me. Last time I was in, the work they did caused my radio to have an error. That error requires a number code to be entered to clear it and make it work again. I had to call the person who sold me the car. I bought it used from a used car lot. That lot was not helpful nor did they have the information. Aileen of Radi’s made a call, found the info, and voila… it was fixed. This is one example of many, of them going above and beyond for their customers. I recommend this to everyone.

I had a great experience at Radi’s. Honest, fast, great work at a fair price. I’ve lived in the neighborhood for many years and have had friends recommend this place, finally got to check it out for myself. I’m really glad I did. This is a GREAT neighborhood mechanic!
When my car wouldn’t start, I had AAA tow me to Radi’s garage. They took my car right away, even though it was just after business hours. When I realized that I accidentally left my phone in the tow truck, the staff went way out of their way to help me get the driver to bring it back. So immediately, I knew I was dealing with friendly and helpful people, and felt great about leaving my car there.
Early the next morning, I got a call from Radi’s mechanic telling me exactly what was wrong (needed a new starter) and exactly how much it would cost. The price was completely fair and what I’d expected to pay. I approved the work and they replaced my starter within 3 hours. When it turned out I needed various fluids, they called me again to ask my permission so there would be no surprise charges. In twenty years of taking cars to mechanics, I’ve never encountered a courtesy like that. No mystery charges when you pick up the car.
The car now starts and runs perfectly. The work was high quality and lightning fast, especially considering it was my first time there, didn’t have an appointment, and drive an older car. Both the mechanic and the front office staff were extremely nice and easy to work with. I will absolutely take my car there again. This is a great Echo Park business.

LIARS, CROOKS AND CRIMINALS!!!
This place is a joke and a complete ripoff. I wouldn’t recommend anyone come here (unless of course you’re friends with the owners and workers, then you’ll PROBABLY get good service).
The prices they charge are ridiculous and don’t make sense, I’ve been to lots of mechanic shops so I already had a figure in mind for fixing a part of my car that I’ve had serviced twice before over the past several years. They wanted to charge three times as much as I’ve paid at other places for the exact same part.
I let them keep my car for days too long and after having a raging phone conversation with them I went to pick up my car and I asked the woman there with the clipboard the name of their owner and she gave me a FALSE name!
A few moments after she walked away to go deal with something else and that’s when I asked one of the mechanics there who the owner was and that’s when I found she blatantly lied to me, even the mechanic was baffled. On top of that they didn’t do everything they said they would, one of them was a simple tire rotation.
The Better Business Bureau should investigate this place for fraud.
It’s not cool at all to charge with inflated prices and it’s unethical to blatantly lie to try and cover up your mistakes.
You’ve been warned, STAY AWAY FROM THIS PLACE.

I arrive at Radi’s with the trepidation of a broken car owner who knows his wallet is going to get lighter. Radi asks me to have a seat: «don’t worry, it’s free!» he reassures me, and I wonder if this is part of the inevitable Jedi Mind Tricks he is about to weave.
After a brief discussion of the congenital defects my beater suffers from, he begins calling parts suppliers. Within just a few minutes an estimate is prepared. Although Radi’s cursive scrawl would make even doctors feel illiterate, he plainly and quickly explains the work he intends to do and why, complete with a price total which is very reasonable. Not a bargain, but also not what a stealership will inflict upon you.
I returned on the day of the appointment and enjoy the free wifi in the shade while watching one of the mechanics perform open-​hood surgery on the car. In a few short hours the everything is done.
They gently mention other work that they think should be done, but there was absolutely no sales or pressure. Nice.
This is not the end of the adventure– they insist I return in 3 days so they can check the condition of their repairs. Now that is showing pride in your work.
Unfortunately some of their work was a misdiagnosis, resulting in unnecessary repairs. I later took the car to another shop which found the real problem.

