Ricks Automotive & Diagnostics

Rick is always there to help!!! He is super honest and fast. This is the place to go!

I recently moved to the area and my vehicle was running funny so I looked up my local mechanic and I have to say I am so lucky to have found this place! Not only were they extremely patient with me but they took the time to check out the entire vehicle since it’s my work van. They pointed out problems I needed to fix and what was not important yet. He was extremely fair and won’t fix things unless necessary.
Being a single mom w only one vehicle it’s a blessing to find a mechanic that will do a thorough inspection and will take the time to answer all my questions.
I highly recommend this shop. I won’t go anywhere else anymore!

I can’t believe I haven’t written a review for this business! I been coming to Rick for 10 plus years now… he’s the ONLY mechanic that I trust & takes care of me every time as we’ve become great friends over the years. Anytime anyone I know is looking for a good, HONEST mechanic, I send them here. We all know honest mechanics are hard to find, but you’ll definitely find one here. His prices are reasonable & he won’t do anything to your car that it doesn’t need (no hidden fees). If he can’t fix it or if he’s not sure what the problem is he’ll be honest about it (very rare that he can’t fix/​not know what problem is though). The last car I had, I had it for 13 years & he helped me keep it up until it was stolen. Brought the new car in for inspection & his opinion was that it was a good buy; haven’t had any problems with it & I love it. As long as this business is standing & Rick is running it I will always come here.

I’ve been going here for 4 years off the recommendation of a coworker and it’s been the most honest service I’ve ever received. He never over charges me (I check online and with another mechanic friend of mine) and he lets me know how much time I have before I need a service done like brake pads and cleaning the brake fluid. Also if I’m in a rush and tell him he always works with getting me through quicker. Service has been excellent and I’ve had no problems with my car since coming here. I used to go to valvoline and they would tell me I needed a new belt ($ 500) and all this other stuff and then I took it to Rick and he said I don’t need it nor did I need the premium oil because my car was a 1999 and there’s no really necessity. I drive 30 minutes into the valley for his service and it’s always worth it.

I’ll change this review ONLY if I get the problem remedied. I shouldn’t feel bad posting a bad review, cause I’ve been coming here for about 6 years. But this is the first time I had major wotk done. I go in for a new ignition, which I bought, and to see whats up with my CHECK ENGINE LIGHT (doesnt feel right, ive had this car 12 years)… $ 1200 hundred later, NOW MY AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON and Rick literally tells me, «Put a piece of tape over it.»…PUT A PIECE OF TAPE OVER IT??? I just paid half of what the cars worth to now have the SRS light now on?! Nothing like dropping $ 1200 on your car only to have more dashboard lights on then when you brought it in! By the time I get it home (4 miles) THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES BACK ON!!!
I go back and tell him, «The check engine light is STILL on, i get a, «Check engine lights always come on, it could be a bad sensor or something… WTF?! I brought it in to fix the check engine light!!! What now, more tape?!
So new ignition, new clutch (wasnt even the problem) transmission bearings (wasnt the problem either) 2 new axles (didn’t need it as much as a check engine light problem… So now I don’t have the money to fix the original problem!
No estimate, no reciept, no warranty$ 1200 CASH… I feel like I got SCREWED!

Talk about fantastic service. Called on a Saturday and was automatically helped within a minute of arriving. Patrick, Rick and team provided great and speedy service. Highly recommend! 5 stars!

I dropped my car off on a Thursday with a short list of things to do, like change the oil, change some fluids, check the brakes, and fix the taillights, which weren’t working. The mechanic there wasn’t friendly, but he said they would call me the next morning, Friday.
They never called me on Friday, so I walked there on Saturday afternoon (in the sweltering heat), at 3 o’clock, and they were closed! Unilocal says they’re open until 5:30. So I had no car the entire weekend.
On Monday, still no call, so I walked down there again, and said I was ready to pick up my car. I asked them if they had finished the six things on my list, and all they had done was change the oil! I asked them about the other five things, and they said since it was just «checking» stuff, they hadn’t done those. So they hadn’t checked or changed any other fluids, and they hadn’t checked my brakes. In four days.
Then a younger mechanic showed up and said he’d fixed the taillights. I asked him how, and he said he’d just changed a lightbulb, which I knew was a lie, since I’d checked all the bulbs myself, and since one burnt-​out bulb doesn’t stop the other three from working. I asked him again, just to be absolutely sure I was understanding him correctly, and he again said (with shifty, nervous eyes) that the taillights on my car worked now.
They charged me $ 30, and I drove home. That night, I went back out to my car, and NO TAILLIGHTS! The mechanic had shamelessly lied to my face about fixing the taillights. It wasn’t even a con, since they had only charged me $ 30. It was just a pointless lie for no reason. So I could have been driving around at night for who knows how long, with no working taillights! What kind of mechanic lies about a safety feature like that?
So it took them FOUR DAYS to just change the oil; they closed early on Saturday (if they were open at all); they never called me back; they were very unfriendly; and they LIED about fixing a vital safety feature on my car. Disgusting.

