B & G Auto Repairs

The people here are great! So friendly and hospitable. After having some work done on my car (at a different auto body shop), I noticed that there was a piece that was scraping on the bottom of my car. It was making an awful noise and I was scared to get back on the freeway to go home. I went to B & G and they fixed it for me within ten minutes. They didn’t even charge me! I highly recommend this place.

The good…
They are close to home and therefore convenient.
The bad…
1. Don’t listen when I bring a vehicle in and try to fix problems that were not described.
2. Make repairs without discussing them first
3. Misdiagnose existing problems and start replacing parts, apparently, hoping it will work.
4. Rude and aggressive office staff.
5. Do not fully re-​assemble the vehicle (or do it incorrectly) after work.
I often do my own repairs, but lately I have been too busy and prefer to use the «check tool» instead of my actual tools. So, I have been taking my vehicles to B&G. That won’t be happening again.
Unfortunately they haven’t done a good job listening to the problems I describe, and looking for (or creating) other problems. At times, when I ask about the problem I described, they look at me in surprise and say they didn’t notice the problem.
In addition they don’t seem to pay attention when putting my vehicles back together. If I don’t catch it, who knows what the result might be.
My latest experience is not an isolated B&G incident, but it is the reason I will not return to this shop… I took my truck in to have it worked on because it was misfiring at high rpms. Without consulting me about the cost of the repair, they proceeded to replace my distributor cap and rotor, both less than 5000 miles old. In doing that they broke my throttle cable (it passes close to the distributor) causing it to stick.
Saralyn called me and belligerently informed me that my truck was unsafe and Bill wouldn’t work on it until the throttle cable was fixed at a cost of about $ 250 and a 3-​day wait. Hmm, that problem didn’t exist when I took it in, but now I was to blame for putting Bill at risk on his test drive. She next informed me that I needed a new distributor cap and rotor at a cost of about $ 180. Obviously that didn’t sound right to me, so I said not to replace them. She then informed me that it was already done… and I asked that the parts be removed and I would just come pick up the truck. They still charged me $ 60 for this erroneous diagnosis.
So I picked up my truck after hours. Yep throttle cable is broken and stuck. I managed to get the truck home, but in addition to the throttle being stuck, it was running terrible (much worse than when I dropped it off). Further investigation revealed that the distributor cap was not tightened up. The rotor ground up the inside of the cap and itself. Now I really did need a new distributor cap and rotor in addition to the other issue.
I ended up fixing the truck myself. So much for the «check tool», at least the B&G «check tool».

It is with much regret that I have to write a bad review but because my experience here was such a debacle and safety related, I feel compelled to do so. It is not with the intention to harm their business only to serve as a warning to others to be very diligent about checking to make sure things were done correctly on their vehicle before driving it off the lot.
Brought in 99 Chevy suburban to have the brakes checked and the ABS system checked. They never gave me any information on the ABS system but said the brakes were good. Although they are so busy and when I called the next day – someone told me the brakes needed working on and then got confused about whether they did or not (which in the end, they did not need work but she was confused). I asked for the car to be smogged but was told it was running rough-​which I already knew. They spent the entire 1^st week trying to figure out why. They were not done with the exploration by the end of the 1^st week and I was going out of town the next week and said I needed to have it back the Monday I returned. I returned and it was not ready (they had now had it 2 solid weeks). They did not find the problem and they did not smog it. They did however find an unrelated problem with the suspension and charged me $ 500. Fine, I came to get the truck a day after I had to cancel my original plans b/​c it wasn’t ready and got it home and a few days later realized I had NO power steering. A look under my truck and you could see the fluid had all leaked out. I had it towed back and yes, they had forgotten to tighten the seal and it had all leaked out. I once again go get my truck and get it most of the way home and feel like my brakes aren’t working properly down a hill and had to use the hill to basically stop safely. I had it towed to a different shop this time. This shop fixed the original ABS issue (which was a front wheel issue) and when I went to go pick it up and drive it, I realized the brakes didn’t feel right and the brake light was on. The new mechanic put it back on the rack and said that the mechanic at B&G had forgotten to tighten the bolts on the master cylinder of the rear wheels when they originally checked the brakes and they had all vibrated OFF!!! It broke the seal of the master cylinder and basically was a completely incompetent job. It could have been very serious if I had tried to drive it any further. The new mechanic said it was one of the most incompetent things he had ever seen.
This was not 1 but 2 complete failed attempts to put my truck back together properly both which could have resulted in a fatality if I hadn’t of caught them early.
They also charged me for a smog I never got but did refund it when I called them about it. After the failure to secure the brakes properly – I called fuming and they returned what I had originally paid for the issue I didn’t even bring it in for. Bill the owner did sheepishly apologize. Saralynn sort of apologized but when I said – I could have been in a fatal accident her comment was «yea, but you weren’t». Seriously???
Something is not working at their shop – either too much work, not enough mechanics, something. and simple things like putting my vehicle back together correctly were overlooked. This is very very serious and I hope that if nothing else they learn from this and that it was a wake up call for them. It could have been very very serious — taking my life or someone elses. Please be aware. Ask to see the work done on your vehicle if possible. If you suspect something doesn’t feel right — trust your gut and take it back or have it towed back.

