Santa Monica Auto Service

Like the other reviewers I had a terrific experience at this shop. I have a 2003 Honda Element and, as soon as the warranty ran out, discovered that the cost of servicing my car at the dealership was prohibitive. Kareem the owner of Santa Monica Motors was extremely straight forward and honest, giving me a series of options for my repair and then getting the car back the same day.

It's just a smog check place - they do 1 thing and do it well. Very friendly front desk person. I was in and out in less than 30 minutes on a Sat afternoon! Use your Yelp coupon to save $10.

The only problem I have to this honest repair shop is that the location is the opposite direction from my place to work... Otherwise, I can't complain.I took my car once to a shop near my work and it was a disaster : I also tried other shop in between my place to my work, they told me that they need to fix the possible problems one by one, because This is very difficult part to find the problem. I thought about Well, if they can't pin point the problem before they start to fix, what's the professionals for? And of course, Santa Monica Motors told me what exactly was wrong before they start to repair, as the good shops do, and fixed my car in a day.It's not so convenient when I'll be working I won't be able to pick up my car during my lunch time nor after my work, but if I'm not working I work as a freelance, I can get a ride from the shop to my place and vice versa, so it's a good compromise for me not to look for another shop.They mentioned that a new rent-a-car place is open next to the shop, so it's a bit of more convenient than before as well.

Going to get your car serviced sucks and as a woman I'm always wondering if I'm going to get swindled. Not the case at Santa Monica motors Kareem the owner (?) is extremely friendly and tells you how it is. His goal, in my opinion, is to develop a lasting relationship and customers life and not take you for a ride. Also I've been to other places to get my car serviced and this has got to be one of the cleanest establishments I've come across. Maybe not a huge deal but it counts to feel comfortable somewhere and not smell like oil when you leave.

I called 4 places checking on prices and fees and checked the yelp reviews. I found a place $20 cheaper but all the fees were extra and I decided, based on the yelp reviews, to choose this station. One of my best ever choices. These people are amazing. First, my hood latch was broken and it looked like I'd have to leave without the test when the person servicing my car announced that as they weren't busy, would I mind if he tried (carefully) to open the hood manually? What? Someone actually stepping up to do something outside of their routine. 5 stars to this place. AND, I passed the smog AND, they honored the coupon I read about but couldn't find. And Bob really nice :) But so is the OTHER GUY. Take your care HERE.

Went in today and met the famous Bob you all are talking about and he could not have been nicer. This place is clean, well organized, quick service and made smogging a car as painless as possible. I would definitely recommend and return to this business.

Brought my car in on a Saturday just after noon. I was in and out in less than 20 minutes, and the guy at the counter was extremely nice. When I paid, I told him that I had seen the coupon online but didn't have a home printer to print it out. He told me that was no problem and took the $10 off anyway! I've tried to do similar things elsewhere, and their attitude was always, well, sucks for you. This dude was awesome. They're also conveniently located about 3 minutes from the AAA office in Santa Monica (where I needed to get my CA registration taken care of).

I'm pretty surprised at the number of low-star reviews from people who were angry that they were charged for failing the test, "even though the tech knew" the car would fail. You're already online. Go over to the California Smog Check FAQ website (address is ON the paperwork mailed to you telling you to get your car smogged in the first place!) and read for yourself all the reasons you will fail. This includes a check engine light, plumes of black or white smoke flowing out of your tailpipe and nutty after-market equipment installed without the proper EO documentation. The techs are *required by the state* to run the entire test in a particular order - this means the "check engine" light is checked LAST. YOU WILL FAIL if the check engine light is on. Don't blame the tech because you brought in a car doomed to fail and then had to pay for your ignorance. In any event, I took my car to this location on a Friday at 5 PM. I was out the door again at 5:20. I looked online and found a $15 off coupon. This is handy, because the cost for my 1994 car would've been $75. This isn't the cheapest place for Test Only smog checks, but I have been to the $40 places and ended up spending more with their additional charges for transmitting the certificate and what have you. Bob explained the (passing) results to me and suggested that I have the car looked at by my mechanic. Even though the car passed, he thought I could be getting better gas mileage if the mechanic saw the results and made some changes. Since the Test Only center can't diagnose your specific problem, I was glad for the information.

i was a bit skeptical cause of the 2 star reviews but i have to say i was very pleased with the entire experience i just had for my smog check. i came in on a saturday right before they closed so there was already a line of cars ahead of me. the man was very upfront about how much it costs and that it will probably be a 45min wait. i sat there and before i knew it, they were moving my car to get tested and i was out of there within 15 mins! the man was very friendly and walked me through my paperwork. only downside is the price ($65 since i couldn't print the coupon) but i will gladly go back considering its a clean, friendly, speedy place to get your car checked out.

Bob, you did it! You won me over too. I walk in and there's a bunch of people sitting around. Bob kindly greets me and informs me there's a 45min wait. I'm in no rush, so I take a seat with everyone else in the waiting room. Then I realize there's another Westside gem just a stone's throw West. The Daily Pint is a beer lover's haven or heaven, depending on your religious convictions. So, after a pint of a British ESP, of which the name escapes me & was fantastic, I go back to see Bob. Bob went over all the details and told me my car passed! He also digitally submitted my info to the DMV and I was on my way. Bob, if you're reading this right now... I'll see you next time for sure!