I've been back twice since Yoshi sold the business and have been disappointed both times. The first time was a routine service and an oil leak fix which ended up not being fixed, and the second was a transmission repair that I couldn't even get a quote on. I called with the dealer diagnosis and was told they were checking on parts and would get back to me. I then stoped by just before closing to check and there had been no progress, so I left the Service Writer with my number. I have since had the repair completed and still no call back from Ernie. Glad I found another local shop. read more

Asian older had just turned over place to sell, wish I had known took my car! The new owner was rude & messed up my good running car! Had a a tune-up done! My car would shake after! Found out thru a different mechanic that one of the spark plugs was mis firing! read more

Ive been going there for years and the prices have always been reasonable. They don't try to sell you repairs you don't need.

Yoshi at Star-Tune is a godsend. Mechanics are the darn'est things. Either you find a great one and stay with them until you or they depart gods great green earth, or you are stuck in the purgitoy of crappy, expensive, unreliable shady servicemen. OR goto the dealership and pay out the nose. I must have graced the gods last life for Yoshi to cross my path. I have been taking my autos to him for 14 years now. 4 different cars and not one single issue with cost, communication, or consistency. Always an A+ experience. Pro's: -Fast service, usually same day or next -Easy straight forward pricing, tells you prior to work -No hassle on drop off/pick up -Very friendly, family oriented vibe (employee accidentally dropped key in oil so Yoshi put me in his personal truck for the rest of the day until the key was fished out and cleaned up for pickup the next day, wow) Con's: -I live in Monterey and his shop is in Salinas (20 min drive away) -He's not 20 years younger to service my cars forever!!! For all your cars cares, call Yoshi. The city of Salinas Police Department trusts him with their cars, why wouldn't you? read more

Star Tune - Best parking is in rear - Auto Repair Near Me - Salinas, California

Had to get my front brakes done and rotors. I got taken care of efficiently and the price was very reasonable. Super friendly service and I will definitely be coming back. Thank you guys again. read more

These guys are great! I knew that I needed to take the time and find a shop to always go to and I just happened to luck out with these guys since their close to work/home. I thought it would be hard to find an honest shop, but I could sense that these guys were genuine and honest. My rationale was go to first go the most expensive shop that had the least motivation to be honest and save you money - the dealership. I had a very weird problem with my Honda SUV that even the dealership was unsure of, so i got a quote and moved on (they suggested either a detailed inspection to find out whats wrong but "was porbably the tranny, might be time to swap" - for a Honda with 89K miles... Took it to these guys and they went on a test ride and had the same conclusion. Unsure of whats wrong but suggested I dont do anything serious and keep up with the maintenance schedule. I even told them what the dealership told me....so that tells me they had the chance to take me for big $ but opted to not and give me serious advice. Turns out it was the tranny fluid. Honesty and professionalism bought these guys a lifelong customer. They have fair prices and do great work. read more

I had purchased a used car and after only 3 days the check engine light came on... I called Star-Tune Auto Repair in Salinas and was told I could bring the car in for diagnostics the same day. I dropped the car off at Star-Tune at 1:00pm and and by 2:45pm they had diagnosed the problem. The repairs were major (failed turbo charger / failed catalytic converter) and I was told I should take the car back to whoever I purchased it from. I explained that the car was bought as-is with no warranty. The shop insisted I call the dealer and complain until they agree to accept the vehicle back. I thought I didn't have a chance in the world, but to my surprise...... Their advice paid off! Sure, it took some strongly worded threats of fraud, but the dealer agreed to take the car back and refund me my money! If it weren't for Star-Tune, I'd be stuck with a car that I couldn't afford to repair! THANK YOU STAR-TUNE!!! Cost for the diagnostic was only $59.99... Money well spent in my opinion! read more

After reading the reviews on Yelp, I referred my mother who lives in Salinas to this shop to have her PT Cruiser diagnosed and repaired. I am from out of the area and had no idea where to send her that I could trust. On top of her car being broken, she is currently very ill and my sister and I were taking trips down to care for her. Because I do not live in Salinas I was very skeptical about who I would refer my mother too knowing the risks that single women face at some Auto Repair garages with regard to be taken advantage of. My sister brought the car to Star-Tune for my mother. Not only did they accurately diagnose the problem, but fixed it the same day AND delivered it back to my moms house! They did all this at a very fair rate. The perfect auto repair shop! Thank you Star Tune!! read more

