Been working on my 2008 Carrera forever. Honest. Reliable. The best auto mechanics I've ever worked with. Highest recommendation. And...Lindsey makes the entire experience a joy. Don't hesitate to use this shop read more

I had some bad luck recently when my car had a minor issue right across the street from Kirberg, but I couldn't have been in a better spot. The team there was incredibly friendly, gracious, and helpful. They even went out of their way to get me coolant to keep things stable while I waited for AAA. After a quick battery change, I was back on the road. Their outstanding customer service completely won me over, and I will definitely be bringing my car to Kirberg for all future services! read more

expensive without ability to fix problem. while they were nice, it was not a good experience

Having worked in Belmont for the last few years, I've passed by Kirberg a ton of times and all the Porsche's that end up here made me really curious. When I was finalizing my purchase of my 2014 Cayenne, they were very helpful with understanding what the process for future services to it would be like. The time finally came around after I bought it where I needed something fixed. My AC blew cold but no hot air and with the thought of winter in the back of my mind I immediately thought of them for the repairs my Cayenne needed. Stopping by and coordinating the drop off and repair was so smooth. I had the pleasure of speaking with Lindsey, Ralph, and Brian and they were so great at providing an exceptional experience. Thank you guys!! read more

911 Wasn't passing smog, VVT system self test was being obstinate, brought in and all was addressed in less than 30 minutes. Great service, pricing and quality. Will be moving my regular porsche maintenance here going forward. read more

Kirberg Motors provides exceptional service with honest prices. I've had multiple issues with my Subaru over the years and Brian has always gone above and beyond to solve the problem. From emergencies to general maintenance, Brian has always taken care of me even at the last second before closing the shop. If you're looking for expert motor services at a fair price provided by the best mechanics in the universe then bring your car(s) here. They are hands down the BEST. read more

German specialist for sure, but excellent mechanics in whole. I use to bring my Nissan Xterra to them but now my BMW. I whole heartedly believe they only do work you need. I've never felt like they took advantage of me, even in these hard times. Here is why... My wife had a Volkswagen Passat back in 2012. There was a problem with how it was running and so we did the search for a mechanic as we were new to Belmont. Found a guy on Yelp that had good reviews and took it there. Long story short it was going to cost us $200 plus change he said. For some reassign my BS detector went off and I ended up a Kirberg's. Told him nothing of the other guys quote, and he looked at my car and notice a sensor wire disconnected. Yep, snaps the wire in and charges us nothing. One of the good honest ones! read more

I started coming Kirberg back in 2004 with my 911. I won't take any of my cars to anyone else. Service has always been exceptional. I have referred the team to many of my friends and all of them are just as happy. In the beginning it was many Ralph and Brian. Now its Brian and Richard. The conversations are always great and there isn't anything the team can't fix. Believe me I have brought them a number of strange and complicated problems. Always left satisfied and with a smile on my face. They are the go-to team, stop bye if you have a problem. I promise you won't be disappointed. Thanks for all of the help and support. read more

Brian was exceptionally rude. I had my car towed to his garage. After it arrived, he refused to work on my BMW and said that he would not touch that "thing." He also said he would be surprised if anyone would pay me $200 for my car. The problem was minor. Another mechanic fixed it for $200 and my car is worth about $5,000. Brian could have courteously declined to work on my car but instead he was obnoxious and rude. read more

Thank you to Brian McNeal today for caring for my BMW. Thankful my friend and coworker who recommended Kirberg as my go to place for repairs and maintenance! Quality work and honest prices. I will surely be back for your trusted skills. read more

Brian is going to be my forever go-to BMW mechanic. Super honest, friendly and I trust him. I've had my stints my mechanics who have taken advantage of me (because I am oblivious when it comes to auto mechanics) and I can honestly say that Brian's work has saved me 2, maybe 3 times this year? Thanks Brian! read more

