Saddleback Automotive II — Local services in Mission Viejo

I wish I could give this place negative stars - here's why - I was quoted $45 to fix the timing in my 79 corvette - I dropped my car off in the morning per the convo I had with Mike the day before; my work day was coming to an end and I had not heard back; I called to find out what was going on and Mike told me some fabricated horror story of how my power steering pump was cutting through the frame of my car! "Sparks are flying everywhere, we are trying to get your power steering pulley to stop cutting your frame in half" is what I was told. Yes, this does sound ridiculous - also I was told about several others problems with the car in areas I never asked them to look at. I told them not to fix that stuff just do the timing. When I went to get my car the next day even though they said it would be a fairly quick job I was hit with a $234 bill despite my $45 quote. I told Mike I didn't appreciate that I didn't get a phone call to ask me if they could run up my bill and Mike just told me that they got busy doing one thing after another and that's what it is. I am not even sure that is LEGAL!! I signed a quote for $45 and got a bill for $235 and he was trying to up sell me to $1,100 - $1,500!! I couldn't help but think that they ran my bill up looking for things on the car to fix that I didn't ask for. To top off this terrible experience I looked at the power steering pulley - the one that was supposedly cutting through the frame - it wasn't even touching the frame, the belt coming off the pulley was rubbing on the frame and needed another 1/16" of clearance; so I adjusted the 2 adjustment screws on the power steering pump bracket which took all of 20 mins and got'er fixed myself. Mike also told me that my power steering hoses were all crazy and he didn't know what was wrong with it even though his shop is supposed to be the vintage car specialists in Mission Viejo - he told me my power steering lines were crossed and that is wrong - I told him according the the service manual for this car that is exactly how it is supposed to be - his answer was "well, maybe they are supposed to cross and then uncross later, I don't know." If he doesn't know how an older power steering system works then how is he a vintage car specialist??? That could also be why he wanted to just charge me to replace it instead of fixing it. Mike, in case you are reading this - the problem is that the power steering control valve needed to be balanced - the hoses were set up correctly and I am glad that I knew something about my car or this guy might have succeeded in selling me a bunch of stuff that I didn't need.

I would definitely not go here if you can avoid it - the sad part is they have lots of loyal customers that rave how honest they are - the sad truth is that most people just don't know enough about their own cars to know if they are being...

Saddleback Automotive was referred to me by a friend and woody owner, Gary Clark. Mike the owner is a no B.S. Straight forward kind of guy, and tells it like it is. So if you want warm and fuzzy don't go there. If you want professional work performed on your classic vehicle or any vehicle, Saddleback is the place to go. Jack the mechanic that worked on my woody was very professional and informative. Mike and the crew took great care of my woody. It stayed inside the whole time. I trailered the car to Saddleback and drove it home. The expected problem was a badly leaking rear main seal. It turned out to be a crack in the oil pan from a loose fly wheel rubbing on the oil pan two years earlier, which was replaced in 2019.. Jack found the problem and Mike called me right away with actually good news that the rear main seal was in great shape. They brazed up the cut in the oil pan and reinstalled it. They checked out the rest of the drive train and adjusted the brakes. Mike is the kind of guy that makes sure your vehicle is safe to drive. I am a very stoked customer and hopefully won't have to return there anytime time soon. BUT, if I have a problem with either one of my classic cars. I know where to take them. Thank you so much Mike and Jack......Mickey Rat, H.B....

Worst customer experience. From the guy servicing the vehicles, to Mark working the front office/cashier, the attitude and verbal remarks I received from both of these individuals was downright condescending and rude. Mind you, very seldom to I write reviews, but this experience certainly merited me taking time from my busy schedule to do so. On the bright side, Jiffy Lube, located in the same commercial shopping center, serviced my vehicle in less than 20-minutes. And get this - they welcomed and appreciated my business. Oh, and if that weren't enough, they vacuumed the interior of my vehicle and cleaned the windows as part of the service. Talk about exceeding...