Tomoko Auto Care Center

Tony is on of those hare to find honest mechanics! I was told by a different shop to sell my car and that it wasn’t worth fixing. Brought it to him with a list that that the other shop had said was wrong. He managed to cut the list in half and the cost of what he did do was a more than reasonable! My car runs great. I left the Seattle area 4 years ago and prior to that all my cars went to him for roughly 8 to 10 years. Glad I made the haul into Seattle and dropped my car with him! Highly recommended! Great guy!

I discovered Tony a year or so ago after buying a little used 1990 Honda Civic that was having some problems. It was having intermittent starting problems so nobody wanted to deal with me (apparently they are almost impossible to diagnose). Well, Tony gave me the most likely problems, and a couple small repairs later and that baby always starts, and runs like a champ might I add! I was a little worried that I’d made a bad buy at first, but Tony was very sweet in reassuring me that I got a great buy with my Civic with only 120K on it (that’s nothing for a Civic, and the very reason I bought it). And to further prove the point, he pointed to his own nearly identical 1991 Honda Civic parked in the driveway! Ha! This guy is just honest to the core. You can tell he wants to help people, not just make money. And oh yeah, bonus – he’s FUNNY as heck! Always has a kind word for you or a way to make you laugh, even if the car news isn’t good. This is the kind of man who becomes your mechanic for life. I know he’ll be mine. What a relief to have found him. Five stars all the way!

After getting an oil change and being told that I needed $ 3000+ of repairs, I tried this place on the recommendation of a friend of a friend and I am so glad that I did. Turns out I basically just needed a new set of brake pads and rotors– $ 350, including a tire rotation that Tony threw in for free.
Fantastic service, great work, affordable, quick turn around: A+ all around.
I absolutely hate getting work done on my car more than almost anything (I’d rather go to the dentist for a root canal), and I can’t tell you how at ease I was with Tony. He is a *real* person who won’t upsell you on anything and simply wants the best for his customers and to keep running his local business.
I cannot recommend Tomoko Auto Care more highly. Found my new Seattle mechanic for life.

Horrible job on my Subaru. Timing belt. And leaked oil after he was done. 1000 $ job. Creates a new problem. Then refused to fix it. Don’t go here.

I am so glad that I have finally found an honest, and inexpensive mechanic. Tony is a great guy, very funny and he does fantastic job, every time.

I have lived in Seattle for over 10 years and Tony has been the best mechanic I have used. He is more than honest when it comes to your vehicle and I cannot recommend him enough. What other mechanic guarantees his work and his word? Tony!
Ask him if your car will make it another 50k miles and he will tell you. He is honest and just a good guy.
Thanks Tony for keeping us safe!

I love this place already. Sitting here with Tony while he takes a call. I called Tomoko after getting a quote from another place that seemed way too high (Budd’s auto repair). Tony helped me out a lot over the phone and now that I’m here says car can be repaired by tomorrow. His quote is $ 300 less than the first place I went. Thank you Tomoko auto care!!!

What I appreciate the most about Tony is that he is not trying to overcharge/​upsell you anything. He is as straight as it gets and is honest. Listening to his stories (while long :)!) leaves you with a good laugh!

Took my 2007 honda civic here for a second opinion which needed over $ 2000 in repairs from a shop where I got an oil change. Tony looked at the car and said all I needed was to get my tires realigned! I told him that’s great. when can we do that? He replied that he doesn’t do alignment! Haha so honest. Didn’t even charge me to look at my car and even referred me else where to get my tires realigned!
Will definitely come back to Tony if my car ever needed work!

I just picked up my car from Tony earlier today, and yay! It no longer sounds like a go-​cart when I accelerate!
My car had been sounding puttery and I was smelling exhaust inside the car when I started it in the mornings, so I knew there was something wrong. I was referred to Tony by a friend who was also referred to Tony by a friend, and I can see why he has such a loyal following and referral base. He’s very likeable and I instantly felt like he was trustworthy and would not take advantage of me. He found cracked pvc valve and a leak in my exhaust manifold and told me that while it was the cause of the issues I reported, it wasn’t something I HAD to do right away. It was a pretty costly repair, but after doing a quick check online I found his rate very reasonable, and decided to get it done right away. He had it done by the end of the day, and saved the parts to show me the issue. He even charged me less than the original quote; he did the labor on the valve replacement at no charge. As soon as I started the car I could tell difference, and I was even more pleased after driving the car home.
The shop he is in right now is (I think) a temporary location since he lost his lease up on Madison. It’s a bit of a trek to get there and definitely not a pretty spot, it looks more like a wrecking yard than a mechanic. But I learned a long time ago that a good mechanic is worth hanging on to, and I’m happy to have found Tony! I highly recommend him for your auto repair needs.