I needed an annual service on my 2008 SLK, so I decided to find someone close to my work. I found them on yelp and had good reviews, so I took my car in. While they were driving to see how it runs, They heard a noise and found out one of the bolts was broken. I did hear noises, but didn't think much of it. So the replaced 2 bolts, did service A. And it was reasonable. In fact it was cheaper than where I used to go. I also have an issue (SRS) and I have asked how much it cost to fix at 2 other places, and they gave me much lower estimate. I will def be going back there for other services. read more

Our Mini Countryman suddenly stopped accelerating and began juddering when it was started up. After an initial phone call, I was able to bring the car into Kirberg first thing on a Monday and it was ready by the end of the day. They were kind enough to squeeze me in (even though they said they were booking out several weeks in advance) and told me they recognized it this is my primary car and I needed to be able to use it. Assessment of the problem, which turned out to be minor and easily resolved, was fast; payment was all electronic and incredibly smooth; and the entire experience was not only painless but actually pleasant. I hope we don't have any issues with the car for a long time, but if we do, we know where we will be bringing it for repair. Thank you so much! read more

Professional, knowledgeable and emphatic. Did a great job for my 645 BMW for 1/20 of the price quoted by BMW shop. read more

Deceptive is an understatement here, more like scam artist. I went in and got a quote fro Ralph for $165 for a diagnostic to see what the problem with my car was that had lost power briefly while driving the day before. Ralph said he would take it through his tests and figure out what the problem was. Next day he calls me and tells me my car is ready and I owe him $530..... I immediately ask what for and he talks for 2 minutes and ends up saying the car was low on oil and they added 4 quarts. I told him I agreed to a diagnostic and he was supposed to let me know the outcome of that before doing anything else. He put up a fight to try and scam me out of $350+ for adding 4 quarts of oil to my car. I told him no way and when he realized I wasn't about to be scammed he backed down immediately. Be careful, he's clearly done this deceptive business practice before and it probably works on most people. read more

Thank You Ralph for the help with the 911! We had a problem with the ignition systems computer and were ready to go get another one from Porsche for $2000. Instead , Ralph recommended that we send it to someone he knew and in less than a week we are up and running again. They also cured the problem with the remote lock out light on the dash!!!! the best part is it was under $500. I can not believe we suffered for so long with this problem when we could have got it fixed so easy through Kirberg motors. read more

You'll get nothing but the best service for your European vehicle at Kirberg Motors. They have plugin diagnostics for most every brand. Mechanics are top tier. Would highly recommend Kirberg to anyone for repairs or maintenance! I've taken my Audi to them for years and have referred friends with Audis. read more

Deceptive business practices. Extremely rude service. Brian lured me in by quoting me one price to replace my battery and then jacked up the price by $100 after I had my car towed there. Really?!? His reason...the part costed a lot more than he expected. Weird because when he put me on hold saying he was going to call around for a price before he quoted me a rate, I thought he was checking the price. Magically when I've paid for a tow, the part costs $100 more?!?! Partly my own fault for letting him know I was short on time and I had to have my car back by a certain time. He called me after we agreed on price and I had already left and told me I could either pay for another tow to take my car elsewhere or pay him the extra $100. With little to no time left and the cost of yet another tow looming, I asked about the price increase and attempted to negotiate on the price increase. That's when Brian lost his cool and literally started yelling at me as if I were his child. To a customer, really? I politely asked him to calm down and we agreed on the work. Paid for the service because of my time constraints and because he already made me tow my car there, but I won't return and suggest you don't either unless your ok with dealing with deceptive and disrespectful people. read more

