I never write reviews but Michael was exceptional so I wanted to write about my experience here! Very thorough and kind he saved me from purchasing a bad car after the PPI showed lots of issues I couldn't see from test driving it. No pressure to do any services at his shop and very transparent. He even looked up an estimate for the specific issue on the car to give me an idea of the cost of a fix all without pressuring me to have the fix done at his shop. Very professional and 10/10 service. I'll be back when I'm in the area again. read more

Amazing work by Vladimir and Mikhail. Me and my entire family have been coming here for almost 15 years. Great fast service and HONEST people! Definitely RECOMMEND to bring your car for service here. 100% read more

Been going to independence for years. These guys are great. They do reliable work at reasonable prices. No upsell. They even suggested on a recent repair I take it to dealer as might be covered under warranty If you want a place that washes your car or that has a nice waiting room with coffee, this isn't the place. If you want reliable service at a reasonable price, Vladimir and Mikhail are great. read more

I've been taking all my cars here for the past 12 years. Vlad and Michael have always been extremely consistent and transparent with all the services they've ever done for me. They are very professional and the price is solid. Back then with my Subaru Legacy 1995 (had transmission problems) Vlad was very transparent about all the issues and how long the car could last me. He helped save me a lot of money with Honda Accord 1995 and my Acura MDX 2003. Since then they've been servicing my Toyota Prius and Maxda CX5! I drive about 40 minutes to get to them because they're just that awesome and I cannot imagine going to another car service. I absolutely recommend them to anyone looking to service their car. read more

Highly recommended - I have been going to them for the Acura Integra for many years. In fact I believe I was their very first customer ( old-timers' may recall Tesh and before him Jay Johnson ). Would give 'em six stars if I could. /w all regards read more

I bought a used car 2 months ago. First car I've had in California. So I reached out to a bunch of mechanics on Yelp based on reviews and information provided. I chose Independence because they were honest and straight forward with me on the price. They didn't just provide me with a flat price. They gave me a flat price and broke down the details on how much for the part and the cost of labor. To me, it seemed like they were being more honest and not going to screw me over. They were able to get my car part the next morning after they placed the order. And it was fixed within a few hours. They swapped out my cracked headlight. But they also shined my other headlight so they both looked new at no extra cost. They also caught my high beam was burnt out and replaced it. They were honest, friendly, and efficient. I would recommend them to anyone and will be going back next time I need work done. read more

Independence Car Service - Auto Repair Near Me - Mountain View, California

Excellent service, fast and efficient service, polite and courteous staff, reasonable prices.

I have a 2017 Toyota Sienna that developed a problem (likely from El Camino pot holes) with front left struct. It was caught during an inspection and I was quoted a high rate from the dealership to have it fixed. Vladamir and Michael had a look and quoted me a much more reasonable price. This is a very reliable shop with dependable mechanics. A real asset to the Mountain View community. If you have a deal quote that you are gagging on, come get an estimate from Independence Car Service! read more

Professional, friendly, and price transparent (no price increases at the end of appointments). Coming here in the past few years. I appreciate this family owned business, and the effort they place in preserving the family brand. read more

I have been here multiple times for my Honda Accord as well as my Toyota Sienna and every time experience was awesome. Two times, problem was kind of smallish and figuring that was just 15 min quick visit here without appointment, other places it would have required making appointment, leaving car for half day, etc. I also used their service once for parts change, etc and experience was great then as well. I highly recommend this place. read more

Super nice knowledgeable mechanics and no upsell, good advice and quick work! They inspected my vehicle and found out my brakes also needed replacement. They did them at the same time as everything else work was done an hour before promised! So happy!!! car is great and they even reset my oil light! Thanks so much!!! read more

Pretty decent place to get your car serviced. I called around several places that I had looked up on Yelp & Cartalk to find the spot with the most reasonable prices. Honda-Acura Independence was close to my work, got great reviews, had reasonable prices, and also provided loaner cars. Now to put it to the test: I went in for a major maintenance: Got there first thing in the morning, dropped off my car, and got a loaner. Note: Their loaner cars are NOT cars you would use to pick up a first date, but they serve their purpose. I must have gotten a mid 80's Nissan Maxima, but that didn't bother me - as long as it got me from point A to point B, that's perfectly fine. PIcked up my car hours later, everything was A-OK, paid the amount I was quoted, and went on my way. It was overall a pretty straightforward transaction - they did not find any "problems" with my car as other mechanics may find (additional charges). It's been several months since I went, and my car's still running strong (I guess it could still be running strong regardless if I went for my maintenance or not, but it shows my car left the shop in tip top shape). I should have probably also mentioned that I'm a female customer. Service was acceptable - neither friendly or cruddy. Keep in mind that when picking up your car at the end of the day, there may be a wait. When I went back to pick up my car, there were about 3 or 4 other people waiting to pick up their car as well. Vladimir was the only guy behind the counter - if he spends just 5 minutes with each person, that's already at least a 15 minute wait. Overall, I'm a satisfied customer. I'll be back the next time I need auto service. read more

