My Cal Poly 2nd year student had his car break down on campus and Complete Automotive came recommended by other parents. Brian allowed us to have the car towed there and handled the diagnosis and fees with professionalism and understanding that I'm 300 miles away and my son is busy studying. The car ultimately was taken away as the engine seized up, but I would highly recommend taking your car here, especially if you are a Cal Poly family! They will take care of you! read more

Everything went well! Brian provided amazing service and the cost was reasonable. I plan to return for future services.

Having been coming to Complete Automotive for over 2 years and have nothing but positive to say about the service help and value that I have received to keep my 2015 Jeep Wrangler running great at 118k miles. Thank you greatly for the kindness and the honesty of what needs to be done and what can wait. Windey read more

I've been to many shops trying to find the best care for my 4Runner. Brian and the Complete Automotive team provide the best service I've ever had. They are very transparent with problems and cost, realistic on what is necessary vs. what can wait (specifically regarding safety concerns), and provide top of the line communication and results. This is THE best shop in the area. Highly recommend read more

I called Complete Automotive, hoping they would pickup on a Saturday to fix my daughter's electric window on the Prius. It was especially pressing because it was a rainy day and we are miles away while our daughter is at college. The owner answered and fixed our window without actually charging us for a new motor and while at it recommended to fix our brakes at a reasonable price. Thank you for a great experience Brian ! We would definitely come back ! read more

Awesome automotive repair shop. Very quick and professional. They went over and above my expectations. Thank you for your great service!

Brian has always taken care of me and have been going to him for years! When I heard he opened his own shop, Complete Automotive, I followed of course! The only mechanic shop I will go to! read more

I highly recommend this auto company. They have helped me many times to get my car repaired or maintained. They are very experienced and take the time to get the job done right. Their shuttle service is so helpful if you need a ride to or from the shop. I hope they will be here for a long time! read more

Brian Archer, our service manager at Smith Volvo and Wrona's Auto repair for years. He has opened his own shop and we could not be more pleased. Old fashion San Luis customer service. read more

Sorry for this long review, but I want to include all of the facts. If you'd rather skip my diatribe, here's the bottom line: Don't have your work done here if you can help it. At the very least, ask what they charge for performing diagnostic testing and confirm that they will not charge for that if you have your work done there. This rating is not so much about the work performed (as it's only been a few days and so far everything is running fine.) Rather, this rating is based on business practices and unnecessary charges. I was visiting family in Grover Beach when my van started overheating on Sunday 09/17/23 as I started to head back home to San Diego. I searched on Yelp for a mechanic and found these great reviews for Complete Automotive. Without hesitation, I scheduled an appt. online. Received an email from John recommending I have my car towed in, which I did through my insurance policy. He also recommended not coming into the shop as it would take awhile to diagnose the problem. Shortly after my van arrived at the shop, I received a text message with an estimate of $197. to perform a chemical block test which I approved. Let me add that it was slimy business to wait until my van was already towed there to inform me of this cost. An hour or so later I received a breakdown of the work that needed to be performed and it was quite expensive as you can see from the attached invoice. When I requested that he not charge for the diagnosis since I was having the work done at his shop (as this has always been customary when I've had work done at every other auto shop) he stated that the diagnostic work was considered labor and it's standard practice to get paid for that as well. We haggled and he finally stated he would only charge 50% of the diagnostic fee. When I came to pick up the van on 09/19, there was a customer waiting at the counter while John was computing the cost for what sounded like a radiator leak. As John broke down the cost, he stated that he WOULDN'T CHARGE for the CHEMICAL BLOCK TEST if the repairs were performed at Complete Automotive. When I got to the counter I said, "Well I hope you won't charge me for that test since you were willing to do his for free." He then realized I was the customer with the van (he hadn't seen me up to this point) and he said, "we spoke about this yesterday and I told you I would only charge you half." I reminded him that he wasn't going to charge the other customer AT ALL! John said, well that was only if he was going to have the repairs done here. And I said , I had my repairs done here to the hefty tune of $1600! To the others who have raved about how solid and trustworthy John is...WTF!? Politeness while being screwed over is the worst. In closing, should John respond to this with some lame excuse, hey John, give me back the $97.50 you charged for the diagnosis. PS. My mechanic at Smart Auto Repair in San Diego, would have only charged me $1,100 for the same job. Unfortunately I was 300 miles from home when this issue arose so I was at the mercy of a mechanic that I had no history with and the only way to know if they were honest was to trust the reviews on Yelp. read more

Complete Automotive - Invoice - Auto Repair Near Me - San Luis Obispo, California