Ralph Kirberg is indeed a holy man when it comes to caring for your German auto. I wish I had gone to Ralph instead of Bavarian Auto Works, Schulba's, and several other German car specialists for previous, less-than-satisfactory repair stories. Recently the E36 started making a thumpety thumpy sound under the hood, which it hadn't been doing the day before. I also knew it was time for rear brakes and the AC wasn't doin' nothin but starling back at me when I pressed the button. So, I dropped IQ off at the Caltrain and headed over to Kirberg, based on Don's review. Ralph took a quick look, spotted the frayed spot on the serpentine belt, gave me an on-the-spot estimate, and promised to look at everything else. 24 hours later, everything was ship-shape at a better price than other shops quoted for these jobs. He was very honest with me about how to handle a few other items. Ralph even called Avis for me to get a rental, and when I returned to pick up my car, arranged for me to leave the Avis car at Kirberg, took the keys, and like a charm Avis picked up the car from Ralph. No hanky panky on the charges, either. read more

Now that I'm older, I find myself having a team of doctors that I trust. My new doctors are Brian and Richard for our Porsche. They were excellent to work with, have a very clean shop and their billing system is smooth. You know us guys worry about our cars, but worry no more. If your Porsche needs attention, I highly recommend Kirberg Motors. read more

Kirberg is great. I had an old 2001 BMW that Kirberg serviced for years. I took it in right before I wanted to sell it. Ralph was totally honest with me. He said that it needed a complete suspension overhaul and it the suspension was making noise. He advised me to sell it as is and not do the repairs even though he would have made quite a bit if I did the repairs in his shop. To top it off....he didn't charge me to check the car out and give me advice. I couldn't be happier with Kirberg. As a result, I bought another used BMW knowing that I can take it to Kirberg whenever it is acting up. I highly recommend these guys! read more

I haven't used Kirberg Motors for work (yet!), but I was truly impressed when I talked with them on the phone. The dealership had said I needed a $1000 repair, and I wanted another quote. In addition to giving me a lower quote, the mechanic said that I probably didn't need to do the repair at all. (I only need the car for another year or so.) I felt that he cared about being honest and helpful, and that was more important to him than quickly scheduling a $1000 job. UPDATE: I've now used them, in 2018, and they were GREAT! Half the cost of the dealership, spotless work area, quick and competent service. read more

These guys do the job, and do the job well. Dropped in for a Transmission job, bing bang boom, done in a couple hours. Ralph's the man. Since the dealership began to charge an arm and a leg for maintenance and repairs, Kirberg Motors is the place to go. I especially love the fact that they help veterans. read more

I have a 10 year old Jetta and I was getting worried about maintaining it, since I'd like to drive it for another 50K miles. I am vastly relieved to have found Ralph and Kirberg Motors. They are honest, friendly, and very helpful. So far, I've gone for oil changes, a leaking coolant hose, new brakes, and new tires...what I like is that Ralph or his staff will take the time to look under the hood with me, and show me what's wrong, or what preventative measures I should take to ensure that my baby keeps running to 150K miles. For the new tires, I just dropped my car off at Kirberg in the morning and picked it up in the evening...they worked with Wheel Works across El Camino to get the new tires on the car, very convenient! Oil changes can be expensive. I guess if I had a newer car, I'd use Jiffy Lube or some place like it. But with my older car, I want to coddle it and Kirberg is the place for that. Like Ron G., minus one star due to cost of repairs. But I guess the prices are comparable to other shops and this is what you get when you buy a German automobile! Ultimately, I am willing to pay for the peace of mind, knowing that I'm not getting ripped off, and that someone knowledgeable is looking at my car and will catch any problems before they surface while I'm going 75 mph on 101. read more

Kirberg Motors is your friendly neighborhood German auto shop! I've brought my car in for oil changes, tune-ups and new brakes, with turn-around by days end, if not earlier. I recently dropped in to have a headlight replaced. Every time I went over a bump or broke hard, I'd get a "dipped headlight" message along with three annoying beeps and my left head light would blink off and on, winking at other cars. Ralph explained that Xenon headlights are $200 *each* to be replaced, so he wanted to check on the connections rather than having me fork out unneccessary cash. He checked things out, 'exercised the connectors' & explained the issue. He sent me on my way without charging me. So far, so good - no more winking headlights! Yes, the prices can be expensive, but that is par for the course with German cars! I do appreciate that Ralph is mindful of the expense of replacement parts and will check into whether something really needs to be replaced. Kirberg Motors is within walking distance of the Belmont station and the KX line, so you can easily take public transportation after dropping off your car. read more