After my check engine light came on my 08 VW Jetta I immediately started asking around for auto repair shops. My coworker recommended a place so I initially took my car there. After they did a diagnostic I was told there was nothing they can do since it's an internal issue (whatever that means). My cousin then highly recommended Star-Tune. I took my diagnosis to Mr Yo and his presence was very welcoming. He told me he wouldn't charge me for a diagnostic since I already had one done. I just wanted a second opinion. He was nice enough to drive me to work while he worked on it. He then called me to tell me the same thing, it's an internal issue and he couldn't work on it. So even though he couldn't repair it, I like the fact that he was very honest and didn't charge me another diagnostic fee. I just bought a new car yesterday and if I ever need anything done to it, I'll be sure to take it to Mr Yo. read more

To begin with I want to thank Yoshi for honestly and fairly assisting my son with his truck while he is away from home at college. As a father there is nothing more noble or important than that. As a consumer I want to say I am very happy and pleased to have found Star-Tune in Salinas on Yelp. To get down to business I have a 2002 Ford F-150 SuperCrew with about 98,000 miles. It has had regular maintenance since it was bought and has run perfectly. Of course two weeks after leaving home with the truck it starts to rattle and shake while my son is driving it and the check engine light comes on. I have him take it to the local Ford dealership for an oil and lube and to have them computer check what the check engine light is for. I told him not to leave it there for any other work and to say he needs to check with me first. Ford tells him it is a coil and plug issue and there is a misfire which is causing the problem. Estimated Cost : $1200... I have the paperwork for proof by the way. After finding Star-Tune I called and spoke to Yoshi. He sounded cool and the comments in Yelp were outstanding. So I called my son and had him take the truck there. This morning he dropped the truck off at Star-Tune and just after mid day I received a call from Yoshi who told me he had diagnosed and fixed the coil and plug problem for: $186.00. He said the truck is running great!! Dealership estimate : $1200.00 Star-Tune cost : $186.00. - I will let you do the math and figure out the difference. I must highly recommend Star-Tune for anyone who wants a fair assessment of their car issues and a fair price. I wish Star-Tune was closer to me as I would take my other cars there. I found someone I can trust..how hard is that to do these days! Again, thanks Yoshi, I owe you!! Miguel. read more

This place is awesome! I came here mostly because of the other review about how non-intimidating of a place it is for us single ladies. Totally true. I went in for a 60,000 mile tune up and oil change. They were done in about an hour (I had an appt.), and were very nice and professional. $116 seems very, very reasonable. read more

What a great experience! My car broke down today near salinas, and since I live in San Francisco I had my car towed to the Shell on Main St, after 3 hours of waiting, they smoked over 20 cars and kept telling me I was next, and I should get a hotel. I had my car towed again at 2pm to star tune up, and Ramon and the owner looked at my car right away and found out it is the alternator. They are fixing it now, and I have been here only for an hour, that is GREAT SERVICE!!!!! The also have a few salinas police cars here getting service, I would HIGHLY recommend this shop to anyone who needs a good, fair, honest and friendly shop to get work done. THEY SHOULD BE CALLED 5 STAR TUNE UP! Thanks Ramon!!! read more

I support this business so much! It's so hard to find an HONEST auto business with the bonus of decent pricing. Plus, they are always busy so you know they must be good. Originally started coming here because of word of mouth from a neighbor. My dad has come here for a variety of issues over the years and I've come for brakes and oil changes here and there. For small things like oil changes there doesn't seem to a solid appointment system. It's almost as if they know they can squeeze it in but can't commit to a specific time which can come off unprofessional especially in today's times but I honestly don't mind it because of the quality of work they do. They also not only quoted me the best price for my brakes but also turns out it wasn't as big of a job as we thought so they saved me even more. There have even been some things we needed where they have been honest about it taking awhile to get done because they have so much to do, so it's nice to have the option to pick somewhere else and not have your vehicle held hostage until and unknown date. They also don't really have a waiting area so it's best to just drop off or take a walk to downtown. Sure there are some downsides in terms of personal service but it's 5 stars from me because of the consistent honesty, quality of work and the peace of mind to have a place I can actually trust with my vehicle. read more

