AE German Car Service — Local services in Santa Monica

Terrible Auto Mechanic shop, definitely do not recommend! (with Reply to Tim)

I brought in my 2015 VW GTI on Thursday at 8am in the morning and told the workers about the problems I knew of. They said they’ll have to do an inspection and will let me know how much the repair will cost.

I was very thankful and said that I’ll be gone for 2 days so If they have a lot of work they don’t have to rush and can be done before Monday. To this the manager, who is half Russian/Turkish replied, “No we can’t store the car here until Monday, we have too many cars coming in, could someone pick it up today after we’re done?” - I replied yes, that would totally work, nevertheless take your time but I really do need it by Monday, if it’s done earlier I have a friend who lives in the area and can always pick it up.

I gave them a call the same day in the evening to make sure I didn’t miss any calls and my car wasn’t taking up their valuable space. I was told they still haven’t had time but will get back to me tomorrow.

I didn’t receive a call on Friday or Saturday. On Monday after I was already supposed to have my car I gave them a call at around 11am and asked about the car. I was told they haven’t had time to look at it and they’ll call me later today with all the information.

I was really disappointed already but agreed to wait one more day. I didn’t receive a call that day, so I decided to come to the shop personally on Tuesday, and discuss the situation. When I asked if there’s any news I was told no, we haven’t had time to look at it, we will soon. We’ll give you a call. I said that they promised to be done much sooner than Monday and that according to them the car cannot stay at their shop for too long. To that I was simply asked if I want to take the car away? They did not even seem to feel bad or care about the situation. Very disrespectful towards my time and money.

Apparently, they had 2 people get sick in the last days but I was not informed about that and every single time I talked to them I was told my car will be done before Monday.

This Shop definitely does not deserve 4.9 Stars (The only reason I came here) Because of them I have to commute over 1 hour by bus for the last few days and now the following couple of days while I find a new place to fix my car.

P.S.

Reply to Tim:

Before driving my car I consulted with a police officer and he informed me I am allowed to drive the vehicle in order to make sure everything is fixed before I go get it registered. My car is also insured. Although I didn’t have a licence plate, I am allowed to drive the vehicle with a lean sale certificate and insurance.

When I told you about my spark plug problem you informed me it will cost at least $1000, maybe more and that this won’t be a cheap fix. (Yesterday I got my Spark Plugs, Brake pads and Oil changed for 715$.)

When I arrived at the shop you told me the car will be done before Monday. It’s not my responsibility to call you and even go to the shop personally to get at least some information. The reason I showed up unannounced was because you were not communicating with me at all after 5 days. I trusted you and was fine with it taking longer than it should. I relied on my car being ready by a certain time and not many days later than promised.

Tim, my ethnicity remark is simply because I didn’t remember your name. I myself am not of American origin and would never treat someone poorly based on their ethnicity. I simply remember you telling me you’re half Turkish and Russian.

My review is based on my personal experience and I don’t disagree with you that other customers have had a good experience here. My situation was handled poorly by you and your business, I expected much more from a place so highly rated. I rarely write bad reviews since I understand that businesses often have hard times. Nevertheless you guys did not seem to care about the situation you put me in. You also did not even bother to inform me that my repair will take longer...

I reached out to Connor this late morning early afternoon and let him know that I was in the San Diego area, but my wife in my daughter, were on the road in Santa Monica doing volunteer cleanup on the beach. I told him on their way up there that they had noticed the car a 2012 vw Passat tdi had been smoking but they had also noticed a sweet smell coming from the engine compartment after opening up the hood. Connor told me if I can get the vehicle to him before 2 o’clock they’d be happy to take a look at it to see if the vehicle was safe enough to get home. I let him know that would be greatly appreciated, and the girls would be on their way shortly. The girls let me know when they were at the shop and that Connor and the guys jumped into action. they noticed there was a fuel injector line that was loose and not clipped in place. So they got that all buttoned up and got the girls back on the road, so grateful for Connor and his crew . What a blessing on Easter weekend !! With a leaking fuel line this could’ve been a whole lot worse. Thanks again,...

Really impressed with AE German Car Service. I recently purchased an older 328i convertible and I knew it needed to be serviced at the time of purchase - so I took it to the dealer and they said I needed $3100 worth of service and maintenance. They weren’t wrong, but I wasn’t about to pay that much. Took the car to AE and they independently verified that I needed maintenance and what items needed to be serviced. They performed all the work plus identified that I needed a new battery. Out the door with tax the total was $1600 - quite a savings from the dealer. Took the car in the morning and had it back by late afternoon. The car feels and drives like new. Service was friendly, professional and top notch. Unless you’re under a warranty or maintenance plan there really is no reason to go to the dealer. AE performs the same services, they run the same diagnostics, and have qualifiers technicians that will do the same, if not better, quality of work. Can’t recommend...