I bring my 98 VW Jetta here to be coddled. Nice neighborhood car shop with knowledgeable and not pushy people. I like being able to drop off my car in the morning and have it ready by the time I leave work. Being that my vehicle is ten years old, I am doing more preventative maintenance and Kirberg Motors is a trust worthy source for me to rely on. read more

I have gone here a few times and the owner is always very honest, and he knows his BMWs! Compared to a lot of BMW/German car repair in the area, they seem the least greedy. They show you what parts they took off after the fact and they will give you a ride somewhere close if you drop your car off. Great service overall!! I may change this review after I find out how much my next brake job will be:) read more

Ralph was very nice and friendly and informed me what may have gone wrong with my car. I asked him to take a look at it. Later he called me and listed things that were wrong with my car and gave me an estimate. When I picked my car, I paid the exact price and my car seems to be working fine. I have no complaints so far. read more

Kirberg Motors - Auto Repair Near Me - Belmont, California

Reliable. Efficient. Skillful. Friendly. All at a fair price. Who could ask for more

This is THE absolute best repair shop. I have been taking my various BMW convertibles (1995 and 2001 models) here for about 10+ years now. Ralph is always honest and straightforward about what needs to be fixed and what can wait. Yes, they are on the pricey side, but cheaper than the BMW dealer and probably much better. You get what you pay for. I have never been disappointed by Ralph and his crew. Somebody was writing about Brian being Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde..?? I must say I totally disagree. Brian and Ralph are both very competent, helpful, honest and friendly. I now even still go there although I moved to San Francisco. I am not going to risk my little flitzer being messed with by anyone else. read more

I worked with Ralph and the team at Kirberg Motors from 2002 - 2014. They are highly skilled, reliable, professional and friendly. The only reason I stopped working with them is because I moved, and the reason I'm writing this now is because I had a bad experience with the first new shop I went to, and it reminded me of how fortunate it is to have a skilled, reliable, and trustworthy mechanic like Kirberg Motors to work with on a long term relationship basis. Miss working with you guys, and highly recommended! read more

Ralph is always friendly and honest; but recent interactions with other people in his shop have left me cold. Don't appreciate being treated like an idiot (was told another shop was "blowing sunshine up my ass"). I don't know much about cars, but that doesn't make me stupid. read more

BEWARE! I don't do many reviews but I'm compelled to do Kirberg Motor's. Ralph may be nice but Brian is "Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde". They have great reviews in Yelp; but incompetent and charged too high for sloppy work. I chose Kirberg Motors for their great Yelp reviews. I asked them to check the idle on my classic 911 Carrera due to idle problem during cold start. Ralph said, "You'll be very happy when we're finish". After 4 days and $984.00 later, the problem didn't go away but just got worse. They said they didn't know what is causing the idle problem and advised me to warm up the engine before driving and to just live with it. They also told me to replace the dual distributor because of a defect code that came up on their diagnostic machine. BTW, they also ordered and installed a new $500 Airflow Meter (w/out my approval). I was very disappointed on my drive home. But then I started to notice some engine pings and misfire. I called Brian but he just blew me off. At this point, I lost trust and didn't want to go back to Kirberg. So I took it to Modderman, a Porsche Specialist in Mtn.View to have my distributor replaced (per Kirberg's advise). We couldn't believe what we saw after removing the cap and rotor. We discovered the cap and rotors Kirberg installed were badly cracked and damaged into pieces; moreover a pair of distributor wires going to the spark plugs was switched causing the engine misfire. We also found the air filter seal not seated properly. Modderman Porsche was surprised my car even reached his shop in Mtn. View in the state it was in. It was a really sloppy job after further inspection. Finally, Modderman replaced the distributor, installed new cap and rotor (cost $326), and rewired the spark plugs to distributor. Suddenly my classic car wasn't misfiring anymore. I will not do business with Kirberg again. I advise that you don't either if you want to save money and your Porsche running properly. Don't believe all the great reviews Kirberg has in Yelp; nor their phony "Diamond Certified" sticker. Kirberg do not live up to that standard. read more