My son is a student at Cal Poly. He needed his car serviced asap. I researched mechanics and called up Complete Automotive SLO and spoke with Z. She assured me her mechanics were all certified because it is important for our car's warranty to still be effective. She sent me a quote by the end of the day which explained everything with the cost included which I could accept or reject. They were able to work on my son's vehicle two days later which worked with his schedule. My son was very happy with their professionalism, courtesy, turn around time and quality of work. This was his first experience with having to be responsible for caring for his car and Complete Automotive left a positive impression on him. I was pleased with their up to date communication, follow up and how easy it was to work with them. My son and I definitely recommend Complete Automotive and we'll definitely use them again in the future. read more

I was there today to get my car 'smogged', perhaps a little sus about all the 5-star reviews. I have to add my own 5-stars to this. Frankly, this unassuming shop in the middle of Tank Farm Road blew my doors off. John was at the front desk and was kind, courteous and right on the money when he said (even tho I missed my morning appointment) "your car will be ready in 20 minutes". I'm coming back now that I know about this place. read more

We live in Northern California and our daughter goes to school in San Luis Obispo. She had notified us she had some unusual noises coming from the front of her car. We don't really know anyone in the area so I used Yelp to pick Complete Automotive. I received a call from Bryan who apprised me of the issues with the car and a couple of other items we were able to defer. He was very honest, straightforward and professional. They rotated the tires for no extra charge and completed the repair. I would highly recommend this shop! read more

Driving down on vacation from Reno and the car went haywire. Called in and John answered and from the get go we were at ease. Fearing a vacation debilitating cost we were so pleased when it was fixed in 30 minutes and charged so fairly. Could not have been happier with the service and the team. Hopefully will never have to visit them again but if we do we know we are in great hands and a reliable team. Thank you for making our visit with you so pleasurable. read more

Took my car into Complete Automotive to fix my windshield fluid not dispensing, and had a very positive experience. The price was spot on with my budget, and they had great and knowledgeable staff. I even was able to get a ride back to town while I waited for my car to be worked on. Will definitely be back. read more

These guys are the best around. When I was in a pinch, they fit me in last minute and provided invaluable details on a pre-purchase inspection. Their reporting is useful and intuitive - showing photos, providing commentary, and listing how immediate the issue is. Thanks to Jason, Cole, & Tyler, I knew exactly what was going on with the vehicle prior to making a decision. Thank god I did, because she was a complete dog! read more

I don't even remember the first time I went to Complete Automotive. Obviously I had some sort of car issue. I needed an oil change. Something needed attention. I do remember that I sort of dart boarded it. No deep research or anything like that. I just needed what they did and went there. Luckily, it worked out. I ended up taking my Wife's car there too. My kids now have their own cars. They go there as well. So do their friends. Yeah, it's been that long. The kids have grown. Time has passed. We still go there. Why? Well, we've all been to repair places where you're pretty unsure about what they tell you has to be done for your car. There are a couple in San Luis Obispo that I can think of pretty quickly that I would think twice about. Complete Automotive though, always reliable. Always trustworthy. That's a big deal. At an auto place they have to be believable. It's a complete must. Now I've been on juries where the Attorney makes his case and looks around on the sly to see which gullible types on the panel are actually buying his line of bilge. You've seen that too. Kind of a look out of the side of the eye, just a glance, to see who's taking the bait. Auto places do that too. Don't think that they don't. All businesses do that. Next time somebody offers you an extended warranty on something watch for the covert glance to see if you're a dummy or not. You don't get that from John. It's just cool, honest and straightforward. Complete Automotive isn't right in the center of town. He's smack dab in the middle of the auto ghetto on Tank Farm. He has to be sought out. No smarmy advertising on your local TV station with dogs jumping around and snappy jingles. Nothing like that. Just what you need. Highly recommended. We've been going there for years. Maybe you should too. Check it out. read more

See all

Brought my 2018 Lexus ES350 to them after the dealer said my car needed a new water pump and Toyota/Lexus water pumps were on a nationwide back order. John was super helpful and found the correct water pump for my car. Customer service here is excellent and I'm happy with the work they completed. I highly recommend Complete Automotive. read more

I called Jason to help my daughter out on the West coast. He was very professional, understood my concerns & took great care of my daughters car Excellent service, good pricing & quick turn around time. Great job by Complete Automotive read more

Great service, great people, I've trusted Complete Auto with my car repairs for years now, and they have always been trustworthy and professional. Doug Pittam read more