A nice, clean and friendly place. Their prices vary a bit depending on what work you have done, with some very reasonable and some not, in my opinion. So going in a little informed is still a good idea. But in all cases they are more reasonable than doing it at the dealer. My gal Jenny Z swears by them and has been going there for years! The fact that they give you a loaner car for services that are not that time consuming is awfully nice! I would definitely come again. read more

This has become our go-to local mechanic. Recently completed a 7.5k mile service for one car (can't remember price, but it was reasonable) and a 75k mile service on our older MDX for $123. They seem to do good work here, tend to be available for next-day appointments and give thorough explanations of any issues. Drop off and pickup are always slower than I'd like, but not enough to make me look for another shop. read more

Do not go to this car service! On my last revision there they did not put an engine air filter, which means I've been driving for 7 months without an air filter. Due to this my car probably suffered long term damage to the engine. In addition, their attitude was immediately to put the blame on me. Very disappointed and will not return there. I highly advise in finding another service if you want. read more

Mike and Vladamir are great people to work with. I have been bringing my 2012 Honda Civic to them for the last several years and every time I am fully satisfied with their work. Highly recommend! read more

The most honest, straight forward, reasonably priced mechanics I have met.

I have been bringing my ACURA Integra to this shop for more than 15 years now. And always been amazed with the prompt, courteous, high quality service I have received. It's a family run Bussiness by Vladimir and his son Micheal. They provide amazing service and way below dealer prices. They are the first shop I recommend to others. read more

I've been to a lot of shops for different reasons. Sometimes the mechanic is always trying to make the most money and will overcharge or they are just damn expensive. Vladimir & Mike have been helping me here and wow it's a breath of fresh air. They are very honest and genuine people. Like seriously, they are great. I love this place. Recommending whoever I can to come here. read more

Very helpful staff. Mike provided a free diagnosis for my 2002 Honda Odyssey. We thought the minivan was having an issue with retaining charge. He kept it over the weekend and tested it everyday and ensured us all is fine. He provided helpful tips beyond the issue, all free of charge! Would definitely bring my car here again for any future issues. Highly recommended! read more

Excellent On time, Fair quote, and provides recommendations beyond what the job was for Free. Would take my car there. Speciality is Honda, Toyota - so if that is your vehicle - that is their speciality - with well stocked part department. Think a little more than average service station - but less than dealer. read more

Best experience with a body shop EVER - I am not exaggerating! Long story short, my car wouldn't start and I had just replaced the battery, so I figured it was my starter. Luckily, I was able to leave my car at my work lot overnight, since it was already 6pm when I found out (and all of the close-by body shops in DtMV were closed). I sent out a few messages that night via Yelp to get quotes and this place responded within an hour! The next day, I brought my car over to their shop around 9:30am and it was fixed by 3pm. This includes the time it took them to order the part AND fix it. They gave me such a fair price- I had to ask three times if labor was included. Other shops quoted me charged me $200 more than what this place quoted me. Thank you so much for the quick and no-fuss help, Independence Car Service!! Would definitely recommend!! read more

So, my high mileage, past all warranty, '03 Civic needed some major work done. I'm talking over $1,000. I knew it and was expecting a pretty hefty quote. I chose to start with Honda-Acura Service Independence because of the stellar reviews. When I arrive, I talk to Vladimir (I think). I describe the car's issues. His first question was "Why didn't you take it to the dealer?" I remind him of the car's mileage and explain some of my past experiences with dealership service departments. We go for a test drive to confirm the car's issues. After we get back to the shop, he tells me he isn't comfortable with diagnosing the car and I need to take it to Anderson Honda. At this point I'm sure I looked quite exasperated (I was NOT impolite at any point). He said, "Look, take it in, have them diagnose it properly. It will cost you $100 to find out exactly what is wrong." If they recommended any expensive work he said for me to call back and then we could go from there. So that's exactly what I did. I left feeling somewhat dejected and like they couldn't be bothered with me or my injured car. I almost wrote an emo song and turned my bike into a fixie! Anyway, the dealership's quote was, as I suspected it would be, more than double what I was expecting. Like over $3,200. I call Honda-Acura Service Independence back, during business hours. Nobody answers, I leave a message. Nobody ever called me back. Somebody mentioned "Honesty" in a prior review. I don't know if these guys honestly couldn't fix my car, honestly didn't want to take the time to diagnose it's problems (I could understand that), or what. Who knows. Maybe they honestly didn't want my business. Fine. They won't get it. Only reason it's not one star is because dude was polite. read more