Probably my worst experience at a car shop. My warranty ran out recently and I was looking for a good shop near my work. Took my car in for a simple job to see if this could be my shop. Man am I glad this wasn't for a big job - the customer service was terrible in person. My experience was with Brian and I would avoid him if you are a new customer. I don't know about the other person(s) working there so I will not make any general conclusions about the shop. read more

we've been long time customers here. my mom and dad bring their cars here, and my sister just got a used volkswagon jetta. so go figure the vw needs some work. but we've been scammed. it started with the heater and defroster needing some repair. he put in a new something something hose, and for the next 3 weeks, we had white powder pouring out of the vents along with a mild odor. great, just what want to be breathing. we were told it was normal and will continue for a while. understandable, but the defroster is still failing. oh well. we'll make due with a towel in the car from now on i guess. but during the repair, in order to reach those heater tubes, mr. mechanic had to remove the stereo. upon receiving the car, we noticed the stereo was sitting on the floor and were told that some of the parts were "glued" in and we'll have to pay for the new pieces to fix it. WHAT? we inspected the pieces he was talking about, but could not figure out where this glue was? but my mother is always so trusting, so swallowed every word. but my sister opted against their work, and had her boyfriend install an aftermarket stereo, so all is well. fastforward to a few days ago, my sister returns to kirberg to get some clip installed in her center arm rest and her emblem for her hubcap. our mother insists she has already paid for the part that was preordered. but to our biggg surprise, the hub cap emblem arrived with a hubcap. not what was ordered, no thanks. and he claims the special arm rest clip was not paid for. what next? my dad confronts them about the glue and radio. and what to they say? ohhhh, well there wasn't any glue, it was just very tightly stuck there, so it broke almost as soon as it was touched. is that a confession? so what's the truth? we'd rather not stick around anymore to find out. read more

My wife and I bought a 2002 VW Bug from a family member a couple of years ago. Cute and quirky little car; we love it. It came up for its first smog check (with us) and to our dismay, we couldn't get the catalytic converter to reset, no matter what we did. Norman of Golden State Smog Center recommended us to Brian McNeal at Kirberg Motors. We dropped off the car with Brian, and before we had even gotten home, we received a phone call that they had found the problem--a mouse had been chewing on a couple of wires in the turbocharger control harness. They were able to repair the damaged wires as opposed to replacing the entire harness. The car passed the smog check and is running great. Excellent courteous service, very fast and reasonable pricing. Now that we know about them, we will use Kirberg again. read more

The manager/owner Ralph absolutely INSULTED me today. I left feeling like he treated me like a child and was extremely rude. I don't know if it's because I'm a woman or what..but honestly, he should not be able to talk to people the way he does. What a horrible experience. read more

Awesome service! They treat you like a family friend with fair prices and explanation of what's needed. Convenient location next to a CalTrain station. read more

Ralph Kirberg is a saint. Not a miracle worker, but a saint. He's the nicest and best mechanic I've ever worked with and he keeps his shop spotless. His dad started the original Kirberg, up in SF, and you can find him hanging out at Ralph's shop every once in awhile. This place is the peninsula's analog to Fred's European Auto up in Marin. Great service and great people. read more

I have taken cars to Ralph for over 10 years now and have always been very happy with the customer service and the quality of work his shop provides. It's never cheap to repair a BMW but these guys do a great job at a reasonable price. what more could you want. read more