Walked in for an oil change, took about 10 – 15 mins, & paid $ 30 flat. Quick & easy! 3 stars for average service.

DO NOT BRING YOUR CAR HERE. Brought my Volkswagen Beetle just to get it checked out to see why the A/​C wasn’t working. Not only did they try and act like they knew what they were doing but I caught them looking at a YouTube video to figure out how to even diagnose my car. Customer service was horrible and they didn’t even invite us in the air conditioned portion of the shop even though it was 95 degrees outside. Upon leaving they said it was an electrical issue and surprisingly didn’t charge me the original $ 45 estimate. As I felt lucky for no charge I shortly found out why. These people had yanked a sensor underneath the hood of my car that immediately made the BRAKE light come on and a loud beeping sound to persistently go off. When I made a U turn and went back, the guy said it must’ve been something I had done which was total crap. I had to take my car all the way to the Volkswagen dealership which cost me $ 125 just for them to get the beeping to stop and the light turned off. Not to mention a rental for the day so I could get to work in the morning. THIS PLACE IS BEYOND TERRIBLE AND UNPROFESSIONAL. STAY AWAY.

Rick and his team were great! Super HONEST.
I had a ticking noise in my car and then it wouldn’t start on my way to work. I towed it to Rick’s because of his good reviews. Right away he told me it was the timing belt (what I had already thought). However… he said it was highly possible that the valves or engine were messed up from trying to start it repeatedly (which would cost a whole lot more), but he would get back to me.
He just called and told me only the timing belt needed fixing (YAY!) And it costs $ 100 less then he quoted!!. He could have asked for the full price he originally quoted or even said other damage had occurred. Im super excited and appreciate him!
Definitely check this place out. There arn’t too many honest people around. I would come here again AND recommend!

Been here three times already!
HONEST, KEEPS IT FOR REAL, AND GETS THE JOB DONE RIGHT!!!
This is the go to place to take your car.
I am SO thankful and definitely will keep taking my car here!!!
I even had chance to take CAT NAP. I was well rested.
Lastly, I am a very satisfied customer!

Experienced mechanics. They configure my car problems twice so far. They were little pricy, but at least it was the right diagnostic that saved money on the average.

If you’re going to this place, you better expect to pay more than what it costs!
I know how much parts cost!
But they charge extra! Guess thats how they stay in business!

Came here because of Unilocal,and I got burned big time! Rick charged me $ 65 diagnostic and quoted $ 275 to repair egr solenoid/​transducer. This was causing check engine light on my Camry. I refused, and decided to get a second opinion due to sticker shock. Found out it was only a disconnected hose. That’s it! He had 4 hours with the car on a lift diagnosing. I reconnected it and passed smog with flying colors at no cost.
Confronted Rick about the $ 65 diagnostic because they were wrong. He threw me out of his garage and told me not to come back. Biggest mistake I made was trusting this crook. This guy gives mechanics a bad name, and my faith in Unilocal is now shattered. Do not put your trust in this guy, he will let you down to make a buck.

Very quick and friendly service. I’m glad found this place on Unilocal.I would definitely recommend the place to friends

Good prices, honest, I won’t take my car anywhere else. It’s never a problem to drive from west hills to rick’s. He is worth it

Definitely will be coming here again in the future. Best prices in the area for a smog check. Rick’s a great guy. Easy. Straight forward. And (most importantly) quick. In and out in 20 minutes.

Rick himself is one of very few honest, hard working mechanics in society today.
My first visit, I know more about motorsports then most females but I happen to stall out around the block from rick’s shop. I had issues with my catalytic converter earlier that week but off putting off repairing it earlier that week because my regular shop is roughly a yep hour drive from home at the time.
Brought it into rick’s, he did diagnostics and immediately told me it was the converter.
He was honest, up front and right on time with his estimate on work time. Now, not only do I go to him bits couple friends and my fiancé do. He’s so friendly, welcoming and real that he invited us to ride on the weekends with his group!
I’ll always refer rick’s to everyone.

I’ve been going to Rick’s since 2010, and I couldn’t agree more with all the positive I hear about Ricks’s auto. He is up front, he does great work, and he has a good team of mechanics working with him. I would highly recommend!

I needed an smog on my truck. I Unilocal’d around and Rick’s had some good reviews.
Super quick, I didn’t need an appointment. Even gave me $ 10 off. Total smog w/​cert was $ 48.20. I would done before I could use all 5 lives on Candy Crush.
I would definitely recommend. Super nice and friendly people. Quick service and a great price.