I am lucky to have met Gibson back in 2008 when he was down the street from his current shop. Gibson is a true professional and takes excellent care of his customers. There is no car he can't work on. Once you take your car to him, you won't need to take it anywhere else! read more

Gibson is a great mechanic! Honest and fair on his price! Highly recommended! Thank you!

I really like this place. Honest, timely, and took time to explain the service and repairs. Definitely a go-to place. Just don't tell too many people. read more

WHY I WENT HERE: - on my way to work, the "Brake Lamp Bulb Fault" indicator went off in my car - because it gets darker quicker this time of year (and nobody got time for a fix-it ticket) I looked up car mechanics that do electrical work nearby my office; Yelp took me to this establishment THE LOOK (FROM THE OUTSIDE): - located off of 7th Ave and Railroad Ave - there are two entrances (one on 7th Ave and one on S Railroad Ave) that confused me, so I opted to park along the "metered parking" on S Railroad Ave CUSTOMER SERVICE: - I called around 9AM (Yelp states business hours start at 8AM) but there was no answer and I didn't leave a voicemail - 30 minutes later I was pleasantly surprised to see that the business had called me back; the exchange was courteous and professional as I asked to make sure they would be able to service a brake lamp replacement (and even provided the make and model of my vehicle) and I was quoted a $20 repair and to come in whenever I was free to do so - after parking I walked into the establishment and instantly the worker who approached me knew who I was and why I was there - he serviced my car in its parking spot and kept his promise about the quoted service price (the invoice should have been a little over $24, but he charged me only $20) read more

Automotive City - Storage Charges and Labor Rate - Auto Repair Near Me - San Mateo, California

During a recent Bay Area visit, my car broke down while driving along 280. While waiting for AAA to arrive, I scoured Yelp hoping to find a shop that might be open on a Saturday and was competent, affordable, and most importantly, trustworthy. It's such a vulnerable feeling to be stuck on the side of the freeway, uncertain of what fixes are ahead and wondering if the mechanic will take advantage of a traveler who is stuck and completely reliant on their repairs. As soon as the AAA tow truck dropped me in front of Automotive City, I knew I had made the right decision. Gibson instantly put me at ease. Even though my car was an unexpected addition to his Saturday afternoon, he made my car a priority and was able to diagnose and order parts by the end of his work day. Gibson updated me along the way and communicated well. By the time I picked up my working car on Monday, it affirmed that he really did meet all the qualities I hoped to find: a mechanic who is competent, affordable, and absolutely trustworthy. What a relief! I felt safe and prepared for my 300+ mile drive home and have already recommended Automotive City to Bay Area friends. read more

There has been a string of catalytic converter thefts in Foster City/San Mateo (especially for prius). As an extra security precaution, I ordered a "cat shield" from Cat Security to help prevent my catalytic converter from being stolen. Gibson was able to take my car in the morning and have the shield installed about an hour later. He was extremely professional and offered me the best quote for the installation in the area. read more

Automotive City - Car shield (cat security) installed on a Prius - Auto Repair Near Me - San Mateo, California

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On July 1, i found this coupon. I called and made an appointment. I showed up on July 12 and told that they don't honor the coupon. They meant to take the coupon off but haven't done so. They then quoted me $68.99 plus tax for the oil change...a classic bait and switch. Stay away from this business. They are all about your money. read more

Automotive City - coupon - Auto Repair Near Me - San Mateo, California

Update time: Decided to add more cars so Gibson of course always is the go to guy. Oil needed changing and thankfully he checks everything. The front brakes were due. Now! I would have busted the rotors if I went any longer. He did just finish my 2008 Acura TSX as well and I just drove it to Los Angeles. Drove like a champ. If you need anything done, he's your guy. I wouldn't hesitate recommending him to anyone. read more