Having used this place a few times over several years, my overall impression is an even mix of virtues and vices. On the plus side, they get the basics right by being fundamentally good mechanics. They've always done a fine job replacing fluids, plugs, bearings, and belts. Prices seems about average, i.e. $650 for a Honda timing belt & water pump combo. And contrary to the stereotypical mechanic, these guys lean on the conservative side when it comes to recommending maintenance, i.e. saying to not bother replacing the spark plug wires on my 100,000+ mile Accord. They almost never give an explicit suggestion to have a service done. But sometimes they go too far in that direction. I once came in thinking my Mazda's engine mounts had worn out based on an absurd vibration at certain RPM, clunks when shifting between Reverse and Drive, and another mechanic's diagnosis. Head honcho Vladimir would have none of it, declaring after a 30-second test drive that my car's too old or I'm too sensitive. I've owned enough cars to know it definitely isn't normal, and later that day I got an opinion from a third mechanic confirming that the mounts really are shot. Yet Vlad, convinced that his diagnosis is the word of God, just got dismissive and snappy, declining to elaborate or help explain other possible causes. What I did get was a declaration that he would never do the work (not that I'd asked) and a scolding to go take my car to the dealer. A more recent incident also makes me question their skills. I came in after raising my car using the wrong jack point (oops), which 1. threw off the alignment and 2. created a springy/creaky noise when going over speedbumps. They performed an alignment, which solved nothing, forcing me to come back a second time (how hard can an alignment be?). As for the noise, they inspected things visually and couldn't see anything wrong. So I took Vlad on a test drive, and despite hearing the noise with his own ears, he simply said "it's normal" and "I don't believe you that it wasn't there before", even though it's so obviously abnormal, was definitely NOT there before, and was so easily traceable to a recent incident! Finally, more than one of my encounters mirrored those of the reviewers who mentioned having to sit around for 15 minutes before they acknowledge your presence, then another 15 before looking at your car. I don't regret the services I've had done here, but I'm thinking their courtesy and competence could use a tune-up. PS - When you buy an alignment here, you're only actually getting half an alignment. Their machine is only capable of adjusting toe, not camber or caster. read more

I've always wanted to write a review for this place since I've been here about 3 times for my 2000 Acura TL -- I guess I just wanted to see if their incredible service and trustworthiness is actually consistent. And after 3 visits, I can say with absolute certainty that it is. Vladimir is honestly the only car repair shop owner I've ever met who actually has a heart of gold. He's always patient, upfront, and transparent whenever he talks to you about your car's issues (and believe me, my car had a crapload of issues). I've met him three times but I would trust him with my life. The best part is that he doesn't try to scam you out of your money. Every time I went to any other auto repair shops for a single problem, they always come back to me telling me that there's 5 other problems that NEED to be fixed IMMEDIATELY -- which turns a $50 repair job into a $500 job. At Honda-Acura Independence, however, Vladimir always lays it out on the table and says: "Ok we fixed your issue. You may consider fixing this other stuff, but honestly, it's not that important right now so you could wait a year." Most recently, I needed a tire alignment done for my Acura TL, and so I called around to get quotes. Every place I called quoted me at $100-200 for an alignment job. Vladimir quoted me at $60, and charged me only $60. Now that's a honest man who isn't trying to squeeze as much money out of me as he can. A couple years ago, I had an issue with my transmission, so I brought it in for him to look at. He took about 30 minutes running diagnostics on my car and test driving it, only to give me an inside tip that I could get a new transmission for free from the dealership because there was some lawsuit with Acura TL owners having faulty transmissions. That tip saved me $5,000. The greatest thing, though, was that he didn't even charge me at all for the 30 minutes I took out of his day and that awesome tip. ZERO CHARGE. I felt so bad that I had to give him a $20 bill just as a thank you -- he didn't accept. I think he knew that by not accepting that $20, he just made a loyal customer for life. He was right. If you're a Honda or Acura owner, this is the ONLY auto repair shop you'll ever need. read more

