These people are awesome! Best price in town, great service, and fast! I got my clutch replaced on my 02 subaru impreza wrx and they had it done fast and had the best price around, trust me I called everyone. Thanks guys, you're the best :) read more

I have had a Subaru Impreza and a Subaru Forester, and I will always bring it to Rick's and trust everything they recommend and do. Honest, knowledgeable, reliable, and friendly! read more

Rick is the man when it comes to Subaru. I have been going to Rick's Auto for over 15 years and have always been happy with the service I have received. Friendly knowledgeable staff who are there to serve your Subaru repair needs. read more

These guys are terrific. Honest, hard working, inexpensive and friendly. Thanks, Rick. Thanks, Brandon.

Rick and Brandon are the absolute best!!! If you own a Subaru in Santa Cruz you probably already go to Rick's, but if you don't you should start. I can't say enough good things about these guys, they quick, honest to a fault, know how to fix everything involving Subaru's, and will charge you literally 1/4 the price of the dealer. Shelly is great too and always friendly! I have called Rick even when I'm out of town and having car troubles, he has talked me through solutions and even evaluated the pricing of other mechanics for me! Their shop in Santa Cruz is small - but don't let that fool you - you can drop your car off in the morning, Rick will check over everything, take it to the tire shop for you to have tires rotated, and have it ready for you in a matter of hours. There is a nice coffee shop down the street too if you want to wait. Overall, I wouldn't trust anyone other than Rick and Brandon to touch my Subaru! read more

I love Rick's. My Subaru overheated and I took it to a nearby mechanic. He put in a new radiator for $290 and told me my head gasket was blown and the repair would be $1600. I took the car to Rick's who said the test he did came back negative twice - it was just a cheapo thermostat - total repair cost? $117.35. If I put in 'good gas' every third tank to keep the engine happy my car will be fine . I dropped it off on a Thursday and was told he was backed up and might not be able to get to it for a week. The next day I got a call and the car was done. Did I mention that I love Rick's? read more

Ok Ricks Subaru is the best Mecahanic i have ever had my cousin is a liscenced mechanic and i went with them just bought a 95 impreza got the timing belt water pump and seals with a cash discount 10% is awesome and on top of it my a/c wasnt working so he fixed it for free these guys are the best and i will be back whenever i need any work done really cheap and great customer service very friendly read more

Rick's subaru is by far the most honest repair shop in Santa Cruz! Super friendly.... Shelly is GREAT at notifying you of the progress on your repair, and Rick has no problem explaining the issue and repair to your Subaru. I'm a decent shady tree mechanic... I also know when to leave it to the Pro's. THIS SHOP IS IT! read more

If I could give zero stars I would. I thought I was taking my car to a trustworthy shop but Rick is not a good mechanic. Bought my Subaru in August of last year and it has been in his shop three times. This last time they told me it was the transmission and to find a transmission mechanic. I did so, had it towed over an order a transmission. When the new mechanic got it on the lift it was very Obvious it was the Axel Boot! I called Ricks an they said If indeed it was the transmission they would pay the restocking fee. When I called today to confirm it was Their story changed and they put all the blame on me and the transmission mechanic. Don't trust this shady shop read more

I have a 2004 subaru impreza, and brought it in based on a stranger's recommendation. Not only were they super friendly, they let me know exactly what I needed, and when I might need the service for safety at a decent price. read more

My car started making a scary sound all of the sudden. I had my friends kids in the car and we were on our way to pick up my daughter. So I slowly and carefully drove a couple blocks to the mechanic. ( We were in the neighborhood). They were Able to take it for a drive, put it up and look at it, determine the problem, and fix it . All in less than an hour !!!! AND then, he didn't charge me ! I know it depended on the problem and parts needed , but there are people out there who would've taken advantage of the situation and charge a whole bunch just because they can . Thank you ricks auto ! Good people ! read more

Ricky, Branden, and Shelly are the BEST! And the office puppies are a bonus!

I brought my first car here when I was 17 years old. The brakes were making noise and I thought they needed to be replaced, along with a few other repairs. Rick repaired what was needed, and then told me the brakes were fine so he didn't replace them. I am a girl that knows next to nothing about cars, and he could have just replaced my brakes anyway and I would've never known, but Rick is honest and runs his shop with integrity. It was this first encounter that made me a loyal customer and I have now been going to Rick for almost ten years. read more

So glad that this shop exists! Shelly, Rick and Brandon have been great to work with. As a young lady with ZERO mechanical knowledge, I'd be pretty easy to swindle with car repairs. I've been taking my Subarus (a 96 Outback with 300K miles, now a 2006 Tribeca) here for 10+ years and so happy with the work they have done and their kindness and honesty. They've kept my cars running great and helped me understand what I needed to fix and what I didn't. My only wish was that they were open on the weekends (though I am glad they get a break from working!) read more

Reliable and trustworthy. Rick knows his stuff and the whole crew runs a smooth operation here. Clear expectations up front with price and timelines and they do great work. Take your subaru here. You won't regret it. read more

Rick and his crew has worked on all of our Subaru vehicles for decades. They are AWESOME. I would recommend him to any Subaru owner.

