Foreign Auto Service Technicians

I have moved to Santa Fe and needed a mechanic closer to home. My friend recommended FAST last week when my car started to overheat again. I called on Monday afternoon and they were able to have me drop off and fix my car on Tuesday. They were even able to give me a ride to and from work all for a very reasonable price. Jim was very accommodating and great to work with. I would definitely recommend them!

If «car repair integrity» coupled with «superior smarts based on beaucoup years of experience» is attractive, rely 100% on this business to cure your automobile.
Arrived in Santa Fe, barely at 35 mph, having driven for 9 hours from Phoenix. Was directed to Foreign Auto Services because the universe liked me.
Plus Foreign Auto Service suggested a car rental agency that gave me a preferred rate even though the timing preceded Indian Market by just a few days.
Within less than 48 hours my previously ailing Eurovan was functioning like a different car, a better car.
Thank you Jim and Jim (father and son mechanics) !!!

Do not use this place! Consider yourself warned. They will rip you off. They took our money and we drove away with our car in the same condition. When we asked them to make it good, they blamed us for not maintaining the car and charged another $ 800.

I have an 81 diesel rabbit pickup (caddy) that I had serviced by my mechanic from Wisconsin. I moved to Santa Fe nervous I wouldn’t find someone with the knowledge and experience to work on it. All I needed this first stop was a brake fluid reservoir cap. He sold me a used one for pocket change. Judging by the amount of german vehicles in his lot for service and parts I wouldn’t go anywhere else!

These dudes are solid. Jim& co. are knowledgable and thorough. They’ll even give you a lift home! Good, trustworthy mechanics!

There are few things that are worse than an auto mechanic that tries to replace things in your car even though they don’t need to be replaced just to get money off of you. If you want to get ripped off go to the dealership.
If you want a skilled mechanic to take a look at your car in a reasonable amount of time and get it fixed for the right price then you need to take your vehicle to foreign auto service technicians. the staff is trustworthy they are honest and they won’t try to rip you off.

We took our Mercedes E320 Wagon to FAST because when we drove in from Los Angeles there was a shaking feeling coming from the right side of the car and when we would brake, it seemed as if the brakes were slipping. We had just had the brakes and the cv joints done by our LA mechanic so we knew they were good, but that probably there was another issue with the car. On the way to Santa Fe, we had also had the wheels balanced. The shaking and the shuddering still did not go away so we wanted to find out what the problem was and how serious it was before we drove back to Los Angeles. I had remembered FAST from a long time ago and read the reviews on Unilocal an thought that it would be a good place to take our car to. They could also see us right away. I explained all of the above to the owner of the shop and said that I did not want to pay for any unnecessary work but if he could drive the car, look at the wheels and give us his opinion that would be great. I was perfectly willing to pay for the assessment, mind you. He said he would call us in a couple of hours. Time passed, I did not get a call. I called him. He said they hadn’t gotten to it yet. I remembered that I had left my backpack in the car with my computer in it and drove back to the shop to get it. As I was waiting, the attendant said he would get the backpack and I saw someone driving our car back into the lot. The attendant said they were just using my car to pick up parts at the UPS store and had just gotten back. I thought maybe they were doing the test drive at the same time but when I asked the owner this, he said no they hadn’t done it yet. I was shocked. They were using my car for their errands, then? At the end of the day, I still had not received a phone call so I called again. The owner said they still didn’t have an answer. I told him we needed our car and would pick it up. He charged us $ 75 for balancing the wheels even though I had told him that didn’t need to be done since had just done it. I told him I was happy to pay for an assessment of the problem, but not for work that didn’t need to be done. On top of that, I mentioned the shop using my car for errands. He denied it. I paid the fee and took my car directly to Executive Automotive where they told me — without even taking the wheels off or putting the car up — that the right rotor was worn out and recommended that we take the car back to our mechanic in LA who had only shaved the rotors down but not replaced them when he fixed the brakes. I will NEVER take my car back to FAST and DO NOT recommend this shop to anyone. The guy will try to rip you off and he thinks you don’t know what you are talking about.

I’ve been going to Jim & Jeb for a few years now, since purchasing my 2001 Golf TDI in 2004. My car had 24K miles on it when I bought it and now has 182K. After going to the VW dealer on one repair I felt I was reamed, financially speaking. When my first timing belt change came due these guys quoted me a price that was $ 400 cheaper than the dealer and included all the normal wear & tear parts (tensioner, waterpump, etc). I went with them and felt I got great service.
Keep in mind that VWs are not cheap to repair or buy parts for.
I recently took my car in for another timing belt change. I did call two other shops and the dealer. Dealer was the highest, one shop was low ($ 900) but didn’t included new engine mounting bolts and other parts. A shop in Abq (Anton’s) was the same price as these guys but further to drive. $ 1100 was the quoted price. I knew I needed a new thermostat and asked to have that done, as well as a cooling system flush & fill. Total for everything came to $ 1300 before tax.
I also knew I had an issue with the brakes but didn’t mention it to Jim when I dropped it off — since I do my own brake work. I assumed I needed new pads (I have the original pads up front still, after 182K) but when Jim drove the car he noticed the brakes not fully engaging. While working on the car he found a crack in the hose running from the engine to the booster unit and replaced it, a $ 47 part and $ 79 labor. Result — brakes right now are as good as new.
I wish I had been told about the booster vacuum hose via phone call before he decided to replace it, but being that it is February and cold in my garage, I probably would have OK’d the repair anyway. On my own, I wouldn’t have found the hose crack for some time. I am impressed that they sensed the same problem I had experienced with the brakes; it shows attention to detail. I know that I did not buy a part or service that I did not need.