Some will say, "Show me an honest car mechanic and I'll show you flying monkey." Enter Vladimir. Driving around the other day, my engine started to knock and the check engine light fires on. I bring it into Vladimer, he runs some diagnostics, finds that the idle control value is busted, replaces, and I'm on my way. Driving around the next day, same problem. Engine starts to knock and check engine light fires on. WTF. I hand the car back to Vladimir. Couple days later, I get a call from Vladimir notifying me that he wants to rule out any possible problems with the ECU and wants to bring my car into the dealership for further diagnostics. No problem. Few more days later, I receive a call from Vladimir notifying my car is fixed and everything is running great. Superb. When I went to pick up my car, Vladimir felt so bad for my troubles that he refused to charge me. That's right, don't even wurry 'bout it! Serious? It's on the house? Now there's no way I can take money from a honest, hard working man, so finally Vladimir agreed to charge me for some of the dealership bill. Simply amazing. So now where's my flying monkey? read more

Unlike most 5-star restaurants, nothing here blew me away, but in a field with so many horror stories, the solid and well-priced experience I had at Honda-Acura Service Independence was enough to merit 5-stars from me. I came here with a shaky steering wheel. They quickly identified the problem was with my front tires. They recommended the lower priced tires based on my driving habits and gave an honest recommendation that my rear tires could go a couple thousand more miles, though I decided to get them replaced too. They gave a very reasonable price and finished on time and on-quote. And the new tires and balancing totally fixed the problem. That's about all you can ask for from a mechanic and more than I often expect. read more

Been taking our cars here for 13 years. Every once in awhile I try someplace else -- I always come back. They're very honest and cheaper than the other shops. Vladimir will lay out the options and make recommendations about what needs to be repaired immediately, what can wait for awhile, etc. You get to make the choices -- he doesn't arm twist you. Note that this is a garage, not a dealership. There's no waiting room, just a couple of chairs and a stack of magazines. The loaner cars are real beaters, not nice dealership loaner cars. So if you care about nice ambiance and getting an espresso while your car gets repaired and hand washed, this place isn't that kind of place. But you'll never find better or more honest mechanics. read more

I'm joining the choir to say that Vlad is the BEST! I started coming here years ago, after the dealer I had been going to said I needed thousands of dollars in repairs. I brought my car to Vlad to get another opinion and estimate, and found out I only needed to replace a hose that would cost a couple hundred dollars. Since then, I've had many other similar experiences with him over more than a decade. He is honest, straightforward, only fixes what needs to be fixed, and will always tell you what needs to happen soon or what you can wait to do later. I haven't ever had a single problem with any work that has been done by his shop, both on a car that was 19 years old and on another car that is 9 years old. Plus, Vlad and his son, Mike, are genuinely kind people. I love being able to support a family business owned by friendly people who do quality work. Thanks, Vlad and Mike! read more

I took my crap, beat-up car here years ago after finding Vladmir via Yelp and I never looked back. The first time I called, he told me I could swing by any time between working hours (8am-6pm). When I explained to him I could only drop off the car during lunchtime and needed to get a back to work, he offered me the loaner car for the rest of the day. Another time the loaner wasn't available and one of the mechanics shoo'ed me into a van and shuttled me to work (granted, I'm only a few exits away but still it was great service). I've called around to get quotes on various services and the ones that Vladmir gives me are by far the most reasonable and I always feel that he does a thorough and stellar job. Once, he called to let me know that he noticed my vehicle was due for an oil change and asked if I needed him to take my car across the street from his shop to have it done. My last t interaction with Honda-Acura Service was regarding the need to have a windshield replaced and they told me while they can do the work, they'd be acting as the middle-man given they don't typically fix windshields. They gave me the number of the company they work with to have such work done and suggested I call the windshield folks since I would get a better deal if I went straight to the source. The best experience I've ever had with any mechanic that wasn't a friend of a friend or some distant, slightly ornery relative. I didn't think I'd ever meet a hardworking, honest mechanic. At this rate, I should start playing lotto or begin believing in unicorns. read more

This is a family owned business, and the owner, Volodya and his son, Misha, really care about doing a good job and actually helping their customers. Most of the clientele is Russian and they can be the toughest customers (I can vouch for it being one myself:)), so this is a good sign. The service was fast and they gave us correct time estimates for the service duration. Not only Volodya gave us a thorough check and oil change for $32 but also he did not charge us original $50 for checking our power window mechanism, which was totally unexpected! We have a much better idea of what we need to fix in our car, and we are definitely coming back there for future check-ups! Spasibo vam, Independence Car Service! By the way, it is best to make an appointment early in the morning (8am), since by 10 am, you will see a continuous stream of customers. read more