I got the dreaded call from my Cal poly student that his car was dead and needed to be towed to a shop for repair. Living hundreds of miles away I took a leap of faith and found complete automotive which is close to campus. The owner, Gino, answered the phone immediately and was able to arrange for the car to be towed to his shop. Within a few hours, I received a phone call with a diagnosis and estimate. Instead of the high price I expected to pay, Gino found the problem and fixed it for a fraction of the cost. He also found some other corroded parts which he replaced at cost without charging for labor. He suggested an oil change and also did a brake inspection. It was such a relief to deal with an honest, kind, compassionate, mechanic when your college student is far from home. My son is telling me that the car has never run better. For any Cal poly student, or parent, if your car needs a repair I would call Gino right away. I'm very particular and fussy and he exceeded my expectations beyond belief. I wouldn't hesitate to call Gino for any of your car repair concerns. How refreshing to have an honest mechanic. He will do very well. read more

I took my kids on a trip to Avila Beach and lo and behold, the day after arrival a warning light came on in my car telling me to "Check Charging System." I didn't think much of it because I had never seen that warning before, and I suspected a battery issue. We went about our day, minimally driving, and the warning disappeared once but then came back. I called AAA, only for the guy to come and tell me that it wasn't a battery issue but the alternator and that he couldn't tell me with any degree of certainty how much farther I could drive the car before it died. I was getting nervous because we had to leave our Airbnb and drive home, so I didn't have any planned place to stay if the car died. The next morning I called Complete Automotive right when it opened and spoke to Jason on the phone. I mentioned I needed an alternator and if they had the part and could install it the same day. He said they should be able to have a part delivered and that the work could be completed the same day. I asked him if he thought I should be able to drive to the shop, and similar to the AAA guy, he was hesitant, but he said that as long as the car started normally and nothing was flickering I should be able to make it, so I decided to take my chances. With some renewed confidence, I cleared out of the Airbnb asap and drove the kids over. It was one of the most anxiety-inducing 7 miles ever. Upon getting to the shop just before 9, I met Jason and he texted me the estimate for the work while another guy verified the alternator was the issue. He was a very friendly and pleasant person to talk to and definitely put me at ease about getting the car fixed. He said the part was ordered and would come sometime around 10:30-11 and that they might be able to get it done before noon. I made the kids hike over to the local Starbucks and around 10:30, as we were walking back to check on the status, I got a text saying the part came early and they'd be done in 10 minutes. Sweet! The experience was definitely straightforward and efficient, and I have no complaints. He even told me that they checked out the car and suggested some other part I should replace when I got home. It's too bad they are so far away or I'd put these guys on speed dial! read more

I came here to post about the exceptional service I received at Complete Automotive, and I see that I already gave a 5-star review two years ago. Well nothing has changed in those two years except that I have gained even more respect for John and his crew. This time I brought in my daughter's Chevy Volt for a strange rattling noise. John spent hours on the car, which was obvious, because he ended up knowing that car inside and out. In the end, he couldn't solve the rattle and didn't charge me. It was completely unexpected that he wouldn't charge for his time. John is a good human being and a master of his trade. We are fortunate to have his services here in SLO. read more

This shop is so honest, trustworthy, and reasonably priced. We're so lucky to have such awesome mechanics in SLO.

We were camping in the area and planning to use our van as our tent when the starter went out. I asked for quotes on Yelp and John replied first thing the next morning with a quote and a morning time slot to complete the job so we could have the van back to sleep in that night. John was super helpful, and got it done quickly for the quoted price. It was a stressful situation to be far from home with a car that needed to be towed and repaired quickly and Complete Automotive helped us to get it done and back to being in vacation mode very quickly. We are so grateful! read more

My daughter's car broke down on a trip and I called then to see if they could take it. They were not able to take my car but gave me a referal to another autoshop. Not many will do that. It speaks volumes to their values and customer service. I would call them again in an instant. read more

I have had three interactions with John, the owner. He is always extremely responsive, via phone or text. Quotes for work are provided in writing prior to work. John recently spent an hour talking with me and going over an estimate of work that needed to be done on my Infiniti Qx60 ...... plus the pros/cons of maintenance on my car versus getting into a new vehicle. I feel that he is fair, transparent and honest. Definitely someone I feel safe bringing my vehicle to for long term maintenance and upkeep. Thank you John for your time and sharing your uncompensated expertise! read more

I went in here as a girl who knows nothing about cars, that had no clue what was causing a leak in her car aka. as a very easy target for an upscale. Complete Automotive fixed the problem in under an hour for a fair price--saving me from a lot of damage with an upcoming storm. I have been scammed by other mechanics in the slo area-- and I was terrified this would be a similar situation. After this honest service I will only come here and will recommend it to all my friends. read more

