San Diego Bus & Auto Repair

I’ve been going here for about 5 years with various cars. They’ve been pretty good all round. They get booked up a lot, so call ahead to see if they can work you in that day or not, otherwise you may have to wait a day or even two. The mechanics have fixed numerous types of issues on my cars.

I’ve spent the last 3 months unsuccessfully trying to pass smog on a 2001 Dodge 3500 van.
Another shop tried different parts and could have cost me $ 800‑2000 if I had gone for it.
I asked the CA Bureau of Automotive Repair how I should handle this, and they tried to help.
I went to the CA Dept of Consumer Affairs referee, and they tried to help.
San Diego Bus & Auto Repair’s (Ocean Beach/​Point Loma) owner Doug took one look under the hood and said he didn’t think I needed a new computer, I simply had the wiring harness resting on hot metal all the time, and that it could cause problems with wiring signals to and from the computer to smog equipment. After replacing suspected wires and tying them back away from the heat, he was determined to help me pass smog, and patient enough to keep testing the system for a couple days until all bad codes cleared up. I passed the smog test !!!
Because it was almost 4 months after paying registration, DMV would only give me a 1 day moving permit, and I was not happy about paying hundreds for parts my car does not need.
Thank you to both owners and techs at S.D. Bus for solving the problem before the holidays so that I can move on and forget the time, money, and frustration I have into this.
Have a great 2016!

I so APPRECIATE the guys at SD Bus & Auto Repair. .. they are honest, friendly and have great mechanics. A true gift to find these qualities.

The absolute worst. Dropped off my car a week ago. Was called saying they had an estimate. I called them back and they said they had already worked on it without me saying yes to the estimate. Which pissed me off. I showed up the next day to pick it up. It has not EVEN been touched!!! Thy had not even moved it or opened the hood. What are they doing there!!!

This is my third time here. The first time sent me away about 3 years ago. The second time was great, because it was just for an oil change. So I gave it another chance… big mistake!
In a nutshell: they are very unorganized, do not communicate at all, and perform services without notifying you first (I refused to pay for labor I didn’t ask for). Most importantly, they left the unfinished work «hanging» (literally) in the form of loose cables that could have easily hit the metal frame and caused some serious damage to my vehicle! It’s really hard to find mechanics you can trust… I recommend passing on these guys.

My original review is 6 years old so I wanted to post an update. I continue to appreciate the remarkable service and superior work from this experienced team of mechanics. I refer everyone I know to see Doug, Frank, Jacob, Javier, Brian, and the rest of the excellent team here at this shop. Every visit to this repair shop I’ve been treated with respect and courtesy, and every problem I’ve had with both personal and fleet vehicles has been explained to me. MANY mechanics shops treat women differently but this shop has always treated me like a person not a gender. I feel like my business is valued, and in 10 years my personal car hasn’t had a single hiccup because they have taken such great care of it, and me. Keep up the GREAT work guys!

Called ahead to get an estimate for my truck. They told me what was going to be done and how much it would cost. I specifically wanted to get a compression check done and that was included in the price and they said with my make and model that they would do it. Dropped off the truck and picked it up later in the day after they said it was ready. When I paid for the truck they said everything was done but I noticed there were no readings for the compression check. They said that it was fine, but when I asked for the specific readings they couldn’t find them. Eventually the owner or manager, not sure what he was, said that they couldn’t do a compression check on my model truck (Ford f150) because it was a different size adapter for the compression gauge. Eventually they took off the price of the compression check. The reason I took there to begin with was for the compression check which they repeatedly said they could do. I won’t be back.

DON’T DO IT! HORRIBLE SERVICE! Very unprofessional! Stolen car parts! Had diagnostic ran on our car at this dump. Returned to pick up car and the car was tampered with and all white smoke was now being exhausted, this wasn’t happening prior. Next our engine cover went «missing». Jacob was the mechanic that «lost» the part. Hard to lose something so big. Poor customer service and called us lyers and said there’s nothing they can do about the «missing» part? Left multiple messages for the owner, Doug, to contact me about the situation. Never got a call back from the owner. So lame. Don’t feel like going to small claims court. Rather learn from shady businesses like this place. Save your time, money and headaches go somewhere else. Maybe they might just «find» the part now?.. Your official warning.

As good as it gets. We’ve been taking our cars to Doug for years. He’s the best mechanic I have ever found. The shop is friendly, they are honest to a fault, and Doug has some kind of genius sixth sense when it comes to diagnosing auto problems. They have saved us a lot of money over the years.