Took my 2017 Mazda6 here after I had random instances of my car not responding to acceleration. Putnam Mazda gave me a $1000 service quote for spark plug replacement + fuel intake system cleaning without even opening the hood. Gibson at Automotive City drove the car, took a look under the hood and said he didn't find any obvious issues. Since the issue happened randomly, he just asked me to bring it in the next time it does happen. For now, he just did an oil change + tire rotation and charged a very reasonable price. He was straightforward throughout and answered all my questions patiently. I don't know if my acceleration issues are solved, but at least Gibson was honest about what he found and what he could do. Will be coming back! read more

Brought my 2016 Prius to Automotive City for the first time to install the MillerCat shield. Gibson walked me through how he would install it, got it done within an hour as promised. The best part is he actually left the car on the lift so I can see the final installation and take pictures read more

Automotive City - Catalytic converter shield - Auto Repair Near Me - San Mateo, California

Gibson 11/18/2019 I have known Gibson for over 10 years and have assisted him by holding flashlight and tools when I am just visiting the shop. You see I am retired and live nearby. I consider myself a handy person knowledgeable around cars. But my days of tinkering is over and I would much rather have the pro do it. Gibson has always amazed me when I watch him work. The knowledge and care he puts on his work is truly remarkable. The details and care he takes when he disassembles the car and the same detail and care when he puts them back together. He makes sure things are put back the way it was or should be. My 2001 Audi A6, 2.7T was leaking coolant. After a thorough inspection, Gibson determined it was the water pump. But the water pump is located in the middle of the engine and would need to disassemble a lot of parts to get to it. Pretty much the same process when timing belt are replaced. One thing about Gibson is he does not skimp on parts. He would rather replace a critical parts around the problem area rather than keeping an old one that may break and cause the same damage ie: water pump, tensioner, belts, old plastic housing. I totally agree with this principle because I would rather have him replace this old piece of plastic housing, for example, than have it break a few months later. There is minimal cost on labor now than if it this $50 plastic housing should break later. read more

They've been pretty helpful on three of my cars. (Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla and Benz GLA250) Friendly price with great service! read more

Automotive City - They have been really helpful on three of my cars. Decent price with great service! - Auto Repair Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Yay Gibson. So why do I keep coming to automotive city.....simple; it's because of Gibson. Last time I was at the dealership to have my Prius serviced for a flat tire, I was told by the dealer (who will go unnamed) that my car with only 50K miles on it needed to have the CV joint replaced at a cost of $1200. Of course I told them to hold off on that work order. I went to Gibson and asked him to do a comprehensive checkup on the car as part of my next oil change and he came back and told me the CV joint was fine. Saved me from wasting $1200. I've been going to Gibson for almost 15 years and will continue to do so! Thank You Gibson! read more

If you are looking for a mechanic, Gibson is honest and skilled of them all the mechanics I've seen in the area. Gibson is such a find - he's responsive, knowledgeable and so easy to work with. Needed an oil change and he was done within 30 mins. He even recommended I use a thicker grade oil because the car had over 200K miles and didn't charge more for it. It's never a good feeling to have something go wrong with your car but, with Gibson and ABC Automotive, a fix is always fast, thorough and affordable. read more

So far so perfect. Fast , informative, painless service. I brought in my Subaru cross trek. For an oil change. In and out. Also tire pressures checked, and even topped off of windshield washer fluid. Excellent service, come here. read more

Fantastic , speedy, transparent service. I went to him during lunch for and oil change and break light repair. Gibson is an trustworthy mechanic that complete my oil change and break light repair in a timely fashion. He also inspected my entire vehicle. Thank you. I'm back and they're efficient, trustworthy, and upfront with costs. Thank you again! read more

I will not bring my car to anyone else. Quality work and very reasonable prices. When you drive your car out of there you know the job is done right. Gibson is the bomb. read more