This place is as good as it gets. I have taken my car here twice for oil changes and have been happy with the service, price, and ease of getting seen last-minute. This morning I called to see if they could check on a noise my engine was making. They were able to work me in over the lunch hour. I dropped off the car and the owner offered to give me a ride back to the office so I wouldn't have to walk. He called back soon to let me know what they found out and they were able to fix right then for a very fair rate. As a person who does not know much about cars I am always hesitant that I may be taken advantage of at autoshops. I completely trust the owner of this shop. Excellent service. I will continue to take my car here for all of its needs. Always leave impressed! read more

I had been driving my car on borrowed time as I needed to get my timing belt done, however the majority of places that quoted me were very high and I avoided the issue entirely. However, some time later my car did break down, not related to the timing belt, and I decided to just bite the bullet. After getting additional quotes from 6 different places, Star-tune was the most reasonable out of all of them to fix my car problem and replace my timing belt. Getting in and having them fix up my car was one of the easiest experiences that I've had with a auto-repair business. I've found my new regular place to take my car now and I'm quite happy as it's hard to know which Auto-repair places you can trust. read more

5/19/17 UPDATE: Front brakes and serpentine belt fixed! Excellent job! THANKS, YOSHI! So, as I stated in my first review of Star Tune I was not able to get my A/C fixed due to a special Ford part that Yoshi could not order, but he was super great the fist time I visited his shop and VOWED to come back in the future. Thus, after saving up some money, I called him up and explained to him that I needed my brakes replaced and the serpentine belt replaced. He said to come in. I drove in at 10:30 am and by 1:30pm I had my vehicle back up and running. Incidentally, when I drove up his assistant was working on a Salinas Police cruiser so you know the city's police force trusts him to repair their fleet of police cars. Yoshi was very professional and efficient. As I mentioned before, Yoshi is a very TRUSTWORTHY and HONORABLE mechanic! He was very pleasant and even remembered me from such a long time ago which is a testament of his customer service. My van's brakes are working in excellent order and the price was very reasonable. Moreover, I can feel totally confident that Yoshi did a great job with repairing my vehicle and if anything that my come up in the future, I can totally TRUST HIM to take care of repairing my van with a very reasonable price. I tell you all, the peace of mind that comes with Yoshi being your go to mechanic is priceless! You are doing yourself a huge favor by having Yoshi as your mechanic period! Thank you so much Yoshi! Domo arigatou gozaimasu! PS Helpful tip: While you are waiting for your vehicle, walk over to the Starbucks to wait there because it is clean, spacious, and convenient. read more

I'm a pro when it comes to breaking cars. Thankfully, these guys are pros at fixing my mess. Hard to find trustworthy mechanics these days, they're an oasis in a vast desert. Highly recommend their services. They've repaired/replaced: Clutch assembly on my ford ranger Starter on Lexus is300 Timing components on Lexus is300 read more

Great service, highly recommended. Took my car in for a regular check up. Car did not need any major repair, pointed out couple things that needs attention. Did not bring up unnecessary problems that need repair. Very helpful. read more

Honest advice & great service. Yoshi is the man! Highly recommendable. read more

Star Tune - Honest advice & great service. Yoshi is the man! - Auto Repair Near Me - Salinas, California

I have a 2010 Subaru Legacy bought a complete set of Rotors and brakes and a 2009 GMC Acadia bought left and right axle with wheel bearings.Yoshi gave me a fair price on labor for installing the parts that I bought. The work that was done with my 2 cars I was a very satisfied customer. I would definitely recommend this shop to all my friends and family. He will even give you military discount! I don't know any shops that will do that for their customer. MILITARY VETS COME TO THIS SHOP!!! Finally found a car repair shop that's clean, honest and reputable shop around salinas. MILITARY VET- J.GARCIA read more

Great job done by these guys! Had several things worked on in my truck and they were finished much quicker than i thought. read more

I was looking for a local mechanic to do some work on a car I purchased for my sister. I needed the timing belt changed along with the water pump, and seals. I got a quote from the dealership and that was out of the question. I was referred by a coworker about Star Tune. She had good things to say about the shop and the mechanics. The moment I stepped into the shop, I knew she was right. The mechanics were very friendly, efficient, and straight forward about the cost for their services. I will definitely be using Star Tune as my local mechanic for all my cars. I highly recommend them. read more

I was referred to Star Tune by a work colleague who told me they were awsome. I've taken my subaru there three times. The guys are efficient, super nice, straight-forward, inexpensive and most importantly, TRUSTWORTHY. Star Tune is the best. I hope i can continue to reward them with my business. read more