I don’t see why everyone gives this place such good reviews, except that people seem to be so floored by their «we are here for you, we care about you» rhetoric.
That’s great that they say this, but…
I sat down with the clerk at Radi’s and explained a problem I had – the hose had popped off the radiator while driving. I told her a broken fan clutch was making it overheat. The guy from the other room interrupted, piping in «you need a new radiator!» I asked why, and he said the pipe is coming off because the grooves are worn down. I thought that sounded fishy because I didn’t think there were grooves on the end of the radiator at all. So I said: «just take a look at it for me.»
I get a call about 30 minutes later from the clerk and she said «yea he checked it out and you need a new radiator.» I asked why? She told me the mechanic would call me back, and I just went up there. I got there and the mechanic pointed to the radiator-​the end that was covered by the hose, and told me it was broken… I said, «take the hose off and show me.» He removed the hose, and guess what? NOT BROKEN AT ALL!!! I looked at him, and he just played dumb, like «huh, I guess you don’t need a new radiator.»
So these people are either stupid, dishonest, or both. They wanted to replace my perfectly good radiator with another one. And I don’t really know about cars, so normally I would just say OK, but I had just had this car inspected by my mechanic who is a personal friend, so I was curious about how they could tell me I needed a new one. Thank god I made him take the hose off and show me where he claimed it was broken.
So then, he kept telling me other reasons why my car could have overheated… this and that could be broken. I said, «look, I know that my fan clutch is broken, so that is what I want you to replace.» He said, «fine we’ll do it your way».
My check engine light had also come on, and the clerk gave me a lecture about buying a car without warranty, buying a high mileage car, blah blah blah, saying, «you’re not going to like what we tell you, but that is what we are here for-​to take care of you» –more rhetoric. I told her that I had already had the codes run (for free by Sengs down the street) and that I think it’s just the gas cap. I asked her if she would just reset the light and I could see if it came on again. She told me that would cost $ 60, just to reset the engine light!!! This is a 2 minute job. So I took my car down the street to Sengs auto, who gladly reset it for me for free. Check engine light has not come back on… lol it was the gas cap like I suspected. I guess she wouldn’t reset it so she could get her trusty mechanic to tell me I needed a new engine too! LOL.
These people are not that great. Don’t let them tell you things are wrong that are not actually wrong. Again, the good reviews I read seem to just be impressed by their friendliness and their «we are here for you» rhetoric. Not good enough for me. In all fairness… they were friendly… but they were also weirdly pushy too.
I gave them 2 stars instead of 1 because, they did replace my fan clutch and it works fine now (although they charged $ 200 for the part, and this is a HUGE markup. I wish I would have researched a little before I had them replace this for me.
Hope this helps.

This is probably the best mechanic I’ve ever been to. Being in the big city of Los Angeles, it’s hard to come by nice, good work ethic, honest, and good mechanics with great service. I was greeted my Anne and she was great, full of good energy even tho it was bright and early in the morning. Breath of fresh air for coming to the mechanic to get your car oil changed. The price was right, cheaper than the spot I useto go to by saving. $ 30. Also to top a cheaper oil change, she informed me on what I needed to do to prevent any car problems. My knowledge of cars is minimal so to have that extra step given is well appreciated. Also, they gave my a whole new set of brake lights on the house cause mines were out. YES, definitely am coming back here. Time was fast too about 40 mins for oil change and light switch out. I’m very happy with Radis Mechanic. ;)

I went to Radi for a routine repair. The service shop made my car worse. Instead of fixing my car, they created a whole collection of new problems. It’s been a NIGHTMARE undoing the damage they caused to my vehicle.
I drive an old model Subaru Outback that needs Oxygen sensors replaced every year. I have owned the car for 10 years, and I know what it needs to run happily. The mechanics ignored my advice, did not address the issue I requested, but instead invented several other «problems». They claimed these problems would address the Oxygen sensor as a long term solution.
Not only was this a lie, but I paid close to $ 1,000 for repairs that actually made my car worse. I had to bring my car to another Mechanic (Pinky’s Automotive on Wilshire is AMAZING). They were shocked at the condition of my car and told me never to go back to Radi. I won’t.

I was in Los Angeles in August 2012 with a friend to see a concert when the belt on the air conditioner slipped off the pulley. It turned out that one of the pulleys had fallen off. We used Unilocal to find the closest place. We needed the car repaired ASAP as we were both from out of town & needed to return to work the next day.
We explained this to the clerk at Radi’s. At first she hesitated because she was busy, but then decided to slip the car in. They were able to fix it for less than $ 100 and we were on our way in about 1 hour. The car still works well to this day.
An out of town customer in need of an emergency repair usually means an easy mark for a mechanic to make a nice profit. Radi’s did not do that.
Further, they counseled my friend to go back to her mechanic in her town (who had recently done work on the air conditioner) to see if she could get a refund for the repair in Los Angeles. She did and the mechanic reimbursed her for the repair in LA.
It’s refreshing to still find an honest mechanic in such a big city.

I am very happy to have a place like Radi’s to take my car. I never worry about being over serviced nor do I worry about being overcharged. I have been taking my car to them for 4 years and have always had great service.
What prompted my review today was my last visit and the pleasant experience I had there. I had a lot of work to be done and I needed to get to work. They were extremely helpful, made sure I got a ride to work, and had the car finished by the time I was done at work. Also, they had an opportunity to charge me a lot of money for a part that seemed to be malfunctioning. They actually encouraged me to wait to fix it (instead of telling me to pay the high expense when they weren’t sure that would actually fix the problem). It turned out really well and I am thankful!
I have recently moved, but will continue to travel the distance to make sure my car is in their caring hands.