We had a breakdown on a long road trip, and pulled into SLO for the night, hoping to get the car looked at in the morning. We called, explained the situation, and they had us come in first thing. They explained that they hoped to get to it before noon. I called an Uber to go back to the hotel, and they said "you might want to cancel that". They'd identified the problem in minutes (a disconnected crankcase air hose) and fixed it. I was happy to pay their minimum fee, well worth it to have someone professional look at it and get us back on the road so quickly. read more

I know why Complete Automotive has five star reviews. I just took my Nissan in to them because it was hesitating going uphill. They gave me an estimate of $190. to check it out. They sent a text saying that they had tried it on hills and in stop and go traffic and weren't able to duplicate what I described. They assured me it was safe to drive--and then told me there would be NO CHARGE! They charge for results! All this was done in a timely manner. The office looks clean and organized and the man who helped me was friendly and polite. Highly recommend. read more

My 2007 Lexus GX470 had it's sunroof fail in the open position... not a good thing for the major rain issue in January and february 2023... I took it in to John and jason, they were honest and very straight-forward with the options. The "Get it totally functional" was over $4k and not a good idea for a GX with over 165000 miles on it. We decided to just get it closed and, best they could, water tight. Although they couldn't guarantee being able to get it done, but they wanted to give it a try....... "Fast forward"... they got it closed and water tight, and it was done within 1 hour of shop time. A great solution and I'm very satified with their work and honesty. Tks guys..... you had me at "I think we can get it done correctly for you"... and they did. Highly recommended over the local Toyota dealership. read more

Great staff. Low time wait and they did everything they said they would. What more could you ask for?

I like working with John Rowe (owner) at Complete Automotive. I'm a car guy and I hate going to dealers and large service operations - you never get to speak with the mechanic. At Compete Auto I can have a great conversation about the problem and the service options. I learn something every time. John's a good communicator so there aren't any surprises when I get the bill. read more

Amazing! That is all I can say about John and his staff. I was on a roadtrip from SF to LA and had my alternator go out. It was about 3:30 on a Friday afternoon and when I called John about replacing it.....his response was "no problem, get here by 4pm and we will have you back on the road by 5pm"! Sure enough I was on the road by 5pm! Can't speak highly enough about Complete Automotive. Thanks John! read more

Our son's 2017 Toyota Highlander Hybrid with 37k miles on it started running very rough. It was out of warranty. We took it to Complete Auto because of their experience with Toyotas. They diagnosed the issue quickly. I like the fact that they were very thorough in their diagnosis. They removed the spark plug and looked in the cylinder to discover raw fuel. They switched the ignition coil to a different cylinder to verify it was the ignition coil. Then they replaced the faulty one. Up and running smoothly again. Excellent workmanship. Decent price. We will be using them again. Hopefully not too soon tho... (Tina's husband wrote the review.) Thank you John !! read more

Great service, went above and beyond to fix my problem on a 99 Ford Ranger, which other repair shops wouldn't touch, because of it's age. Thank you, will recommend you to anyone I know. read more

I Highly recommend this Automotive shop. The service was outstanding. I live in Southern California and have 2 college students living up here. John took excellent care of our needs from and Oil change , tire recommendations and all other services . All staff members have excellent knowledge on any type of car.. My college students know they can count on Great service and honest consultation . John also told us to just give them a call on any auto needs or questions they have. read more

I could not have been happier with John/Complete Automotive. I came in because I had brake & A/C issues with my 2014 mustang and desperately needed the car for the weekend. I was able to contact John on Thursday and my car was all ready to go by Friday afternoon. I've had bad experiences in the past where auto shops try to take advantage of me because I'm relatively young and know absolutely nothing about car maintenance but Complete Automotive was the exact opposite. They were able to tell me exactly what they were doing with my car, ended up providing me with a final bill that was FAR less than the original estimate, and completed the job in a timely manner. Complete Automotive is definitely going to be my auto shop of choice from now on and I'd recommend it to everyone I know. An Honest & Kind Auto Shop read more

Excellent service! I brought my 1st Gen Tacoma in to repair the drivers door handle and get an oil change. I appreciate that I could get both done at the same place. John and his team work efficiently and I was out of there quickly. I'll be back again for future services. read more

I took my car in to get looked at because it was leaking oil. The personnel at complete automotive recommended I take the vehicle to a registered Mazda dealership to help save money because the warranty covered some of the repairs. They didn't charge me any money for diagnosing the vehicle. They were very helpful and kind, and gave great advice when trying to get my car fixed. I would come here again! read more