If you are looking for a no frills shop with knowledgeable staff you should check them out. This was my second time using TC and they are starting to turn into my primary choice for any major work to be done on my beloved T100. Jeff spent some time with me in getting my long list of items to be looked at and i believe honestly gave his insight and opinion as to what they would look at and what would be replaced. When i picked it up they fixed/looked at everything i asked and even fixed a few minor things, just because. My truck now is safe and running good and i couldn't be happier. They might not be "budget" in price but were fair and the work was done solid, in my opinion. If you want a good place to take your Beloved Toyota Truck check them out. Dave read more

This place is a yota lovers dream. Imagine a guy who knows everything about your truck or suv and is willing to talk to you about it (that is if you can get his attention away from other inquiring customers). Call in the phone. Jeff is the guru, sheri answers the phone and is kind. Near the SJ airport the physical site is packed to the brim with crashed and parted yotas and all the inventory registry lives inside jeffs skull, so promptness can be an issue when Jeff is handling other tasks. Come here if you want a custom job, veteran advice, or are looking for a part that no one else will have. read more

Cool place with lots of stock, that being said, I have been waiting for a transmission that I paid for over several weeks ago... I was referred to Jeff by Four Wheel Parts in Oakland with a request to follow up with them with a review and recommendation. We are currently on the fence, depending on the next excuse. Here's what's happening: Jeff (owner) tells me to pick up transmission on a Monday, bring the core, done deal. Sunday I pull the core, take Monday off, drive from Pleasant Hill to Santa Clara with core get there and my new tranny is not there! Never mind that several calls were made in the previous weeks, Jeff assuring me that plans were solid, transmission is ready. My help is standing by to get the truck back together. Huge frustrating inconvenience.. Jeff says no problem, someone will take it to me Tuesday. I take Tuesday off, help is standing by... No call, no transmission. I call @ 2:00, Jeff says I'll call you right back. I call again @ 4:00. Here's what happened! " the tranny guys dog had to go to the vet". Jeff tells me to call and check in Saturday and remind him which I do and he assures me it will be on it's way to Pleasant Hill Monday morning @ 0900. I take the day off, call @ 1100 and am told to stand by and he will call me back. I call @ 1200 and am told that "damn if it's not ready, were assembling it right now!". I'm writing this as I hold my breath, help standing by, truck apart in the driveway for going on two weeks. To be fair, lots of great parts, and when I went there on Monday I picked up stock mirrors, pro comp helper springs, and an OEM cultch, all in stock, Jeff pulling the parts himself. Very knowledgable and friendly guy, just scheduling and commitment issues. read more

First off, I hate to make this review because they're all really nice people at Toy Connection. Well, accept for this one tall guy in his 40s who was really rude and desperately needs to learn the value of customer service. Everyone else there is really nice. Unfortunately, my experience with this shop was terrible. The first time I took my '02 Toyota 4Runner there it was for a 4wd issue. Long story short, both the t-case and front diff needed replacing. It took them about three weeks and I was set to go. Went on a little day trip that weekend to try out the 4wd to make sure everything was working properly. Nothing crazy like rock crawling. 10 minutes into a trail, on soft dirt, while giving it very little gas, the t-case, front diff, and passenger side front axle all blew. I took it back to Toy Connection. At first I thought that the good thing from their shop is that they give warranty on the parts they install. Or so I thought. This time around what was suppose to be two to three weeks took almost two months for a t-case, diff, and new axle. The secretary at Toy Connection, Sherry, would always tell me, and I quote, "in two or three days we'll be ready to go." That was every week that I called. Always called once a week to get a status update on my vehicle. During those two months, I would hear excuse after excuse after elaborate story of why they were lagging so much on fixing my vehicle. First excuse was that the shop where they get their parts from lied to Sherry and Jeff (he's the manager) when they had told Toy Connection for a week that they had the t-case ready for shipping. The next excuse was that Jeff was getting arm surgery and, out of at least 7 employees that I've seen there, there was nobody experienced enough to work on my transfer case replacements. Understandable, so I didn't make a big deal of it. The next excuse was that the guy who was finally going to fill in for Jeff to work on my truck was moving to a new place and wasn't gonna work on my truck like they told me he was gonna do. After all this, I wasn't even given the warranty they promised me on the t-case because the company they get their t-cases from "lied" to them, supposedly, when they said they had the t-case and ended up getting the t-case from somewhere else. So I still had to pay for another t-case in the end. Around the 7th-8th week I called, I spoke to Sherry and asked for an update on my 4Runner. When she realized who I was, her tone of voice was in "aw" because she though that I had picked up the truck a week before because, apparently, it was already finished and they forgot to call me. She gave me the whole "we're understaffed" excuse, but that showed me how unorganized that place is. I would've excused it if they hadn't already frustrated me with all the previous delays, excuses, and broken promise of warranty on the differential. Day of pickup. I get there around 1:00pm, dropped off by an Uber, and they keep me waiting about 40 minutes just to get my keys, pay for the t-case, and leave. Before I left I noticed the undercarriage of my truck was missing the skid plates. Had to wait another 20 minutes for that. I could've done it myself but they have the right size bolts, which they had to rummage throughout the shop to find. That same day I took it to get aligned at my local Big-O Tires. Turns out they couldn't align it because the front passenger wheel was completely loose and shaky as if the wheel hub baring was busted. I called Jeff and brought it to his attention and he told me to trailer it back to the shop (at my expense), but I pretty much had it with Toy Connection by then. Got the part I needed from AutoZone, got to work on replacing the wheel hub bearing, and come to find out that the axle, that Toy Connection installed, WAS-NOT-TIGHTENED-IN-AT-ALL! Thus, the shaky wheel. Nor were the sway bar end links and calipers. Loose nuts and bolts all around, basically. Maybe it was just bad luck, maybe I caught them in a bad time, but all in all my experience with Toy Connection is one of the worst experiences I've ever had at any mechanic shop. It's a shame too because almost all of them are really nice people. Hope they get their sh*t together one day. read more