After looking at the reviews here on Unilocal about Tomoko Auto Care Center, I decided to take my car in and let Tony evaluate it. My 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse had been «hiccuping» for several months when I would accelerate from a stop. Tony took less than a day to diagnose it without even charging me. He gave a very good price for the work. He took care of the problem and told me I will have no problem passing my upcoming emissions testing.
It’s been a couple of months now, and my car is running well. Do not be taken aback by the locale; Just know this, that Tony does excellent work and won’t charge you an arm and a leg.

I have had my car serviced twice in the last month by Tony. He is terrific, both in the fact that he was the only mechanic I could find that was open on a Saturday near me (Rainier Valley), and in his honest, no-​nonsense ability to get the job done. He is a crack-​up, too, with a very charming sense of humor that takes the sting out of having to get your car worked on. Nice business model! I hope he can find new digs somewhere, just not too far away. He deserves it!

4 star coz i minused 1 for the SHITTY place! don’t get me wrong, i love this guy. been with him for years now… (4 i think?) dumped thousands of dollars on him but still coming back. why? he is good!
been wanting to spend on my 91 corolla but he rejected all outargeous ideas to fix up my car because he thinks its useless… ahahha!
place’s small in a hut behind «1NE1 garage» or something. he moved there because the previous E Madison ST location was changed to an apartment complex (boo to the owner!)
come, spend your money here (if tony allows it) and drive away with a better-​performing ride!
p.s: man in the picture is him!

Best autoshop in town. The owner is really friendly. One of the most honest auto mechanic that I ever seen.

I have been there twice now. The location is creepy, but Tony is very nice.
He did not charged me for diagnostics either time, and pricing is very reasonable.
So hard to fimd a mechanic you can trust, but I believe I have.

one of the last honest auto mechanics. i was referred to him by a friend bc i thought something was wrong with my brakes. they turned out completely fine but just squeaked. he didnt convince me to get new brakes (like most mechanics would) and didnt charge me for a diagnostic. and he changed my light bulb brake… all of this, for free.
even though i dont really want to share my source, i do want him to get good business. so, come to him for all of your car needs.

I originally went to Tony because he was around the corner from my apartment and my dad and I could only fix my car enough to get it there. He has been my mechanic ever since.
I was wary to accept that he really was as honest as he seemed, but he has proven over the years to be just that. I don’t know much about cars, and Tony does not take advantage of that. I often call my dad to make sure the repairs and prices sound okay, and they always do. Tony actually tells me that some of my concerns with the car do not need to be fixed, instead of putting in a new part and making a buck. He has even said I should get a new car with a warranty so I wouldn’t have to take it to him so much. He would lose money, but he is looking out for me.
Tony and his ASE certified technicians always meet my needs. They go above and beyond. I know I can always take my car there when I need advice, even if they don’t work on it and get paid. Their new location is further from my house, but I will continue to bring my business to them.

This place is great. Tony is awesome. He’s funny and most important, he’s honest. I trust him with my car and that he’s not going to try and sell me something I don’t need.
Unfortunately he’s moved to Rainier south of Columbia City. It’s a bit far for me and I’m not sure if I’ll make it all the way there. I think he’s worth it, so I’m going to try.

They were pretty helpful and close to my house, so when my car was in danger of pooping out, I decided to give them a chance.
But then, the guy proceeded to tell me that «ooo, your daddy’s gonna be mad» and «come visit us anytime — your car doesn’t need to be broken», upping their creepiness factor and downgrading my review by 1 star.
Also, their prices were higher than my my normal mechanic’s.

Tomoko has been my auto shop for about three years now. Tony, the owner of Tomoko reminds me of the mechanics that my mother used to frequent when I was a child: down to earth and not trying to jack you for money. Tony is honest and incredibly knowledgeable about cars. I used to take my 1994 Honda Civic to him (i recently bought a Toyota Yaris) and he always treated my car well.
Please support Tomoko! I know that Tony always needs more business!