If you have a Subaru and live within a 100 mile radius of Santa Cruz, take it here. Shelly, Rick, and Brandon are the best. Honest, super reliable, and fair pricing. 10 stars. read more

Do NOT let them touch your engine! Brought my outback there for an oil leak and they released my car with a dangerous temperature problem, my engine was so hot when I pulled over my coolant boiled for 30 minutes. Brought it back to have the work redone under warranty and guess what? The engine ran entirely out of oil and they are refusing to honor their warranty to help me fix the now totaled engine. read more

This is the best place in SC for Subaru repairs and upkeep. Rick is a great mechanic, honest and reliable. Shelly is really good about keeping you updated on plans and progress of repairs. I will always take my Subie to Rick when I'm home in SC! Thanks for being so great :) read more

A family run mechanic's shop that is very friendly, honest, and priced fairly. I've taken my 2000 Subaru outback to Rick's twice now and it has been such a pleasure interacting with Shelly, Rick, and Brandon. They are class acts and I always feel assured that they are going to fix my car correctly and not rip me off. Knowing that there is such a good Subaru mechanic's shop in Santa Cruz makes me want to keep buying Subarus because its so hard to find this kind of quality of a shop. read more

We went to Rick's at the suggestion of a friend and we are very happy we took their advice. We just acquired a 1995 Subaru SVX that could not pass smog. Rick's analyzed the situation quickly . The SVX has two catalytic converters. One was totally gone and the other still had some life in it, but is on the way out. Rick suggested that we just do the one and see if that was sufficient, thus getting more life out of the other before replacing it. They clarified that, from a repair standpoint, the two systems are essentially independent and so we wouldn't save on repair costs by doing both at once. Another shop might have tried to get us to fix both of them, so we really appreciated that Rick's put our interests first. They did the work quickly, worked with our schedule and were very affordable. read more

Do not bring it to the dealership they will screw you, I saved almost $500 by bringing my car to Rick's, fast friendly & honest service. You added a loyal customer today! read more

We just moved to the area and I am excited to have found a great Subaru repair shop! I took my outback in for new head gaskets. Their quote was reasonable and less than any of the other shops, plus they also included more work and replacement parts (such as the timing belt) for the lower price. They were honest and trustworthy. It only took them a couple of days to finish. They do give a discount if you pay with cash. I will go back there when I need work done. read more

With two Subarus, I wanted an alternative to Subaru of Santa Cruz for automotive service after my warranty and their free oil changes expired (See my review of them for why I wanted an alternative). I checked out the "Best of Santa Cruz" winners and runners up for about the past 5 years and came across Rick's as the winner one year. And the best part - they specialize in Subarus. I've been taking my Subarus to Rick's ever since. They give consistently reasonably priced, high quality, incredibly friendly auto service. When I go there, I feel like I've time warped back to the 50's or been zapped into Pleasantville. Bygone days, small town feel with dog stretched out next to the counter, unmatched friendliness, and all too rare honesty and integrity. Best illustration - one time when I brought my car in for service and inspection, the inspection discovered a service needed that required a part that needed to be ordered. They did the rest of the service and ordered the part for the remaining service item. When I came to pick up my car, I asked them how much do I owe for the service performed so far. They told me to just pay for the whole thing when I bring the car back in for the remaining service. Now where can you find service like that any more? That's what I mean by feeling like I've time warped back to more friendly, honest times. On top of that, service has always been high quality and much cheaper than the dealer. I've called the dealer for a couple of these items like 30,000 mile maintenance and found that their price is almost double what Rick's charged me. Only thing I miss about getting service at the dealer is the shuttle that drove me where I wanted to go while they were servicing my car and picked me up when ready. Like most small, independent auto repair shops, they don't have an "extra employee" they can spare to shuttle customers. But they're on a major bus route that takes me right to downtown Santa Cruz or the Capitola Mall area directly (no transfers). So taking the bus is a small inconvenience compared to all the advantages. Best auto service I've encountered since my younger days! Highly recommended! read more