I have been going to this garage since I bought my car in 1998 and I will not go anywhere else unless I have to. The mechanics are professional, personable and reasonable (comparable) in price. Why go anywhere else when I don’t have too. Even got a great referral for tires through Doug. Every issue my car has had was dealt with promptly and fairly. Don’t want to give any other shop my hard earned money! Thanks guys, you are appreciated!

I’m so glad that I brought my car here. My 2008 Camry had a malfunctioning part which the dealer told me would cost at least $ 2400 to fix. The very astute mechanic at this shop recognized that this part (called an actuator) that was in need of repair was clearly damaged by an accident that I had been in recently and they suggested that I contact my insurance company to have them inspect it again. The insurance company did decide that the damage was caused by the accident and I didn’t have to pay a cent for the repair. AND the repair was done well. The car has been running great since it was fixed.
I don’t think many auto shops would have recognized the connection between the broken part and the accident and then gone to bat for me with the insurance company the way they did. They were also very pleasant to work with, especially Ken who kept in contact with me throughout the time the car was in the shop. I highly recommend this place!

I could not be happier with this shop under supervision of Doug now the owner and operator!
After taking my car to two other mechanics none of them wanted to have anything to do with my electric problem without even looking at it first and even Perry Ford dealership in Poway refused to help me out since they called the electric part not to be factory but after market and yet they all call themselves mechanic which I do not understand instead they should be calling themselves robots working only on factory problems since they do not have enough brain to handle problems with after market parts!
To make the long story short after talking to Doug about my problem over the phone he quickly said bring it in even though his receptionist had told me the other day he is buried with ton of jobs and could help me next week!
I tell you Doug is an angle in disguise! Without asking for any diagnosis charges like Perry ford would ask for 2 hours of his mechanic time at the tone of $ 220 just to take a look at it and I know why they do this so you are hooked with them and they could stick it to you, Honest Doug just got in my car and started working and after 3 hours of work and solving my electric problem he asks me whether he could charge me for 2 hours since he was on the phone at some time solving other people problems!
I gladly paid him $ 190 he asked after he even gave me more discount and could not be happier ever since thinking about this!
If you are looking for an HONEST straight forward mechanic who really knows what he is doing please without a doubt take your car problems to Doug at San Diego Bus and Auto Repair in Point Loma and you will be happy you did!
Thanks a million Doug, You solved my problem that 3 other dumb head mechanics did not dare to touch no matter what I paid them!!!

Tony is an up-​front and honest guy who took care of my oil change and battery problems the afternoon I took it in. I will be back or any upkeep here in OB!

Doug is honest, works hard, and doesn’t play games. He just gets your car fixed up right. He’s dirt cheap for regular maintenance and goes the extra mile to find a good deal for you if you need bigger jobs done (e.g. my husband needed a new steering wheel and he found a used one for ¹⁄₅ the price). And he genuinely appreciates the cookies — we definitely take advantage of the cookie discount! He runs coupons in the Pennysaver, too. Great shop. I’m so glad I found it!

I’ve been looking for a trustworthy and good mechanic for years. All this time, they’ve been right under my nose. Took my 2002 Jeep Wrangler in to do some work so i can keep this vehicle longer. Went in saying I want you to find things wrong with this vehicle so i can drive it at least another 5 years.
So many mechanics would have taken advantage. Instead, Doug got in my car, drove it around and listened, felt and observed. came back to the shop and gave me an estimate of 900 — 1500 depending on things that may come up (we weren’t sure about the transmission). A few days later, my jeep was ready and the bill $ 870. Doug and his crew fixed a throw out bearing, the clutch, repaired AC vents and got them working again, adjusted my brakes, and repaired a number of vacuum leaks. Drove the vehicle for a week and i gotta say, it has not been running this well since i bought it. I felt I was given excellent technical work, advice and the whole time, in an honest way. I will be coming back with my other vehicles.
THANK YOU, San Diego Bus & Auto Repair!

When pigs fly? I have found an honest mechanic– they do exist!
My jeep liberty was having transmission problems and Doug fixed it for a lot less than I expected.
I recommend this place to everyone.