Took my FJ there to fit a new after-market bumper, winch, lights, etc. Excellent work, done quickly and promptly, and lots of good advice about what products to use. These aren't factory parts, accurate to the width of a hair - they all require some old-style engineering, modification and so on to install, which Jeff and his crew did well and goodheartedly. For sure this isn't your Toyota dealer with spotless, epoxy-floored workshops and dedicated front-office staff. But those guys won't touch this kind of work, and wouldn't know how to do it. read more

I love these guys! Jeff always treats me with respect and if I don't know the details of what needs to be done; explains and answers my questions so that I can make an informed decision. I absolutely love my 1999 Toyota Four Runner and treat it like part of my family...yet it is also my commuter car; I drive it a lot and and it needs care and maintenance. They are great at letting me know costs and timing and are familiar with me and my truck from one visit to the next. Great service I can trust and solid workmanship! Thanks Jeff, Tom and the rest of the team, it is great to have a shop you can rely on! Every time (more than a dozen times, everything from a tune up to major engine rebuild) they have done work on my truck it has been excellent and my truck runs great! I have read the other reviews and I feel like I must respond... "The place is dirty and unorganized" - let's have some perspective people! This is not an organic day spa it is a truck dismantler/Toyota junk yard/Toyota repair shop. It is dirty work, they spend their time on tearing apart and repairing trucks and cars, not fancying up the shop. "Bad communication" - again, these guys are working on the trucks and cars, not waiting for the phone to ring. They do get back to you when they can but they are busy (because they are good and have a lot of business). Not to mention you ought to be proactive with any car shop you take your car to. Take the initiative, ask your questions, follow up -- they are busy repairing your truck/car right. If you still feel they are "sketchy" take your car to a day spa; I am sure you will be happier and so will the rest of us that want solid truck repairs not sunshine and glitter. read more

Been coming here for years. They have serviced a bunch of vehicles I've owned. 1st gen Tacoma TRD, 1st gen Tundra, two 1st gen IFS 4runners and 1 first gen 85 Pickup. This is the only place I take my Yota 4x4's that I trust to do solid work. Yes, they are slow and communication is lacking. Be prepared to wait for your truck to be completed if you take it in for repairs. If they say it will take 1 week, don't be surprised it takes 2 weeks. They are busy for a reason. See all those customer cars lined up outside in queue for their turn on the rack? It's backed up because we all know they do quality work and stand by their products. Learn to be patient and call every so often to check up on the status. read more

This place is great. If you have a Toyota truck that is in need of parts this is THE PLACE. The staff here is very helpful, and they have EVERYTHING. They probably have 100 Pickups, 4Runners, Tacomas (Taco's as they refer to them). I was able to transform my run down truck with a quick visit. Highly reccomended. read more

I can't believe the inventory these people carry. Everything you need. Be patient, and you will get what others need. Five stars all the way! The web site is garbage. read more

