Fantastic shop !! The entire staff was amazing and experienced in my car. David was on top of my repair, keeping me informed, and definitely helped me fix the problem and didn't break the bank doing the job the right way and the first time !! read more

German Import Service - Auto Repair Near Me - Simi Valley, California

Always five star service when I bring my BMW in. Absolutely love the honesty and trustworthiness of this family!

Avoid this place at all costs! They will rub from you with a smile on their face. Insane that they charge you quadruple what the dealer will charge you! You cannot any dirtier than these people! read more

Family owned business that provides excellent work on your German car. I take my older BMW and I am always provided with great customer service, reasonable cost for repairs and a thorough explanation of how to prevent future engine problems. Highly recommend Sam and his great care for your automobile. Best German Auto Repair shop in Simi! read more

If you have a german car that needs casual servicing or a major repair, especially if it's a vintage look no further. I have been coming here to service my 1980's Benz's for the better part of 2 years now and the entire staff has always treated me like family. I've always come to them for simple repairs and complex repairs. Whether it's replacing suspension components, just an oil change or complete air conditioning overalls, they can do it all. Never going anywhere else! read more

If you have a German car, take it to Gino and Sam at German Import Service. They are by far the #1 most honest car shop I have ever been to and set the standard for car service in our area. When we moved here, we did our price research about some major repairs on my Volkswagen and my wife's BMW X3. The total cost of the repairs was daunting, nearly $3,000. By working with Gino and Sam and explaining our situation, not only were they able to help prioritize the order of repairs on our vehicle, they generously discounted their labor rate. This is the only shop I have ever been to where the mechanic walks out with a smile, holding a greasy part and physically shows you the cracks in a belt that has gone bad. These people have no interest in scamming you, they have no need to do it - they rely on honest customers that keep coming back and they continue to do honest service. If you're reading this, don't hesitate. Just bring your car here, they'll treat you right. I have never left a review this positive on Yelp, this is the only place I've been to recently that I felt like truly deserved it. read more

We live in SF bay area, and our son's car broke down in Simi Valley, cause unknown. Our mechanic at Walnut Creek's M Service recommended German Import Services. Sam at GIS connected us with RC Towing which brought car to Gino and Sam's shop. Diagnosis was failed fuel pump. Replacement with original parts cost $660, with relay thrown in for free. They let car stay for several days, while I found way to get to Simi and return car. Overall, I was satisfied with their service, and highly recommend their consideration of stranded car service. read more

Friendly staff and I appreciated Sam's knowledge of working with Classic Mercedes models. He took the time to explain mechanical things to me and I felt confident in his estimate. Work was done correctly and on time. read more

I have been a loyal customer for over fours with this family owned business. They've been extremely honest with me about necessary repairs and very fair with pricing (I know because I shopped their prices). Everything is clearly explained, repairs are prioritized. I've NEVER had any issues with any of the repair work they've done. My car is almost 150,000 miles and still runs great, thanks to them! It's very evident they care about the customer by taking the time to give preventative advice that will save you problems and money in the future. I'm proud to support this honest family owned business read more

Called to get a quote for a trans service on my E320. Once I received the quote he hung up so fast I couldn't even book the appointment. Needless to say I did not call back to schedule. German auto specialist will be getting my business from now on. Thank you for making my decision on what shop to bring my car to easy. read more

I believe they're well-intentioned - good people - but they commit & "guarantee" but they don't meet their guarantees. They will give you surprise after surprise after surprise. Not people of their word, for whatever reasons - I just don't get it. Very Disappointed as a business. Sam and Gino - father son owners: I asked Gino to quote a repair of the car to make it PASS Smog test. I also told him water leaks and appears water pump is bad. He checked it and said it was definitely fine. Gino went on to tell me: "I'm not one of those guys that will replace things unnecessarily ... that I'll diagnose the problem then replace parts or do work that fixes the problem." His father 1.5 weeks later, said that the pump was definitely good!? They don't agree on diagnosis after I paid $90 for that diagnosis to determine facts. I feel they feel that dealer charges it so they will charge something to guess the cause of your problem. Gino quoted $90 to diagnose to definitely identify the SMOG test failure cause. He diagnosed as 2 coils and a thermostat for $330 total with diagnostic fees, parts, labor, tax to fix the Smog failure. When I got the bill it turned out to be $510 instead! After these guaranteed repairs it failed SMOG AGAIN in the same way!! Back to Gino he said he will diagnose problem. After diagnosing, he said problem was aftermarket CAT but had no measurements or facts to back it up. Gino said he would not refund $90 diagnostic fee for smog misdiagnosis but he would credit $90 during future repair. On another occasion Sam quoted BMW brakes of $425 TOTAL using ORIGINAL BMW PARTS - he told me 2X. He then charged me $490 when I picked up the car and I confirmed then also that he did NOT use BMW OEM parts! On still another occasion, Sam had a lot of good thoughts, probable repairs needed, discussion, etc. saying he'll check it out and let me know repairs are needed. Then - AFTER he determined what the problem was He called then told me there WAS A $90 DIAGNOSTIC COST - that he didn't tell me about! That is Wrong to do that to customers in California. read more

