Rising Sun Japanese Auto Service

I own a 1994 Chevy food truck and a Subaru Outback. I rely heavily on my vehicles to generate my income. Brandon and his team are fair, consistent and efficient. Even when they are slammed they find a way to squeeze me in. I honestly thought I’d never find these qualities in a mechanic. But I have and I feel extremely lucky. Also, they have a lovely coffee bar in the office. Thanks for being awesome guys and making sure I’m safe. I really appreciate it:)

They were so friendly! My 40,000 mile service for Prius was $ 76 which seemed reasonable. The best part is that I got in right away without having to make an appointment! Loved that!

After letting my car go wayyyy overdue for a routine service, I decided to see if Rising Sun could take me at the last minute. Brandon was super friendly on the phone, and told me to bring it on over. He was clear about the pricing from the get-​go, and didn’t try to upsell any services, which I love. I left my car for a couple hours, hung out right across the street at Medici Coffee and Shake Shack, then got a call saying my car was ready to go. There weren’t any nasty surprises in the very reasonable pricing, and I was out the door super fast.
I’ve been to a few mechanics around town over the past few years, but I think I found a keeper. Thanks Brandon and Rising Sun crew!

I bought a new distributor and installed it on my own. When I took my car there to get it checked out, Rising Sun was under the previous owner. Rising Sun said the new distributor I bought is bad. So I told them to get a new one and replace it. I also told them to give me back the distributor I bought on my own so I can return it back to the vendor.
Low and behold they did not give me the distributor I bought, instead a different older distributor. When I tried to return it, the vendor sent it back because it is evidently old and has the wrong serial number. When I asked Rising Sun, they said they have no idea. Less than two years later the distributor that they installed is dead, because I figured out later on that they did NOT install a NEW distributor on my car.
Rising Sun is now under a new owner, and I am all about second chances. The new owner worked something out with me and I have high expectations for them.

These guys are awesome! Honest, friendly, and a great location. Brandon will take care of you!

Easy to find (across from The Alamo!).
Called for an estimate, describing what I needed. Their immediate reply was «We know that part well!», which instilled me with confidence in them.
Dropped off the car, and they offered me a ride — and when it was done they also came to pick me up, too! Wow!
Also, their pricing was about half what I was quoted by the Dealership.
Would recommend. Will go again.

Jason is awesome as the manager — great communication and very transparent and willing to work with me to remove certain items I could do myself/didn’t absolutely need. Quick service and a courtesy car taboot! Only reason not 5 stars is their prices are high… but can you blame them? PRIMO location on SoLa… I went there because I want to support local businesses even if it costs a little more…

Just picked up my car from Rising Star — under new management and they are awesome! Very nice. Great customer service. I trust them.

When I bought my 1994 Honda Civic EX with 112K on the odometer in 2003, I noticed that the mandatory Honda water pump and timing belt replacement had been performed by Rising Sun. At around 150K, the water pump started squeeking intermittently, until it became SO bad that I had to take her to First Texas Honda. Discovered that Rising Sun had used
aftermarket parts, so instead of lasting for at least 80K, the water pump bearings started going out at around 38K. Not a big deal until you factor in the price of a new timing belt/​water pump, which is around $ 6 – 700.00. Made me a believer in ONLY buying OEM parts for my Honda. She’s at 256K now and thanx to First Texas Honda, she’s got at least another 100K in her:)-JW

On 2 cars, the actual workmanship has been satisfactory. However, they are pricey. On an insurance claim, USAA called them out for overcharging me $ 400 above market rate for a fuel tank assembly. USAA also expressed to me that they felt I was treated unfairly and that Rising Sun will not be in their recommended list in 78 704.
I already had the work performed, so it was too late to negotiate a fair price. I doubt I go back there. There are other mechanics who won’t take advantage of me.

I’m updating my previous positive experience with Rising Sun. The past few times I went, it was not a bargain. I don’t like doing my oil, so I’ve had Rising Sun do it for a while now. They charged a pretty penny, but I thought it was worth it. Alan has always been fair and honest with me, and I’m willing to pay for that. The last few times, the pricing was inconsistent and once I paid for an oil plug that we didn’t even talk about replacing.
I’m also upset because my mid-90’s Toyota truck (the kind that runs forever if you take care of it) started to get an oil leak. Turns out, some of that is from the timing chain gasket, which they replaced just a year or so before it started to leak. I was met with a shrugged shoulder when I brought it up and my disappointment that the gasket on their job didn’t last very long.
So I’m going to Yost on N. Lamar now and they are awesome.

These guys are the best. You get your car fixed right, and they never over charge. That’s rare these days. Modern Japanese cars (really all cars) have lots of electronic things that need to be diagnosed correctly, and they get it right every time. They warn you of future needs and tell you about them without trying to sell you on a what ends up being a thousand dollar job. My only hope is that they don’t leave the neighborhood when all this gentrification takes shape and the property taxes go up. Thanks guys

Rising Sun is my go to mechanic. Who know why I haven’t reviewed them before.
I started going because they were near my house and I could walk home to wait for my car.
To be honest I might be able to get the work done at a better price, but I wouldn’t be driving away with the confidence I have in these guys.
They do good work and when it comes to my car the fewer worries the better!