The staff is super responsive, fair and responsible. Love this place!

How have I skipped over this place after driving by it for 13 years?! What a gem! If you can, call ahead and make sure it is a good time to come in. I simply needed a taillight replaced. Cheaper that cheap! I can’t even tell you how much they charged me because its so cheap! I have other honest car repair places that I have been loyal to for years and I am making the move to B &G Auto Repairs now. I love doing business with the woman at the front desk.

Had a tail light bulb out. Called on a weekday, was told to bring it by anytime. Showed up at 430pm, had 4 people come check on the car, 1 of whom fixed the problem in about 10 minutes. all for $ 5. ridiculously cheap and easy. thanks a ton!

This is a great shop! After my engine light came on and I lost acceleration, I had my car towed into their shop around 11am on a Friday and picked it up that evening. They are great. Quick, efficient, affordable, communicative and thoughtful. I’ve found my shop in Marin County and I wouldn’t go elsewhere.

B&G is the best. They are super easy and have always been fair and honest when it comes to my car. I would definitely recommend.

These guys are definitely good and quick. They may not be the cheapest guy in the North Bay but they definitely know their stuff.

I’ve had generally good experiences here. The work got done properly, and the prices were no higher than anywhere else. But I recently had an experience that shook my confidence. A window in my car wouldn’t open. When you pressed the button, nothing happened. I took it to B&G and was surprised by their estimate of $ 850. Whew! That seemed a lot for a window. Couldn’t it just be a loose wire? No, the woman told me, the motor is shot and has to be replaced. She used the word «shot» several more times in our conversation, so authoritatively that I was sure the motor must really be nothing but a burned-​out hulk. But the price was so high I decided to hold off. When I got home, I poked around myself. I looked at the place where the wiring is most accessible and also most vulnerable: in the door hinge, where it has to flex every time the door is opened or closed. Sure enough, the wires there looked frayed. I jiggled them a bit, and lo and behold, the window opened. I found the one that seemed in worst condition and realized the wire was actually broken under the insulation. After a three minute diagnosis, I was able to fix it myself with a 25 cent butt splice and some tape. So much for the «shot» motor that had to be replaced! So my advice is, ask a lot of questions, especially if the work they propose seems excessive. It may well be excessive. And don’t believe everything you are told, in a very authoritative tone.

It doesn’t get any better than this: My car wouldn’t start. I did not have the time to get the car towed to B&G. I was concerned about whether I was getting good information from the mechanic who offered to do the job. I talked with Bill about what happened, what I should look for regarding the diagnostic test that was done and about the price quoted for the part and labor. Bill was gracious enough to give his advice and offered to check things over when I brought my car in for the check up. (I should have brought my car in as soon as I got the notice for the checkup from B&G and this may not have happened in the first place!). Bottom line: Bill really cares about his customers even if it means that, in an emergency, the repair has to be done elsewhere.