This is my family's mechanic and family friends' mechanic. Yoshi and his crew are very honest and yet VERY affordable. I have switched 4 mechanic shops in Monterey and Pacific Grove. Always had to deal with fraud mechanics who just wants to make money and did not fix the problems. Do not hesitate to go see Yoshi. He is the real deal. read more

Took our '02 Honda Accord here a few weeks ago for a check up and found out one of the cylinders was shot. They tried a Tune-Up and when that didn't work they only charged us for the parts. Today I took my '08 Mazda 3 to get an alignment and they explained to me how that can affect the car (not reall a car guy). Also pointed out my brakes needed replacing, and didn't just say it as an add on, he actually showed me the problem. Always friendly, honest, experienced mechanics. Definitely taking our cars here again in the future. Only thing they need is a place to sit and wait for the car to be finished. read more

My only car shop is this one here!!!! Love love love how they fix it and fix it good!!! Won't ever take my car for fixes anywhere else!!!

Great place to take your car. I took it in after getting a bill of repair from Victory Toyota Dealership. The bill was originally 700 but Star Tune fixed up all the issues for a little less than half of it. The service was fast and now my car is running smoothly again. read more

Love finding good, honest local businesses like this. Although we weren't able to get everything done here, the owner said we knew of a place in town that could do it. He even volunteered to take it over there himself. We'll be back for sure... :) read more

Great service, super kind! Highly recommend! Took in my car the morning of and it was ready in just a couple of hours!

I like coming here for oil changed. They always take me right away and get right to work.

We have been having them service our vehicles for several years. The service and most of the the honesty is so important and we found both here and have remained. read more

Yoshi was recommended to me by coworkers. Great work for a great price. He's my new mechanic for sure. Definitely a trustworthy shop.

Ideally not worth a single star. Extremely unprofessional, don't do a complete car inspection. Wrapped up a car inspection in 10 mins however charged $60 (equivalent to 90 mins of thorough car inspection). It's scam!! Please avoid going here if you don't want to get looted. read more

Went to these guys to get a pre-purchase inspection on a car I was buying off of Craigslist. I was driving from SF so I needed to make arrangements by phone. Set up an appointment very quickly for the same day. Boy am I glad I went to them! The car was a complete lemon despite having a clean Carfax report. The frame was bent from an accident that went unreported. The mechanics were very sharp and spotted the repairs right away. The bent frame would have caused a ton of problems down the road. I'm very grateful to the team at this small little shop for saving me a big headache. Very courteous, professional, and efficient. If I lived anywhere in the area, I would definitely come back... read more

Absolutely love this shop!! My brother-in-law took his Toyota Truck to get fixed and the turn around was so quick and the truck is in the best shape of its life! Not to mention they were able to take my car in for an oil change last minute and provided such quick service!! I am beyond happy and glad my brother-in-law recommended this place! I commute from Santa Cruz and I'm in Salinas about every other week and will definitely be bringing my car to Star Tune! read more

Great place, and excellent service. Saved me a lot of money vs taking my car in to the dealer. The owner of this place is a nice guy. Took my car in w/ no appt and just remembered me from our conversation. Will definitely be coming back when my car needs service again. read more

I've worked on my own cars for years because it's hard to find a good trustworthy mechanic. I had an intermittent issue that I could not figure out. Some friends recommended this place. When I took my car in and described the issue, the two guys there said it would be best to take it to the dealership for a diagnostic since I did not have a check engine light coming on. The dealership could not find the problem either, and did not charge me anything (Nissan). It turned out to be bad gas causing a hard to start situation every once in a while. Fuel cleaner fixed it. I'm glad these guys didn't want to take my car and start changing parts like I always read about with other places. This gave me a sense of honesty and trust. I'll definitely go back when I come up with something that I can't do. Thanks guys! read more

An auto service place that I can trust. Fair, honest service. Reasonable rates. Easy to schedule appointments and get service done on time. I was referred there originally when I moved to the area by a fleet manger who sent their cars there for service. Always was taken care of and never felt cheated or had any problems and that's all you need from an auto repair shop. read more

We have been going to Star-Tune for many many years. Yo is one of a kind. He is the best!!!

Fair prices, and honest people. They do the job you asked for and tells you what other stuff your car needs without pushing you to do it right away. Last time I saw a police car getting worked done here, that must be a good sign... read more