We brought our car in and learned the engine would be need to be rebuilt. We were told it would take two weeks to turn this around.
NINE WEEKS LATER, we got our car back and as I was driving it home I smelled a strong odor of gas. I brought the car back immediately and found out the engine was covered in gasoline. Why? BECAUSE THEY PUT THE SAME FUEL INJECTORS BACK INTO THE REBUILT ENGINE WHICH WERE IN THE OLD ENGINE.
Having rebuilt the engine, they were too lazy to install new fuel injectors? That’s LAZY, and it’s CHEAP. Count me as extremely dissatisfied, and I will not recommend them under any circumstances.

I brought my Honda Element in to Howdy Honda Service Center here in Austin. It just needed a new light bulb replaced in the dash board. They told me it didn’t need a bulb, but a whole new odometer. Cost will be $ 675. I said no thanks and drove the car to Rising Sun Japanese Auto on S. Lamar. They replaced the $ 3.00 light bulb for me. Beware of Car dealerships for repairs! Rising Sun Rules!

Don’t take your domestic auto there. They fixed one issue, said it was ready to go, cashed my check immediately but my truck still wouldn’t run. I had to have it towed from their lot to another auto service. They said they didn’t have the tools to do the job! Be sure to start your vehicle and check it out before you take their word that it is fixed and pay them. Reading some of these reviews sounds like this is a common issure with this place!

Expensive and they don’t always finish the job. I want to like these guys, because they seem like genuine, down-​home Texan grease monkeys (is that a thing??), but after trying to believe in them for many visits, I’ve finally given up.
Let’s take the following example: I call to ask whether I can make an appointment to have my car worked on, not just received, at a certain day and time. They give me a vague answer that sounds more like yes than no, but when I bring it in, it’s like the phone call never happened. That’s par for the course, so fine. What can you do.
Then they have the car for several days trying to diagnose it. The problem is the headlights don’t work properly. This is a ratty ass old car that’s probably couldn’t sell for $ 1500. Eventually they call to tell me fixing it will cost $ 500, so I’m all «oh, never mind then,» at which point they’re all «but you already spent $ 250 of that.» Gosh, guys, thanks. I’m pretty sure that’s illegal, but I guess I’d rather have my car than a court case.
When I pick the car up there’s a warning light on, and they’re all «bring it in next week so we can clear that light.» Oh, do I get an actual appointment for that, or just abandon the car for half a week again? (answer: actual appointment.)
And I’m all «hey where is this big ass portion of the dashboard that was here when I brought the car in?» and they’re all «it’s in the backseat but you should get another one at a salvage yard» and I’m all «well, how about instead could you just put back in the one that was in the car when I brought it in here, or otherwise take care of this problem yourself?» And they’re all «nah, maybe, I guess if you really shake us down for it and leave your car here for a lot longer or something,» and I’m all «neverfuckingmind, here’s you’re shitload of money, thanks a bunch, bye.»
Sort of a disappointment!

Just had the clutch done on my car here; the bearings were trashed. Aggravating. Everything appears perfect and the pedal effort went from about 15−20lbs to 2lbs force. They noticed some shoddy work done by previous mechanics and corrected it with the correct OE parts. Car was ready to go within 3 days. Price was on the high side, but hey, it’s quality work you’re getting. Still recommended as my go-​to general Japanese import mechanic.

Have never had any need for tune ups or work outside of the original warranty until recently. I was referred to this business from a friend. I had an issue with an engine code dealing with air problems.
Dropped the car off at Rising Sun. Not the best communication, was several days before I heard anything and I had to call them. Car was in the shop for about a week (they said the factory was delaying shipping the part). Finally they called me to come get the car saying that it was ready. The engine light was off and everything seemed ok. About 10 miles down the road the light turns back on. I was bummed.
I took the car back to the shop and he said he would keep it and figure out what was up. He could tell I was disappointed and showed me the old part and where it was cracked and why he thought that was the issue. He said he would look it over and see what he can figure out. They had to order more parts and it took about a week again. He mentioned that he asked for overnight shipping on one of the parts. This time it was taken care of. The engine light has been off for over a month and the car seems to be fine. Again, he showed me the old parts and explained what the problem was.
They did offer a discount on having to get a 2^nd part replaced and I guess the amount of time it took to get the parts. Overall I am happy with the service performed but the communication and quickness could definitely be improved. I will probably be bringing my car back to these guys if I have any issues in the future.
Note: While looking around on their website it looks they they once had a cool feature that you could check the status of your vehicle on the website. It looks like they got frozen in time summer of 2010 and that section of the website has not been updated since. This feature would be great!

Maybe I’m jaded but I really don’t trust mechanics. I’m a girl with little car knowledge and I have been burned. Rising Sun has earned my trust. Their prices are really reasonable and they take time to explain the issues. As long as I live within reasonable distance, they can count on my business.