GIBSON IS THE MASTER!!! I totally see why Gibson has such a high score. His pricing is super competitive, the service was above and beyond, and he's overall an honest, knowledgeable, and helpful mechanic that specializes in all European cars. I've been using him for over 10 years now! He's been able to work on my car same day called and has always been flexible with his schedule. Gibson's super informative, not pushy on making you get more service than actually needed, and he's fixed minor items for both my Porsche 911 and BMW 550i M-Sport gratis at times. It's nice having a trustworthy 'above and beyond' mechanic especially for European cars where when taken to another place (or gosh forbid a dealer post-warranty) they can sometimes overcharge you for every little thing. Thanks Gibson, I appreciate all the great work on my and my friend's cars! -Jason V. read more

When it comes to car matters that are quite technical for most customers, it's really difficult to tell whether your repair guy is helping you or helping themselves. They could tell you that you need to change this and that (which will cost you a fortune), or else your car may break down some time down the road or you could wait and risk this chance. At that point, you're thinking should I just pay it just buy a peace of mind or forget it because he's just upselling me. On the other hand, Automotive City is different than all the other auto repair shops I have been to. Gibson is a straight forward and honest guy who really focuses on solving your car problem. I live in SF and drive 30 min to San Mateo every time something's wrong with my car. I can rely on him about my car, and it's really nice to finally found someone who you can trust in fixing your car with a reasonable cost. read more

Automotive City Is my go to repair shop. The first time I called when I needed a last minute tune up, Gibson answered the phone very professionally and told me that I can bring my car right then. Yay. The shop location is convenient for me and my family as we frequent the taqueria on the corner. By the time we had finished our burritos, I received a phone call from Gibson letting me know that my car is ready to pick up. He is knowledgeable, reasonable and efficient.! Thank you Gibson and happy birthday. read more

I have known Gibson since 2008. His work is top notch, he is quick and his prices are fair. I recommend him and his services to everyone

Gibson is such a find - he's responsive, knowledgeable and so easy to work with. It's never a good feeling to have something go wrong with your car but, with Gibson and ABC Automotive, a fix is always fast, thorough and affordable. read more

Got an oil change here that only took about half an hour. They didn't pressure me to do anything else to my car, which I really appreciated. Usually mechanics see me and think "Oh look a dumb female, let's try to rip her off!" Not Gibson. I love honest people! read more

Changed brake pads and routers on my BMW 330i- Gibson did a great job at a reasonable price and is genuinely a nice guy. Took a look at other things wrong with my car, suggested changes but didn't push anything to make the sale. First I called in to get an assessment of the place and price quote, and then on a Saturday afternoon swung by to have it looked at in person. I liked him, the place, and the price was right so I made an appointment to come back and have the parts by then. Gibson is an expert and I would highly recommend his work and this shop to anyone looking for great, fast, reasonably priced service. read more

If you are looking for a mechanic, Gibson is the most honest and skilled of them all. My Mercedes had an issue with the air conditioning and Gibson diagnosed it to be a freon leak or issue with the compressor. He said that refilling the freon would be $152 while a new compressor would cost over $1k. He told us he had to refill the freon in order to determine whether or not the compressor was working and would do it free of charge if the AC still did not work after the freon refill. Thankfully, Gibson was able to fix it with the freon refill! He diagnosed my car and got the job done in approximately one hour. TLDR Gibson is very transparent, honest, and overall a pleasant person to do business with. read more

This is my first ever review on yelp because i thought it was worth it. So i thought my Clutch master cylinder went out on my 2008 Civic Si. After bringing it to 2 different shops, i finally found Gibson at Automotive City. Gibson is an older vietnamese mechanic who KNOWS his shit! ( Even works on Subarus). After leaving my car for the day, he found out that it wasn't the CMC or slave cylinder, but the pedal bracket had snapped; therefore not pushing the CMC all the way down ( which engages the clutch). He ordered the part in one day and had it ready the next say around noon. When i asked if costs would be around $1000, he laughs and said, " i'll do it for under $500 my friend." The inside of the shop is very clean, organized, and in a great location. I highly recommend seeing Gibson, and this is from a person who has his engine/car highly modified, baby's their car, and races. read more