Jeff and his team just did an awesome job of replacing the rear bearing on my 4Runner, which was leaking all over my new brake pads. They were able to get my car in right away, give me a reasonable estimate, and then finish the job as discussed. Jeff even gave me a ride to/from the local Starbucks so I could catch up on work while my car was repaired. This is definitely the place to go if you have a Toyota and need service or parts. read more

This is my opinion about Toy Connection and it's Owner Jeff for all you looking to have work done on your Toyota or TACO. I purchased my truck locally down in the Monterey, CA area from a lot that sold trucks. It is a 2003 Tacoma SR5 Pre Runner with Supercharger and 99,900 miles. About 1,100 miles into my new truck the dreaded P0325 engine code came on retarding the timing and starving the Supercharger/Engine of power. I bought a code reader to find the KNOCK sensor problem and that the supercharger would need to be removed to fix the sensors and wiring most likely so I called the Dealer asked what happened and he told me to take it to Jeff at Toy Connection. Jeff told me a day after I dropped it off that he had to order the Supercharger Nose that I wanted replaced as it had 89K on it. Jeff learned he had to order the nose from from Magnuson as Toyota was not supporting them now and that Magnuson could now sell to him as Toyota not selling them. Jeff had my truck for about two weeks as Magnuson had to build it and ship it that was 1 week. Then Jeff Kindly put my truck right back in line to be fixed and was ready to pick up within 2 days after receiving the nose from Magnuson. When I picked up my truck you could tell that he had taken care of it the time it stayed there. I'd say that is pretty darn good service considering that Jeff was also involved in the Rubicon Adventure during that time. Anyone who has anything to say bad about his business either does not show any respect or even have a clue what they want done or need done to their truck and he will tell you the honest truth about your problem! Jeff is one of the most honest repair guy's I have met who has a passion for what he does and is very fair on price and I am very happy to meet him and that I was directed to him from the person I bought my TACO from. Enough said, Thanks so much Jeff and Chuck (Hope fire does not get you Chuck) and Happy 4-Wheeling! read more

I was referred to this place by a "friend" , brought it in with a transmission problem. This guy Jeff , never was able to get his last name, the owner told me that I would have to leave it. About three days went by before I was able to get a response. He told me that I needed a new tranny and that he could get a used one for about $1500 installed. I waited a few more days and decided that I better not wait any longer. I just did not get a good feeling about the place. Toy Connection is a junk yard and believe me its looks like one, they also do repairs on Toyota trucks. Most of the ones they were working on looked pretty well beat up. I would not advise anyone with a nice vehicle to bring it their Anyway back to the tranny, I told him that I could not wait any longer. I did not want to drive it that far so I took it to the closest place I could find, which was aamco about a mile away on El Camino. I dropped it off about 11am and they said they would check it out and get back to me. They called a few hours later and said that the transmission fluid was real dirty and it would need to be flushed and the filter changed. I never told them what the other guy said for fear that they would say the same thing just to get the business. I ended up paying $120. BTW the toy connect quote was if I paid cash and I never did get a receipt from the place when I left it those few days. read more

I bought a front differential from these guys when I broke a tooth in mine. Everything seemed fine, the guy working there switched the actuator (since it has an automatic disconnecting differential) off my old one to the one I just bought. When I installed the new one, i realized that the 4wd wouldn't engage, even though the light would come on when I shifted the transfer case to H4. I took it into my local shop to diagnose what was wrong, and I found out that the guy had installed the sleeve backwards, causing it to jam up inside the differential. Another $300 later my 4wd was working again, no thanks to them. read more

I bought a used 87 Toyota 4runner recently from Craigslist. It needed lot's of little things that would have been VERY expensive at the dealer and hard to find a the local pick and pull. I heard about Toy Connection from a forum and have been hooked ever since. The best thing to do is go there in person. Jeff the owner(I think) is always very helpful and friendly. You can tell he really loves helping people keep these trucks going. Since I don't know anyone else with a truck like this I always end up asking some detailed questions and Jeff is very knowledgeable and happy to answer them every time....even the "how do I put this part on"....type of questions. My only wish was that there were two Jeff's there as some times his time can be a bit divided when trying to help all the customers get the right parts. The prices are very fair so do them a favor and don't haggle on the price. We need to keep a business like this around. As they are pretty much the only place like this around that specializes in these kind trucks / 4runners they are pretty busy....especially their phone. So try to figure out exactly what you are asking for before calling so as to make it easier for them to help you....then speak slow, loud and clear =). read more