I needed my Mercedes worked on and didn't want to go to the dealer to get ripped off once again. Not only did I save money, I was shown that some of the work that was supposed to have been done by the dealer, had not been done as the parts that were supposedly replaced were not replaced. The German Import Service also took me last minute the day before Easter and stayed open longer to accommodate my schedule. It is worth the drive from Thousand Oaks to Simi Valley for the honesty, customer service, and most importantly a knowledgeable mechanic. read more

I highly recommend this auto repair shop. Sam is extremely knowledgeable with BMW's. He fixed my car and I am so pleased that I finally found a mechanic I can trust. read more

If you have a German car that needs any repairs go see Sam he is very honest he is an excellent technician he will take care of you as if you were family. read more

Work & price quoted off by $400.00- Work said completed was not-Oil & air filter never changed even though listed as new parts.- read more

What can I say about Sam and Glenda? Just the most genuine and honest people I have ever had the fortune to do business with. My daughter purchased a 1999 VW Beetle and the car had so many issues from years of neglect and horrible service. Sam was recommended to us and boy he is a wonderful mechanic! All work was done correctly and he never recommends work unless it's necessary. My daughter is young and this is her first car, Glenda and Sam have taken her under they're wing and she has a fun beautiful working bug because of them! Thank you for taking care of us! read more

Ripoff, sneaky guy. The guy is all smiles but literally rips your clothes off while you wait for your car. Becareful, he is not honest. I had a simple vacuum leak that required a vacuum check valve replaced(10$ part) but insisted in charging an arm and a leg. I have an elderly friend who recommended him to me and I will be talking to her to let her know what her mechanic did. I drove all the way from Northridge to this guys shop and all I can say is that he rips people off read more

Where do I start? When they blew up my motor or when they charged me for parts it appears they didn't install? I went in a couple of times with no issue. Sam was a nice guy and did some work on my X5 that was a little complicated. Prices were a little high, but he had all the right equipment. Then when a service engine light went on, he got in over his head. What was a semi expensive $1400 job became a ridiculously expensive $4500 job. When he finally got back to putting the engine back together, weeks later, the timing chain tensioner collapsed during a test run, and there went my engine. FIrst he told me his insurance would take care of it, then he came back several weeks later telling me the insurance didn't cover it. Needless to say, he would rebuild the broken parts for the $4500 I owed, or sell me an engine swap for $6000. It was real ugly deal, but I had him do the swap since who knows what else was wrong with the motor. After that, he was never quite as friendly. I moved out of the area in August and was having trouble with another car with a air spring and a service engine light. I needed to get it fixed fast as I was moving and need to take the car up north. I took it to them, and $1400 later, they said they fixed it. By San Luis Obispo, the SES light came back on. 4 months later, the other air spring in the back went bad (Not his fault). I took it to a mechanic up north. He asked if I really had the oher air spring replaced. I showed him my G.I.S. invoice and his opinion was that the first air spring the German Import Svc charged me for as well as to analyze and replace was never replaced. Its too much hassle to go back and too difficult to prove, but I should have been twice shy and not gone back. Unfortunately, they are the only BMW service place I knew in the area, but it may be worth it just to have your car towed someplace in Thousand Oaks or the Valley instead. read more

I have brought my BMW X3 in twice this year, and I have to say they provide an excellent customer services as well as providing and explaining the details to me. They not only helped fix my sparks plugs, thermostat, ignition coils, they fixed my broken AC for free! He handled everything from the start, and gave me a very good deal. They do everything the same like BMW services, but with a much cheaper price. Sam, the owner, and his son, Gino, both know how to handle businesses really well.With all that said, I highly recommend German Import Service - their consideration, patience, excellent customer service, and attitude. read more

Poor quality work and service. Shady mechanic. Huge disappointment.

I never received a quote or a write-up for the services because I had gotten consistent quotes from other shops and wasn't worried about the price so that is admittedly my fault and a lesson learned. However, the owner claimed he gave me a quote over the phone, but neither me nor my girlfriend that was present the whole time and listened to the call on speakerphone can recall him ever mentioning prices. He charged me for 6 hours of labor for replacing a water pump when every other shop including two dealerships quoted me about 3-4 hours for the job. I was also promised my car back next day which he was unable to do so I had to Uber to and from work. He treats customers like they know nothing about cars and changes his story based on what was convenient for him every time I talked to him and would say, "Bullshit I never said that". He told me that my car was cutting a lot of torque because I had issues with my clutch and fly wheel and there was "codes to prove it" but he lost the photo so now I don't know what was wrong with my car if anything at all. However, the real problem, which I had to go and fix myself was that he managed to knock loose my vacuum line for the wastegate actuator so instead of my turbo making extra power for my car it was dumping exhaust past the turbine because the wastegate was wide open. He denied any responsibility for it because "the water pump has nothing to do with the turbos so I didn't have to touch the turbos." even though the water pump is directly next to the turbo that had a problem after he worked on the car. So I guess it just knocked itself loose while the car was in his care according to him and his daughter who kept interjecting into our conversation. Only redeeming quality of this shop is that after I talked to them for 40 minutes they gave me $50 back so I would leave them alone and stop having "buyers remorse". Would not recommend this shop to anyone. Take your car down the street to German Auto Specialist or literally anywhere else. read more