Great place to roll into & have some excellent work done on your car. I had been having trouble with my car overheating and brought it in during the week for the guys to take a look at. They looked at all the angles as to what was ailing my car. At first they kind of scared me by saying I could have a leak in the head gasket, but after pressure testing the engine, found that not to be the case. Whew!
The mechanics they have working on the cars are efficient and top notch. They really seem to know what they are doing. One good sign that SD Bus & Auto Repair is decent is that they have commercial accounts to fix Airport Shuttle vans. Having worked for a limo company a couple of years ago, I know that these professional driving companies do not throw their valuable repair contracts at just any old company.
I would have deducted one Unilocal STAR for no waiting room for ladies like me who like to sit around and read while they linger around for their cars to re repaired. I was fortunate to have an old car seat covered with a ratty blanket to repose on and I guess I was lucky enough to have that. My advise is to pull out some kind of bench and put it outside for customers to hang out on.
But since the biz has a straight 5 Unilocal STAR reputation, I will overlook the decrepit restroom and lack of toilet seat covers there. I will also overlook no free magazines to look at while you wait. I will also overlook the nasty old seat I plunked my lovely arse down for 2 hours while the mechanics got my car cooled off. 5 Unilocal STARS for SD Bus & Auto Repair!

Love the service here – I decided to try SD Bus and Auto after finding Doug’s Pennysaver Ad for an oil change and reading lots of other positive reviews… My car needed both an oil change and transmission fluid flush. The oil change coupon is for $ 15.95, but with a 2008 Ford Escape with SAE 5w-​20 oil at $ 7.99 a bottle the change was obviously a lot more, so Doug deducted the coupon value from the total. That was fine for me. Doug also offered me the option of adding a filter to my transmission fluid lines, but said it wasn’t necessary so I just opted for a drain and fill. He wrote up all the work and quoted me before starting, unlike many places which will call you after you leave and tell you they need to do other work. No upsell here.
The work was done very quickly (~45 mins for oil change and tranny flush), and there are a couple dive bars nearby to kick back in if that’s your thing. The only thing I’d warn potential customers about is that the Catalina Blvd location doesn’t have donuts and coffee – the OB location does, so I might go there next time. Lol.
Thanks Doug! After trying out a few different shops I’ll for sure be returning to SD Bus and Auto repair.

The mechanics here are true professionals! I’ve been going here since my college days at PLNU and each experience has been positive. Everyone is helpful and the service is great. I usually deal with Doug and he always takes time to explain what is going on with my car.
I love this business for their great service, great prices, cookie discount, and student discount.

These guys are the best! I have an older sports car that is over 100K and still running great, much because of Doug K. and his crew taking care of it. They’ve fixed both master and slave cylinders, head gasket cover, alternator, shocks/​struts, serpentine belts, and timing belt. When you take your car in, they will look at it immediately and give you an initial quote on the work needed, which has always been far less than the quotes from other shops.
One morning, my car wouldn’t shift into any gears. I called the shop and after asking me a few questions, Don diagnosed the problem as «most likely the slave cylinder.» To save me a tow, he had me turn of the engine to get the car in gear and drive to the shop in first gear. Thankfully, they are only a mile away!
When my replacement slave cylinder went out just after the one year warranty period, Doug called the supplier and sweet-​talked him into replacing the part for free.
The day my alternator decided to go out on my way to work and I realized that something was wrong, I turned around and headed toward the shop. Unfortunately, the car died on Nimitz just before the ramp up to Catalina. I called the shop and Doug C. just happened to have a flat bed truck he had borrowed to haul something that day. They were in front of my car within five minutes to give me a free tow!
When I brought the car in because it had slowly been handling worse over time, Doug immediately took a look. He pushed down on each corner of the car, which didn’t bounce back like another car with good shocks/​struts. He thought maybe mine were supposed to be that tight since it was a sports car and even encouraged me against having them replaced since it was such an expensive job and he didn’t see any physical evidence of damage. He then explained that how hydraulics work and that even though I didn’t have any leaking fluid, that the gas that helps the shocks work may have leaked out. Because he gave me as much honest information as possible to make an informed decision, I had the work done and couldn’t have been more pleased!
During each of the times I’ve had the guys work on my car, I’ve asked them to look at «the little things,» like a a broken trunk release and a melted headlamp connector that kept burning out bulbs every couple of months. Instead of ordering manufactured parts, Doug «MacGyverred» parts in the shop and charged me at most $ 10 extra ontop of the big job I’d originally brought it in for. How awesome is that?
I really can’t say enough wonderful things about these guys. Over the years, I’m pretty sure they’ve saved me more money that I’ve paid them and kept my car running well. I didn’t think honest mechanics really existed, but these guys have become trusted friends that I wish I could give seven stars!
PSSSSTTT…be sure to bring in home baked sweets for the 10% «cookie discount» on parts & labor!
In response to the people complaining about no waiting room, there is a fabulous café called «To The Point» diagonally across the street from the shop. It has both indoor and outdoor seating.