Learned about B&G here on Unilocal.Have been very appreciative of their shop. My car leaves humming whenever they work on it. Everyone is friendly and helpful. Highly recommended.

These guys are fantastic. I have a 2001 Toyota 4Runner that was having problem after problem over the past few years… I thought I had found a decent mechanic in the East Bay (Automasters Oakland), but every time I would bring my car there to get something fixed I’d end up having a new issue pop up within a few days. After a service at Automasters last fall that ended with my car being undriveable I decided I needed to find a new mechanic… I’d heard that B&G was very good, so I brought my car there to see what was up.
At first Bill had difficulty diagnosing the issue; this was not due to incompetence, but because the issue was complex and my car’s computer was reading a problem with the exhaust instead of a faulty throttle body. Bill and his staff spent hours diagnosing the issue at no cost to me, then found me a rebuilt throttle body from a wholesale parts distributor that ended up saving me about $ 400 over a new part. All in all they put in at least an extra 3 hours of work at no cost to me, and likely made little profit off the entire transaction.
Throughout the experience Bill and his staff were professional, patient, and extremely helpful. It’s rare to find a business so dedicated to customer satisfaction these days. I will be using B&G from this point forward, and I recommend that you all do the same.

Toyota Marin recommended an $ 800 repair job on my ’09 Highlander for a leaking water pump. Bill took a look, confirmed in a few minutes that it was just a little normal seepage, and recommended no repair unless it gets worse. Nice to have a local, honest repair shop.

I brought my Toyota truck in due to stuttering with a pretty good idea of what the problem was but no time to do the work myself. I discussed what was happening with a mechanic and was able to drop off the car and pick it up after hours once the repairs were done.
They cured the stuttering problem and the cost was very reasonable. All in all a good experience from someone who knows how to work on cars (me), but didn’t have the time to get it done personally.

B& G has been my preferred auto repair shop for about two years. He is great. An honest car repair shop that does great work.

This is my favorite place in Marin for Auto Repair. They recently worked on my brakes and did a starter/​battery diagnostic. I trust Bill and his team!

I gave these guys a call for a quote to change my spark plugs, as I didn’t have the time to do the job myself. They gave me a quote over the phone that was a little bit lower than a shop by my office and less than half of what the Mazda dealer asked.
I dropped the car off relatively efficiently in the morning, and was promised the vehicle that afternoon. The vehicle was finished as promised and the total bill came in under the estimate. The price they charged me for the parts was comparable to the best internet price I had found, not the 100%+ mark up many shops might charge. Based on this very minor service, I can say that I would trust these guys to do more involved work on one of my vehicles if it needed it and would be happy to recommend neighbors. The fact that they did not overcharge on parts and were on time is very confidence inspiring. As a bonus they were friendly and courteous.
P. S. If you go here, be careful backing out of the lot. There is a utility pole that looks like it has been well loved by vehicles in the past. And by well loved, I mean it likes the rough stuff.

We are new to town and tried another auto place that was kinda yucky (dirt floors and our cars got filthy). B&G Automotive is a nice team of people in a pleasant environment. They took care of our cars efficiently and best of all, (according to my husband) they are next to Joe’s Taco Lounge.
Seems like a nicely run, honest business with expertise across a wide variety of cars. They even told us our cars run really nicely for both being 12 years old.
We will definitely take our cars back to B&G.

First I do have to say I know Bill and Saralyn, they are old friends of my family. Regardless he is one of the best mechanics in this area and deserves more than 5 stars!
My car was blowing hot air for months, literally since December, and he got the AC to work on it again!!! He had to work on it a bit longer than he thought, but part of that was waiting for Sonnen to call him back. (feel free to check out Sonnen VW’s Unilocal record) Then after parking my car at the airport for a week the check engine light went on and got all flashy with me. I called him and dropped it off. he called a few hours later to tell me the problem and to let me know it would be done in less than an hour! Bam!
Bill is honest about what he does and is fast and good at it too, bonus point for Griffin the cutest shop dog ever! Also a local family owned business, which is one of the best things about giving him my 5 stars~! Also they have a fun website!
Thanks Bill and Saralyn!