This review is sir the customer service. OUTSTANDING. I could not speak highly enough of their honesty and willingness to help he customer. I went in with an airbag light on. They checked the code FOR FREE! And when it turned out to be an item hat would be covered under the car warranty, they TOLD ME! I appreciate they did not take the opportunity to draw me in I having them repair. What I can say is when I DO need a repair I will be back. Their honesty pays dividends and my recommendation to my friends. Thanks Michael for taking he time to explain and HELP! read more

Brought a car to Independence auto for prepurchase inspection. The cost was only $40. They accepted me as a walk-in. These guys were "very thorough" and professional. I was very impressed and I would trust them again. They know what they are doing. read more

I brought my car here once recently from a recommendation by a friend and I was not disappointed. They were professional, courteous, and they even told me that I could wait a little longer on my oil changes because I have synthetic oil--something that the people at Anderson Honda never told me and probably would never have told me...honesty is such a hard thing to find in the car business... Being that it's my first time there, it's hard to give it 5 stars, but if i see the trend of friendly service and helpful advice along with all the other stuff mentioned above, i'll definitely be upgrading them to a full 5 stars in the near future. Happy Driving! read more

I brought my car in for problems with the brakes. Vladimir and his team had initially installed a part that turned out to be defective; (not their fault.) I brought the car back and they replaced the part with a factory upgrade at no charge for the price point difference. Vladamir told me to drive the car for a week and pay him for the labor ONLY if I thought the braking was better. It has only been a day and the brakes feel good. I will drive it for a week and I see how it goes. He even showed me the factory box that the brand new part came in. These guys are honest, hardworking, and know their stuff! I would definitely recommend Honda-Acura Service Independence to anyone with a Honda or Acura in need of repair or service. read more

Super friendly and helpful guys. Got my car battery changed here a year ago and apparently it must've been a bad battery because it failed me. However, they changed the battery free of charge under their warranty and even gave me a loaner car to drive myself back to work while I waited. Big fan. read more

*Note: review is for customer service, have not had a repair here yet. I have to compliment the honesty of this place. Michael is such a nice guy, read a code on our jalopy for free and told us that the honda dealership should take care of it under warranty. Had a noise in the brakes, he took the time to do a quick test drive and told us we had plenty of life left on the pads and it was good. He spent at least 20 min on our car and didn't charge us a penny. It's not often you come across an honest car shop, we will definitely be back for future repairs (I only hope there won't be any!). read more

In the past, I've had pretty good success at Independence Car Service, but my most recent experience has me searching for a new vendor. One of our (very old) cars was having trouble keeping a charge in the battery (which had been replaced and tested multiple times)- I brought it in right before the holidays to see if there was a short in the electrical. I was NOT told when i dropped the car off that the only person (??) who could do that sort of thing was away for over a week. So, the car sat. When the one technician who could do this sort of testing returned, he took the better part of another week to bother hunting for the short. I was told that they ID'd ONE source of a power drain that would partially alleviate the problem-- if the car weren't to sit for more than a few days at a time it would be OK. When my wife went to pick the vehicle up, she was told that, really, the car would have to be driven, and a decent amount, every day to assure an adequate charge-- so, no improvement at all. They tried to charge her for the privilege of doing nothing to the car, changing their story on us, and keeping our car for 7x as long as they estimated. The owner essentially called me a liar when I repeated back our conversation from a few days earlier. Finding a short in a car is pretty straightforward if you have the right very basic equipment. It took the local Acura dealer an hour to diagnose the problem-dealer said the source was pretty obvious and easily dealt with. Cost was nominal and the car has had zero issues since-- in fact it started last night easily after sitting at the airport for a week! If Independence had just done me the courtesy of saying UP FRONT that they were either incapable or uninterested in doing this work, fine. But they yanked us around for 2 weeks, called me a liar, and, in the end, weren't capable of performing what turned out to be a very simple repair. read more

Inspected my Mustang here before buying it and serviced it ever since then - the team did a great job each time. They're proffesional, helpful, honest and reliable - I highly recommend them! read more

My "maintenance required" light came on in my 2005 honda accord , but I had had trouble with my O2 sensor so I took it in just to make sure the sensor wasn't acting up again. One of the guys there took a look and asked some thoughtful questions and determined that it was just my oil light popping up because the oil changer place I went to didn't reset it. They didn't charge a penny for this, and even looked up what service I needed done when I get to 105k miles when I asked. They said I didn't need anything other than spark plugs and didn't try to push anything else on me. They seem like very trustworthy people and I plan on going back when it's time to change my spark plugs! read more