I was thoroughly impressed by Gibson, who I have had the pleasure of meeting once about a month ago (and hopefully not too often if all goes well with my car!!) He was one of the only people available on a Saturday morning to inspect my soon-to-be Porsche before I decided to buy it, and was super accommodating and friendly. He seems to have quite a following, and I can see why! Not only was the inspection thorough but it was also very prompt. Gibson gave me a very detailed and honest assessment of the car, and I felt that he was very trustworthy (not something I say lightly!) Everyone working in his shop that day was really friendly, and being a young female I didn't feel like I wasn't being taken seriously like I(unfortunately) often do in situations like this. Also, as a AAA member, I love that he is AAA certified! I will definitely be bringing my car back to Gibson for maintenance and god forbid, any repairs. I also feel comfortable and confident that if I have any questions about my car Gibson will be the best person to ask, not to mention the friendliest! read more

It is no surprise that this place has a perfect score. I can't say enough good things about this place. You will not find a more honest mechanic around. As a women it's invaluable to find a mechanic that you can trust. Gibson, as I know him, is a trustworthy, no bullshit guy. I have a 15 year old car with almost 200k miles on it and he keeps it running like it's brand new. I love this place. Hands down the best mechanic in the Bay Area. read more

Gibson is amazing!!! He was incredibly helpful. Very communicative, honest, & knowledgeable. He assessed my car for free, fixed my broken down car quickly and even fixed a few other little things free of charge. His prices were very competitive with other local automotive shops and his schedule is flexible. He's a winner. read more

Gibson's been taking great care of my car for 6 years now - since I was living in San Francisco to now that I'm living in Cupertino. He's honest and super responsive! He's very skilled an knowledgeable. We're aiming to hit 300K :) I highly recommend him! :) read more

Automotive City - Going on to 300K! - Auto Repair Near Me - San Mateo, California

My first yelp review, but decided to do it because that's how I found this place, and I had a good experience. My car broke down on the way home from work on the San Mateo Bridge, Westbound. After using yelp reviews, calling a couple places to see who works on Subarus, and finding out Gibson doesn't charge a diagnosis fee (which helped me save money in the end), I brought my car here. Unfortunately, my timing belt had snapped and the whole engine needed repair - Gibson told me frankly that this would not be worth it for a 1999 Subaru, but gave me my options on how I might get it fixed in order to decide what to do. He graciously offered to keep the car on the street outside his place for me and look after the car while I decided what to do. He monitored two hour street cleaning and moved the car around for me for a few days. I decided I didn't have the money to get it fixed, so I arranged for it to be donated. Gibson let me keep the car there until the tow truck was able to come get it, and he even handled the transaction for me while I was at work, giving them the keys and title and making copies of all the paperwork for me. I lost my car which was unfortunate, but Gibson gave me the time, knowledge, and helped me make a decision on what to do when I was in trouble. And he did not charge me a dime. So the least I could do is write him a good review and hopefully it will help people find him like I did. read more

This is a long overdue review. All I can say is he is the best. I moved away from San Mateo and will go out of my way to make sure I can see Gibson for repairs. He has saved my car and me multiple times, like the time my alternator gave out, and he has a kind, responsive approach with customers. I'm so grateful I found this shop, and I hope you can count yourself lucky to work with Gibson too. read more

I refilled air into all my tires one night for the first time and everything was fine until my tire pressure light came on. I tried pressing reset on my own (knowing my tires were still great--no leakage) but the light still wouldn't turn off. Seeing all the great reviews, I brought my car to Gibson's shop to take a look and he easily reset the system for me. BUT the next day, the pressure light comes on AGAIN! First thing I did in the morning was drive back to Gibson. He recommended I go to Wheel Works to get the system checked. Did so, with the result of 3 broken tire sensors and quoted me quite the hefty price that I was not expecting to drop that morning. I returned to Gibson's shop with the results and he recommended I get all 4 replaced because--might as well right?--one will eventually break and it will save the trouble of fixing just that one piece. He set me up with a great price for the service and hastily replaced all 4 parts in 2 hours! He also checked for any other issues and everything was still in great condition. As everyone has commented before, he's great to work with (Felt that fatherly figure advising what was the best decision to do, etc). Transparent recommendations, amazing service! Will be returning for all my future car needs! Many thanks to the wizard Gibson!! read more

Gibson and crew continue to impress us. He checked out a used vehicle for me, then did some work that was needed on the car after I bought it. I probably saved about $700 or more in labor costs, plus he helped me avoid another $700 to fix a leak which he believes is not worth the money at this point. It's so rare to find such an honest and capable person. What a great shop! read more

Great Customer Service and Great Job. Gibson was so pleasant to work with:) He quoted me a great rate: I shopped around! And he did a great job on my truck in a timely manner--really fast and there were no issues! When I showed up, he showed me the old destroyed parts: this showed me honesty and integrity on his part. Shop's services come with a warranty, and would bring my truck back if I had to. Truck's Problem: Per WheelWorks: needed a new Thermostat Housing Unit and Coolant Tank--car was overheating. read more

Mr. Gibson is an excellent mechanic, honest, experienced and fairly priced. He has worked on my family's cars (different manufacturers, models from standard to entry-level luxury), and we trust that his work is good and that his recommendations are trustworthy and warranted. The shop seems busy and popular when I have stopped by, yet he is accurate in his time estimates. He is also very good for a pre-sale car inspection. I give him my highest recommendation! Support this hard-working and superior local business! read more

This is my regular oil change spot. Gibson is great. Your car just blew a charger fuse? Gibson will toss you one. You just hit 3 inch snow bank in Tahoe and your Prius with it's low base and now your bumper is loose? A new one is hundreds of dollars, but you could just ask Gibson to jerry-rig it back. In all my trips back to this guy, the only thing I can really fault him for is changing my oil one time (about 500-1000 miles too early) when he replaced my brakes. He probably thought it was a nice gesture, but I technically would have saved 5-10 dollars had I waited it out. Anyways, this guy is in it for the long haul, repeat customers, and building good customer relationships. Are all his reviews on yelp 5 stars? read more

Gibson is honestly my favorite mechanic I've ever been to. He's friendly, helpful, respectful and trustworthy. He made time to check my car out right before closing, and when it turns out it needed work, had it ready the next day. I really appreciated his communication, both when I dropped it off in hearing what was going on, and in letting me know about the work he did. Highly recommend! read more

I would like to start out by saying I've known Gibson for a few years. I've always brought my cars to him because I know I can trust that he is going to look after me which he always has. I highly recommend his services. read more

My husband also wrote a review, but I just had an experience that reminded me why I love working with Gibson. All the other reviews are spot on. It's not an accident most of them are 5 stars. He's really that good. Here is two scenarios that illustrate the difference: [Different Auto Shop Experience] I was driving through the east bay on the Friday afternoon of Labor Day weekend when my check engine light came on and my car started violently shaking. I drove it to the closest auto shop and spoke with the guy there, telling him I live in San Mateo but is there any way they can tell me what's wrong with the car and that I would pay whatever they needed to fix it right away. They were kind enough the check and make sure it was safe to drive back to San Mateo. The guy at this different auto shop said I needed to take it in right away though, and they wouldn't help me on the Friday afternoon of Labor Day weekend (reasonable). "This car is pretty old too, who knows what other issues we'll find." (Ever heard this before getting charged an arm and a leg?) [WHY I GO TO GIBSON] I called Gibson on the road and told him what was going on. He told me to bring the car by and he would take care of it. Finished it same day because "I want you to be able to have your car for the weekend." No dickering about this thing you should probably fix or that thing you should probably fix, or 5 years from now you'll need to do this so you should probably do it now. No. Just fixed the car, charged a more than reasonable rate and said, "Car is doing great it's just old, bring it back if there's any more trouble. read more